03-27-2015, 02:18 AM
PJ, you never got back to me in the grumble box about posting here. I take it I'm to just stick to the episode in question as opposed to talking about any context to the series? To be safe I just stuck to the former.
This episode for me is the true starting point for the show because all of the characters are on their way to becoming true to form. Penny with her (justifiably) firecracker temper who then later realizes that Sheldon (particularly Sheldon!) and Leonard aren't typical guys and shouldn't be treated as such. Leonard with his 'why me?' vulnerability and loyalty to his off-center roommate and Sheldon being his anal retentive self. And how can we forget conceited! 'I have no peers.' Just awesome!
What I loved were the differing dynamics between how Leonard sees/deals with Sheldon and how the rest of the world does via Penny's point of view. Leonard knew that cleaning Penny's apartment was insane (and illegal) but decided to assist Sheldon--and that's what I love about Leonard in the first season. His submission is not a weakness on his part; he knew there was no logical way to get Sheldon out of the apartment so he might as well ensure that the job gets done quickly--and hopefully without the involvement of the police! He could have just left Sheldon there but he doesn't. He won't abandon his friend, even in the midst of lunacy.
It made me wonder what else Leonard had done over the previous two years of knowing Sheldon, what other 'crazy', illegal activities had the singer of classical music to lima beans committed with his whackadoodle roommate? As much as Sheldon's idiosyncrasies provide humour for the audience I'm quite sure there's at least a part of Leonard that gets a kick out of it, all exasperation aside. There's a warmth to their relationship because he understands Sheldon more than any person on the planet besides Mary Cooper.
Penny's reaction to the violation is normal--but this is where normal comes face to face with the paradigm of Sheldon Cooper which is more concerned with order than legality. Penny's jaw drops, her anger becomes disbelief, at Sheldon's inquiry into her outrage: was her objection solely to their presence in the apartment while she was sleeping or was it merely an imposition of a new organisational paradigm? We know which one weighs more heavily in Sheldon's world. The other requires a discussion with his roommate.
This episode allowed us access into Sheldon's world (and Leonard's suffering one) but more importantly it showed us how Penny's world alters. In the real world, intruders are burglars and rapists, She realizes that in the world of 4A intruders can also be heroes combating a messy apartment. She realizes that Sheldon and Leonard aren't jerks and that they really did mean well. They're not threatening, Even Leonard, for all his 'liking' of Penny, is only there to get his roommate out of there as soon as possible. Her confirmation that the guys are 'different, but okay' comes at the end when the guys are preparing to assemble her shelf. Suggesting she'd take off all her clothes didn't even get a blink out of the gang. They're there to help *her* not help themselves *to* her. While it might be weird, perhaps endearing, to Penny I'm sure it was also refreshing.
This episode for me is the true starting point for the show because all of the characters are on their way to becoming true to form. Penny with her (justifiably) firecracker temper who then later realizes that Sheldon (particularly Sheldon!) and Leonard aren't typical guys and shouldn't be treated as such. Leonard with his 'why me?' vulnerability and loyalty to his off-center roommate and Sheldon being his anal retentive self. And how can we forget conceited! 'I have no peers.' Just awesome!
What I loved were the differing dynamics between how Leonard sees/deals with Sheldon and how the rest of the world does via Penny's point of view. Leonard knew that cleaning Penny's apartment was insane (and illegal) but decided to assist Sheldon--and that's what I love about Leonard in the first season. His submission is not a weakness on his part; he knew there was no logical way to get Sheldon out of the apartment so he might as well ensure that the job gets done quickly--and hopefully without the involvement of the police! He could have just left Sheldon there but he doesn't. He won't abandon his friend, even in the midst of lunacy.
It made me wonder what else Leonard had done over the previous two years of knowing Sheldon, what other 'crazy', illegal activities had the singer of classical music to lima beans committed with his whackadoodle roommate? As much as Sheldon's idiosyncrasies provide humour for the audience I'm quite sure there's at least a part of Leonard that gets a kick out of it, all exasperation aside. There's a warmth to their relationship because he understands Sheldon more than any person on the planet besides Mary Cooper.
Penny's reaction to the violation is normal--but this is where normal comes face to face with the paradigm of Sheldon Cooper which is more concerned with order than legality. Penny's jaw drops, her anger becomes disbelief, at Sheldon's inquiry into her outrage: was her objection solely to their presence in the apartment while she was sleeping or was it merely an imposition of a new organisational paradigm? We know which one weighs more heavily in Sheldon's world. The other requires a discussion with his roommate.
This episode allowed us access into Sheldon's world (and Leonard's suffering one) but more importantly it showed us how Penny's world alters. In the real world, intruders are burglars and rapists, She realizes that in the world of 4A intruders can also be heroes combating a messy apartment. She realizes that Sheldon and Leonard aren't jerks and that they really did mean well. They're not threatening, Even Leonard, for all his 'liking' of Penny, is only there to get his roommate out of there as soon as possible. Her confirmation that the guys are 'different, but okay' comes at the end when the guys are preparing to assemble her shelf. Suggesting she'd take off all her clothes didn't even get a blink out of the gang. They're there to help *her* not help themselves *to* her. While it might be weird, perhaps endearing, to Penny I'm sure it was also refreshing.
Let's go exploring!