The Big Bang Theory

Season 1 Episode 16

The Peanut Reaction

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10
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out of 10
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496 votes
12

EPISODE REVIEWS
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Episode Summary

EDIT
Penny wants to throw a surprise party for Leonard, but Sheldon's indulgence at an electronics store throws her off-track.
SUBMIT REVIEW
  • Best episode this season.

    10
    Penny, with the help of the rest of the gang, are throwing Leonard his first birthday party ever. Howard needs to keep Leonard away from his appartment, Raj needs to "entertain" the guests when they arrive, and Penny needs to help Sheldon buy a gift after he finally accepts the process of gift giving.



    Complications arise however when Sheldon gets a little too into the products he's sampling,





    Great character development happening here for Leonard. We learn about his childhood and sympathesize with him, and we get our first Penny/Leonard kiss!



    Entertaining!moreless
  • 116

    9.5
    A superb episode of TBBT tonight, I laughed almost all the way through and it was just a very eventful episode. This show has its off days sometimes but this was just a perfect example of what this show is capable of doing, and that is bringing the whole audience a barrel of laughs. From Sheldon spontaneously starting to work at the electronics store to Howard actually having an allergic reaction for Leonard, this was a hysterical episode, no doubt about it. Just some scenes were just unexpectedly hilarious, and I was completely blown away by this episode.



    The ending was a bit of a letdown since there was no party scenes but Howard & Leonard walking in to the apartment to find drunk Raj and Penny & Sheldon sleeping was hilarious. Penny kisses Leonard in the end, great eventful scene that tied the whole episode together.



    Superb hysterical episode of TBBT.moreless
  • Penny attempts to throw a suprise party for Leonard.

    8.9
    This is exactly why I watch this series. That was the only classification I can think to put of for this episode. Everyone was great, even Johnny Galecki was less annoying than usual. Simon Helberg continues to bring life to an excellent character in Howard. Kaley Cuoco isn't as good on this show as she was on 8 Simple Rules, but she was still funny as well this week. Rajeesh provided some laughs, but like always Jim Parsons stole the show as Sheldon.



    The scene where he was pretending to work at the electronics store was great. Telling the woman that it's out of stock but they can order it for her was great. Somehow he seems to get funnier every week.



    The Big Bang Theory continues to be the top comedy on Monday and is slowly rising in the rankings toward the top sitcom on television. If they keep producing quality episodes like this they might reach 30 Rock and Curb Your Enthusiasm one day.moreless
  • Nerds. ♥

    9.5
    Penny wants to throw a surprise party for Leonard, but Sheldon's indulgence at an electronics store throws her off-track. As always I love the start - I wish I was in ther friends group. I love the whole storyline the way Leonard has never had a borthday party - quite sad really. I love the way Penny reacts about the whole thing making sure everyone is up for a birthday party for him. I love the way Sheldon makes him and Penny later by being a nerd. I also love the way Howard gets Leonard out the apartment - love all the scenes with them. I love the way Leonard misses his own party. I also love the video at the end. As always, another Awesome episode.moreless
  • A typical episode.

    6.5
    The episode bigains in the cafe where Penny works, Sheldon and Rajesh are playing "Tresling" which is a combined sport between armresling and Tetris. Penny walks up to them and asks them to "Cut it the hell out" and walks away to another table to celebrate someone's bithday. She walks back to to the Leonard's table and they start to discuss wether or not Leonard is coming down to the cafe on his bithday witch is coming up later that week. It turnes out that Leonard never have had an birthday party before.



    Later on Penny desides to throw Leonard a supprise party but Sheldon doesn't really understand why because he is an social moron. Penny then tries to talk him into helping her by telling Sheldon that she will draw smilies on his most valuble comicbooks, but it takes a while for Sheldon to understand the consept of placmale. Sheldon changes his mind about the suppriseparty as soon as he gets it, and they start planning right away.



    Howard gets the assignment to distrace Leonard for a few hours, but he is having problem to get Leonard to leave the house so he fakes an alegic reaction so they have to go to the hospital where thing gets a bit out of hand.



    When they finnaly get back to the house they are to late, the party have already ended. They you will see this video with Rajesh drinking and accualy talking to girls without eny problems and there is alot of other crazy stuff going on.



    Penny fells bad and gives Leonard a kiss, and Leonard asks when her birthday is.



    There was notning special with this episode but i think that the directors messed up the ending, they could have made somthing romantic instead of humour, i mean that's what the show is about, humor.



    Otherwise a good episode!moreless

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • TRIVIA (1)

    • Penny asks Leonard if he'll be coming in to The Cheesecake Factory for his free birthday cheesecake slice. Actually, they only offer a free scoop of ice cream, with the option to purchase a specially decorated slice of cheesecake.

  • QUOTES (11)

    • Sheldon: What twelve-year-old boy wants a motorized dirt bike?

    • Sheldon: By the way, a six-year-old can hack your computer system.
      Penny: (pushing him) Keep walking.
      Sheldon: 1234 is not a secure password!

    • Sheldon: (to an electronics customer) What computer do you have? And please don't say 'a white one.'

    • (Howard feigns an allergic reaction to peanuts)
      Howard: We have to go to the hospital!
      Leonard: Now?
      Howard: No, we'll wait until my tongue swells up to the size of a BRISKET!

    • Penny: (on Leonard's parents not considering his birthday as an "achievement" to be celebrated) That's so silly.
      Sheldon: It's actually based on very sound theories; his mother published a paper on it.
      Penny: What was it called, "I Hate My Son and That's Why He Can't Have Cake"?
      Sheldon: It was obviously very effective. Leonard grew up to become an experimental physicist. Perhaps if she also denied him Christmas, he'd be a little better at it.

    • Penny: (on phone) How about this: you keep him there a little longer, and when you get to the party, I'll point out which of my friends are easy.
      Howard: (long pause) Don't toy with me, woman.
      Penny: I got a hot former fat girl with no self-esteem, I got a girl who punishes her father by sleeping around, and an alcoholic who's two tequila shots away from letting you wear her like a hat.
      Howard: Thy will be done.

    • Leonard: How did you know my birthday's Saturday?
      Penny: I did your horoscope, remember? I was going to do everybody's until Sheldon went on one of his typical psychotic rants.
      Sheldon: For the record, that psychotic rant was a concise summation of the research of Bertram Forer, who, in 1948, proved conclusively through meticulously designed experiments that astrology is nothing but pseudoscientific hokum.
      Penny: Blah, blah, a typical Taurus.

    • Leonard: I don't celebrate my birthday.
      Penny: Shut up. Yeah, you do.
      Leonard: It's no big deal. It's just the way I was raised. My parents focused on celebrating achievements and being expelled from a birth canal was not considered one of them.

    • Penny: Well, Sheldon you are his friend. Friends give each other presents.
      Sheldon: I accept your premise; I reject your conclusion.
      Wolowitz: (quietly to Penny) Try telling him it's a non-optional social convention.
      Penny: What?
      Wolowitz: Just do it.
      Penny: It's a non-optional social convention.
      Sheldon: Ahh, fair enough.
      Wolowitz: He came with a manual.

    • Sheldon: Leonard made it very clear, he doesn't want a party.
      Wolowitz: Did someone say party?
      Penny: He just doesn't know he wants one because he never had one.
      Wolowitz: I suppose that's possible, but for the record I've never had a threesome and yet I still know I want one.
      Penny: Howard here's a difference: the possibility exists that Leonard could have a birthday party before hell freezes over.
      Wolowitz: Fine, if I do have a threesome you can't be part of it. (waits a minute) I'm just kidding. Yes, you can. Can you bring a friend?

    • Wolowitz: (trying to get an black nurse to admit him to the ER) Okay, I get it. I know how the world works. (flashes a five dollar bill) How about I introduce you to the man who freed your people?
      Nurse: Unless my people were freed by Benjamin Franklin and his five twin brothers, you are wasting your time.

  • NOTES (4)

    • The German episode title is "Die Erdnuss-Reaktion", the Italian title is "La reazione alle arachidi", the Spanish title is "La reacción al cacahuete", and the Mexican title is "La reacción al maní", all exact translations. The French title is "Réaction!".

    • International Airdates: Turkey: December 30, 2008 on CNBC-e; Germany: September 26, 2009 on ProSieben; Slovakia: September 9, 2011 on Markiza

    • John Shaffner, Francoise Cherry-Cohen, and Ann Shea were nominated for an Art Directors Guild Award in the Excellence In Production Design-Episode Of A Multi-Camera Television Series category for their work on this episode.

    • This episode's end titles has Chuck Lorre's Vanity Card #210.

  • ALLUSIONS (0)

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