I’m not entirely sure why, but I’ve never been a big fan of awkward humor. Movies like Superbad and American Pie had their own hysterical parts, but the horribly awkward, watching a train-wreck like feeling that I get hasn’t been my style of entertainment. In that vein, I never really got into Big Bang Theory because it’s a show..about nerds..acting awkward. That’s all well and good and I’ve heard good things about it but had decided early on it wasn’t for me. I’ve picked up the show in it’s second season, however, and it feels noticeably improved.

With that said, there’s still an awful lot of geek jokes, and it feels like it’s a bit one sided as to how often we’re laughing at the characters rather than with them, but so far I’ve been pretty happy with it. The characters are much better developed, with Penny in particular seeming like a much more likeable character now that she’s more one of the group of friends than a romantic interest.

Additionally they’ve added in Leslie Winkle, a returning nerd Sara Gilbert as a recurring character. The interactions between her and Sheldon are admittedly great fun, and I hope that we see plenty of animosity come to the table as the show goes on through. If you’re curious, there’s plenty of places to catch the show online. The shows main portal site does have some recent episodes available along with some highlights from episodes past. Hulu comes up short here, with about 96 clips available from the show but no dull episodes at all, which is a little disappointing. If you need to catch up on the series, I was successful in grabbing most of the season 1 episodes from Project Free TV. As long as they continue to keep the show’s awkwardness to a moderate level, I’ll continue to be a loyal fan!