In the beginning was the Big Bang, followed by drooling autotrophs, dinosaurs, pyramids, and, finally, The Big Bang Theory. The premise was simple: four geeks – two physicists, Leonard (Johnny Galecki) and Sheldon (Jim Parsons), an aerospace engineer, Howard (Simon Helberg), and Raj (Kunal Nayyar), an astrophysicist – hang out, talk about comics and “nerd” culture. One of them tries to woo Penny (Kaley Cuoco), the pretty young blonde in the apartment across the way, and hilarity ensues. The series succeeded wildly, but like any successful series, storylines began to get tired and borderline repetitive, so two new recurring love interests were added: Amy Farrah-Fowler (Mayim Bialik) and Bernadette Rostenkowski (Melissa Rauch). Three years after the series’ premiere, they became a main part of the series, changing the winning formula The Big Bang Theory had into something even better.
‘The Big Bang Theory’s Winning Formula Started To Get Tired
The Big Bang Theory succeeded from the start thanks to a winning cast, led by Parsons’ brilliant, quirky, and socially-awkward (to put it nicely) Sheldon. The four protagonists had chemistry, and their idiosyncrasies played off of one another perfectly. Each were brilliant in their fields, but almost child-like in their approaches to the world. There were repeated trips to the comic book store, arguments about which superheroes were best, pop-culture references, and situations that were largely unique in the genre. How else do you describe an episode that involves a trip to the hospital because a robot hand has a grip on Howard’s “little Howie” (“The Robotic Manipulation”), or the creation of a “Mobile Virtual Presence Device” (MVPD) to allow Sheldon to carry on life on the outside while he stays safe and secure within the confines of his room (“The Cruciferous Vegetable Amplification”).
Penny, on the other hand, was very much the opposite, and what she lacked in education she more than made up for in street smarts. That made for a winning, and very funny, battle of personalities between Sheldon’s rigidity and Penny’s free-spirited nature. The developing relationship between Penny and Leonard, meanwhile, provided the “will they/won’t they” element that is part and parcel of the genre in general, yet the two very different worlds they lived in provided a real root-for-the-underdog vibe.
The problem was, there’s only so much you can do with that formula, and it’s a credit to the writers that they made it work as long as they did. But, The Big Bang Theory was growing tiresome, particularly with the character’s lack of any depth to speak of. With the exception of Leonard and Penny, whose interactions provided deeper insights, the others were one-dimensional: Raj couldn’t speak to women without having a drink, Sheldon had obsessive-compulsive quirks with an air of superiority, and Howard was a horndog. Something had to change, and it did — only slowly at first.
‘The Big Bang Theory’ Introduced Amy Farrah-Fowler and Bernadette Rostenkowski
Bernadette was introduced in “The Creepy Candy Coating Corollary,” the fifth episode of Season 3. In the episode, Leonard and Penny have started dating, and so Howard brings up their “Girlfriend Pact.” In essence, if either one begins dating a hot girl, they would have to have said hot girl find a date for the other. Leonard can’t remember making such a pact, but Sheldon’s eidetic memory backs up Howard’s claim (June 30, 2004, opening day of Spider-Man 2), to which Leonard confesses he remembers, but only agreed because he never thought he’d have a hot girlfriend, and was pretty positive Howard never would.
Leonard brings it up to Penny, killing their amorous activities instantly. He tries to convince her that, deep inside, Howard’s a nice guy, to which Penny replies, “The problem isn’t what is on the inside. It’s the creepy candy coating.” Nevertheless, she agrees, and sets up a double-date with Leonard and herself, and Howard and his blind date. It turns out to be Bernadette Rostenkowski, a co-worker at the Cheesecake Factory, who’s earning money to pay for her tuition at grad school, majoring in microbiology. She doesn’t get his jokes, shares no common interests, but they find common ground when talk turns to their crazy mothers, and — boom — Penny’s a matchmaker of immense talent.
Amy, on the other hand, was introduced in the Season 3 finale, “The Lunar Excitation.” As a lark, Raj suggests they create an online dating profile for Sheldon, so he and Howard formulate the profile together, answering the setup questions as Sheldon would. They are stunned when the dating site actually finds a match, and they reply with an email, to which Sheldon’s perfect match, Amy Farrah-Fowler, wants to meet him.
Their bluff has been called, so they tell Sheldon the truth. He thinks the whole idea is, and I quote, “pure hokum,” and refuses to go. They try to reason, but ultimately Raj simply tells him that there’s a dirty sock somewhere in the apartment, and he won’t tell him where it is unless Sheldon comes along. They meet Amy at a coffee shop, who informs him that she agreed to date once a year just to keep her mother off her back. That sparks an initial connection, and as they talk they discover they share an aversion to soiled hosiery, and all forms of physical contact up to, and including, coitus. Sheldon offers to buy her a beverage and they step up to the counter, together, forcing Howard to say, “Good God, what have we done?”
Bernadette and Amy Became Full-Time Characters on ‘The Big Bang Theory’
Bernadette and Amy would go on to become recurring characters throughout Season 4, before ultimately becoming series regulars. The formula of the series had already begun changing over that time, and with their full-time status assured, that winning formula was changed for the better. Initially, their presence on the show proved to be a godsend as far as storylines were concerned, expanding the possibilities beyond the typical conversations the boys typically had. More importantly, it stirred changes in the three stagnant characters, with Raj finally able to speak to women, Sheldon caring for someone beyond himself, and Howard losing the horniness that was becoming (if it wasn’t already), off-putting, and maturing into a decent, good, and much deeper, person.
It also provided a more plausible reason for Penny to stick around. The idea that a beautiful, young free-spirit, regardless of her feelings for Leonard, would give up nights and weekends to hang out with four nerds was already a preposterous notion to begin with. Again, thanks to the writers, they made subtle changes to make up for the implausibility, but at some point that just wasn’t going to work anymore. By bringing in Bernadette and Amy, it provided Penny with her own group of peers outside the guys, adding a more credible rationale for sticking around, and a safe space for all three of the women to also grow beyond what they were into what they would become in the end: three strong, emotionally-layered women who grew alongside their partners into healthy, strong relationships, to the betterment of The Big Bang Theory as a whole.
