10-22-2014, 07:51 AM
Quote:As far as the pay aspect goes, I take it with a grain of salt just like I did with Penny being able to afford a decent sized apartment, in Pasadena no less, on a 'waitress with a shoe habit' income. I do agree that it's out there that someone with Howard's accolades (and connections since he knows a lot of guys Rolleyes ) is being out-earned by a microbiologist. It could be a way to quiet the viewers that are calling for more "girl-power" roles. If that's the case, TPTB is going about it the wrong way.
I can suspend a fair bit of disbelief for a sitcom; the problem is that this is just another example of "the women are wise and competent, the men are childish and dumb." Early-seasons Howard has his issues, but he was never shown to be irresponsible about simple everyday things, and he's arguably the most practical of the four guys. That's kind of the whole point of his character; the others are theorists and he's more down to earth.
I don't object to the idea of a woman making more money than a man; I object to the dumbing-down of the characters and the portrayal of the guys as helpless and incompetent and useless...
The idea that a freaking *aerospace engineer* is a low-level job, or that Penny could be become a pharmaceutical rep overnight, is just sooooo ludicrously divorced from reality that it makes this show lose *any* kind of credibility.
This is just another way to punish and humiliate Howard and fuel these oh-so-hilarious "bitchy wife, dumb husband" storylines.
Howard would not spend $5,000 on something that doesn't work. He just wouldn't.
I find the "Penny's apartment" thing *slightly* more believable because I recognize it's a plot device so that she can meet and interact with Leonard and Sheldon. I'm willing to suspend disbelief for that type of thing. (Although, IMO it might've been funny, and more realistic, if she had a roommate or two. That could open up some good possibilities for stories.) She was shown borrowing money from S and L, more than once, so it's pretty clear she *can't* really afford that apartment and she's barely scraping by.
The idea that *engineering* is a low-paid menial job, is so wildly, crazily unrealistic that at this point they might as well put unicorns and dragons and Orcs in this show.
It's a kindergartener's view of the working world. It's like when you ask a kid "What do you want to be when you grow up?" and they say "fireman" or "astronaut", without having any idea what that really means....
Howard (and sometimes Sheldon) is the scapegoat. That's what this is about.
Nobody on this show, except possibly Penny, should be fretting about money or acting like they're poor. This show acts like the characters are choosing to buy comic books instead of food and living paycheck to paycheck. It's just way, way, waaaaayyyy beyond the scope of reasonable believability.
It shows the writers don't give a shit. They know their audience are stupid and ignorant, so they don't try to rise above that.