I’ll be completely honest: while everyone around me has always raved about The Big Bang Theory, I’ve never found the show funny. Ever. Perhaps it’s the subject matter or the condescending tone of each character, but I just never liked it.
The Big Bang Theory Is So Unfunny To Me
Over the years, the reception behind TV shows like The Big Bang Theory has died down significantly. Considering that prior to its universally shared disdain, there was once a time when this show was arguably the most popular thing on TV. It even had good ratings that accompanied the record-breaking viewership. Recently, though, its form of humour hasn’t aged well, and like most things, after a few years, we look back and ask ourselves, “How did we ever find this funny?”
It’s important to stress the subjectivity of comedy. Even when the world is changing and ideas of humorous content have become different, it’s still important that people get the chance to like what they like.
On that note, let’s see why The Big Bang Theory is just not funny in 2024 and maybe never was.
Classic Sheldon For 12 Years Straight
If there’s one thing we’ve had to endure ever since The Big Bang Theory began to air on TV, it’s the ridiculous stereotypes that these characters have portrayed for such a long time. By season 7, Jim Parsons, who portrays Sheldon, turned 40. Playing a whiny man-child had to have been frustrating, considering his actual age. Sheldon might’ve been originally seen as too smart for his own good, but seeing that format for all those years just makes you root for him less.
He’s constantly pedantic and annoying. He’s also constantly putting Howard down for his lack of a doctorate. It’s hard to see why his friends even stick around, especially his girlfriend, Amy, who was essentially just cannon fodder for Sheldon’s bouts of perceived superiority.
Penny’s Drinking Problem
We need to talk about Penny and her love for wine and beer. She’s an adult, which makes it fine for her to drink. That’s not the problem. Instead, it’s the fact that for 12 seasons of The Big Bang Theory, she constantly portrayed a lack of self-control or awareness of her problems.
Being such an avid drinker with a stable life is virtually unheard of. Considering the younger audience that loves the show, Penny’s character sets a bad precedent, especially when you consider the wild stories she told about her teenage years.
All is in good jest and accompanied by a laugh track, but the reality of this lifestyle couldn’t be further from what is portrayed in the show.
That Laugh Track
We can’t fully blame The Big Bang Theory for this, but they still needed to change with the times at some point. Laugh tracks stopped being funny after the first seven seasons, as an estimate. Comedic timing has become much more important for landing a joke than just giving a cue for people to laugh.
Contagious laughter is very much a thing that exists today, but when you’ve heard the same laugh track format for 12 seasons, you’ll get extremely tired of that sound. Rather than keeping you entertained or interested, it serves as an annoyance that can’t be controlled. Maybe streaming services need to update the show with a version that doesn’t contain a laugh track. However, we think it might become way too apparent how unfunny the show is without it.
The Big Bang Theory Stereotypes
The series, which collected awards and accolades along the way, plays heavily on stereotypes. Penny’s character is the stereotypical “clueless girl”. The show also pokes fun at geek culture and often depicts geeks as extreme introverts. Having nerdy interests doesn’t make you weird (ask Henry Cavill). What the show forgets is that comic books, video games and action figures are now mainstream, too.
And let’s not forget the fact that the show made fun of Jewish and Indian culture. In fact, many in the Indian community find the show offensive.
RELATED: Accept it, The IT Crowd Is Funnier Than The Big Bang Theory
Tell us, do you think The Big Bang Theory is funny?
The Big Bang Theory |
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A woman who moves into an apartment across the hall from two brilliant but socially awkward physicists shows them how little they know about life outside of the laboratory. |
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| Creator: Chuck Lorre, Bill Prady |
| Cast: Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar, Melissa Rauch, Mayim Bialik, Kevin Sussman |
| Genre: Comedy, Romance |
| Number of Seasons: 12 |
| Streaming Service: CBS |
It is weird, but I used to find this show in tolerable, but now I am almost 50 years old and I am enjoying it more than before.
The most annoying thing is over top laughter in the backgroind when the onel liners in my opinion are not even funny. Friends like this show is not relevant anymore also. I still get a laugh out of Seinfield not from the one liners as much as the emotional and overtop reactions of the actors which far exceeds other shows of the same vintage. True comedy.
Beside Howard, the other caracters are not funny at all. I stopped watching the show after 9 episodes, do you think it will go better? should I go back and continue watching it?
I absolutely love this show. Admittedly, my wife is a huge fan. She’s got a Big Bang Theory mug, a lunch tin and a Trivial Pursuit, all themed towards BBT.
We’ve watched the entire season, episode by episode when it was first released. Then it arrived on Netflix and we’ve binged season after season.
Growing up as a geek was tough. My friends, the few school friends I had and my parents didn’t understand my love for movies and comics. It’s only recently that geek culture has become popular.
I find most of the characters in BBT very relatable which is why I possibly love the show. More to the point, I find that there’s a little bit of each character that, put together, makes up me and who I am.
I am so glad that you mentioned that comedy is subjective. Now I can admit that I love the show. I have only watched 7 seasons, so my opinion might change. I grew up in an era when playing DnD and reading comics marked you as an outcast. I did not have the luxury of growing up in an era where those things are now considered mainstream. This might also affect my view of the show.
I’m so glad you mentioned that comedy is subjective. Now I can admit I love the show. I’ve only watched 7 seasons, so my opinion might change.