"The Conjugal Conjecture" is an episode of The Big Bang Theory that first aired on September 19, 2016, beginning the show's tenth season. Directed by Mark Cendrowski. Teleplay by Steven Molaro, Eric Kaplan and Jim Reynolds, based on a story by Chuck Lorre, Steve Holland and Tara Hernandez.
It's the morning after Penny and Leonard's rehearsal dinner. Beverly (Christine Baranski) arrives and announces she won't be attending the wedding after Alfred (Judd Hirsch) and Mary (Laurie Metcalf) humiliated her. Leonard, Penny, and Sheldon convince her to go — not because Leonard wants her there, but to show up Alfred.
Howard gets a $500 traffic ticket after mistaking the car with Leonard and Penny for a government agent. The next day, Colonel Richard Williams (Dean Norris) from the U. S. Air Force comes to the Wolowitz house looking for Howard. The Department of Defense is interested in one of Howard's inventions. Howard is worried, and Raj doesn't help with his talk of what happened to Oppenheimer and the atomic bomb.
Mary and Alfred arrive at Apartment 4A and field some awkward questions. Penny's equally embarrassing family arrives soon thereafter at Apartment 4B. Susan (Katey Sagal) worries how they'll be perceived, but given the drama next door, she's probably okay. Penny's father Wyatt (Keith Carradine) seems nice, while her brother Randall (Jack McBrayer) seems to be defined almost entirely by being a convict.
After a brief and really uncomfortable wedding ceremony, Sheldon delivers a nice speech. Leonard drives his bickering parents to the airport. Amy does likewise. We're reminded that Mary is the only one who can put Sheldon in his place.
Tropes
- Artistic License – Geography: According to Sheldon, the Chattahoochee National Forest in Georgia is halfway between Texas and New York. If we place Medford, Texas in close proximity to Carthage, Texas, then the halfway point in a car trip to or from New York falls somewhere in Kentucky or Tennessee, at least a hundred miles from Chattahoochee. If instead we place Medford closer to Houston or Beaumonto, and choose a longer route through I-85, we come a little closer to placing Chattahoochee midway between Texas and New York.
- Call-Back / Running Gag : Sheldon's "Vulcan hearing." Leonard and Penny are having a discussion in a low voice, when Sheldon tells them he can't sleep if they're talking.
- We're also reminded of Raj's crush on Bernadette.
- And an inversion: Everyone got ordained for Bernadette and Howard's wedding, so Bernadette officiates at Leonard and Penny's.
- Casting Gag: Penny's mother is played by Katey Sagal, who played Kaley Cuoco's mom on 8 Simple Rules.
- Did They or Didn't They? : Alfred and Mary. They didn't.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Sheldon is very territorial about Amy when Alfred is nice to her.
- Obfuscating Stupidity : Lampshaded by Sheldon.Are we still doing the dumb thing?
- A more literal version in Penny's brother.
Susan: I don't want people to think we're white trash.Randall: What colour trash should we be? - Only One Name: Penny's family name is still not revealed.
- Previously on…: The episode begins with a quick overview of the previous episode.
- Public Domain Soundtrack: Just a tiny snippet of the Wedding March from Felix Mendelssohn's incidental music for A Midsummer Night's Dream.
- Stepford Smiler: Randall. No matter what happens, he never stops smiling. Then we find out why.Thank you for my new teeth.
- Too Dumb to Live: Sheldon reminds Penny's Dad of a turkey they used to have who drowned looking up at the rain.
