History Recap / TheBigBangTheoryS11E2TheRetractionReaction

* MeanBoss: In contrast to her previous appearances, Janine Davis from HR is a total {{Jerkass}} to Leonard. Considering that she has been receiving numerous emails from donors questioning why they're giving money to the Physics Department if physics is a 'dead end', she has every reason to be pissed off at him.

* MeanBoss: In contrast to her previous appearances, Janine Davis from HR is a total {{Jerkass}} to him. Considering that she has been receiving numerous emails from donors questioning why they're giving money to the Physics Department if physics is a 'dead end', she has every reason to be pissed off at him.

* GargleBlaster: The guys get drunk on a bottle of "[[Franchise/StarTrek Romulan]] Ale" they bought at Comic Con (Howard suggests it's vodka dyed blue).

* RealityEnsues: During the interview, Leonard carelessly admits that physics have had very few breakthroughs in recent years and implies that the research is a dead end. Though he knows he made a mistake, he assumes that he didn't do that much damage, but is proven dead wrong throughout the first half of the episode. He becomes a pariah in the Physics Department, the funding is at risk of being cut, and the HR employee warns him that he'll be fired by the next week unless he writes a retraction claiming that he misspoke. The whole debacle goes to show that honesty isn't always the best policy.

* GoneHorrobleWrong: When Sheldon and Leonard sink into a depression, Penny calls Howard and Raj to cheer them up. Unfortunately, Raj compares Sheldon and Leonard to "two whining babies," which leads to Howard realizing that he'll be living with "two whining babies" in the forms of Halley and the soon-to-be born Neil, and feels as depressed as Sheldon and Leonard. Raj tries to backpedal, but his attempt to cheer Howard up only lead to himself becoming depressed.

* MeanBoss: In contrast to her previous appearances, Leonard's boss Janine Davis is a total {{Jerkass}} to him. Considering that she has been receiving numerous emails from donors questioning why they're giving money to the Physics Department if physics is a 'dead end', she has every reason to be pissed off at him.
* RealityEnsues: During the interview, Leonard carelessly admits that physics have had very few breakthroughs in recent years and implies that the research is a dead end. Though he knows he made a mistake, he assumes that he didn't do that much damage, but is proven dead wrong throughout the first half of the episode. He becomes a pariah in the Physics Department, the funding is at risk of being cut, and his boss warns him that he'll be fired by the next week unless he writes a retraction claiming that he misspoke. The whole debacle goes to show that honesty isn't always the best policy.

* WhatTheHellHero: Leonard gets a lot of flack throughout the episode for his comments, since he has essentially dragged the careers of countless physicist, including his own friends, throughout the mud.

* DidntThinkThisThrough: Leonard for accepting an interview with Ira Flatow about physics without even having
a landmark accomplishment to gloat about.

* TookALevelInKindness: At the beginning, Sheldon offers the last dumpling to whoever wants it. Back in "The Pulled Groin", he wanted it but Penny ate it up and so he called Penny fat.

* BrutalHonesty: Leonard gets chastised for this.
* GargleBlaster: The guys get drunk on a bottle of "[[Franchise/StarTrek Romulan]] Ale" they bought at Comic Con (Howard suggests it's vodka dyed blue).
* {{Greed}}: Janine wants to milk physics as much as possible, in spite of Leonard admitting that as a physicist even he thinks it's a dead cow.
* MeanBoss: Leonard's boss Janine Davis is a total {{Jerkass}} to him.

'''The Retraction Reaction''' is the 2nd episode of the penultimate (11th) season of ''Series/TheBigBangTheory.