It is no surprise that Sheldon Cooper is a genius. He can recite Pi to the thousandth place, like nobody’s business. However, it’s also no surprise that Sheldon Cooper is ignorant of basic social etiquettes. This week, we see him struggle with a notion that is basic to everyone else, except to him. We also get a lovely farewell to the late Carol Ann Susi, and are reminded that although she may be gone, her Mrs. Wolowitz will never be forgotten.
Sheldon has just received his monthly copy of The Scientific American in the mail, and is excited to see his published interview regarding the joint research he did with Leonard featured in the magazine. That happiness is short-lived when Amy soon notices a problem with the article: It named Sheldon as the lead scientist, while Leonard’s only mention is as part of Dr. Cooper’s “team”. Amy believes that this news is going to upset Leonard–and rightfully so–considering the whole theory was based on his idea.
As expected, Sheldon isn’t seeing what the big deal is, and is missing all the cues Amy is throwing at him. He goes through several idioms to try and figure out which pertains to this particular situation. Is it squeaker cleaner gets the wheel? The grass is greener? We’re all Groot? The last should apply to everything in life, but in this particular case it’s the fact that Leonard was just as important to the theory as Sheldon was, if not more, and he isn’t getting the recognition he deserves. Sheldon’s mathematics, and all the work he contributed to the theory was only possible because Leonard’s idea existed in the first place. 
It’s only after Amy reminds Sheldon of a terrible time in Disneyland that he realizes the problem. That terrible moment when the kid who dropped a churro on the floor was chosen to take the sword out of the stone. He now knows exactly how Leonard must feel, and so in order to break the news to his friend in a gentle manner, he gives him examples of other papers that don’t have his name on them, e.g., the cable and electric bill. If that doesn’t soften the blow, a rare Sheldon-given massage should… but it doesn’t. Leonard is obviously bothered by the exclusion of his name, and to make matters worse, Sheldon inadvertently compares them to Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Ouch.
As Sheldon and Leonard come to terms with their predicament, Howard tries to accept the fact that his mother is gone. It seems as if the house is pushing him towards acceptance of his loss because the power has gone out, and all the food in the refrigerator is about to go bad. He’s going to have to say goodbye to his mother soon, and decides that he will do it in true Mrs. Wolowitz fashion: Having an enormous dinner with his friends that will surely cause them agonizing heartburn for hours. It’ll be like she’s feeding them all one last time.
The dinner menu includes 3 briskets, 4 meatloaves, 1 noodle kugel (basically Jewish lasagna according to Raj), 2 pounds of cake, 1 giant container of soup, and countless ketchup pouches. Warning: The next couple of moments in this storyline are as likely to cause a lump in your throat, as Mrs. Wolowitz’s food is to cause you heartburn. As he’s looking through the last food she ever made, her last brisket, her last meatloaf, and her last soup, he realizes that he’s never going to see her again. She’s never going to cook a large container of soup to cure him whenever he’s sick with the cold, flu, or even food poisoning induced by her food. He breaks down, and so do we.
Meanwhile, on their way to dinner, Leonard and Sheldon are still quarrelling, and can’t stand to be together for even a short car ride, so they each catch a ride with their girlfriends. Leonard is furious and arguing that the idea was his, and Sheldon is getting all the credit for it. Sheldon, on the other hand, reasons that lots of people have ideas. For instance, he has some great ones:
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- A reverse Sea World where dolphins get to pet the humans instead.
- A new clothing size between medium and large called marge.
- Snow White told from a new POV—Sneezy—We finally find out why the Doc won’t prescribe him something.
They each stand firmly on their opinion. There’s nothing Penny and Amy can do, only warn them to behave when they arrive to dinner.
During dinner, Amy comments that she feels as if they’re at a French salon in the 18th century. Before Penny asks what a salon is, Sheldon explains that a salon is where intellectuals gathered to talk about the topics of the day. Inspired by this, Raj suggests a subject for discussion: Does the unveiling of a female Thor say something about the state of our society? Are we finally approaching gender equality? Great question Raj, but things quickly deviate from this talking point, and escalate to a full on scream fest with Sheldon and Leonard reaching the tipping point of their dispute. 18th century intellectuals would frown upon this behavior, and so does Bernadette. We all know how mean Bernadette can be, and when she takes the troublesome two to the room next door, she lets out all of her ammo on them, and her reprimanding voice eerily sounds like Mrs. Wolowitz herself. The group in the adjoining room listen, we listen, and we all know that Mrs. Wolowitz will always be with us.
Best Bazingas!
“I have mixed feelings about doing interviews. I like the part where I talk. I do not like the part where the other man talks.”—Sheldon
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“For the record, that kid was a terrible choice. If you cry when you drop your churro, you do not have what it takes to rule England.”—Sheldon
“All you said was I had to get rid of things. You didn’t say they couldn’t pass through my colon first.”—Howard
“Good food, good friends, and sometime around midnight, heartburn that makes you pray for death.”—Howard
EPISODE RATING: 8/10
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