One of the highlights of any sitcom is the wedding episode – the moments where fans get to see their favorite characters tie the knot, and (in grand sitcom tradition) see everything go wrong along the way. In The Big Bang Theory, there are only three main couples who get married (Sheldon and Amy, Leonard and Penny, and Howard and Bernadette), but there are multiple episodes that deal with weddings.
Some of these include stag nights, vow renewals, and double-episodes where only one included a ceremony… but not all of them are as satisfyingly hilarious and romantic as others. Of course, every wedding episode still scores high on IMDb, but some really struck a chord with audiences, and some fell a little flat.
The Matrimonial Momentum – 6.8
Although Leonard and Penny are the central couple of the series, it seems that their official wedding is the least-popular of the wedding episodes… probably because it misses out all the pomp and circumstance that make these episodes so great. The first episode of season nine, ‘The Matrimonial Momentum’ sees the couple elope to Vegas for a private ceremony. They do stream it so that the gang can watch, and it has some sweet moments (Leonard’s nerdy vows, Penny’s vows from Toy Story), but overall, it’s a bit of a letdown (which is part of the joke). To top it off, they have a big fight immediately after the wedding, and end up coming back to the apartment building and storming off into separate apartments, and there’s a side-plot where Sheldon and Amy break up. All in all, a bit of a depressing wedding episode.
The third episode of season 5 may be a great episode, but it doesn’t focus on the wedding of a main character. Instead, this makes the list purely because it sees Leonard and Amy attending a wedding together. Amy asks Leonard because she says that the last time she took Sheldon to a wedding, he behaved badly. Leonard agrees, and the two end up having a surprisingly fun night together. They dance the chicken dance and bond over the states of their respective ‘sort of’ relationships (Leonard with Priya, and Amy with Sheldon), and the episode ends with some classic sitcom confusion, as Amy thinks Leonard’s friendliness is flirting, and his comment to Sheldon about a sore groin (from dancing) leads to him becoming jealous, assuming he hurt his groin in some other way.
