Thank God For The Big Bang Theory

Thank God for the Big Bang Theory.  If you are reading this blog then you already know all about it, but if by some chance you don't;  FOR GOD"S SAKES GO WATCH IT!!!

Never has there been a more stereotyped social group than the nerds.  With our affinity for stats and dragons and alien conspiracies we really do paint a pretty large target on our backs.  The Big Bang Theory proves that even amongst a persecuted people there is fun to be had in a good natured ripping from those peers who share your love for all things nerd.  The show routinely pokes fun of our social inadequacies and predisposition for naivety but does so with such a loving tone the jabs become endearing rather than confrontational.  The show's writers very clearly understand the delicacy of the nerd sensibility and with their careful handling of the characters and themes they honor us by being nerds themselves.

While the writers may not have Star Trek posters on their own walls they have the respect to do justice to the culture they portray by doing thorough and exhaustive research into everything from character traits to set pieces to ensure they are not talking down to us but rather telling us they get what we are and it's cool.  Every true nerd will find a character or a prop or line of dialog that instantly rings familiar and it can be fun to scan each episode for a particular toy or comic book that you once had (or still have).

Dr. Sheldon Cooper is the ego-maniacal genius with limitless knowledge and absolutely no social skills what so ever.  His near two hundred IQ leads him to believe he is a superior human evolved far beyond those around him.  He is blunt and honest and in all truth is an ass but his social shortcomings make him sympathetic enough to not be off putting.  He can recite PI indefinitely but lacks the ability to comprehend simple sarcasm. 

Dr. Leonard Hofstadter is Cooper's foil and conduit to the outside world.  A genius in his own right, Leonard is much more humble and self-doubting, a loveable klutz you can't help but root for.  Aside from his own problems he often acts as a mediator for Sheldon and the rest of the world.  He instructs the unfamiliar on how to deal with Sheldon and interprets Sheldon's lengthy rants into language understandable to everyone else.

With references from Star Trek and Star Wars to Stan Lee and Wil Wheaton (yes, Wil Wheaton), every episode is packed with love letters to the nerd community and we couldn't appreciate it more.  The sci-fi community is a risky bunch when it comes to being a profitable demographic for prime time television.  We tend to be very passionate about what we like and dislike.  If we like what you give us we will be fiercely loyal like no other group, however if we don't like what you give us we dislike with just as much passion and will bitch on our blogs about you until way after you've stopped paying attention.  This makes it a very dangerous decision to invest a large sum of money into something that will be judged on those terms.  CBS took the risk and gave us something special so it is our nerd duty to repay the gesture by making sure we support their work.

The Big Bang Theory has been pickup up through the 2014 season so we have at least a few more years with these nerds.  So come Thursday night, put down the comic books, make some Cylon toast, and tune in to CBS for new episodes of The Big Bang Theory.