First, get your mind out of the gutter. I’m not talking about that kind of “big bang”. If you want that, you’ll want some other blog.

I’m talking about the new sitcom on CBS, The Big Bang Theory. While at its heart it’s a basic ensemble show with a running romantic comedy thread running through most of the episodes, it’s unique in that four of the five principle characters are nerds and geeks. (Yes, both.)

The writing for the show is very solid, and even if I wasn’t partial to it because of the majority of the characters, I’d probably still watch it for the keen dialog. While the show has its fair share of the more cliché sitcom moments, for the most part the writing feels fresh and snappy. (I am likely biased since the show makes me laugh a lot, and the general theme of the show resonates with me somewhat.)

It also doesn’t hurt that the opening theme is by Barenaked Ladies. Their musical style really meshes well with how the show feels. Their geeky lyrics and quick, peppy tune really reflects the show in my opinion.

The principle characters include four of the more stereotypical geek and nerd archetypes, which is a nice change from older shows where any and all nerds where effectively Steve Erkel.

Leonard, effectively the main male lead, is the nerd/geek that wants to be more “normal” in many ways (dating, socializing, etc.), but is unsure of himself and inexperienced in dealing with the “normal” world. His roommate, Sheldon, is the “uber” nerd/geek, being insanely intelligent, but seeing the world through a very narrow (in his case, geeky and scientific) point of view.

Their friend Howard is the sex-obsessed one, and goes about trying to get it with all of the awkwardness and ineptitude most of expect a nerd/geek like him. And their other friend, Raj, is the super-shy nerd/geek, who is at heart a reasonably social person, but who also becomes incapable of speech when faced with his kryptonite – women.

And I can’t forget Penny, the “normal” next door neighbor that Leonard is in love with. She’s a good example of the non-nerd/geek friend who likes her nerd/geek friends, but often just has to nod and smile because she doesn’t quite understand them.

The mix of nerd/geek archetypes, the fairly realistic portrayal of geeky past times (which have thus far ranged from World of Warcraft references to Halo 3 being a semi-important plot point to Lord of the Rings costumes) and lifestyle (check out their wardrobe - I caught myself going “hey, my friend wore that once” more than a few times, and the solid writing and acting have me hooked. I truly think this show is great.

If you don’t watch this show, and watch television at all, I would highly recommend The Big Bang Theory. It’s quite good, and I’m looking forward to the DVD (maybe even hi-def) release.

So, does anyone else out there watch the show? If so, what do you think? Do you have any favorite character(s)?

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 13th, 2007 at 4:05 am and is filed under Comedy, Television, Richard Kim. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments. Both comments and pings are currently closed.