DVD Review: ‘The Big Bang Theory: The Complete Second Season’

Its pretty rare these days that I watch a TV show for the first time and instantly like it. Usually, a show takes time to grow on me or, in many cases, doesn’t and I end up moving on to something else. Like most people, my time is valuable and I only have so much, so I want to spend time where it counts watching shows of quality. Much to my happiness, The Big Bang Theory is a show I instantly liked and have been a devoted watcher of from day one.

The setup may seem rather familiar to anyone who’s watched a sitcom in the last twenty years. Sheldon and Leonard (Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons) two nerdy, comic book loving physicists live together in an apartment while they work at a nearby university. Their perfect world of video games, trips to the comic book store and Chinese food nights is thrown into chaos when the gorgeous Penny (Kaley Cuoco) moves in across the hall.

Leonard, of course, is instantly smitten and begins to develop a friendship with the new neighbor that he hopes will eventually lead to more — much to the chagrin of his somewhat eccentric roommate Sheldon who, above all, values his routine and especially his particular seat on the sofa.

My description of the premise can’t really do this show justice, you just need to watch it to understand its greatness. The cast, led by Emmy-nominee Parsons and Johnny Galecki, is stellar. The writing is top notch, wittty and features not just your typical sitcom level jokes, but also humor that goes deeper and has a particular intelligence. Much of the credit for this has to go to series creators Chuck Lorre (Two and a Half Men) and Bill Prady (Gilmore Girls), two writers definitely known for their intelligent characters, situations and dialog.

The second season episodes on this DVD continue to showcase the terrific ensemble cast, intelligence and wit established by the first season and throw our favorite characters into even more comedic and hilarious situations such as both Leonard and Sheldon getting a girl, Howard driving the Mars Rover into a ditch, Raj wooing a terminator and Penny falling for Age of Conan. All of these situations, and so many more, combine to make The Big Bang Theory one of the funniest shows on television that has only gotten better during its second season.

The second season DVD also features plenty of extras including “Physicist to the Stars’ where real-life Physicist and UCLA Professor David Saltzberg discusses his consulting relationship to the show and how he tries to help make the physics and the science more “real.” There’s also the special feature “Testing the Infinite Hilarity Hypothesis In Relation to The Big Bang Theory” which talks about the show and its quirky, intelligent, complex and very funny characters and how they’ve evolved during the show’s second season.

Finally, there’s also the requisite “Gag Reel’ which, as a fan of the show and someone who’s spent a lot of time on film and television sets, is particularly appealing. I know how hard actors work to maintain their composure while performing a scene, so to see them break up and go into hysterics is always a treat. All of these features simply serve to enhance an already quality set of 23 episodes that make up the show’s second season.

If you’re a fan of intelligent, funny comedies featuring well developed and interesting characters, then you should definitely check out The Big Bang Theory. The talented cast combined with the exceptional writing and “geek” humor should put this show on your must-watch list.

The Big Bang Theory: The Complete Second Season is available in stores now.