10 Surprising Twist Endings (In TV Shows You Wouldn’t Expect)
2. The Big Bang Theory - Leonard's Long Daydream
For twelve seasons, The Big Bang Theory was the brightest star in the comedy galaxy. The show revolved around four nerds, the central one being Leonard (Johnny Galecki).
In the season five episode, The Recombination Hypothesis: Leonard asks his ex-girlfriend, Penny (Kaley Cuoco), out on a date and they attempt to restart their relationship. What follows is the usual series of awkward and dysfunctional mishaps that characterise romantic relationships in this show. But at the end, we learn that the whole episode was imagined by Leonard. He hadn’t asked Penny out at all.
Why it's surprising: The Big Bang Theory had never played such a narrative trick on the audience, in fact they hadn't done much at all that would qualify as unpredictable, so this twist certainly caught viewers off guard.
Not only is it an effective surprise but also an unexpected moment of character development as we get a thorough glimpse at Leonard’s overthinking but compassionate mindset.