12-02-2014, 03:05 PM
Quote:A person whose superior intellect has zero application beyond the confines of the university where he works and/or his private study given that he can't do something simple such as not run into a door when the lights go out, or much less, open that door.
I think this is what's behind the dumbing-down of the characters. It's the "absent-minded professor" trope taken to extremes: we've gone from "the guys are awkward in certain social situations" to "the guys can't perform the basic functions of everyday life without help, or without external pressure."
Sheldon (and the others) aren't supposed to be Rain Man. I've mentioned this before, but the idea that their skills don't transfer to other areas of life is troubling.
I'm sure there *are* some people in the world with a really huge gulf between their academic skills and their life-skills, but I don't think these characters were ever meant to be *that* extreme.
Yes, they all have problems and neuroses, maybe even serious ones, but I'd argue that the only one whose problems had reached a truly *disabling* level is Raj, with the mutism.
I got the impression that they were naive, not that they were totally hopeless at everyday life, or incapable of being shrewd when the situation called for it.
As usual, it's sour grapes and anti-intellectualism: "these geniuses are actually total idiots at everything except for one very narrow and completely theoretical area of knowledge, which nobody cares about, anyway. So, they're really no smarter than the rest of us, and maybe even worse." It's a nasty type of populism.
Combine this Idiot Savant trope with the Dumb Sitcom Husband/Boyfriend trope, and you've got a perfect storm.
Quote:I feel they've done the same thing with the romance. There's an occasional effort to keep Sheldon's reactions "Sheldony" (aside from when he starts dribbling out some fanfiction dialogue), but they're battling against the inherent character "wrongness" of Sheldon, who worked perfectly in his independence, being in a relationship at all. And moreover, choosing a type of relationship (tepid, disinterested and one-sided for over two years) that doesn't suit his obsessional nature. It makes no sense for someone so flagrantly passionate about such a variety of things to be so indifferent in love. Makes no sense and is very dull to watch.
Incidentally, they can't just make it passionate NOW after 3 years. That's trying to have it both ways, and is artistically dishonest.
I note that they've rebooted Amy's character back to Season 5 Amy. This chopping and changing doesn't help either.
This is a key point. That's all I have to say.