New show: 'Two and a Half Men' creator comes up with 'Big Bang Theory'
Posted: Thursday, July 19, 2007 5:38 AM by Gael Fashingbauer Cooper
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TV
Chuck Lorre has managed to beat the odds with his top-rated comedy series, "Two and a Half Men." He's now gambling that he can have a second humorous hit with "The Big Bang Theory," the story of a Lenny-and-Squiggy like pair of geniuses and their beautiful blonde neighbor.
Johnny Galecki, who plays Leonard, is best known for his role as Darlene's boyfriend David in "Roseanne," but he's almost unrecognizable as the nerdy genius who falls for lovely Penny. Newcomer Jim Parsons plays Sheldon, and he's quick to shut Leonard down when his pal's romantic hopes get too high. These are friends with a Periodic Table of the Elements shower curtain; they're not too accustomed to dating.
Although the show's concept seems cliched -- geeky guys dream about gorgeous girl who seems unaware of their love for her -- don't write Lorre off. "Two and a Half Men" surprised many with its seeming staying power, and "Big Bang Theory" has some smart actors and funny lines, even if the overall plots are from the sitcom Stone Age. (Penny's shower is broken! So she has to use Sheldon and Leonard's! And walk out in their living room in front of their pals in a skimpy towel!) I'll give it a shot.
TIDBITS:
--Sheldon and Leonard's names are a homage to the late producer and actor Sheldon Leonard, who's sometimes credited with informally inventing the spin-off.
--Kaley Cuoco, who played one of John Ritter's daughters on "Eight Simple Rules...", plays Penny. It's ironic that she worked with Ritter, who of course was Jack Tripper in "Three's Company," because "Big Bang" is drawing comparisons to "Three's Company." One critic said that Penny "makes Chrissy Snow look like the president of MENSA." I wouldn't go that far, but it's easy to draw a comparison.
--In the pilot, Penny comments on large white boards in Sheldon and Leonard's aparment with mathematical formulas drawn on them. You geniuses out there should feel free to freeze-frame and look for errors: Lorre said the formulas are real, and were drawn by a UCLA astrophysicist.
GAEL'S GRADE: B
