Chuck Lorre, widely regarded as “The King of Sitcoms”, is back with another spin-off of The Big Bang Theory, and it’s comfortably the weirdest yet. It follows Stuart Bloom (Kevin Sussman), who you may or may not remember as the character who ran the Comic Book Store in the original show, as he’s tasked with saving the universe by an alternate version of himself. It’s an incredibly bizarre premise, with Lorre himself even acknowledging in his infamous vanity cards that some of the scripts were so insane that HBO struggled to give feedback. Somehow, though, the show finds a really strong groove.
It takes a bit of time to get used to, but in the end, it felt quite refreshing to see a show, especially one with such an established origin, take such huge creative swings. Not all of them land, but the ones that do really stand out, which is particularly interesting given that a lot of new comedies on our screens don’t necessarily take the same risks. I regularly found myself asking throughout, ‘How is this a real show?‘ and yet, I couldn’t stop watching.
The main cast includes other original series recurring characters such as Bert Kibbler (Brian Posehn), Denise (Lauren Lapkus) and Barry Kripke (John Ross Bowie), who join Stuart as he jumps from universe to universe as the story unfolds. They all really embrace the chaos whilst playing it with the same seriousness as their characters’ original appearances, and it’s their ability to play it straight that helps make the show work as well as it does.
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Each episode is unpredictable with its plot and often includes plenty of references to The Big Bang Theory throughout. I can’t say too much, but there are lots of hilarious moments that make reference to famous plot lines you know and love. There are even some fascinating crossovers that you might not expect, especially as they come and go in a flash!
Another thing that jumped out to me while watching, mainly because it takes place at the beginning of the show, is its unique title sequence. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it at first, but I began to find it strangely charming over the course of the ten episodes. All the most successful sitcoms have a recognisable opening, and this show acknowledges that with its own spin on tradition. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen a programme talk to its audience so overtly as this one does with its title sequence, and I was impressed with its boldness.
Having watched the show in full, I’m interested to see how audiences react with Lorre telling PEOPLE that he thinks “it will be revered or reviled” but he’s “not sure which”. I’d personally watch a second season, which they do set up, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it doesn’t get one either. The other spin-offs have had huge success with Young Sheldon getting multiple seasons (and its own spin-off too!), but crucially match the same style and tone as the original, whereas this show feels a little closer to being the weirder cousin.
The internet will have a lot to say on this, I feel confident about that.
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On HBO Max from 23rd July with episodes released weekly / Kevin Sussman, Lauren Lapkus, John Ross Bowie, Brian Posehn / Chuck Lorre, Zak Penn, Bill Prady / HBO Max
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