If you are a science nerd, it is quite impossible to not like and not relate to the show. The Big Bang Theory is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro. All three also served as head writers. The show premiered on CBS on September 24, 2007 and concluded on May 16,2019 , having broadcasted a total of 279 episodes over 12 seasons. It got a rate of 8.1 on IMDb and 82% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The Big Bang Theory is known to be compared with top-ranking sitcoms like F.R.I.E.N.D.S and Game of Thrones and is popular for the diverse representation of various communities like Indians and Jew. The geeky nerdy sections are not really famous and are considered boring and this series broke the stereotypes and myths and prepared with sprinkles of humor and sarcasm. Most people think that such nerds don’t have a “life” and spend time buried under books and avoid the “cool” things which are apparently not true. So manifesting this group of people, picturing their ‘not-so-boring’ life and bringing out the bright side and getting some people to not be embarrassed for loving science more than anything else. The quality of a TV show isn’t based on what advanced technologies are used but based on what the audience feels about it. One cannot simply expect a TV show to run for 12 seasons if it’s not nice.
The show talks about a mixed peer group, with different interests and ambitions in life. With a backdrop in California, the series deals with the story of Leonard and Sheldon, both physicists at Caltech; Penny, a waitress and an aspiring actress; Howard, an aerospace engineer; astrophysicist Raj; Amy, a neuroscientist; Bernadette, microbiologist; and Leslie, a physicist. Just like any regular friends’ circle, all of them have different pasts and goes through peaks and bottoms, but always are there for each other. The nerdy guys work on individual projects, play video games, watch scientific movies, read comic books and acknowledges each other’s traditions and communities. As they are self-professed nerds, all have little or no luck with women. When Penny moves into an apartment across the hall, Leonard starts liking her and aspires to be her boyfriend since day one.
Like any other great sitcoms, The Big Bang Theory imparts a lot of messages. One of the predominant themes is the nerdy science side of life. As the name of the show suggests, the series focuses on science (of course you know it by now) and the funny part is that they rant about scientific theories and it is not even non-boring. The non-science people actually get them. In fact it feels like science literally controls their lives and determines the future of the relationships. Like when Leslie broke up with Leonard when he sides with Sheldon in his support for string theory rather than the quantum gravity, or when Bernadette takes an interest in Leonard’s work, it makes both Penny and Howard envious and results in Howard confronting Leonard, and Penny asking Sheldon to teach her physics.
We also get a reference about other science fiction such as Star Trek, and Sheldon seems to strongly relate with the character of Spook since he was a kid, as in Young Sheldon. Star Trek stars William Shatner and George Takei, Leonard Nimoy, and Will Wheaton. Other shows like Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, and Doctor Who are also mentioned highly. Their fandoms can be seen when Sheldon received a used napkin signed by Leonard Nimoy as a Christmas gift from Penny and he screamed “I possess the DNA of Leonard Nimoy“, or when Howard complains about the delay in watching Star Wars and says “If we don’t start soon, George Lucas is going to change it again” (referring to Lucas’s controversial alternations to the films).
The sci-fi sitcom throws limelight on relationships as well such as that of Leonard and Penny and Sheldon and Amy. Leonard and Penny’s relationship goes through rough times like long-distance relationships and misunderstandings. It takes a great time for Penny to figure out her love for Leonard, and eventually gets married. Similarly, Sheldon’s online date Amy has a history of social ineptitude and participates in online dating only to fulfill an agreement with her mother. Though their relationship was unusual, with a silly contract and rules and a secret for a long time and takes time to bloom.
The Big Bang Theory will be streaming on HBO Max soon. All the episodes will be available. Speaking about episodes, do you know that there was a second pilot produced for the show but never got aired, with a set of different casts? The structure of the original unaired pilot was different from the series’ current form.
One would be surprised to know that Jim Parsons, played the role of Sheldon isn’t such a nerd in real life and is not even familiar with Doctor Who and Star Trek. He pulled off the character so well that it is pretty unbelievable. Also, Mayim Bialik, the one who acted out Any is the only cast member with an actual science background with a Ph.D. in neuroscience. Each episode is named after a scientific theory, quite natural for such kind of a series. Do you know that Johnny Galecki was initially approached for the role of Sheldon Cooper. He once said in an interview:
“Initially, before there was even a script, Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady came to me with the idea of playing Jim Parsons’s character Sheldon. This is the long before they had met Jim and before anything was even written. They sent me a few pages to the theatre I was working in New York, and I read it, and I thought I am much more drawn to this Leonard role because of the dynamic part.”
Alongside Parsons, Bialik, and Galecki, Kaley Cuoco plays as Penny, Simon Helberg as Howard, Kunal Nayyar as Raj and Melissa Rauch as Bernadette.
The show over the span of years gathered a lot of popularity and fanbase and in 2009, won the best comedy series TCA award and Jim won the award for individual achievement in comedy. 2010 was the lucky year since it brought the People’s Choice Award for Favourite Comedy and Emmy Award. Our Sheldon also won the Golden Globe and Emmy.