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The Big Bang Theory Season 4 Episode 20

The Herb Garden Germination

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AIRED: Apr 07, 2011

7.7

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Episode Summary

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Sheldon and Amy decide to start rumors about themselves as a social test. Meanwhile, Howard takes his relationship with Bernadette to an even higher level.

Fan Episode Reviews (8)

Howard: Her freakishly small hands make anything look big. That's one of the reasons I love her.

10

By doguineta, Sep 17, 2011

Sooooo, Penny tells Amy than Bernie is going to break up with Howard, Amy tells Sheldon , and he tells Leonard (in an iverly funny scene with WiiArchery), he tells Pria, and she tells Raj. Raj is excited cause he loves her. Pria tells Leonard he has a crush on her and she tells Penny. But HOward deicdes to propose to her (again) and gets a ring (a small one, cause her hands are small). So after seeing how fast gossip speads, Sheldon & amy decide to create and spread their own. Amy tells Penny she and Sheldon had sex, and she Raj and he tells Leonard. Shel & Amy are happy to see their experminet coming great. So then at dinner, Howard proposes and to Raj's dismay & everyone's surpise, she says yes (gee, I wonder how is Mrs. Wolowitz gonna react). So then, Sheldon & amy decide to spead another rumor, and Amy tells Penny she is carrying Sheldon's baby. She is going down the stair and she runs into Leonard, who already heard about it via Penny via cell phone.

Title Reference: Amy tells Penny she started a herb garden (and that she had sex with Sheldon).

Overall: Hilarious. One of the best this season. The best parts were Sheldon playing Wii archery, Leonard stabbing him with the arrow, the half-carat, Raj's "sad smile", Sheldon's rumor, "that gossipy b*t*h!" & the ending! 10/10!moreless
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5.2

By Canogaparkcindy, Aug 23, 2011

Even though this episode was eventful, I just heard sharks jumping as I watched this episode. Sheldon gossiping? Howard engaged? Priya having more than 2 lines?

Okay, that last one was a joke, but seriously, this show has changed so much this season and I'm really not looking forward to the "engagement episodes" this season, especially if it has anything too do with Howard and Bernadette.

We got a few stand out lines from the cast, but this episode was just not cutting it for me. Which is strange, since I'm not usually the kind of fan who compares the show constantly to the previous seasons, but this was just ridiculous.

Kayley Cuoco was funny, Raj had a few good lines, Amy still continues to be her entertaining self, just the whole concept bothered me. Really hope this engagement gets called off soon, for the better.moreless
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Nice title, nice episode.

8.0

By seb1925, Aug 21, 2011

Amy's interaction with Sheldon was great, and the way they both treated their group as guinea pigs for their experiment was nice and actually made me think about how we can easily be manipulated with rumours. I like that sort of piercing humour that makes you both laugh and think - the opening scene also lampshades the ridiculous lengths some people go to 'dumb down' science. I agree with Sheldon there - there's a famous anecdote about Einstein re-explaining relativity to a party guest who kept asking for a simple way to word it, until he finally understood but, in Einstein's words, 'it was no longer relativity theory.'

Leonard was nice too, a supporting role (as it should've been from the outset, IMO) and the bathroom scene is a nice way to prepare the audience for the upcoming episode, which begins with another bathroom scene. Nice continuity with Raj's crush, and interesting sibling scene - nice to see they genuinely love each other and how she teases him and gently hits him ... realistic again, and one of the reasons why I wanna see Leonard's siblings at some point as well as more 'Shelly & Missy'. Not everything on TV has to be soapy love triangles and friends acting with hypocrisy.

All in all I liked the way some storylines are connected with previous or later events - the smoking monkey, Sheldon's rules, Raj and Bernie, grasshopper, Penny's double standards (it's OK for her to gossip, but not for Leonard's girlfriend). It seems that the writers have been watching more Community and less Two and a Half Men.moreless
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Funny

8.0

By dragondude4, Aug 17, 2011

In this episode it starts with Sheldon and Amy starting a false rumor about Bernadette breaking up with Howard but this whole rumor keeps being heard in differect ways that it was funny and them we learn that Howard plans on marrying Bernadette man geting married. and then Raj thinks that he has a change with Bernadette but not really and them Bernadette accepts Howards marriage proposal, much to Raj's dismay man who knows what could happen in their wedding episode and to end this episode Amy freakin' says she is carrying Sheldon's baby would those 2 ever get together but it's unlikelymoreless
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7.0

By thefanof, Jun 06, 2011

It is a good thing that opening scenes are not always an indicator of how an episode will turn out. I consider it the television version of not judging a book by its cover. The cold opening with Sheldon and Amy at the book speech was a clever idea with them enjoying the author's dumbed-down take on science, but it simply did not translate to laughs for the viewer.

Fortunately, the rest of the episode did. Some great lines from Sheldon and Amy throughout the show, and a nice storyline involving the transmitting of gossip throughout the group.

Did not like Raj at all in this episode, but I think that character jumped the shark years ago when the writers decided to simply make him from Fez from That 70's Show. But tonight's episode was actually funny. A rare good season four episode of Bang tonight.moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Johnny Galecki	Leonard Hofstadter
Jim Parsons	Sheldon Cooper
Kaley Cuoco	Penny
Simon Helberg	Howard Wolowitz
Kunal Nayyar	Rajesh Koothrappali
Melissa Rauch	Bernadette Rostenkowski

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Brian Greene (I)	Himself	Guest Star
Brian George	Dr. Koothrappali	Recurring Role
Alice Amter	Mrs. Koothrappali	Recurring Role
Aarti Mann	Priya Koothrappali	Recurring Role

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Episode Photos

Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons on The Bi...

© 2011 CBS Corporation
Melissa Rauch and Kunal Nayyar on The Bi...

© 2011 CBS Corporation
Mayim Bialik and Jim Parsons on The Big ...

© 2011 CBS Corporation
Mayim Bialik and Johnny Galecki on The B...

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (1)
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- We learn Bernadette's middle name is Maryann.
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NOTES (2)
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- International Airdates: Australia: May 23, 2011 on Channel 9; United Kingdom: August 18, 2011 on E4; Turkey: November 22, 2011 on CNBC-e; Czech Republic: December 7, 2011 on Prima COOL; Slovakia: December 16, 2011 on Markiza
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- This episode's end titles has Chuck Lorre's Vanity Card #338.
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