Did it ever occur to you how unoriginal The Big Bang Theory is? Yes, it has a very generous fan base; you can include me on that. But sometimes their material was, shall we say, copied from another designer. The shows I will be comparing are The Big Bang Theory to That '70s Show.
That '70s Show characters
The Pinciottis (Midge, Bob, and daughter Donna)
The Formans (Red, Kitty, and son Eric)
Steven Hyde, Michael Kelso, Jackie Burkhart, and "Fez"
The Big Bang Theory characters
Sheldon Cooper, Leonard and Penny Hofstadter, Howard and Bern-adette Wolowitz, and Amy Farrah-Fowler
That '70s Show characters
The Pinciottis (Midge, Bob, and daughter Donna)
The Formans (Red, Kitty, and son Eric)
Steven Hyde, Michael Kelso, Jackie Burkhart, and "Fez"
The Big Bang Theory characters
Sheldon Cooper, Leonard and Penny Hofstadter, Howard and Bern-adette Wolowitz, and Amy Farrah-Fowler
To begin, Donna and Penny are both sassy, tough girls who dye their hair blond. They both have green eyes, and they both date a nerd who read their journals. Penny currently resides in Pasadena, California and Donna went there. (They should have met. Fez and Howard would most likely meet in the dirty store. I can totally imagine a Big Bang circle.) Donna hits Kelso upside the head when she learns about his erotic fantasy including all the girls; and Penny punches Howard when he tries to kiss her. While attempting to keep Penny's community college secret, Sheldon shamelessly quotes Fez: "Good day, Leonard! I said good day!"
Penny and Leonard take Sheldon to Disneyland to make up for their frequent fights, act like they're one big unhappy family, and Penny complains that Sheldon won't want his dinner, because he ate so much junk food. And the exact same thing happened to Donna and Eric - when Fez spoiled his dinner with the ice cream he got on his face.
Raj and Fez both say Amedica, and Red and Leslie both say dumbass. While teasing Eric about his future, Hyde pictures Eric in a complete Spock outfit, coming home from a convention; and I know they're two different shows, but the Nerds all dress up like Star Trek characters. Both shows feature Special Brownies. And, in the episode The Deception Verification, Sheldon walks by a pizza man who smells of marijuana and says his uncle used to wear that scent. How cool would it be if his uncle were portrayed by Tommy Chong?
Kelso and Howard both have a daughter. A toy helicopter runs rampant in both shows. Red and Sheldon both own a train set, and don't allow their friends, or brother, to play with them.
Penny and Leonard take Sheldon to Disneyland to make up for their frequent fights, act like they're one big unhappy family, and Penny complains that Sheldon won't want his dinner, because he ate so much junk food. And the exact same thing happened to Donna and Eric - when Fez spoiled his dinner with the ice cream he got on his face.
Raj and Fez both say Amedica, and Red and Leslie both say dumbass. While teasing Eric about his future, Hyde pictures Eric in a complete Spock outfit, coming home from a convention; and I know they're two different shows, but the Nerds all dress up like Star Trek characters. Both shows feature Special Brownies. And, in the episode The Deception Verification, Sheldon walks by a pizza man who smells of marijuana and says his uncle used to wear that scent. How cool would it be if his uncle were portrayed by Tommy Chong?
Kelso and Howard both have a daughter. A toy helicopter runs rampant in both shows. Red and Sheldon both own a train set, and don't allow their friends, or brother, to play with them.
In the episode of That '70s Show, titled Prom Day, Eric imagines what his relationship with Donna would be like if they meticulously planned it out. Viola! A relationship agreement is born. And...some-thing else itches at the back of my mind. Oh yeah! I remember a quote from Raj, in the episode called The Nerdvana Annihilation. What was it he said? Oh, right. "Stuff that in your Speedos, JACUZZI BOB." In That '70s Show Donna's father, Bob Pinciotti, has been known to lounge about in his hot tub in his Speedos.
Honestly! Raj's neighbor Jacuzzi Bob SHOULD BE Bob Pinciotti, having moved to California after Midge tells him how great a time she had. It's just so perfect!
The Koothrappalis and the Hofstadters are not the only couples to break up. Donna's parents, the Pinciottis, also separated. And Raj and Donna are both used as a conduit for their parents' argu-ments.
The Nerds have Aquaman briefs and Forman has a Spiderman bed sheet. Mary and Kitty both make smiley-face pancakes for their sons. Sheldon lost his father and Howard lost his mother. Lisa Robin Kelly, the woman who portrayed Eric's sister, died of an overdose, so technically Eric lost his sister. Penny's brother is in rehab, Hyde's first father was in rehab. And you know that dude Sheldon hired to avoid hearing Penny sing? They called him Leo.
In a Big Bang episode called "The Isolation Permutation", Amy reveals that her friends trapped her in a sauna with a horny otter. In a That '70s Show episode called Immigrant Song, Eric reveals Laurie trapped him in port-o-potty with a horny goat. And guess who each slept with his cousin...? Eric and Howard!
Donna does yoga with her mother and Penny does yoga with Sheldon. Kitty and Raj both own a small dog. Eric sees an angel and Sheldon sees a ghost. Sheldon and Donna were both on the radio.
The Koothrappalis and the Hofstadters are not the only couples to break up. Donna's parents, the Pinciottis, also separated. And Raj and Donna are both used as a conduit for their parents' argu-ments.
The Nerds have Aquaman briefs and Forman has a Spiderman bed sheet. Mary and Kitty both make smiley-face pancakes for their sons. Sheldon lost his father and Howard lost his mother. Lisa Robin Kelly, the woman who portrayed Eric's sister, died of an overdose, so technically Eric lost his sister. Penny's brother is in rehab, Hyde's first father was in rehab. And you know that dude Sheldon hired to avoid hearing Penny sing? They called him Leo.
In a Big Bang episode called "The Isolation Permutation", Amy reveals that her friends trapped her in a sauna with a horny otter. In a That '70s Show episode called Immigrant Song, Eric reveals Laurie trapped him in port-o-potty with a horny goat. And guess who each slept with his cousin...? Eric and Howard!
Donna does yoga with her mother and Penny does yoga with Sheldon. Kitty and Raj both own a small dog. Eric sees an angel and Sheldon sees a ghost. Sheldon and Donna were both on the radio.
Raj and Fez are both not from the location the show takes place, and their love lives are often inactive. Jackie and Bernadette are both short and squeaky, but Jackie would bond more with Raj because they're both rich and spoiled. Like Sheldon, Eric is a fan of Star Wars, and builds models. I can imagine them building the Starship together; Sheldon quietly correcting Eric's work. Maybe they get into a big fight over it and Donna and Penny walk in on them...They all get high and Sheldon says some uncharacteristically stupid things!) Sheldon, Kelso and Eric all try to do the Jedi mind tricks. In The Sales Call Sublimation, Penny goes to a therapist, who says she went to college during the '70s; and Penny asks her if she ever had sex with a stuffed Wookie watching. And Eric and Donna's marriage counsellor just can't shut up about Star Wars!
Hyde and Chrissy...Howard and Christy.
Hyde and Chrissy...Howard and Christy.
Fez and Howard both dress up as Batman. Eric dressed up as Luke Skywalker and Professor Proton wore Obi Wan Kenobi's ensem-ble. (You can say he was never caught alive in those clothes, but it counts.) Sheldon wears a maid's outfit, Eric wears a dress. Zack's a dumbass, Kelso's a dumbass. And oh my God! Can you imagine Red Forman and Mike Rostenkowski in the same room? Kitty Forman, Mary Cooper. They'd get along great. Big Bang Theory still needs a landlord, though, and I know just the guy. FENTON!
And let's not forget...The Loop. Carol Ann Susi (Howard's mother) appeared in That '70s Show, where Mila Kunis portrayed Jackie and Ashton Kutcher portrayed Michael Kelso. Kutcher also portrayed Walden Schmidt in Two And A Half Men, after the death of character Charlie Harper, portrayed by Charlie Sheen who appeared in The Big Bang Theory; where Kaley Cuoco and Katey Sagal reunite for the mother-daughter relationship they had in 8 Simple Rules. John Ritter appeared in 8 Simple Rules; and he also appeared in Three's Company. His landlord, Mr. Roper, would later appear in The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, and one of the characters from that show would later find her way into The Big Bang Theory.
But wait, it gets weirder. My brother wants Bob Pinciotti to por-tray Howard's father, because much like the character of Mrs. Wol-owitz, he's big, hairy, scary, and has been known to occasionally leave his robe open.
And let's not forget...The Loop. Carol Ann Susi (Howard's mother) appeared in That '70s Show, where Mila Kunis portrayed Jackie and Ashton Kutcher portrayed Michael Kelso. Kutcher also portrayed Walden Schmidt in Two And A Half Men, after the death of character Charlie Harper, portrayed by Charlie Sheen who appeared in The Big Bang Theory; where Kaley Cuoco and Katey Sagal reunite for the mother-daughter relationship they had in 8 Simple Rules. John Ritter appeared in 8 Simple Rules; and he also appeared in Three's Company. His landlord, Mr. Roper, would later appear in The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, and one of the characters from that show would later find her way into The Big Bang Theory.
But wait, it gets weirder. My brother wants Bob Pinciotti to por-tray Howard's father, because much like the character of Mrs. Wol-owitz, he's big, hairy, scary, and has been known to occasionally leave his robe open.
So, the shows are all connected. Not only through the actors, but through the plots and the quotes. I guess some material just doesn't stretch.
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