Abbie Bethell
Staff Writer

Okay, so this was one of the best episodes of The Big Bang Theory to date (in my opinion). “The Romance Resonance” was, quite obviously, about romance and a big scientific discovery on Sheldon’s part.

First we see Sheldon in his “zone,” working on something science related, whilst at the Cheesecake Factory with the rest of the gang. Bernadette goes to wash her hands before dinner, as she is working with some racoons for an experiment. While she is away, Howard explains to everyone that he is planning a surprise for Bernie for the anniversary of their first date. Howard’s plan? To write a song for Bernadette and perform it for her with Penny, Sheldon, Amy, Leonard and Raj as back-up singers/instrument players.

Sheldon’s Big Breakthrough:

From the beginning of the episode we see Sheldon disengaged from the group whilst working. Next thing we see is Sheldon back at the apartment with calculations on a whiteboard, he then realises he’s made a massive scientific breakthrough; discovering a new super heavy element (just smile and nod).

It seems like the big breakthrough we’ve all been waiting to see for Mr. clever clogs. Beneath his tough exterior, you can tell that Sheldon is a little bit envious of Leonard and Howard, who have made massive accomplishments within their own respective careers; with Howard going to space and Leonard working on a Stephen Hawking expedition. So it finally felt like this was his moment, except…not.

After doing a lot of gloating, Sheldon sorts out the equipment he used upon making the discovery; until he realises he made a major slip up, miscounting the measurements by ten thousand. The Chinese have used Sheldon’s work and proved his theory right, however it doesn’t change the fact that they stumbled upon it by luck rather than it being correct.

Sheldon is down about this and feels that people shouldn’t be congratulating him, even if his work did point the Chinese in the right direction, he comments that he feels a fraud. To try and reason with him, Amy says that she’s embarrassed by his mistake, he tells her that’s the most romantic thing anyone has said to him. Well, okay then.

The final scene of the episode is Sheldon declaring his love for Amy, telling her how much he wants to kiss her on not only the cheek, but on the lips. As Amy goes in for the kiss, we then revert back to the Cheesecake Factory where Amy is dreaming up this scenario.

Penny Tries To Be Romantic

After being informed of Howard’s plans for Bernadette’s surprise, Penny says how romantic it is and asks Leonard why he doesn’t do any of that for her. He then returns the question and makes Penny realise she isn’t good at romance outside of the bedroom. She then makes it her mission to romance Leonard.

Penny invites Raj to help her plan this special surprise, and he comes up with numerous suggestions (most of which come from famous movies), or cooking dinner. Penny says Leonard always moans when she cooks for him and can’t come up with any ideas.

When she does invite Leonard over, they eat dinner, she spreads rose petals along the carpet as she leads him to the bedroom (not for what you’re thinking) and presents him with a first edition of his favourite book as a child The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. She notices that his reaction is not what she expected and when she questions him, he says he bought it when they were together a while back.  Penny then gets a box out, of all the romantic gestures Leonard has done for her, such as a rose he put on her windscreen and the letter he wrote her after the first time they had sex. This was in fact the most romantic thing Penny could’ve done for Leonard because it showed that she cared. He asked her why she kept them and she said “because it’s you.” I’ve not always been sold on the on/off relationship between the pair, but this really changed my mind.

Howard Is A Romantic At Heart

My goodness, who would’ve thought I’d be saying this 6 season’s later? Howard Wolowitz is a sweet, warm-hearted man (did I really just say that?). And he’s a charmer.

We don’t actually get to see the development of the romantic gesture, just the planning beforehand and the actual event, which actually works well for this specific moment. Throughout the 20-minute episode, we see Howard when he tells the gang what he’s doing, then again at the University where he’s written the song, after that with the gang waiting for Bernie, and then finally at the hospital where the performance takes place.

This song was potentially the best thing the show has ever done. It’s also available to buy on iTunes here, with all proceeds going to the MusiCares Foundation, which brings music to those less fortunate.

Back to the song: The song is performed by the whole gang, with Howard as the lead; Bernadette is in quarantine after the racoon virus strain got spilt. So they all perform the song through the hospital window. The lyrics fit perfectly, so touching yet comical at times, it was totally unexpected but a really pleasant surprise for both us the audience and Bernadette herself. It’s also really damn catchy too!

The lyrics ‘If I Didn’t Have You’:

If I didn’t have you, life would be blue
I’d be Doctor Who without the TARDIS
A candle without a wick, a Watson without a Crick
I’d be one of my outfits without a dick-ey

I’d be cheese without the mac,
Steve Jobs without the Wozniak
I’d be solving exponential equations that use bases not found on your calculator, making it much harder to crack

I’d be an atom without a bomb, a dot without the com
And I’d probably still live with my mom
(All, echo: And he’d probably still live with his mom)

Ever since I met you, you’ve turned my world around
You’ve supported all my dreams and all my hopes
You’re like Uranium-235 and I’m Uranium-238,
Almost inseparable isotopes

I couldn’t have imagined how good my life would get
From the moment that I met you, Bernadette

If I didn’t have you, life would be dreary
I’d be string theory without any string
I’d be binary code without a one,
A cathode ray without an electron gun
I’d be ‘Firefly’, ‘Buffy,’ and ‘Avengers’ without Joss Whedon
I’d speak a lot more Klingon,
[Speaks Klingon]

All: And he’d definitely still live with his mom

Ever since I met you, you’ve turned my world around
You’re my best friend and my lover
We’re like changing electric and magnetic fields;
you can’t have one, without the other

I couldn’t have imagined how good my life would get
From the moment that I met you, Bernadette

All: Oh, we couldn’t have imagined, how good our lives would get
From the moment that we met you, Bernadette

I know I keep saying it, but this season has been incredible so far, each episode keeps getting better. I don’t know how the writers keep coming up with this genius. The Big Bang Theory most definitely deserves all the award recognition and ratings it gets, truly brilliant!

Highlights

-“Hey, how come you’ve never done anything romantic to celebrate our first date?” – Penny
“For starters, you’ve broke up with me so many times, which first date are we talking about?” – Leonard
“Ooooh someone call the burn ward” – Sheldon

– “(About his work) Look at it, it’s like my mind just made a baby” – Sheldon

– His dance accompanied by “Sheldon and his brain, yeah! Sheldon and his brain, yeah!” – Sheldon

– “Sheldon Cooper does not get lucky” – Sheldon
“You and me both, brother” – Amy

-Howard’s song to Bernadette was so adorable, an unforgettable moment in TBBT history.
Just a reminder of the brilliance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIn1FsQc0Uo&feature=player_detailpage

-“Alright loverboy, get ready, because there’s a crap storm of romance coming your way” – Penny

-Amy’s daydream at the end was predictable but still hilarious

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