The Bakersfield Expedition

The Bakersfield Expedition is the 13th episode of the sixth season of the CBS sitcom, The Big Bang Theory. The episode aired Thursday, January 10, 2013.

Summary
Sheldon and Leonard are preparing for their trip to the Bakersfield Comic-Con and plan on wearing their Star Trek: The Next Generation costumes. Penny gives Leonard some make-up sponges and mentions that he has more and better makeup than hers, but when she attempts to borrow some, Leonard tells her that he loves her, but some things just aren't shared. Sheldon agrees because he once borrowed his sister's makeup and got a terrible case of pink eye, but the upside was that he was dressing as a zombieand the added effect helped him win second place. Penny remarks that they just went to the San Diego Comic-Con, and Leonard replies that the Bakersfield one is smaller and more about the comic books, which was what the San Diego one was like before it "went all Hollywood ." He then takes a photo of him kissing Penny on the cheek while she holds today's paper, so that he can show it to others when they don't believe that he has a hot girlfriend.

The girls are having a Saturday brunch since they are all alone. Penny thinks its great since you can drink booze in the morning without people thinking you have a problem. Amy comments that Sheldon doesn't like brunch since he can't sit at a table where one person is eating an omelet and another is eating a sandwich. Leonard texts Penny that they are heading to Bakersfield at warp speed and she gives him an "LOL," though she thinks it's the mimosa talking. When Bernadette says how excited they all were, Penny wonders how these super-smart guys who work at a major university can get so excited about something made for twelve year olds. Bernadette thinks that it brings out Howard's inner child, though she confesses that when he wears his Batman pajamas to bed, she thinks he's touching his inner child. Amy thinks that since they were bullied when they were kids in a world where you can't fight back, superheroes provide meaningful wish fulfillment. The girls realized that none of them have ever read a comic book and that maybe they should look into it since it is such an important part of their guys' lives. Bernadette tells them that the comic book store is nearby and Penny exclaims that that is an amazing idea, then wonders how many mimosas she has had.

On their trip, Sheldon keeps insisting that they turn on the voice option on the GPS. When Leonard finally gives in and turns it on, they discover that Sheldon has downloaded his voice and "fun" trip facts into the GPS software. Raj thinks that it's cool, while Howard wants Leonard to drive off the next bridge. Raj then suggests they stop at Vasquez Rocks, the filming location of several Star Trek episodes, and take some action photos in costume.

Visiting the comic book store, the girls get stared at by all the male customers. Amy likes the attention and wanders around the store exclaiming "Hello, boys!" Stuart greets them and admonishes his customers that the girls are nothing they haven't seen in movies or drawings. Penny told him that they were wondering why the guys likedcomic books so much and wanted to give them a try. Stuart asked what kind they wanted--superhero, graphic novel, fantasy, manga--then turns on the advancing guys and warns them that he'll turn the hose on them. Bernadette asks what kind of comics the guys like and he says that it's mainly superheroes. When Amy asks who the best superhero is, Stuart tells her to keep quiet or she could start a rumble. Penny asks what he recommends, and he explains that you have your good guy superheroes like Superman and Spider-Man, or your darker anti-heroes like Batman and Wolverine. Amy remarks that she does like a bad boy, to which Penny quips, "As evidenced by your boyfriend and his fear of hamsters." He recommends Fables due to its excellent artwork, sophisticated stories, and the fact that it doesn't objectify women, while Penny thinks that Thor looks hot.

The guys are finished with their costumes: Sheldon is Data, Leonard is Jean-Luc Picard, Howard is a  Borg drone, and Raj is Worf . First they pose in a fight scene, with Sheldon looking thoughtful because "Data's weapon is his mind." They then draw their phasers on Howard-as-a-Borg and take some Charlie's Angels and glamour shots, all with Sheldon holding his thoughtful pose. Suddenly, Leonard's car is stolen due to the key being left in it, along with their regular clothes and cell phones. They try to wave down a car but it just passes them. Sheldon remarks that maybe they were better off since they could have gotten into a car with a crazy person, and Leonard explodes that they should look at themselves since they appeared to be the crazy people. Leonard tells them that they should head off and find a gas station or something. Sheldon asks if he was taking charge just because he had on the Captain's uniform. When Leonard says yes, Sheldon agrees and joins them.

Back at Penny's apartment, Bernadette and Amy are waiting for Penny to finish her comic book. Amy analyzes her comic saying that the plot was full of action, moved along at a brisk pace, and overall she found it to be, oh, what is the word? "Stupid." They wonder how the guys can get caught up for hours discussing something that doesn't even exist. Penny scoffs at Thor's hammer being so heavy that no one else can pick it up; Bernadette says that its some kind of magic from Thor, while Amy counters that Thor is a god, it's his hammer, therefore only he can use it (like Sheldon and his toothbrush or his thin, beckoning lips). Wondering if they missed something, they go back to their comics, though they give Penny a head start.

Walking through the desert, everyone is complaining. Sheldon tells them to stop it because they are Starfleet officers. He reminds them that it's like they are living a Star Trek fantasy as a landing party lost on an alien world, relying only on their wits... a scenario that lasts until a passing car throws an Icee-like drink at Sheldon, who then exclaims that "he hates this planet." After a long walk, they arrive at a diner and ask the waitress for some water and to borrow a telephone to call the police. The waitress asks why they don't have Scotty beam them up, and as she and the patrons laugh, Sheldon corrects her, telling her that they are Next Generation characters, not Original Series.

Meanwhile, the girls continue arguing about Thor's hammer  and who can pick it up. They decide to go over to Leonard and Sheldon's apartment and go through the guys' comics to learn more about the hammer.

A policeman takes a stolen vehicle report about the car, clothes, makeup and cell phones, then asks if he can call someone, like their mothers. Howard enters and tells them that his mother has gotten them a rental car. While Raj is still hyped about continuing to Bakersfield, the others are tired and just want to go home, even Sheldon, who has lost his earlier Star Trek euphoria and, in a rare moment of self-awareness, confesses that others think they're idiots and that he's starting to feel like one. Raj reluctantly gives in, but insists that they at least rent their car from Enterprise. The guys simply stare at him and refuse to laugh at the joke.

The girls are now sitting in the living room, eating Chinese food and arguing comic books, just like their guys (Penny and Amy are even sitting in Leonard and Sheldon's traditional spots on the couch). Bernadette proposes that if Thorpicked up the hammer and the Hulk picked up Thor, by the transitive rule of picking things up, Hulk has picked up the hammer. Penny counters that if she picks up a guy in a bar who then picks up a girl and they all leave together, does that mean that she picked up the girl? Amy asks, with a hopeful grin, if that ever happened, but an embarrassed Penny deflects the question. As the tired Star Trek enthusiasts return, they hear their ladies arguing and Sheldon wonders if they have somehow "tumbled into an alternate universe where the girls appreciate great literature." He figures that if they are in a different reality, a Star Trek landing party should investigate. Thinking that they might be hostile, they pull out their phasers, but before charging through the door, Leonard orders them to set the phasers on stun (because if they vaporize them, he'll never find another girlfriend as pretty as Penny).

In the final scene, the car thieves are seen driving Leonard's car on the Interstate, while listening to Sheldon's modified GPS. Unlike the guys, the two find the facts interesting and the quizzes fun.

Reception
This episode was met with mostly negative reviews from critics.

Oliver Sava of The A.V Club gave the episode a D

Jesse Scheeden of IGN gave the episode a mediocre rating: 5.8 out of 10

Dhruv Rao of The DR Club gave the episode a D+

Trivia

 * The guys portray characters from Star Trek: The Next Generation, specifically in the years 2365 – 2370, as follows: Leonard is Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Sheldon is Lieutenant Commander Data, Raj is Lieutenant Worf, and Howard is a Borg drone. Note Sheldon's collar has the appropriate pips of a Lieutenant Commander.
 * Apparently, Brent Spiner's place on Sheldon's mortal enemies list established in The Russian Rocket Reaction did not preclude Sheldon from portraying his android counterpart Data of Star Trek: The Next Generation. In that episode Leonard revealed Sheldon loves Mr. Data, though, his anger at Brent Spiner prevented him from accepting a signed Data doll.
 * The android Data's quest for humanity contrasts with Sheldon's wish to become an artificial lifeform. Now emulating Data's form as such, Sheldon last appeared as a 'droid', C-3PO, in The Holographic Excitation.
 * Though the focus is on costumes from Star Trek: The Next Generation in this episode, emphasis is usually on such aspects of Star Trek: The Original Series. In The Codpiece Topology, Sheldon played as Spock, and he wore a command gold uniform in The Bat Jar Conjecture. Revealed in The Prestidigitation Approximation and The Ornithophobia Diffusion, Leonard has two TOScommand uniforms, as well, a duty tunic and a dress uniform, while Raj has a Lieutenant Uhura uniform, which was stated in The Prestidigitation Approximation and The Roommate Transmogrification.
 * Sheldon did not hesitate to refer to Leonard as the Captain of their landing party in The White Asparagus Triangulation.
 * A waitress references "Beam me up, Scotty," with Sheldon retorting, "Scotty was on The Original Series and we're Next Generation, so joke's on you." In The Creepy Candy Coating Corollary, Raj similarly told Sheldon, "You know you keep quoting Wrath of Khan, but he was in Next Generation. It’s a totally different set of characters."
 * Raj jokes they should go with Enterprise Rent-A-Car as the characters they are dressed as served aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise (NCC-1701-D).
 * Leonard, Howard and Raj have once gone to Vasquez Rocks Park in The Adhesive Duck Deficiency (S3E08) with the initial intention of observing a Leonids meteor shower. The name of the Park is not directly mentioned in that episode, but Raj reported their location to be 34.48 N, 118.31 W, which exactly placed them in this Park.
 * Penny was familiar with the Norse god Thor in The Middle-Earth Paradigm, but this is the first time she acknowledges the Marvel Comics incarnation of Thor. Aside from Sheldon and Howard's reference to the Avenger in said episode, in The Excelsior Acquisition, Leonard stated, "I can’t decide whether I want Stan Lee to autograph my Journey into Mystery 83, first appearance of Thor, or my Fantastic Four number five, first appearance of Dr. Doom."
 * Amy states Thor is a god. As the son of an Æsir of Asgard and a Jötunn of Jötunheimr in Norse mythology, in the Marvel Universe, he is half-Asgardian, half-Elder God.
 * Thor's hammer, Mjolnir, carries the inscription: "Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of ... Thor." This indicates the worthiness enchantment. (Refer to the article Drawing Crazy Patterns – Other Characters Lifting Thor’s Hammer and the book Thor: Official Index to the Marvel Universe.)
 * Stuart recommends Fables number one for Amy, saying "...it doesn't objectify or stereotype women". This is probably a reference to Amy's request for "A comic that depicts a woman whose bosom can't be used as a flotation device" in The Flaming Spittoon Acquisition (S5E10).
 * In fact, the three girls have appeared together in the comic book store at least once, most recently in The Holographic Excitation (S6E05); curiously, that time, they didn't attract the extraordinary attention displayed in this episode, given they are all in costumes.
 * Leonard tells Penny directly that he loves her for the first time since The Wheaton Recurrence when she broke up with him partly because he told her.
 * The painting on the wall behind Penny in the comic book store is The Pandorica Opens, the fictional Vincent van Gogh painting that foretold the explosion of the TARDIS in the Doctor Who episode of the same name.
 * In Apartment 4A, the girls are arguing comic books imitating the guys down to where they are sitting and eating Chinese food.
 * Leonard tells Penny that the Comic Con in Bakersfield is more about the comics, like the San Diego one was before it went Hollywood. It added events like the casts of science fiction shows making appearances like The Big Bang Theory does. Everyone in the cast has been to ComicCon. Art imitates life.

Reference:
Taping Report [1] by Kyzzx.