11-13-2014, 09:53 AM
Re: our conversation in the chat box, IMO the reason the show no longer works can be summed up in just three or four points, which can then be whittled down to just two:
1. There are too many characters, and the addition of A & B disrupts the dynamic of the original five, whether as a whole or in its sub-groupings: Sheldon with Penny, Howard with Raj, the four guys together, etc.
2. The pairings have become the focus. This is really just a side-effect of #1. The pairings have divided, disrupted, and supplanted the original groupings and friendships.
3. The humor is cruel and consists of humiliating the characters rather than rooting for them.
4. Introduction of overly heavy themes and soapy drama.
So, this can really be whittled down to just two points:
1. The addition of A & B disrupts everything. It has been a disaster without any upside or points in its favor, that I can see.
2. Light and witty humor replaced with crude humor and melodrama.
Anything else you could mention is just a sub-heading of those two core points, IMO. Whether #2 would've happened without #1, I have no idea. The structurally disjointed nature of the episodes (short scenes, too many plots in 22 minutes) are a result of #1: too many characters.
The message that nerds need to stop being nerds is tied to both #1 and #2. A & B are supposedly scientists, but they're not geeks, so their introduction can have no purpose except to move the show (and the guys) away from those themes. We already had Penny as a "mainstream" person to contrast with the guys, so that's not A&B's purpose, and we already had other scientists, like Leslie and Kripke, so that's not their purpose, either. Their sole purpose is to create pairings and thus move the focus to typical romcom humor.
Every problem loops back to these two issues. I hope this is helpful; I'm trying to be objective.
1. There are too many characters, and the addition of A & B disrupts the dynamic of the original five, whether as a whole or in its sub-groupings: Sheldon with Penny, Howard with Raj, the four guys together, etc.
2. The pairings have become the focus. This is really just a side-effect of #1. The pairings have divided, disrupted, and supplanted the original groupings and friendships.
3. The humor is cruel and consists of humiliating the characters rather than rooting for them.
4. Introduction of overly heavy themes and soapy drama.
So, this can really be whittled down to just two points:
1. The addition of A & B disrupts everything. It has been a disaster without any upside or points in its favor, that I can see.
2. Light and witty humor replaced with crude humor and melodrama.
Anything else you could mention is just a sub-heading of those two core points, IMO. Whether #2 would've happened without #1, I have no idea. The structurally disjointed nature of the episodes (short scenes, too many plots in 22 minutes) are a result of #1: too many characters.
The message that nerds need to stop being nerds is tied to both #1 and #2. A & B are supposedly scientists, but they're not geeks, so their introduction can have no purpose except to move the show (and the guys) away from those themes. We already had Penny as a "mainstream" person to contrast with the guys, so that's not A&B's purpose, and we already had other scientists, like Leslie and Kripke, so that's not their purpose, either. Their sole purpose is to create pairings and thus move the focus to typical romcom humor.
Every problem loops back to these two issues. I hope this is helpful; I'm trying to be objective.