The Big Bang Theory"The Jerusalem Duality"
Original Air Date: 4/14/2008
Theresa - TwoCents Reviewer
Leonard and Sheldon are eating at SoCal, talking about teleportation. Professor Gablehauser comes by with a young genius, Dennis Kim, who the university is trying to woo to their graduate physics program. The professor asks that the two show Dennis around and convince him that the university is where he should be. Dennis is 15 years old, and almost immediately clashes with Sheldon, pointing out the flaws in Sheldon's string theory research. He also reveals that he has usurped Sheldon's place as the youngest person ever to win the prestigious Stevenson prize.
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The Big Bang Theory
ReplyDelete"The Jerusalem Duality"
Original Air Date: 4/14/2008
Theresa - TwoCents Reviewer
Leonard and Sheldon are eating at SoCal, talking about teleportation. Professor Gablehauser comes by with a young genius, Dennis Kim, who the university is trying to woo to their graduate physics program. The professor asks that the two show Dennis around and convince him that the university is where he should be. Dennis is 15 years old, and almost immediately clashes with Sheldon, pointing out the flaws in Sheldon's string theory research. He also reveals that he has usurped Sheldon's place as the youngest person ever to win the prestigious Stevenson prize.
Despairing over his now pointless research, Sheldon gives up his work and tries to collaborate with each of his friends, only be told to "go away" by all of them when he belittles their work. The guys confer and decide that they have to get rid of Dennis - or at least remove the threat to Sheldon. Their plan is to distract Dennis with a girl, "the only thing that can derail a world-class mind." The guys send out an email to make a "Take Your Daughter to Work Day" (ages 14-16) during the department party to welcome Dennis. Sheldon, in the meantime, focuses his efforts on a bizarre plan to build a replica of Jerusalem in the middle of the Mexican desert to solve the problems of the Middle East, and win a Nobel Peace Prize.
At the party, the guys try to pick a girl to distract Dennis, revisiting their own awkward experiences in the process, but Dennis ends up picking one up by himself and leaving the party. Sheldon then happily re-enters the spotlight. The guys later see Dennis acting like a normal, rebellious teenager, but don't feel so bad for ruining his career as he makes out with his cute blonde girlfriend.
This episode had quite a few funny moments, thanks to Wolowitz and Sheldon as usual. Wolowitz's interaction with his off-screen mother is a great recurring gag, and always funny. The end was a bit too rushed, I think, and showing all the guys' research but Raj's was a glaring omission. The running joke that Sheldon can't figure out that he is the "causal link" of all the requests that he go away is typical Sheldon cluelessness and goes on a bit longer than it should, but Dennis one-upping him throughout the first part of the episode is very entertaining. I just wonder where (and why) in the world the writers came up with the "Nuevo Jerusalem" idea.
Best Lines:
Sheldon: I sense a disturbance in the force.
Leonard: (Yoda voice) A bad feeling I have about this!
Leonard: It's like looking into an obnoxious little mirror, isn't it?
Leonard: You always knew that someday someone would come along who was younger and smarter.
Sheldon: Yes, but I assumed I would have been dead hundreds of years, and that there'd be an asterisk by his name because he'd be a cyborg.
Penny: So you've got a little competition, I really don't see what the big deal is.
Sheldon: Well, of course you don't, you've never excelled at anything.
Penny: I don't understand. Exactly how did he get any friends in the first place?
Howard: (shrug) We liked Leonard...
Howard: It's a small brown paper bag, Mom, I'm looking in it right now!... Why would I make that up, there's no Ding Dong in it... How are two Ding Dongs tomorrow gonna help me today?
Raj: He watched me work for 10 minutes and then started to design a simple piece of software that could replace me.
Leonard: Is that even possible?
Raj: As it turns out, yes.
Prof. Gablehauser: You'll have to excuse Dr. Cooper, he's been under a lot of, um... he's nuts.
Sheldon: Ladies and Gentlemen. Honored Daughters. While Mr. Kim, by virtue of his youth and naivete, has fallen prey to the inexplicable need for human contact, let me step in and assure you that my research will go on uninterrupted, and that social relationships will continue to baffle and repulse me. Thank you.