Big Bang Theory Examines Love Like a Software Program

The Penny and Leonard Reunion didn’t exactly go smoothly

The Leonard and Penny Reunion Experiment on Big Bang Theory

When last we left off, Penny (Kaley Cuoco) and Leonard (Johnny Galecki) were thinking about getting back together, albeit with a rude interruption of an ill-conceived dream episode. But everyone is back in the real world in Thursday’s (Jan. 26) episode of The Big Bang Theory. So how did they do?

[Spoiler Alert]

The former lovers look to give it another shot, but with out all the drama and criticism they experienced the first time around. Being the dork that he is, Leonard decides that the best solution to working through any potential problems is to treat their relationship like a software development project. So when things go wrong, and they most certainly will, they each put together a “bug list” of things they’d like to see the other fix.

This is a perfectly reasonable idea…up until the point that Penny realizes that she’s dealing with Leonard. His first attempt results in a multi-page, color-coded list of items he wants her to change. This nearly quashes things before they even have a chance to get started. But it ends on a good note and there might be a future for the one-time lovebirds.

In related romance news, Raj (Kunal Nayyar) finds a new flame, his telephone. The never lucky-in-love doctor gets an iPhone and can’t get enough of the Siri voice recognition app. This feeds into the best jokes of the night, courtesy of Howard.

“There’s finally a woman in your life you can talk to,” he says to the frequently tongue-tied Raj. After Raj walks away, a prescient Howard (Simon Helberg) adds, “She is going to break his heart.”

Their “relationship” advances to the point that Bernadette (Melissa Rauch) fears whether Raj is losing it. And it’s obvious that he has.

As for Sheldon (Jim Parsons), he and Amy (Mayim Bialik) look to make the least interesting YouTube video ever. And they barely succeed.

While this week’s episode was a marked improvement over the dream debacle of last week, “The Big Bang Theory” looks like it could use a little re-engineering. The biggest complaint is how little the series is now using its biggest (and reportedly highest-paid) star Jim Parsons. He’s been relegated to a lesser role, and one that doesn’t take advantage of the friction between Sheldon and Penny. Parsons is far too talented to simply be stuck with an inconsequential storyline.

On a scale of 1-to-Pi, Thursday’s episode was equal to the number of pounds in a kilogram – 2.2.