Emmy Episodes: The Big Bang Theory

It’s always my policy to watch every Emmy-nominated episode each year, which leads me to sample a handful of shows that I don’t tune in to on a regular basis. For the third year in a row, I’m making a special effort to spotlight each of those installments to offer my perspective on shows that I don’t review each week.

The Big Bang Theory: Season 11, Episode 24 “The Bow Tie Asymmetry” (B+)

This episode marks a strange inclusion in the Emmy lineup since it wasn’t actually announced when the nominations were unveiled but was then added as a result of a new rule which ensures that one slot in the Best Directing for a Comedy Series category goes to a multi-camera show. While I’m not sure how I feel about that rule – or whether more should be in place to ensure a more distributed field of talent gets recognized. Either way, I’m very happy to be able to check back in with this show after a long time away from it. I used to enjoy watching the six plus installments that represented the show in Best Comedy Series and the acting categories, but, after being dropped from the top race in 2015, this show netted just three technical nominations last year. While this represents its only bid this year, what a great episode it is. I’m not sure I would highlight its directing over its writing, but this was a very sweet (and relatable for a casual viewer) way to finally get Sheldon and Amy hitched. I love that they discovered something scientific together only to decide that they had the rest of their lives to get back to this, and having a slew of mothers in town for the wedding, including Kathy Bates as Amy’s mom, who made Christine Baranski’s monster mother look nice, was fun. Mark Hamill guest-starring as himself was an endearing bonus, the latest instance of something this show does well, having sci-fi geek icons show up and embrace the cult status they’ve achieved within this community. It was recently announced that this show has just one more season to go, and I’d be more than happy to enjoy sampling any number of episodes when next year’s Emmy nominees come around.