How to make The Big Bang theory genuinely geeky

[Deacon Cole]

Know what would improve Big Bang Theory?

Funny jokes instead of neither.

That would help.

Or cancellation. It is an improvement when you stop slamming the car door on your foot, right?

 

[Belaam]

First off, if it were genuinely geeky, it would pull the numbers that geeky shows get and it would immediately be cancelled. However, as is, it shows a bunch of scientists with awesome jobs and pretty good lives. I'd call that a geek net win.

That said, the Penny/Leonard romance needs to go. She doesn't really bring anything to the relationship but her looks. Which turns Leonard into someone who is only with his girlfriend because of her looks. Essentially, their relationship makes both of them worse characters. They keep hinting around that she's going to do something with her life; go back to college, start up a home business, become a actress, etc. but everything falls flat. They've made her a trophy wife and the only thing more pathetic that a trophy wife is the guy who marries her. Howard and Sheldon both get significant others with whom they can have a reasonably intelligent conversation, but there is nothing more to Penny than a tank top and the resigned acceptance that she's the dumbest one in the room.

 

[shootthebandit]

Id say nerds are actually a pretty good group to poke fun at. I consider myself a nerd and I think you mentioned liking "self depreciative" humour. I love that sort of stuff. I think the reason a lot of geeks/nerds find it offensive is because it highlights their flaws and people obviously cant have a laugh at themselves

geeks/nerds have a sort of eccentricity that you dont get with most other groups. We have an interest in the bizarre and we dont always follow social convention which is why we are actually a good group to poke fun at. I think BBT does this well and it doesn't go over the top with it

Then why are so many people suggesting other shows that also make fun of nerds? It's because Big Bang Theory doesn't understand a single thing about nerds, nor does it actually make jokes, if you watch that video, it really does sum up BBT all too accurately.

The IT Crowd on the other hand, makes fun of nerds, but also understands a lot more about nerds, is actually funny, doesn't feel forced and has far more variation in it's jokes (although that's not really a plus so much as having even low standards, and beating "we're nerds" in the humour department isn't exactly travelling through fucking Tartarus).

All I was saying is that nerds are one of the more fun groups to poke fun at (in a respectful way) and I think BBT achieves that. What I certainly didnt say was that BBT was funny (which it isnt). The IT crowd makes similar jokes about nerds (and their clueless female friend) but the difference is that its actually funny and well written. If you take Moss he is actually very similar to Sheldon and Jen is pretty similar to penny to but the only difference being that its actually funny and well produced. Which is why people recommend the IT crowd over BBT (myself included)

 

[Something Amyss]

This is one of those things in nerd culture is kind of overlooked. It is less about being obscure and more along the lines of just being not commonplace every one knows Mario not everyone knows Gordon Freeman of yet 95% or more that have a interest in games do. This is the kind of popularity you want to make jokes about, not s cult hit not something on the fringes but an idea that the target gets and the mainstream doesn't.

Either way, an interest in these things is still considered nerdy. Just because it's understood in the popular culture doesn't mean it's actually popular or you're popular for following it. It is nerdy to discuss Star Trek and Star Wars and Doctor Who, and people who do so are treated as geeks and nerds. Not knowing who Gordon Freeman is doesn't make you any less of a geek, or even any less of a gamer. This isn't a response to the question of making TBBT any more "genuinely geeky" either.

I'm going to borrow from Andre of Black Nerdy Comedy here for a moment:

Honour roll student, outcast from various social circles because I was that odd, weird, nerdy kids, who spent my teenage years not going out to parties and making out with girls but watching reruns of Tiny Toon Adventures? Thousands of dollars of ridiculous eighties memorabilia behind me, but because I didn't have a local comic book store near me in the deep south to immerse my brain in the world of comic fiction, I for some reason am now not a nerd because I don't know anything about Guardians of the Galaxy[....] Let me just travel back in time to all the people that made fun of me and called me a nerd--that's right, called me a nerd in an insulting way, not walking around on the streets proudly going "I am a nerd!" but insulting me with that name. Let me go back in time and tell them "No everyone, you are wrong. I have never heard of Guardians of the Galaxy!" Clearly, this officially makes me a cool person!"

The show's already geeky in that its characters demonstrate an interest in geeky things. That's all it needs to be genuine.

A lot of people are arguing quality. That's fine, that's fair, but it's another topic. For the question of authenticity, I refer people to the quote above. If we're going to talk quality:

People are conflating a lack of depth with a lack of nerdiness or whatever, I think. The problem isn't so much the lack of geeky topics but rather the way they're used. Even if they used something sufficiently obscure and hipster, they would still use it as a buzzword rather than anything worth discussing. Buzzword comedy is used for a reason: it's a cheap way to make people react. The only difference would be that a slightly different group of people would react. It's the "Epic Movie" formula you see in repeating things like "Say hello to my little friend!" It's the "cheap pop" people get in wrestling, or at a rock concert, when the guy says "I was walking down (the mainstreet of your town) and you guys are awesome!"

And I admit it. I squee a little just at the reference of something I like. Especially if it's a little rarer. A Farscape reference will probably get more of a reaction from me than a Star Trek one, because Trek references are made all the time. But that doesn't have anything to do with authenticity, and it certainly won't improve the show. I don't think people genuinely want this sort of shift (And I think it shows from the number of people who have pointed to better writing being needed).

Even something as mainstream as Halo could be worked into the show to greater effect if they actually made it about Halo, rather than Halo being the backdrop for Sheldon being beat by a girl and taking it personally with the occasional buzzword reference point. The episode could have been almost identical, replacing Halo with a sport. Or Chess. Or trivia, or....Ummm...My finger is not on the pulse of pop culture. I'm sure there's something sufficiently "mainstream" one can insert here.

Even references aren't always bad. I make them myself in my own writing. But it is a problem when it's the backbone of your writing. It's like Wacky Mad Libs for nerds. "Oh no! I broke Leonard's (nerdy noun). I need to get it replaced before (time) so that we can go to (nerdy event)! Otherwise, (nerdy guest star) won't be able to (famous nerdy something-or-other).

yeah, I ran out of steam there. There's probably a joke in that.

That being said, I enjoy TBBT. Or what I've seen of it, which is season one and a smattering of episodes here and there. It's cheap laughs, but there's a place in the world for cheap laughs. Sometimes you want popcorn, no matter how much better (and better for you) another snack might be.

 

[Buckshaft]

There's one simple, clean, quick and efficient method of improving the quality of the show tenfold.

A missile strike.

Har de Har. In all seriousness, the thing should die. It doesn't even have any jokes anymore, and I haven't seen the first few seasons, but I doubt it had them in the first place. What it has is a thinly veiled layer of contempt for anyone who calls themself a "geek." As in, "Hey, (Insert reference to current large-scale Well-known comics event)!" "Oh, that's as lame as (Insert reference to game, movie or book event)!" And the audience laughs because there's a convenient laughtrack that tells them when to. No, I am not insisting that Geek culture be some exclusive club, because it really isn't anymore. But when shit like this comes along, and thinks it can go "Hur hur look at the nerds they're autistic and socially awkward, look at us make fun of them"? That's taking the piss. It's just so cheap.

Also, a homestuck episode. Homestuck.
Homestuck.

AHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAHHHHHHA.

No, you know what? Go ahead. They should totally do that, because it'll be fun to see homestuck fans start whinging about it. I have a lot of love for everything, and I don't really anything (Not even Homestuck) But I think I could go on living if it took a few blows.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I dislike the show, and whilst I don't hate it as a concept, I hate its applications. I think that if you were to make it genuinely geeky, then it'd have to be a specific kind of geek that its making fun of(anime/game/computer, etc. geeks, a specific sub-culture), which would be impossible, because that would betray its mainstream appeal.

*mini-rant incoming*

I hate that it warps people's perceptions and perpetuates the nerd stereotype of incredibly beta males who are either incredible white knights under the surface because they can't get girls, and/or they do not understand how to function like a human being.

Community did it right, and its The Big Bang Theory if it was funny and less mean-spirited; in the place of someone like Sheldon, we have Abed, whose social awkwardness is explained carefully in a way that makes sense and adds depth to his character. You can still laugh at his obsession with things, but you can also laugh along with him, because you feel that you better understand why he laughs. TBBT doesn't have this level of character involved, so the motivations of the characters seem superficial, or irrelevant, leaving you to only laugh at them.

TBBT is built around the "laugh at, not with" humour, which I find to be lazy and problematic. I have a penchant for all things geek, and people just ascribed it(back in secondary school) as me being like Leonard, and asking me if I act in the same socially-awkward way he does(whilst grinning, as if they can understand me entirely because of that show). I don't like that because I have an enthusiasm for something, people ascribe all this inferred baggage with an insidious thought of immediate superiority over me because of that superiority they get from the humour in things like TBBT.

In addition, it really trivialises geek culture. Serious moments come when the cast have to stop acting so childish and enthusiastic about something because it actively damages someone or something. It pits geeks as obsessed to the point of no return, that they would act in an incredibly egotistical way because what they want is more important than others' wants and needs. I'm sorry, but unless you exhibit certain psychopathic qualities, every geek/nerd, etc. that I have met understands how to juggle their priorities around. They understand the meaning and meaninglessness of their hobby, and they can read when it is hurting someone they know. With stuff like game compulsion, a lot of people who have gotten over it have exhibited understanding that if what they were doing was harmful to themselves and others. They understand why they lost their grip on life, and why they retreated to games.

TBBT just condenses all of that complexity into a very shallow level that provides people with the assumption that they understand or know about the demographic because of that show. I find it to be the equivalent of making assumptions of Americans based on blockbuster action movies; self righteousness, patriotism, traditional values, ethnocentrism, etc. You ask a person from say, the deep south, and they might give a response that yes, that's how they perceive "true" Americans. You go to somewhere like Seattle however, and there will be at least one person who will be slightly troubled that this is the international perception of their culture. The same goes for me; yes, there are genuine people out there like the cast of TBBT, but I would find it a bit troubling that if I were to be judged based off of that show if I publicly identify as a geek/nerd etc.

So in short: I dislike it because of its implications. I know people who's perception of nerds, geeks etc. has been affected to be more stereotypical. I don't think adding in more references would make it more genuinely geeky. Scrapping the show and using the money to make another show entirely would be the only way I could see it becoming more geeky.

Just to finish: no, I don't outright hate the show, but I leave the discussion if it is about the show. I find that I will add nothing of value and I will just dampen the mood of the conversation. I dislike its applications, and I find them concerning. It's not the bane of my existence, but I feel like it can perpetuate negative stereotypes. Call me a passive dissenter if you will.

 

[Lee Medcalf]

The easiest way to improve The Big Bang Theory and make it more geeky and respectful of the culture would be to get solid comedy writers who love the subject matter and understand it, like say Simon Pegg and Jessica Hines, then cast the writers in key roles... Perhaps add some extra comic talent like Nick Frost and Mark Heap, and maybe get a visually interesting director with a similar understanding of the culture and comic timing like say, Edgar Wright...

Then call it... Spaced.

 

[Lilani]

As a side note, what the Hell is Homestuck?

It's a story that's been written by one guy for several years now, and even though one guy writes it several people transcribe it into online comic, animation, and other various mediums. It's got a very loyal fandom, and is EXTREMELY long. As of October last year it had over 750,000 words, topping Atlas Shrugged by 100,000 words. And again, it's still being made, so it might well become the longest single written work in the English language by the time it's done. It's certainly on its way.

The plot is extremely complex and involves a lot of different characters. Basically, people are either VERY into it, or not into it at all. I'm in the "not into it at all" category, I just know about it through friends.

Oh, and the sad thing about The Big Bang Theory is...apparently, they don't have a laugh track. That's a real audience laughing, the show's creators have shown pictures many times. Which honestly I think it worse, because if it's true then that means they prompt the audience to laugh so much and either edit down or prompt them to stop so quickly it sounds like a laugh track. If that is a live audience, they really need to feel ashamed by all the accusations they're getting and change something about how they handle it, because obviously that audience isn't doing a damn thing. If people can't tell the difference between a laugh track and your studio audience, then something you're doing is very, very wrong.

 

[Aramis Night]

As a side note, what the Hell is Homestuck?

It's a story that's been written by one guy for several years now, and even though one guy writes it several people transcribe it into online comic, animation, and other various mediums. It's got a very loyal fandom, and is EXTREMELY long. As of October last year it had over 750,000 words, topping Atlas Shrugged by 100,000 words. And again, it's still being made, so it might well become the longest single written work in the English language by the time it's done. It's certainly on its way.

The plot is extremely complex and involves a lot of different characters. Basically, people are either VERY into it, or not into it at all. I'm in the "not into it at all" category, I just know about it through friends.

Oh, and the sad thing about The Big Bang Theory is...apparently, they don't have a laugh track. That's a real audience laughing, the show's creators have shown pictures many times. Which honestly I think it worse, because if it's true then that means they prompt the audience to laugh so much and either edit down or prompt them to stop so quickly it sounds like a laugh track. If that is a live audience, they really need to feel ashamed by all the accusations they're getting and change something about how they handle it, because obviously that audience isn't doing a damn thing. If people can't tell the difference between a laugh track and your studio audience, then something you're doing is very, very wrong.

I've worked on the show. It's a laugh track at least 80% of the time, unless they have a studio tour group come in. The really obnoxious part is they play the laugh track during filming rather then adding it in during post-production. That way those of us on set get to notice when thing that was supposedly a joke was said. To be Honest, if they didn't add the laugh track during filming, we would probably have no idea that anything "funny" was said at all during the entire scene.