The Killer Robot Instability

Season 2, Episode 12, Aired
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Episode Summary

Penny's criticism of Wolowitz's romantic life pushes him into depression and AWOL for a fighting robot battle the rest of guys are depending on him for.
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Fan Episode Reviews (3)

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  • 212

    7.0
    "Good"
    By Canogaparkcindy, Dec 12, 2010 Report Abuse
    Okay, so the killer robot story line got very tiresome after a while, and I know this show is about nerds but having a whole episode focused on robot wars isn't usually my cup of tea, and I didn't particularly like it here either.

    The only plus is that Stephanie has been absent for a couple episodes, and I hope the writers continue with this routine. The Penny & Howard stuff really salvaged the epsiode, I found myself laughing uncontrollably at the part where Howard leaned in for the kiss, Penny's reaction was just absolutely priceless.

    The tie in with the robot was entertaining at the very end, I loved the cold opening with the robot nearly killing Penny. Some good stuff, some bad stuff this episode, but it was still for the most part good.moreless

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    0 0

  • Not the greatest episode.

    6.5
    "Fair"
    By thefanof, Aug 29, 2010 Report Abuse
    Sometimes a television show can be too realistic, too real so that it takes away from the enjoyment of the viewer. Such was the case with this episode of The Big Bang Theory.

    I am sure there are geeks out there like these characters that fight robots, but this was just not my cup of tea and not the laugharama this show usually is. Surely there were some funny parts, but the majority of the half hour was filled with some generally awkward scenes.

    We're starting to see that the writers may be running out of ideas. Unfortunately when Sheldon is not completely spitting out great lines the episodes turn out to be a real letdown.moreless

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    4 8

  • Could have been better.

    8.5
    "Great"
    By efc91, Apr 28, 2009 Report Abuse
    Penny's criticism of Wolowitz's romantic life pushes him into depression and AWOL for a fighting robot battle the rest of guys are depending on him for. Why has Sheldon started to get less screen time on the show in series one and the first few episodes of series two he got plenty of it as he should do becuase he is what makes this show what it is. Without Sheldon there is no Big Bang Theory. The episode was still ok without him and when he was on screen he was great. 8.5 out of 10, it could have been better.moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • Trivia

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    • Kripke states the robot tournament is a round robin, yet he also says that there is no guarantee that they will face each other. In a round Robin every one faces everyone, so they would meet. Also, a to-the-death robot match couldn't use a round robin. Edit
    • When Leonard gets off the phone with Howard, he has his iPhone. It's clear he wasn't making an actual phone call; he was just at the contacts menu. Edit

  • Notes

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    • This episode's end titles has Chuck Lorre's Vanity Card #235. Edit
    • The German episode title is "Monte der Roboter", meaning "Monte the Robot". The French title is "Le Combat des robots", meaning "Battle of the Robots". The Italian title is "L'instabilità del robot killer", and the Spanish and Mexican title is "La inestabilidad del robot asesino", both exact translations. Edit
    • International Airdates: Latin America: March 3, 2009 on Warner Channel; Australia: August 3, 2009 on Channel 9; Turkey: November 23, 2009 on CNBC-e; Finland: December 28, 2009 on Sub; Czech Republic: November 10, 2010 on Prima COOL; Slovakia: September 29, 2011 on Markiza Edit

  • Quotes

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    • Sheldon: Have faith, gentlemen. We don't need Wolowitz. Engineering is merely the slow, younger brother of physics. Edit
    • Leonard: Barry, we can't fight you tomorrow. Our engineer is incapacitated. Kripke: What's wrong with him? Koothrappali: He's depressed because he's pathetic and creepy and can't get girls. Kripke: We're all pathetic and creepy and can't get girls. That's why we fight robots. Edit
    • Sheldon: MONTE's gone. We'll bury him in the morning—a simple ceremony. Leonard, you'll play your cello Penny: Sheldon, aren't you getting a little carried away? I mean, it's just a toy robot. Sheldon: "Just a toy robot?" (runs to his room) Edit

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