09-25-2015, 05:11 AM
Okay, correct me if I've gotten the details or the time-line wrong, because there are large chunks of S3 that I've only watched once. But here are some reasons why, IMO, the H/B relationship was a negative from the very start, and it's NOT a case of "this ship used to be sweet and cute and then it turned sour."
In "The Vengeance Formulation", H. makes the mistake of asking B. to marry him and then makes a big to-do of singing to her at the Cheesecake Factory. (Ugh, singing.) Okay, fair enough, he made the mistake of being over-eager. But she *asked* him about the status of their relationship...and that's just THREE episodes after they first met. Who asks "What is the status of this relationship?" after knowing each other for perhaps a few weeks? Does time in the BBT-verse move faster than time IRL? How much time do those three episodes represent, in-universe? Nowadays the show seems to be operating in real time. So, again, I'm guessing H and B had known each other for maybe a month or less, at that point. Maybe two months, at the outside. And they're supposed to be having conversations about "where is this going"?? Also, I think the CCF scene is cringey and OOC. Funny on the surface, maybe, not when you really think about the context.
Twelve episodes later, in "Plimpton", we're told that "H and B broke up weeks ago." Again, we don't know how time operates in BBT-verse, but Vengeance aired in November and Plimpton aired in May, so H and B had known each other for perhaps 6 months.
Then, in S4, The Bitch is Back™. In Hot Troll Deviation, we're told why H and B broke up. If H and B have known each other for perhaps nine months to one year, at this point, it's arguable that they've broken up two or three times already, if you count their various tiffs, like when H. was jealous of Leonard.
(excuse me while I laugh until I puke at the thought of Fabulous Howard Wolowitz, my cutie pie, being envious of someone like Leonard.)
Imaginary Katee Sackhoff™ tells H. that's he's ignoring and neglecting B. A few months earlier, (Vengeance) we were told that he's moving too fast and being over-eager. So, WHAT exactly was the poor guy supposed to do? Exactly WHEN was this relationship supposed to become serious? In Vengeance, it's too soon, but in Hot Troll it's implied that he's being flaky and commitment-phobic. And he's known her for perhaps one year at the very most, at this point, assuming that one season equals one year of RL time. And she hasn't appeared in every episode, so apparently they don't spend tons of time together, and they've already broken up twice, and all of their interactions seem to consist of a fight or misunderstanding or conflict of some kind. In Vengeance he's too clingy, and we're again told that he's too clingy in Gorilla Experiment, but in Hot Troll we're told that he's not committed ENOUGH???
To summarize:
1. B seems very fond of asking for a State of the Union Address about "where is this relationship going"?? This happens at least twice, when she and H have been dating for less than one season. But *he's* the clingy one.
2. In Vengeance and Gorilla, we're told that he's moving too fast, but by the time of Plimpton, they've broken up because he WASN'T solely and fully committed to her.
3. In Stag Night (boo, hiss) Bernadette is SHOCKED, SHOCKED, I TELL YOU that Howard likes to engage in some slightly unusual sexual behaviors, but that's *exactly* the type of behavior that caused her to break up with him in late Season 3, according to Hot Troll. After dating this guy for THREE years, she does not know him. She apparently knows nothing about his personal standards of behavior, his values/morals, his habits and pastimes or his sexual history.
4. The message of Hot Troll is that Howard needs to make a commitment to Bernadette. At this point, he has known this person for perhaps nine months to one year, and they've been dating off and on, not continuously. The progression of this relationship has not been steady and stable. Rather, their every encounter seems to consist of B. informing H. that he unknowingly did something wrong. It's a viable theory that they've been apart for as much time as they've been together, since their first meeting in CCC.
5. The theme of this ship, from Day 1, has been "Howard is always wrong, no matter what he does."
6. This ship and this character have always sucked. There is no "good Bernadette from Season 3." This ship has always been LOADED with mixed messages and double standards, and the takeaway is that you're supposed to instantly commit yourself to someone you've known for a few months. Bernadette has ALWAYS wanted this relationship to happen *on her terms*, and she has ALWAYS tried to influence, alter, or control Howard's behavior and his decisions. She's apparently got a mental time-line of how a relationship ought to progress, which she refuses to tell him about, because he's always either too early or too late, seemingly.
7. H and B don't know each other at all, they don't communicate, they have *never* communicated, and B. expects H. to read her mind, or else he's in trouble.
8. B. can see that H. is a socially awkward guy, but then acts surprised when he doesn't always behave in a conventional manner or make the right decisions, or intuitively know what she wants and when she wants it and how she expects him to behave. This ship is one big game of "Gotcha!" where Bernadette passively waits for Howard to make a mistake and then gets angry about it, instead of *telling* him what she wants, or **communicating** about the situation.
8. They got married without ever having a conversation about what their personal expectations are or what their definition of a relationship is.
9. This is SO FUCKED UP, from the very, very start.
Stuff like this is why, I, personally, cannot consider Season 3 to be fully Vintage. "My" BBT ends before the introduction of B. There is no "This ship was nice at first." No, it was always full of bizarre double standards and bizarre ideas about how and when a relationship is supposed to proceed.
Remember, children: marry the very first person who crosses your path, but don't act too excited about it, because that's dorky.
It is literally impossible to live up to TPTB's standards of "correct" behavior.
In "The Vengeance Formulation", H. makes the mistake of asking B. to marry him and then makes a big to-do of singing to her at the Cheesecake Factory. (Ugh, singing.) Okay, fair enough, he made the mistake of being over-eager. But she *asked* him about the status of their relationship...and that's just THREE episodes after they first met. Who asks "What is the status of this relationship?" after knowing each other for perhaps a few weeks? Does time in the BBT-verse move faster than time IRL? How much time do those three episodes represent, in-universe? Nowadays the show seems to be operating in real time. So, again, I'm guessing H and B had known each other for maybe a month or less, at that point. Maybe two months, at the outside. And they're supposed to be having conversations about "where is this going"?? Also, I think the CCF scene is cringey and OOC. Funny on the surface, maybe, not when you really think about the context.
Twelve episodes later, in "Plimpton", we're told that "H and B broke up weeks ago." Again, we don't know how time operates in BBT-verse, but Vengeance aired in November and Plimpton aired in May, so H and B had known each other for perhaps 6 months.
Then, in S4, The Bitch is Back™. In Hot Troll Deviation, we're told why H and B broke up. If H and B have known each other for perhaps nine months to one year, at this point, it's arguable that they've broken up two or three times already, if you count their various tiffs, like when H. was jealous of Leonard.
(excuse me while I laugh until I puke at the thought of Fabulous Howard Wolowitz, my cutie pie, being envious of someone like Leonard.)
Imaginary Katee Sackhoff™ tells H. that's he's ignoring and neglecting B. A few months earlier, (Vengeance) we were told that he's moving too fast and being over-eager. So, WHAT exactly was the poor guy supposed to do? Exactly WHEN was this relationship supposed to become serious? In Vengeance, it's too soon, but in Hot Troll it's implied that he's being flaky and commitment-phobic. And he's known her for perhaps one year at the very most, at this point, assuming that one season equals one year of RL time. And she hasn't appeared in every episode, so apparently they don't spend tons of time together, and they've already broken up twice, and all of their interactions seem to consist of a fight or misunderstanding or conflict of some kind. In Vengeance he's too clingy, and we're again told that he's too clingy in Gorilla Experiment, but in Hot Troll we're told that he's not committed ENOUGH???
To summarize:
1. B seems very fond of asking for a State of the Union Address about "where is this relationship going"?? This happens at least twice, when she and H have been dating for less than one season. But *he's* the clingy one.
2. In Vengeance and Gorilla, we're told that he's moving too fast, but by the time of Plimpton, they've broken up because he WASN'T solely and fully committed to her.
3. In Stag Night (boo, hiss) Bernadette is SHOCKED, SHOCKED, I TELL YOU that Howard likes to engage in some slightly unusual sexual behaviors, but that's *exactly* the type of behavior that caused her to break up with him in late Season 3, according to Hot Troll. After dating this guy for THREE years, she does not know him. She apparently knows nothing about his personal standards of behavior, his values/morals, his habits and pastimes or his sexual history.
4. The message of Hot Troll is that Howard needs to make a commitment to Bernadette. At this point, he has known this person for perhaps nine months to one year, and they've been dating off and on, not continuously. The progression of this relationship has not been steady and stable. Rather, their every encounter seems to consist of B. informing H. that he unknowingly did something wrong. It's a viable theory that they've been apart for as much time as they've been together, since their first meeting in CCC.
5. The theme of this ship, from Day 1, has been "Howard is always wrong, no matter what he does."
6. This ship and this character have always sucked. There is no "good Bernadette from Season 3." This ship has always been LOADED with mixed messages and double standards, and the takeaway is that you're supposed to instantly commit yourself to someone you've known for a few months. Bernadette has ALWAYS wanted this relationship to happen *on her terms*, and she has ALWAYS tried to influence, alter, or control Howard's behavior and his decisions. She's apparently got a mental time-line of how a relationship ought to progress, which she refuses to tell him about, because he's always either too early or too late, seemingly.
7. H and B don't know each other at all, they don't communicate, they have *never* communicated, and B. expects H. to read her mind, or else he's in trouble.
8. B. can see that H. is a socially awkward guy, but then acts surprised when he doesn't always behave in a conventional manner or make the right decisions, or intuitively know what she wants and when she wants it and how she expects him to behave. This ship is one big game of "Gotcha!" where Bernadette passively waits for Howard to make a mistake and then gets angry about it, instead of *telling* him what she wants, or **communicating** about the situation.
8. They got married without ever having a conversation about what their personal expectations are or what their definition of a relationship is.
9. This is SO FUCKED UP, from the very, very start.
Stuff like this is why, I, personally, cannot consider Season 3 to be fully Vintage. "My" BBT ends before the introduction of B. There is no "This ship was nice at first." No, it was always full of bizarre double standards and bizarre ideas about how and when a relationship is supposed to proceed.
Remember, children: marry the very first person who crosses your path, but don't act too excited about it, because that's dorky.
It is literally impossible to live up to TPTB's standards of "correct" behavior.