The Locomotive Manipulation

"The Locomotive Manipulation" is the fifteenth episode of the seventh season of the American sitcom The Big Bang Theory. The episode first aired on Thursday, February 6, 2014.

Summary
For Valentine's Day, Amy plans a romantic weekend trip to Nana Valley on board a vintage train accompanied by Howard and Bernadette. Leonard and Penny opt to stay home, but have an accident while watching Cinnamon for Raj.

Extended Plot
Sitting on the in Sheldon’s apartment, Amy and Sheldon are conducting the annual state of the relationship summit. Under item 28, Amy is not happy with Sheldon’s suggestions for her -  and Flaky, or previous names including Princess Corncob and  (from . Item 29, is  where Amy is determined that both of them can enjoy her plan; going to a  in . Sheldon dislikes eating  with strangers, but Amy has arranged for the Wolowitzes to join them. He then worries about scandalous talk surrounding them sharing a  which Amy counters, having got them separate bedrooms. She has also arranged for them to travel on a   which overjoys Sheldon, although he resists the sudden urge to hug her.

While everyone is having dinner, Bernadette invites Leonard and Penny to join them. Penny is just planning a quiet evening at home, while Leonard jokes that he shouldn't take Penny to where comes from. Penny actually doesn't feel upset at his comment due to the wine buzz she is already feeling. Sheldon asks which Howard will be bringing; however Howard doesn't own one which Sheldon finds strange. Raj wants Leonard and Penny to watch Cinnamon since he will be in the  over Valentine’s Day. Amy tries to be optimistic, claiming that looking at the is still kind-of romantic even though he doesn't have someone to share it with. Raj finds little comfort in this, focusing on the fact that he's alone.

Entering the, Sheldon finds the place magnificent and thinks that this night will be the best Valentine’s Day ever. He almost says that he loves it, but first want to check to see if there are any on the train.

In his, Leonard gets off the with Raj and then decides it's ridiculous to deliver Raj’s soppy  to Cinnamon. Penny enters with and  for Leonard, while Leonard has surprise   for Penny. He tells her that she is obviously trying to get him out of his, while Penny can take someone to the that would really enjoy it. They start to and Leonard suggests they slide over into Sheldon's Spot for intercourse. This doesn't strike Penny as sexy in any way, so instead they head to Leonard’s room.

Back on the train, after their describes the, Sheldon is more interested in the type of  between the cars. A fellow dorky train enthusiast answers Sheldon’s questions from the table next to them. He describes the coupler and the sound it makes, enthralling Sheldon. Amy looks unhappy and Howard concludes that if he hears any more train talk, he'll happily jump off the train.

A grinning Leonard returns to the living room with Penny to find that Cinnamon has eaten up the chocolates, which can be deadly to. Penny wants to take her to a, which surprisingly enough, is not among Leonard’s long list of regular.

In the dining car, Sheldon has joined his new while they both do various train impressions. Amy, listening to the train talk, mimes blowing her s out to Howard and Bernadette. Sheldon’s friend Eric repeatedly tells him that he had an accident at and now just rides trains and collects. Bernadette gets Sheldon return to their table - but invites Eric to join them. Bernadette sighs that now they have “two of them”.

At the veterinarian’s they tell the  vet named Yvette that Cinnamon ate the whole box of chocolates. Leonard reminds Penny that she had already eaten most of them, to which Penny responds that she may have saved the dog’s life. However the vet rebukes her for making since Cinnamon could be seriously. Raj runs in, incredibly concerned and. He tells the vet to scrap other dogs for parts, if that's what his dog needs. She asks if he is the and Raj adds  and. The vet doesn't think that Cinnamon is too unwell, so she takes her away to give her an. Raj tells her to sing to her if she gets too scared. The vet leaves telling herself that she should have been a.

At the Valentine’s Day dinner, the trainiacs are exchanging train. Howard, Amy and even the waiter are getting tired of the Sheldon and Eric. Sheldon doesn't want their day to end and Amy agrees that she feels that it's going on forever. Eric and Sheldon head off to see the and meet the Conductor.

Raj is still mad at Penny for letting Cinnamon eat cheap chocolates, to which Penny sheepishly reminds him that they weren't cheap, they were free - which doesn't really improve the situation. The vet returns and assures Raj that Cinnamon is responding and will be fine. Raj wants to visit her since it is past their and reveals that they share a bed. Vet Yvette also shares with her dog and allows Raj to see Cinnamon, despite the rule that owners aren't supposed to be admitted to the. She admits that she did sing Katy Perry to the dog while her and Raj exit the room, and the friendliness of their conversation prompts Penny think that there is romantic something going on between them.

Amy looks as Bernadette and Howard try to cheer her up. Bernadette advocates that Sheldon coming proves his feelings for Amy, revealing that she made a bet with Howard that Sheldon wouldn't come on the trip. Bernadette explains how Howard was a "hot goofy mess" until she changed him.

Penny is getting hungry because Raj and the vet have been gone for half an. As Penny and Leonard stand to head off to a  across the road, Raj and Yvette return with Cinnamon. Raj can now take the dog, although the vet gives him a list of things to look out for and tells him to call if anything happens. Penny tries to reassure her that it was an accident and that she and Leonard love. The vet asks if they have one which Penny denies, which relieves Yvette (the vet).

On the train, Howard and Bernadette are ing in front of Amy, and then apologize. Sheldon and Eric return, telling Amy that they missed a great time: the has the same pocket watch as Sheldon, and has offered to come back to the bed and breakfast to play his  for them. Amy stands up and asks everybody to leave. Howard and Bernadette discuss going to the car with a where they can watch the stars and after an exclamation from Amy, leave to find it. Eric also leaves, and Amy complains to Sheldon that this night was supposed to be a romantic weekend. Sheldon counters that it was supposed to be something they both enjoyed. While she admits that she may have tricked him, she insists that she deserves romance. He gets angry and shouts that if she wants romance, fine, he'll give her romance. He grabs the and downs it, calling it  that burns. Then he glares into Amy’s for a few seconds and then tells her that she ed first. Then angrily says that kissing is romantic and then kisses Amy. At first he does it to prove a point, but then seems to enjoy it as he lingers for a while, stepping closer and putting his arms around her. Amy is stunned and when they break away, tells him quietly that his kiss was nice. Sheldon quietly replies “good,” and then mentions that the conductor was going to show him how they deal with a. Still stunned Amy tells him that he can go, but Sheldon s her to come with him. As they leave, Eric is following behind yelling at them to wait for him.

Raj is back at his apartment putting Cinnamon to bed. Reading the vet's list of symptoms, it actually says that she was dreading Valentine’s Day and thanked him for spending it with her, including her. Raj, overcome with joyful surprise, gleefully tells Cinnamon that he would have considered poisoning her months ago if he'd known this would happen. Picking up the phone, he decides he will start his call with the obvious observation the "Yvette rhymes with vet", while Cinnamon looks at him pityingly.

At apartment 4A, Sheldon returns after his weekend away. He tells Leonard that his trip was wonderful, having made a new friend that likes trains almost as much as him, kissed Amy on the lips and listened to the Conductor play his banjo. Leonard asked for more details, looking very surprised. Sheldon replies that his new friend’s name is Eric, Amy’s lips tasted like the they had for  and the conductor had a missing  but made up for it with his can-do attitude. After being prompted to pick a favorite, Sheldon decides that he needs to collect additional. Leonard's grin and remark, “you dog”, baffle Sheldon as he heads off wondering how listening to other nine fingered banjo players would make him a 'dog'.

Taping Report

Critics

 * Dhruv Rao of The DR Club gave the episode an A-, saying that Raj stole the limelight and that Shamy's kiss was long-impending.
 * Jesse Schedeen from IGN - Forget Halloween or Christmas, Valentine's Day is the most important holiday on The Big Bang Theory...And to my surprise, "The Locomotive Manipulation" went a lot farther than most fans would have predicted...The payoff is what really made the episode. Amy finally (and justly) called out Sheldon on his poor behavior, which launched him into a little tantrum and caused him to kiss Amy. What started as a mocking gesture clearly turned into something more pleasurable. Again, it was quite a shock, as the writers have kept the two characters dangling on that precipice for years now. Amy deserves this victory after everything she's had to put up with recently, and maybe we'll see a bit more humanity and tenderness creep into Sheldon's personality going forward. Maybe.
 * IMDb user reviews

Costume Notes

 * Sheldon wears his Kryptonian Translator t-shirt and his yellow on blue ManBot t-shirt

Trivia

 * Sheldon and Amy's first kiss on Valentine's Day lasted 11 seconds.
 * Second episode filmed on a train heading to the San Francisco area, the first being in "The Terminator Decoupling" (S2E17).
 * The idea of taking a train to Napa Valley was previously suggested by Raj for Howard's bachelor Party in "The Stag Convergence" (S5E22).
 * The idea of double date of Sheldon, Amy, Howard and Bernadette was previously suggested by Amy in "The Recombination Hypothesis" (S5E13) - although finally it turned out to only happen in Leonard's day dream.
 * Previously Leonard and Penny have intended to make out on Sheldon's spot in "The Pirate Solution" (S3E04), but that time they are interrupted by Howard.
 * Sheldon prefers to take a train with a pocket watch because a real train Conductor always carries one. In this episode he is excited at finding the Conductor of that train carries a same pocket watch as his. Also, previously in "The Shiny Trinket Maneuver" (S5E12), Sheldon bought himself a pocket watch and commented "I look like a train Conductor" (with the pocket watch).
 * Alex Ball, the actor that portrays the waiter serving Sheldon, Amy, Howard and Bernadette on the train, appeared previously in "The Hofstadter Insufficiency" (S7E01) - interestingly, also as a waiter - he served Bernadette and Amy in the hotel that time.
 * Third time that Raj is spending all night in the telescope lab. He did this action previously in "The Boyfriend Complexity" (S4E09) and "The Proton Resurgence" (S6E22).
 * Also, this time is the second time that Raj has had to ask a couple in his friends to take care of Cinnamon: Howard and Bernadette were asked in "The Proton Resurgence" (S6E22). In both times the couple make a careless mistake in watching Cinnamon.
 * Penny seems to be unsatisfied about the short duration (9 minutes in this episode) of the sex between Leonard and her. This characteristic of Leonard was mentioned several times before: in "The White Asparagus Triangulation" (S2E09), Howard and Raj recalled the sex between Leonard and Leslie Winkle: according to Raj, she dubbed him "Speed of Light Leonard". In "The Bat Jar Conjecture" (S1S13), Leslie says to Leonard, "it’s not going to work if you rush me, you have to let me get there", to which Leonard replies, "you’re never going to let that go, are you?". In "The Precious Fragmentation" (S3E17), when Sheldon asked "Leonard, what do the two of you talk about after the coitus?", Howard taunted Leonard by replying "My guess is, 'Hey, four minutes! New record!'"; and in "The 21-Second Excitation" (S4E08), when talking about the break-up of Leonard and Penny, Howard said, "I'm guessing 21 seconds had something to do with that, too."
 * Second time Sheldon and Amy have had a conversation regarding sharing a room for their trip, the first time being in "The Love Car Displacement" (S4E13). Both times have resulted in rejection. The first time, Sheldon and Amy agreed that "we wouldn't want to jeopardize our relationship by getting to know each other too well", with Sheldon commenting "Nothing sours a good friendship more than knowing each other's toilet routine." This time, Sheldon was a little more concerned about cautiously approaching sexual intimacy in their relationship, all while Amy had gotten separate rooms for them both. However, whether or not the rejection in this episode may somehow change after the kiss is somewhat unclear.
 * Sheldon finally kisses Amy on his own initiative. Known by the fans as SIK - Sheldon Initiated Kiss.
 * Cinnamon's vet Yvette gives Raj her phone number and tells him that he made her Valentine's Day.
 * When quizzed by Leonard, Sheldon himself does not seem to be aware of the significance of his kiss in his relationship with Amy; analogous to what happened to him in "The Grasshopper Experiment" (S1E08): in that episode he talked with Lalita Gupta with pleasing words, and then the two had dinner together. While everyone else was thinking he was hitting on her, Sheldon himself was not aware of it. However, in this episode, when he kissed Amy, he seemed to be aware of the kiss, yet doesn't exactly want to talk about it fully yet.
 * It is strange that Sheldon totally cannot understand Leonard's "you dog" at the end of this episode, because previously in "The Herb Garden Germination" (S4E20) Leonard has used exactly the same phrase on Sheldon when talking about the rumor made up by Sheldon and Amy that they had sex, and that time Sheldon seemed to be able to associate the "you dog" phrase with their sex rumor. It is possible that in this episode, he seemed to understand Leonard's comments with both his new friend and his steps in his relationship with Amy, but in a weird way, attempted to associate the banjo player's music with the term as well.
 * In the final scene, Sheldon states that "Amy's lips tasted like the brownies we had for dessert". This comment may be a production mistake, because Amy, Howard and Bernadette are seeing eating a pie for dessert while Sheldon is away with Eric. There is no other scene showing a dessert, so it must be assumed that no other dessert was served. Ergo Amy's lips should have tasted like pie.

Quotes

 * (The dining car scene of Amy having a bit of a game with Howard and Bernadette)
 * Amy: See if you guys can guess this one. Bang! Splat! Thud!


 * (The scene of Howard in the dining car saying a joke to Bernadette)
 * Howard: Fun fact, I'm gonna jump off this train.


 * Penny: Happy Valentine’s Day.
 * Leonard: Flowers and chocolates? You trying to get me out of my panties?
 * Penny: Don’t be surprised if you find five chocolates missing and three gross coconut ones with a bite taken out. Came that way when I bought it.
 * Leonard: I got you a little something too.
 * Penny: Oh my. Jewelry. Oh, my God. Lakers’ tickets!
 * Leonard: It gets better. Instead of me, you can take someone who will actually enjoy it.
 * Penny: Aww! You are the best boyfriend ever!
 * Leonard: Thank you, seriously, please don't make me go.


 * (The dining car scene where Amy tells Sheldon off for ignoring her after Eric has left).
 * Sheldon: What is your problem?
 * Amy: It’s Valentine’s Day! We’re supposed to be having a romantic weekend.
 * Sheldon: Oh really? Because I remember you saying that trip was going to be something we could both enjoy. Did you really mean that, or were you just trying to trick me?
 * Amy: Fine, it’s true. I deserve romance and...I didn't know how else to make it happen.
 * Sheldon: Well, if you want romance, let’s have romance. Oh, look, there’s wine. (take Amy's wine glass and drink) Grape juice that burns. Um, now let’s gaze into each other’s eyes. (looks at Amy's eyes in a childish way) You blinked, I win.
 * Amy: Sheldon.
 * Sheldon: What’s next? Oh, kissing’s romantic.
 * (Sheldon kisses Amy for 12 seconds, first ever in the whole series. Amy seems to enjoy it).
 * Amy: That was nice.
 * Sheldon: Good. Um. The Conductor said if I come back to the engine room, he’d show me how to bring the train through a crossing.
 * Amy: O.K, have fun.
 * Sheldon: Do you want to come with me?
 * Amy: Really? I do.


 * Amy: Item 28 your pet name for me. Time’s running out on this. You need to make decision.
 * Sheldon: I submitted you a notarized list.
 * Amy: I sorry, but Gollum and Flaky are not acceptable.
 * Sheldon: Well, you don’t like Princess Corncob. You don’t like Fester. You’re just impossible to please.


 * Amy: I propose we spend a weekend at a bed-and-breakfast in Napa Valley.
 * Sheldon: I hate every word in that sentence. Including in, at, we and a.
 * Amy: Come on, Sheldon. Why not?
 * Sheldon: For starters, a bed-and-breakfast forces you to eat with strangers at your table.
 * Amy: One step ahead of you, Bernadette and Wolowitz are going with us.
 * Sheldon: Oh, very well. What are the sleeping arrangements? We’ve only been dating for three years. If we were to share a room, people might talk.


 * (The scene at the gang's apartment dinner where Bernadette pours herself some wine furiously)
 * Bernadette: You sure you guys don’t want to come with us to Napa. You can probably still get a room.
 * Penny: No. I think we’ll just have a quiet weekend at home.
 * Leonard: Of course I’m not sure it’s a great idea to take Penny where wine comes from.
 * (Penny looks so disgusted by Leonard's comment)
 * Leonard: What? It’s a joke. Oh, come on. We bust on each other. I wear dorky glasses and you might have a problem. It’s all for laughs.
 * Penny: That would really piss me off if I didn't have a buzz going on.


 * Raj: Since you two are gonna be around for Valentine’s, would you mind watching Cinnamon?
 * Penny: You have Valentine’s plans? Which came out sounding way more surprised than I meant. Here, let me try that again. You have Valent… See? I can’t do it.
 * Raj: I don’t have plans which is why I booked time on the big telescope that night.
 * Amy: Well, an evening looking at the stars, that’s still kind of romantic.
 * Raj: Except I’ll be alone.
 * Amy: I’m trying to put lipstick on a pig here. Work with me.
 * Leonard: We’d be happy to watch Cinnamon.
 * Penny: Yeah.


 * (The scene at the gang's apartment dinner after Raj has thanked Penny and Leonard for watching Cinnamon)
 * Raj: Oh and I’d like for at least one of us to see some action so if you guys happen to have sex is it cool if she stays in the room?
 * Penny: The same goes with the two of you with Amy.
 * (Bernadette and Howard are rather cross by Penny's idea, Amy happily sips her wine and Sheldon just gazes around the room)


 * (The scene of the 'Howardette' couple and 'Shamy' duo entering the dinging car)
 * Amy: What do you think, Sheldon?
 * Sheldon: It’s magnificent. This is going to be the best Valentine’s Day ever.
 * Amy: I’m so glad you like it.
 * Sheldon: I’m prepared to say I love it, as soon as I confirm there are no hobos aboard.


 * Penny: Should we take this little party to the bedroom?
 * Leonard: We don’t have to. We have the whole place to ourselves.
 * Penny: Oh that’s true.
 * Leonard: In fact, if you want we can do it right here on Sheldon’s spot.
 * Penny: That is the least sexy thing anyone’s ever said to me.
 * Leonard: To the bedroom!


 * (The dining car scene where Amy complains to Howard and Bernadette for a second after listening to Eric and Sheldon's conversation about trains and stuff)
 * Amy: Why do I even try?
 * Bernadette: (speaks to Howard crossly) I’m going to fix this right now.
 * Howard: OK. Just make it look like an accident
 * (She storms up to Sheldon's and Eric's table)
 * Bernadette: (she is so very cross with Sheldon) Excuse me. You're at a Valentine’s dinner with your girlfriend. Now get back over there and be with her.
 * Sheldon: (feels guilty) You’re right. That was insensitive of me. I have to go back to my table now. You should join us.
 * Eric: All right.
 * (both Eric and Sheldon make for Amy and Howard's table)
 * Bernadette: (she is still very cross) Great. (sighs angrily) Now there’s two of them.
 * (She angrily walks out of view and the scene fades to black).


 * (The scene at the vet where Raj bursts into the ward feeling so furious with Penny and Leonard for poisoning Cinnamon)
 * Raj: Oh, my God, Cinnamon, are you okay? I can’t believe you two. (indicates the vet) You do whatever it takes to save her life. If she needs any new organs I’ll buy any dog necessary and scrap them for parts.


 * Yvette: I should have been a dentist.


 * Howard: A world I don’t want to live in. Seriously, I no longer want to live in this world.

Sheldon: I never want this day to end.

Amy: I'm feeling like it never will.


 * (The dining car where Amy has seen Sheldon gone off into thin air. She now turns to Howard and Bernadette)
 * Howard: (extremely concerned) You okay?
 * Amy: Why? Because my boyfriend’s off playing choo-choo with some weirdo?
 * Howard: Well, to be fair, they’re both weirdos.
 * Amy: I don’t know what made me think tonight would be any different.
 * Bernadette: Well, just the fact that you got him up here still says a lot. To be honest, I bet Howie 200 bucks it wasn’t gonna happen.
 * Howard: I’m going to the Lego store to get a big-ass R2-D2.
 * Bernadette: See? It’s not just Sheldon. They’re all idiots.
 * (Amy pulls a frown at Bernadette's remark)
 * Howard: She’s right.
 * Bernadette: So, your boyfriend’s a fixer-upper. Most of them are. I mean, look at this guy. You think he came like this? When I met him, he was a hot, goofy mess. Now, he’s been to space. That’s all me.
 * Howard: I had a little to do with it.
 * Bernadette: Oh, sure you did. (imitates smooching to Howard) Who’s Mama’s big space man?
 * Howard: (giggles) I am.
 * (Bernadette continues smooching Howard and smiles crossly about Sheldon's behavior).


 * (The dining car scene of Howard and Bernadette doing their last few kisses. They both stop kissing and speak to each other)
 * Howard: I love you so much.
 * Bernadette: I love you, too.
 * Howard: Sorry.
 * Bernadette: Sorry.
 * (Sheldon and Eric are now returning to Amy and Howardette's table)
 * Eric: You guys missed a pretty great time.
 * Sheldon: The conductor and I have the same pocket watch.
 * (Amy, Howard and Bernadette are so not happy by the pocket watch Sheldon has showed them)
 * Eric: It was crazy.
 * Sheldon: Dare I say loco? Oh, and, Amy, guess what? The conductor said as soon as he gets off work, he can come back to the bed and breakfast and play his banjo for us.
 * Amy: Okay. I need to speak to my boyfriend in private, like, right now.
 * Howard: There’s a car with a glass roof. Want to go look at the stars?
 * Bernadette: Oh, that sounds so romantic.
 * Amy: (yells to them with loud anger) Oh, give it a rest.
 * Bernadette: (shiftily) Let’s go.
 * (Both Howard and Bernadette exit the table)
 * Amy: (she is furious with Eric) Why are you still here?
 * Sheldon: Excuse me. (referring to Eric) I think you’re being a little rude.
 * Amy: (now fully furious with Sheldon) I’m being rude? You’ve been rude to me this entire evening.
 * Sheldon: How is that possible? I’ve hardly spoken to you since we got on the train.
 * Eric: I’m detecting a little friction between you two, and I don’t want to be a third rail. Get it?
 * Sheldon: I get it.
 * Amy: (yells at Eric angrily) Leave.
 * (Eric now exits)