Big Bang: The Guys as Star Trek Characters

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

First off, as I tweeted last night, I was shocked that Sheldon didn't think Raj, Leonard, or Howard would know that it was President Eisenhower who signed the Interstate Highway System Act into law. My husband and I both got that one without a great deal of thought. We then gave the "which four state capitals are not served by interstates?" question a try, landing Juneau and Pierre correct, though we missed Dover (and we've been there!), Jefferson City, and Carson City. That's right, there are actually FIVE, according to the US Dept of Transportation Federal Highway Administration. Secondly, I was sad that the guys didn't actually make it to Comic-Con, even if it was the smaller one in Bakersfield. I've been rooting for the guys to get to a big convention on an episode since I became a fan of the series, though I do hope they do it right if they go that route at some point. While the guys are out of town, the ladies deciding to figure out what their sustained interest in superheroes is delighted me. The timing in those scenes was perfect, and I thought that it was a great storyline for them.

The Big Bang Theory "The Bakersfield Expedition" (S06E13): The guys prepare to go to the Bakersfield, CA Comic-Con. [haha at Leonard getting a picture kissing Penny while she holds that day's newspaper to show people when they don't believe she's his girlfriend.] Shortly after they get into the car they learn that Sheldon has hacked Leonard's GPS to not only use his voice for the turn-by-turn directions, but also to add in "fun facts" and geography quizzes. [how much more awesome would traveling be if you could learn geography while driving? sign me up!] The gang decides to have an impromptu photo shoot where some episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation were filmed (Leonard was Picard, Sheldon was Data, Raj was Worf, and Howard a Borg), but as they're doing so, Leonard's car was stolen. [Sheldon doing the same pose for every shot got old.] Unable to hitch a ride, they walk for miles until they come across a diner, where they make a police report and have Howard's mom arrange a rental car. [he still doesn't call his WIFE instead??]

©2013 Warner Bros.

Sadly, Raj is the only one who really wants to continue onward so they decide to go home instead, defeated. [it was really sad how much the teasing got to Sheldon in particular. and, renting the car from Enterprise made me laugh.] They return to the girls arguing about Thor. See, at brunch they began to wonder why the guys like these conventions (aside from being in touch with their inner children) and head off to Stuart's store to pick up one. [I liked Amy's line of thought about superheroes providing meaningful wish fulfillment for bullied kids. This is what I see in X-Men.] Amy asks for the best superhero book, but Stuart says that question could start a rumble. [haha!] Stuart recommends "Fables" but Penny prefers "Thor," so they get three copies of that. After the first reading, they still think comic books are stupid and wonder how the guys spend so much time arguing about myths... but they soon get into an argument about how only Thor can use the hammer, so they re-read the issue. Complication sets in and they wind up heading over to the guys' apartment to comb through more evidence. [hehe.]