The Love Car Displacement is the 13th episode of the 4th season of The Big Bang Theory.
The gang (including Penny) all go on a trip to a science conference in San Francisco all the way from Los Angeles.
At the conference, Howard learns Bernadette used to go out with Glenn (Rick Fox), a tall, athletic man. This makes Howard feel very insecure.
Things go off the rails during a panel discussion, and Penny ends up going back to Los Angeles with Glenn, much to Leonard's chagrin.
Tropes
- Artistic License – Law: Sheldon claims that the police car has been pursuing Leonard for at least minutes. If that were the case, why were the police sirens only audible once Sheldon pointed them out instead of this whole time Leonard was driving back home?
- Captain Oblivious: Sheldon has absolutely no idea what the rest of the main cast are arguing or complaining about at the science panel because of his lack of regard for their lives, not that he wasn't wrong to want them to stay focused on the symposium.
- Continuity Snarl: It's been established the main cast live in Pasadena, California. However, Penny at the end begs for a ride back to Los Angeles. It's likely that she wants to spend the night there before going back to Pasadena.
- Downer Ending: Things go very bad for poor Leonard in the end. Penny reaffirms they're still separated, she only made out with him for one night, goes back to Los Angeles and now he's being pursued by a police officer who has caught him speeding at 120 mph (the maximum speed limit in California is 70) since Sheldon and Amy were too pigheaded to tell him, and Leonard's definitely due to face some driver's fines.
- Drives Like Crazy: Out of road rage at Penny for leaving him and then going back home to Los Angeles with Bernadette's ex, Leonard speeds at 120 mph.
- A God Am I: Sheldon appoints himself the leader of the group even arranging how the group goes in terms of cars and where the group eats.
- Gentle Giant: Glen is very polite to Howard and Bernadette, offers to take Penny home when she said she needs a ride, and Bernadette clearly trusts him to do so by introducing him to assure her he's safe to be around.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Howard when he sees how muscular and handsome Bernadette's ex-boyfriend Glenn turned out to be.
- A House Divided: The science panel at the end. With the exception of Sheldon, the main cast has fallen apart and loudly shout out all their frustrations about their sex lives into the microphones for hundreds of attendees to hear.
- Leonard argues with Raj for joining his hotel room and sleeping in the adjoining bed when he was getting back together with Penny.
- Penny shouts that she and Leonard weren't making up, she only had made out with him once and does not intend to do it again.
- Amy complains right into the microphone she's frustrated about not having a penis like men do then shares her belief that so are many women.
- Raj starts acting inappropriately at the science panel by getting drunk.
- Howard and Bernadette argue with each other about Glenn. Bernadette asserts that she did nothing wrong for having a boyfriend before Howard, and she outright never attempted or planned on getting back with Glenn. She doesn't really help matters by leaving him by himself in the hotel room for the night, though she does have reason to be upset with Howard.
- Idiot Ball: Bernadette manages to lose the title of being the level-headed one at the panel when she opens with a not-so-subtle jab at Howard rather than waiting till after the symposium to resolve the issue which is the catalyst for the full incident.
- Jerkass: Everyone complains Howard is this for aggressively grilling Bernadette about whether she prefers Glenn over him. Bernadette asserts that she's not even thinking about going back to Glenn and politely told Howard to forget Glenn, yet Howard wouldn't stop.
- Penny for using Leonard for sex just one night and then telling him they're still separated before driving back to Los Angeles with Glenn.
- Nice to the Waitress: Penny complains Sheldon should be this to her as being the Cheesecake Factory waitress, she handles and touches whatever cheeseburger Sheldon eats. Sheldon believes Penny needs to obey the Official California Restaurant Workers’ Solemn Oath of Ethics and Cleanliness, only to be told by Amy that no such thing exists and that it was just an overstretched lie Leonard told him.Penny: Okay, so the usual with extra spit on Sheldon's hamburger.
- Not Helping Your Case: Bernadette already fueled the fire by leaving Howard by himself, but during the fight at the presentation by avoiding Howard's question when he asked how she'd feel if the roles were reversed.
- Sanity Ball: Sheldon of all people is handed this at the Science panel as while everyone else is arguing about their frustrated sex lives, he tries keeping the panel on-topic about science or whatever.
- Tempting Fate: Penny tells Leonard to stand up to Sheldon asking what he could possibly do. Cue Gilligan Cut to her in Howard and Bernadette's car and after five seconds, her begging Sheldon to let her back.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Sheldon and Amy outright put off telling Leonard about the cop pursuing him!!!
