The Hesitation Ramification

"The Hesitation Ramification" is the twelfth episode of the seventh season of the  The Big Bang Theory. The episode first aired on Thursday, January 2, 2014.

Summary
When Penny’s big break on  turns into a bust, Leonard struggles to help her, which results in Penny asking Leonard a bold relationship question. Meanwhile, Sheldon tries to learn how to be and Raj tries to work on his “game” before talking to real.

Extended Plot
Amy and the guys are having at Leonard and Sheldon's apartment while all the guys are texting on their. Amy looks miffed and wonders whether they can have a. Sheldon mentions that thanks to, they don't have to talk to each other. Penny breaks in and announces that she got an acting part on. Leonard and Amy congratulate her while the others guys have to be pushed to do the same. Penny is not sure of the 's title, but she does get to with . Leonard is proud of her, but is worried that it is more than just flirting. He feels that it is ier if it's left to the though Amy disagrees with him.

At the Cheesecake Factory, Raj is discussing how who have s with them have better chances with women. Raj was letting Cinnamon eat off his. Howard thinks that if he wants someone to eat food out of his he'll set him up with his Mom. Sheldon doesn't understand why that is funny. He tries to tell a and no one gets it. Penny tells everyone that her show is on  and the  is on her though the food is stolen from The Cheesecake Factory. Sheldon claims that if Howard's mother comes, they should serve, since that is what they eat in the game "". No one laughs.

Later walking up the stairs, Sheldon wants to know if he is funny. Leonard does not find him, but does find the fact that Sheldon thinks he is funny humorous. Sheldon is going to develop a of  to make anyone  at any time. Leonard observes that he does well with people laughing at him, not with him. Howard and Bernadette are bringing Raj and Stuart to watch Penny's debut. Bernadette thought he would be bringing a and he ended up with Stuart. Raj tried to talk to a  who took an interest in Cinnamon, but he panicked and asked to  her. Howard suggests that he try to talk to regular if  women intimate him. Raj asks if he means like and. Bernadette quips that maybe he should stop talking completely. Howard tells him to try talking to anybody at the while Bernadette thinks he should keep dating Stuart. In Apartment 4A, the is watching NCIS as again Leonard tells Penny how proud he is of her. Sheldon is uncomfortable watching the show since he has never seen it before. Amy tells him to think of the previous s as the s, which Sheldon accepts. Penny turns the TV up as her  comes up, but it was cut. Leonard and the others also look. Penny doesn't understand why since she thinks she did a real good job. She excuses herself and leaves. Sheldon wants to go over and make her laugh, however Leonard stops him.

In Penny's place, she is telling her Dad that her part wasn't cut because she was too. He also doesn't need to come to to kick Mark Harmon's. Leonard comes in. All of Penny's were watching in. Her brother was given a out of, but disappeared with their six foot long. Leonard feels that just getting the part was a big accomplishment. It was supposed to give her and others would see it leading to more  parts. Leonard adds that three wouldn't be that big a deal. Penny doesn't think that he s in her. Penny wants to know if Leonard thinks that she has what it takes to be an. When asked to be completely, Leonard didn't think so. She is and, however L.A. is full of actresses like that, Leonard explains,  himself into a deep hole. Penny wants ( sign) to hear more how she is going to be a for the rest of her. Leonard informs her that the odds of becoming a successful actress are a to one. Penny sarcastically thanks him and storms into her. Amy is making while Sheldon is ing the topic of comedy. He reads that the element of is a key component of some comedy. He shouts "!" at Amy and her. She finds it that he can read a few  and come up with a theory of comedy. He then drops his pants and she does find that funny.

Stuart and Raj are in the mall. They agree to start with talking to someone other than women to start with, but even when the next  they spot is an  woman with a, they have to rule her out.

Sheldon is ing to Amy, asking her which are funnier. or ; as an example. Amy is really not ed and then whether she want to go out with him anymore. Sheldon tells her to stop joking and that they have to go through the whole. Penny is watching telling every actor on that they didn't get their part cut. Leonard comes in and asks if they can. Penny agrees, but is worried that her part in the conversation might be cut. Leonard apologizes for his comments earlier and says that he thinks she should be one of the successful actresses. He brings her an acting, a chance for anyone to submit a for a part in the next Star Wars movie. Penny says that it's just a. Penny has an advantage since she is a. Most of the submitter are weirdos and s; Howard has already submitted his. He knows it's a long shot, but when had one shot to destroy the ...Leonard quits because he knows that Penny doesn't like his.

Raj and Stuart are eating a. They spot a woman who is and she disappears. Stuart suggests talking to the in the nearby, however Raj says that they just look stuck up. Then Raj insists that they will talk to the next person who walks by, but nobody does.

Amy greets Howard and Bernadette at the Cheesecake Factory alone. Sheldon is home working on his comedy project. Amy finds the experience exhausting. How many can she stand that starts with Sheldon's "Knock-knock-knock, Amy...knock-knock-knock, Amy...knock-knock-knock, Amy". Bernadette finds it easier to just fake a. She denies having done it with Howard, though she doesn't believe that he could identify the fake one. Howard makes a minor quip that she laughs and laughs and laughs at and then suddenly stops. Howard then claims to fake his. Leonard is at home ordering s for Penny. First a and then drops the order to three. Penny enters carrying a. She apologizes for calling his Star War suggestion. Leonard says that she didn't, then she quips that she probably meant to. Penny was upset with herself and not mad at Leonard. Everything is falling apart for her. Her job was supposed to be. She was getting her big break and it went away. At, some old fell out of her   twice. She has been in for ten years and has nothing to show for it. Leonard reminds her that she does have him. Penny says that he is right and that they should get. She gets down on one and asks him formally and Leonard replies "Ummmm". Penny asks him if he seriously just said "Ummmm". Leonard tells her that he her, but that she is  and  and lost. Penny asks if he doesn't want to marry her. Leonard did not say that. She then withdraws the proposal. Sheldon comes in and asks if everyone wants to laugh. Penny then leaves because she wants to be. He tries to tell him the joke, but Leonard heads to his room. Raj and Stuart are in the mall as it is getting ready to close. They see two pathetic guys on a bench and it's them in a mirror. A comes over to tell them that they're closing. Raj asks him if he likes his job and he tells them that it's all right. They seem happy with the brief.

Later, Leonard can't sleep. Sheldon asks him if he wants to talk about it. Leonard tells him that Penny proposed and he didn't say yes. Sheldon asks him if he thinks his with Penny is over. Leonard isn't sure and is to ask her. Sheldon replies that he is. Leonard is surprised that Sheldon doesn't make a joke or an inappropriate comment. Sheldon replies that he is his friend and that he is sorry a she pats him on the back. Leonard asks if Sheldon put a "" sign on his back. Sheldon replies that that would not be funny as he rips the sign off of Leonard's back.

Howard is in his filming his Star Wars audition video starring Howard Joel Wolowitz, a real life. He can feel 's presence on the. Bernadette yells at him to replace the. Howard tells her that he is in the middle of something. So is Bernadette.

Critics

 * Jesse Schedeen for IGN - Well, that was uncharacteristically depressing. I can't say I was expecting The Big Bang Theory to take such a dark turn upon returning from its brief holiday hiatus. But in some ways, that's a very good thing. The show has a tendency to be very lazy when it comes to exploring the more dramatic and less chuckle-worthy character conflicts...However, Bernadette did briefly come to the rescue on that front. The general level of humor this week might have been abysmal, but her spoof of the infamous diner scene from When Harry Met Sally was golden...This episode finally forced Penny to take a long, hard look at her life and deal with the crushing disappointment of failure...(I)t's high time the show started exploring her lingering resentment towards the others and what they have. It allows for a good, solid character arc that emphasizes Penny as a person and not just Leonard's wise-cracking girlfriend...But I hope Penny's struggle for professional success will be an ongoing plot point throughout this second half of Season 7.
 * Dhruv Rao of The DR Club gave the episode a B+, expressing his content at the character development throughout the episode.
 * IMDb user reviews

Trivia

 * Penny finally gets a network  job on NCIS.
 * Penny proposes to Leonard, in accordance to Leonard's request in "The Tangible Affection Proof" (S6E16).
 * Sheldon thinks that he is while no one else does.
 * Bernadette can effectively fake a - sometimes. In the early stages of her relationship with Howard (in season 3), she laughed at his jokes to  him. Her laugh in this episode was extremely over-the-top in contrast to her normal laughs. The scene in the  was similar to 's  performance in a  in the film "".
 * Amy wanted to terminate her and Sheldon's relationship, and Sheldon refuted the idea as "Ridiculous". However, in her defense, she only said that because of her frustration with his attempts to be funny.
 * In Howard's "audition" video for Star Wars film, his lines are 's from, but his "s" and motions are not Luke's.
 * In fact, Howard's "costume" seems to be a commercially available Jedi Bathrobe (note the symbol of the Jedi Order on it). The and the  did not appear in any of the six released Star Wars movies.
 * It is possible that he only used his "costume" for his audition. Had he gotten a callback, he would've made more effort to dress the way Luke would.
 * Chuck Lorre explained in his at the end of the episode that similar to Penny, an  cast in this episode, Lexie Contursi, had her part cut from the episode. She was originally supposed to converse with Raj and Stuart, however her part was edited out to bring the  running time down. Lorre  to Contursi, explaining there was nothing wrong with her acting and hopefully he can get her back on the show.
 * Sheldon's definition of a joke is very similar to his hero Spock's definition from the movie. "A joke is a story with a humorous climax."

Quotes

 * Amy: It’s nice that we all get to eat together. [The guys mumble in agreement] Can we maybe put the phones down and have an actual human conversation?
 * Sheldon: We can, but thanks to Steve Jobs, we don’t have to.
 * Penny: Guys, guys. You’re never going to believe this.
 * Leonard: What happened?
 * Penny: I just got a job on a TV show.
 * Amy: Congratulations.
 * Leonard: That’s great. Guys! [Guys mumble acknowledgement.]
 * Amy: What’s the show?
 * Penny: NCII or you know NCSC. I don’t know. It’s the one with all the letters and I’m going to be on it.
 * Leonard: That’s amazing.
 * Howard: What’s your part?
 * Penny: I play a customer in a diner and I flirt with Mark Harmon.
 * Raj: OOO. Mark Harmon. He’s a dreamboat.
 * Leonard: So it’s just flirting?
 * Penny: Yeah, why?
 * Leonard: No reason. I just think it’s sexier when left to the imagination.
 * Penny: Oh.
 * Amy: He’s wrong.


 * Sheldon: A joke is a brief oral narrative summary with a climatic humorous twist.


 * Penny: Are you kidding me?
 * Leonard: What's wrong?
 * Penny: Well… the diner scene. Where’s my diner scene?
 * Sheldon: Well, don’t ask me. Until I see the prequel, I’m lost.
 * Penny: No. This was supposed the big scene with me and Mark Harmon, but it’s..it’s gone.
 * Bernadette: What happened?
 * Penny: They must have cut it.
 * Leonard: Oh, Penny. I’m sorry.
 * Howard: That stinks!
 * Raj: I’m sure you were great.
 * Penny: This doesn’t make any sense to me. I mean..I thought I did a really good job. I…Excuse me.
 * Sheldon: I've been studying how to make people laugh. They say that comedy is tragedy plus time. Let's tickle some ribs.
 * Leonard: No.


 * Penny: You didn’t get your part cut. And you didn’t get your part cut. Yep, a bunch of old guys rocking out in a band all with erectile dysfunction, you didn’t get your part cut.
 * Leonard: Hey, can we talk?
 * Penny: We can, but the part of Penny might get cut.


 * Leonard: Yes. How much for a hundred long stemmed red roses? Really? How much for three?
 * Penny: Hey.
 * Leonard: Yeah, I’ll call you back.
 * Penny: Look, I know you were just trying to help with your Star Wars thing. I didn’t mean to call it idiotic.
 * Leonard: Well, I don’t think you called it idiotic.
 * Penny: Oh. Sorry, I meant to. Anyway, um, I was just upset with myself. I wasn’t mad at you. I just feel like everything is falling apart.
 * Leonard: Come on. It’s OK.
 * Penny: No, it’s not OK. Look at me. OK. I took a temp job as a waitress forever ago, and still doing it. I can’t quit because guess what, I can’t do at anything else. And I finally get me a big break and it goes away. I’m such a mess.
 * Leonard: No, you’re not.
 * Penny: Really? 'Cause this morning at Starbucks a pair of old underwear fell out of my pant leg. And it wasn’t the only one in there.
 * Leonard: OK, listen to me. This is just a minor setback.
 * Penny: No, it’s not. I’ve been out here for like ten years. I’ve nothing to show for it.
 * Leonard: You have me.
 * Penny: You’re right. I do have you. Mmm. Let’s get married.
 * Leonard: What?
 * Penny: Ohh. Leonard Hofstadter…will you marry me?
 * Leonard: Ummm.
 * Penny: Did you seriously just say, “Ummm”?
 * Leonard: Look, you know I love you, but you’re drunk and sad and feeling lost…
 * Penny: OK, so..so..you don’t want to marry me?
 * Leonard: That is not what I said.
 * Penny: No, forget it. I take it back. Offer's off the table.
 * Sheldon: Who’s in the mood to laugh?
 * Leonard: Really not a good time.
 * Sheldon: But I used science to construct the perfect joke.
 * Penny: I’m gonna go.
 * Leonard: No. Penny, don’t.
 * Penny: No, no. I just need to be alone.


 * Sheldon: Can’t sleep?
 * Leonard: No.
 * Sheldon: Would you like to talk about it?
 * Leonard: Penny proposed and I didn’t say yes.
 * Sheldon: Why not?
 * Leonard: That’s a good question.
 * Sheldon: Does that mean the relationship is over?
 * Leonard: I don’t know.
 * Sheldon: Why don’t you ask her?
 * Leonard: Because I am afraid to know the answer.
 * Sheldon: Well, I’m sorry.
 * Leonard: That’s it? You’re not going to make some dumb joke or inappropriate comment?
 * Sheldon: No. You’re my friend and I’m sorry.


 * Howard: "Star Wars" audition, take 1. Starring Howard Joel Wolowitz, real life astronaut. Vader is here, now on this moon. I felt his presence. He has come for me. He can feel when I’m near.
 * Bernadette: How many times do I have to tell you to replace the toilet paper when it’s empty?
 * Howard: I’m in the middle of something!
 * Bernadette: So am I!