As we approach the halfway point in Season 6, we get to revisit the overall arching storylines, and we also get reintroduced to the writing and humor that at times takes this show to new levels of awesomeness. Let's dive right in! This week's opening scene finds the boys discussing old school pop culture TV show theme songs and the nature of their lyrics on a literal basis. What's interesting about this is the fact that their analytical brains dissect the words and their inherent meanings, specifically the old-school SpiderMan theme, while playing what appears to be a role playing card game amongst themselves. That they can multitask on such a level is a throwback to their collective intelligence with a wink and a nod from the writers and it sets up the rest of the show very nicely; with Howard revealing he has dinner with the in-laws, and Sheldon advising he has to take Amy to a funeral, of which he puts the "fun" in, which is classic Sheldon ego. In the meantime, Leonard and Raj take a backseat this week, and Penny makes a cameo as she bails her boys out of yet another manly predicament for which they are not prepared. At dinner with the in-laws, Howard stumbles his way through conversations with both Bernadette's mother and father. It was nice to get a glimpse of where Bernadette gets her innocent cluelessness from, but the scenes with Bernadette's father and Howard went from awkward to heartwarming as the show progressed. By the end of the evening Howard and Bernadette's father find common ground in the love they have for their leading ladies, and a casino that promises a better time than teaching Howard to fish, something Penny hilariously attempted to do back at the apartment with a hook and some fresh nightcrawlers. (the scene with the guys seeking Penny's help was spot-on and priceless at her apartment door).
The bigger story this week, though, finds Sheldon breaking new ground, albeit through his relationship agreement with Amy Farrah Fowler, in the area of human contact. Sheldon has long had to be coerced into physical contact with Amy, and this week was no exception. But it was the ease with which he gave in to his duties that was a nice change, realizing he has a duty to take care of his girlfriend. What follows was a myriad of hilarity, with Amy feigning illness in the end only to have Sheldon continue to take care of her. Through every scene with these two we get a cascade of laughs with Sheldon reading a genetics text to Amy as a bedtime story, giving her a bath because she can't do it herself, rubbing down her chest with Vicks VapoRub, from which Sheldon can't understand why it gets her "all fired up." Their scenes culminate with Sheldon learning the truth, and he and Amy deciding that a fitting punishment for her lying is a spanking. What could have come across as basic "toilet" humor instead is absolutely hysterical, thanks in large part again to Mayim Balik's ability to steal practically every scene she's in.
I absolutely loved this weeks episode, it was refreshing with just a dab of Leonard and Raj, the right amount of Penny, and great movement forward for Howard's character as well as the Sheldon and Amy relationship. Let's discuss! On Twitter: @davyshrader