Line #1 Recap/TheBigBangTheoryS11E2TheRetractionReaction


1	'''The Retraction Reaction''' is the 2nd episode of the penultimate (11th) season of ''Series/TheBigBangTheory''.
2
3	'''Plot Synopsis''': Leonard gives out a [[BrutalHonesty brutally honest]] interview with Ira Flatow of NPR that he is dubious physics has a future. His boss forces him to retract this speech regardless of his opinion.
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5	!!Tropes
6	* ActuallyPrettyFunny: When Janine Davis reads the e-mail Leonard sent to her while he was drunk, the choices of words in the e-mail in question are so hilariously bad that she struggles to retain her usually stoic demeanor.
7	* BrutalHonesty: Leonard gets chastised for this, as he has put the careers of countless physicist at risk.
8	* DidntThinkThisThrough: Leonard for accepting an interview with Ira Flatow about physics without even having a landmark accomplishment to gloat about.
9	* GargleBlaster: The guys get drunk on a bottle of "[[Franchise/StarTrek Romulan]] Ale" they bought at Comic Con (Leonard suggests it's vodka dyed blue).
10	* GoneHorriblyWrong: 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.
11	* HonestyIsTheBestPolicy: Averted. 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.
12	* LowCountGag: Leonard is doing a radio interview about breakthroughs in physics. The interview is not going so well as he keeps mentioning there are no new exciting discoveries, only stuff people expect to find and prove, but nothing new yet despite huge investments. His friends are worried that he shouldn't say that in public. Howard jokes that not too many people listen to public radio.
13	--->'''Bernadette:''' Should he be saying that?\
14	'''Raj:''' Uh, probably not.\
15	'''Howard:''' Yeah, this is public radio. Doesn't he realize that ''dozens'' of people might hear him?
16	* MeanBoss: Justified. 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.
17	* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: Sheldon once assumed Penny was pregnant because she was drinking water instead of wine.
18	* 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. Though Penny complains "I'm still mad at you".
19	* TranquilFury: Davis is calm and patient with Leonard even as she threatens to fire him if he doesn't write a retraction to placate the concerned donors for the Physics Department.
20	* WhatDidIDoLastNight: In TheStinger, Leonard is called to meet Davis, who reads the e-mail Leonard sent to her in his drunken state the previous night but has no memory for at all.
21	* 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.

Context Recap / TheBigBangTheoryS11E2TheRetractionReaction