The Big Bang Theory: The Itchy Brain Simulation (7x08)

Not much of a fan of this one. There were a few decent jokes, but other than that not much happened.

The plot is as follows: Leonard finds an old DVD that was rented on Sheldon's account, and Sheldon tells Leonard that he won't freak out about it if he finds a way to return the DVD. The catch? He has to wear an itchy sweater while he does so, to really understand how uncomfortable Sheldon can get when things are unresolved. The video store has gone out of business and the owner has died, so Leonard tries and tries to figure out a way to solve the problem. Sheldon eventually tells Leonard that he paid the late fee seven years ago, but kept the DVD so that he could teach a lesson to Leonard some day.

Meanwhile, Raj's ex-girlfriend Lucy shows up at the restaurant, and Penny yells at her for hurting Raj. Raj and Lucy then go out for coffee, Raj hopeful that he can get back together with her. However, she is now dating someone else. Penny sets Raj up with a girl, but he messes it up by freaking out.

The main plot offered some funny jokes, but I just thought it was a little over the top how far Leonard was willing to go just to prove a point to Sheldon. Good comedic acting, but still a little past absurd. I did enjoy the way that Sheldon tried to explain how terrible it made him feel when things are unresolved. In some ways, I understand that feeling. Once again, this show does a surprisingly good job at not belittling Sheldon for his mental disorder.

The subplot I thought was practically entirely useless. It was sort of nice to see Lucy again, I guess, but when they went out for coffee the payoff was really weak. She has a boyfriend, okay, goodbye, I guess we'll never see you again? Despite that, I thought the funniest part of the episode was when Penny was being Lucy's waitress, but just kept asking her uncomfortable questions about Raj. Also, kudos for the lesson in racism. Penny says she's not racist because she has an Indian friend, and Bernadette says that calling Raj her "Indian friend" is in fact racism. While it was sort of played for laughs, Penny was actually chastised for her casually racist remarks, which I thought was a pretty cool move. It's an important lesson to learn about racism: usually people aren't out-and-out bigots. It's more the everyday stuff that still permeates our society so much. (Sorry about that, it was a bit off topic.) 

Anyways, this review is short, just like your typical episode of The Big Bang Theory. I wasn't wanting to turn off the TV on this one or anything, but I wasn't totally riveted by anything on the screen either.

6/10