It is not a show about “nerds” as much as it is NERD BLACKFACE. The characters themselves are incredibly sexist and maintain totally unrealistic standards for women at the same time the main, MOST POPULAR character is applauded for his open misogyny. Going beyond the concept that they are even supposed to be “smart,” they are, at best, a writers’ room versions of what is supposed to be stereotypical smart as it appeals to the lowest common denominator.
Another damning aspect, to me, of this ‘most popular’ piece of pop-culture treasure is the fact that during the majority of its run, it was THE most viewed program by traditional viewers. That means, more people watched a show making fun of a caricature of “nerds” as it aired ‘live’ on terrestrial TV during its regular time slot than any other show. By contrast, the most popular show that was viewed ‘time shifted’ was Community.
Think about that and you may infer that means the most popular show ‘about’ nerds was popular among the people who couldn’t even program their DVRs properly.
Meanwhile Community, a meta-sitcom that appealed to ‘real “nerds”’ wasn’t even counted by Nielsen’s ratings system because at the end of the last decade and the beginning of the 20-teens, the TV industry STILL wasn’t counting the viewership of ‘time-shifted’ DVR programming and internet-viewed programs in the Ratings system. I think that was due to the deal that was stuck with the writers’ union during the 2007/8 strike; by undercutting the viewership for many of the shows the networks didn’t own outright, the writers were still getting screwed.
To sum up, Big Bang Theory is the most offensive sitcom to me, for reasons both on the screen and off of the screen.
Review by DeletedBlockedParent2021-12-12T15:36:05Z
It is not a show about “nerds” as much as it is NERD BLACKFACE. The characters themselves are incredibly sexist and maintain totally unrealistic standards for women at the same time the main, MOST POPULAR character is applauded for his open misogyny. Going beyond the concept that they are even supposed to be “smart,” they are, at best, a writers’ room versions of what is supposed to be stereotypical smart as it appeals to the lowest common denominator.
Another damning aspect, to me, of this ‘most popular’ piece of pop-culture treasure is the fact that during the majority of its run, it was THE most viewed program by traditional viewers. That means, more people watched a show making fun of a caricature of “nerds” as it aired ‘live’ on terrestrial TV during its regular time slot than any other show. By contrast, the most popular show that was viewed ‘time shifted’ was Community.
Think about that and you may infer that means the most popular show ‘about’ nerds was popular among the people who couldn’t even program their DVRs properly.
Meanwhile Community, a meta-sitcom that appealed to ‘real “nerds”’ wasn’t even counted by Nielsen’s ratings system because at the end of the last decade and the beginning of the 20-teens, the TV industry STILL wasn’t counting the viewership of ‘time-shifted’ DVR programming and internet-viewed programs in the Ratings system. I think that was due to the deal that was stuck with the writers’ union during the 2007/8 strike; by undercutting the viewership for many of the shows the networks didn’t own outright, the writers were still getting screwed.
To sum up, Big Bang Theory is the most offensive sitcom to me, for reasons both on the screen and off of the screen.