4 ms·

I don't understand the appeal of that show. I almost cringe every time I see a clip, and the popularity suggests that the world actually thinks nerds are like t

I don't understand the appeal of that show. I almost cringe every time I see a clip, and the popularity suggests that the world actually thinks nerds are like that.

jndsn402 12y ago
I think it's popular because everyone has a character they can relate to.
- JonnieCache 12y ago
  Why would you downvote this? It is indeed correct: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtsmluPK7Ug http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtsmluPK7Ug
_almosnow 12y ago
I just saw them yesterday, they had it running on a restaurant where I had dinner. Oh god, what a terrible show, and yeah I can confirm that 99% of people in science is made of jerks like those.
furyofantares 12y ago
I don't see how the popularity suggests people think it is realistic. Most entertainment I enjoy is known to me to not be realistic.
ivanhoe 12y ago
It's a comedy show, characters have to be exaggerated a bit to be funny, and IMHO they are most of the time
- Yhippa 12y ago
  To 3solarmasses' point I do cringe every time they do the bit where the "Indian guy who is very awkward and shy around women and never gets better about it" happens.
  - tomp 12y ago
    1) He gets better about it; first he manages to talk to women, then gets a girlfriend. 2) It's not like the non-indian guys are really that much better.
TeMPOraL 12y ago
I watched the first few seasons and really liked them; they resonated with my inner geek pretty well. Actually, at some point I got quite worried about the extent to which I can relate to the main characters. I also liked the fact that I could actually understand the quantum physics jokes that to most people sounded like "blablabla science blablabla hahaha" ;).
- T-hawk 12y ago
  There's a disconnect in the show's treatment of parts of the characters' lives, which accounts for the divisive polarity of opinions on it. The show manages to be both pro-intellectual and anti-intellectual in different areas. The professional side, the science, is held up with great respect and considerable accuracy. These guys are doing really neat stuff at the university and we get to see their enthusiasm and success with it. That's very cool and appealing and a positive light on STEM professionals that's uncommon in popular culture. The personal side, the geekdom, is held up for mockery. The show brings up comics and science fiction and video games mostly as punching bags for the girls to trash and feel socially superior. That's the negative vapid stereotyping that critics complain about. Whether you like TBBT depends on which of those has more impact on you. If you like the science and don't mind the anti-geekery, you'll like the show. If the anti-geekery hits too close to home, you'll hate it. (Side note, I'm conflicted on whether to participate in this subthread. It's Reddit-style topic drift on intentionally misinterpreting the submission title and ignoring its content. But there's good discussion happening here anyway.)
- vorg 12y ago
  > I watched the first few seasons The first 3 seasons are quite funny and with plenty of sciency stuff, but it starts declining around the 3rd or 4th season. The season 4 episode featuring Sheldon's robotic telepresence and the Steve Wozniak cameo is perhaps the high point in humor, after which the whole thing goes pointless.
LordKano 12y ago
But some are. I certainly share certain character traits and life experiences with some of the characters of that show. That's a part of why I like it. It's like when any show features a group, there will be people from that group who do not like the way they're being depicted. It's like when a show features black people, there are always black people who get upset because they're not like that or when a show features asian people, there will always be asian people who get upset because they're not like that. In these cases, just like with nerds and geeks, some are like that and the ones who are, are the ones about whom an entertaining show can be made. Virtually nobody is going to watch a show featuring a middle-class, college educated black dude who manages a small restaurant unless there is some other hook. Virtually nobody is going to watch a show about a middle-class, westernized son of Japanese immigrants who works as an accountant, unless there is some other hook. Virtually nobody would watch the Big Bang Theory if all of the characters were average looking, well adjusted people who have passable social skills and just so happen to be very smart and work boring jobs. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar and sometimes a TV show is just a TV show. If you can accept that the message isn't "This what they're ALL like" and that it is "This is what THIS group of people is like", I think you can reduce the amount of discomfort you feel.

I don't understand the appeal of that show. I almost cringe every time I see a clip, and the popularity suggests that the world actually thinks nerds are like that.

jndsn402 12y ago

I think it's popular because everyone has a character they can relate to.

JonnieCache 12y ago
Why would you downvote this? It is indeed correct: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtsmluPK7Ug http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtsmluPK7Ug

_almosnow 12y ago

I just saw them yesterday, they had it running on a restaurant where I had dinner. Oh god, what a terrible show, and yeah I can confirm that 99% of people in science is made of jerks like those.

furyofantares 12y ago

I don't see how the popularity suggests people think it is realistic. Most entertainment I enjoy is known to me to not be realistic.

ivanhoe 12y ago

It's a comedy show, characters have to be exaggerated a bit to be funny, and IMHO they are most of the time

Yhippa 12y ago
To 3solarmasses' point I do cringe every time they do the bit where the "Indian guy who is very awkward and shy around women and never gets better about it" happens.
- tomp 12y ago
  1) He gets better about it; first he manages to talk to women, then gets a girlfriend. 2) It's not like the non-indian guys are really that much better.

TeMPOraL 12y ago

I watched the first few seasons and really liked them; they resonated with my inner geek pretty well. Actually, at some point I got quite worried about the extent to which I can relate to the main characters. I also liked the fact that I could actually understand the quantum physics jokes that to most people sounded like "blablabla science blablabla hahaha" ;).

T-hawk 12y ago
There's a disconnect in the show's treatment of parts of the characters' lives, which accounts for the divisive polarity of opinions on it. The show manages to be both pro-intellectual and anti-intellectual in different areas. The professional side, the science, is held up with great respect and considerable accuracy. These guys are doing really neat stuff at the university and we get to see their enthusiasm and success with it. That's very cool and appealing and a positive light on STEM professionals that's uncommon in popular culture. The personal side, the geekdom, is held up for mockery. The show brings up comics and science fiction and video games mostly as punching bags for the girls to trash and feel socially superior. That's the negative vapid stereotyping that critics complain about. Whether you like TBBT depends on which of those has more impact on you. If you like the science and don't mind the anti-geekery, you'll like the show. If the anti-geekery hits too close to home, you'll hate it. (Side note, I'm conflicted on whether to participate in this subthread. It's Reddit-style topic drift on intentionally misinterpreting the submission title and ignoring its content. But there's good discussion happening here anyway.)
vorg 12y ago
> I watched the first few seasons The first 3 seasons are quite funny and with plenty of sciency stuff, but it starts declining around the 3rd or 4th season. The season 4 episode featuring Sheldon's robotic telepresence and the Steve Wozniak cameo is perhaps the high point in humor, after which the whole thing goes pointless.

LordKano 12y ago

But some are. I certainly share certain character traits and life experiences with some of the characters of that show. That's a part of why I like it. It's like when any show features a group, there will be people from that group who do not like the way they're being depicted. It's like when a show features black people, there are always black people who get upset because they're not like that or when a show features asian people, there will always be asian people who get upset because they're not like that. In these cases, just like with nerds and geeks, some are like that and the ones who are, are the ones about whom an entertaining show can be made. Virtually nobody is going to watch a show featuring a middle-class, college educated black dude who manages a small restaurant unless there is some other hook. Virtually nobody is going to watch a show about a middle-class, westernized son of Japanese immigrants who works as an accountant, unless there is some other hook. Virtually nobody would watch the Big Bang Theory if all of the characters were average looking, well adjusted people who have passable social skills and just so happen to be very smart and work boring jobs. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar and sometimes a TV show is just a TV show. If you can accept that the message isn't "This what they're ALL like" and that it is "This is what THIS group of people is like", I think you can reduce the amount of discomfort you feel.