Leonard sardonically remarks his “betrayal” of his friends makes him the Darth Vader of Pasadena. Sheldon retorts he is way too short to be the Sith Lord. He is, at best, a Turncoat Ewok. I am going to have to use that one at some point. If I do, you will all now where it originated.Here we are in week two of no Kaley Cuoco. How are all you desperate nerds holding up? Overwhelmed Google Image Search yet?
Much like last week, “The Irish Pub Formulation” takes a typical sitcom plot--one character secretly dating the relative of another--and sees how well these uniquely nerdy characters handle it. I thought it was much better than last week’s effort with the awkward, incompatible blind date for Leonard.
Raj’s sister, Pia, comes to visit. He does not want Howard doing his usual obnoxious PePe Le Pew routine o her. E is satisfied to learn during her first visit five years ago, Howard and Leonard made a pact to not hit on her out of respect for their friendship with Raj. The pact is short lied. Leonard and Pia wind up spending the night together.
It is a short lived element to the episode. Pia is just rebelling against her traditional Indian upbringing. The comedy comes from trying to keep the one night stan from Sheldon, convincing him to keep the secret once he discovers it, and the guys all revealing the absurd betrayals they have been keeping secret from one another. Definitely a socially odd bunch those.
I laughed out loud quite a few times, but still cannot help ut note how every episode has to revolve around Sheldon, no matter how forced the situation has to be to bring him into it. This was not as terribly strangeas it sometimes is. In fact, I thought the character was much more pleasant this week as he weaved a Lucy Ricardo-esque alibi for Leonard rather than the uncomfortably demented Sheldon from last week. Some writers have a better handle on im tan others.
Botto line: “The Irish Pub Manipulation” wastrite, but funny. It feels implausible that Leonard can have all these one night stands, but seeing the genuine friendship between he ad Sheldon re-emerge makes up for it. Too often, you have to wonder why such a relationship continues. I will bet we never see Pia again, though.
Rating: *** (out of 5)
