S08E16 - The Intimacy Acceleration

No: 175  |  Season: 8   Episode: 16  |  Air Date: 2015-02-26  |  Runtime: mins

Summary

Sheldon and Penny agree to participate in an unusual experiment. Leonard, Amy, Raj and Emily spend the evening trying to escape a room with a "zombie". Howard and Bernadette run into trouble at the airport after returning from Mrs. Wolowitz's funeral.

Director and Writers

Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writers: Story by: Dave Goetsch & Eric Kaplan & Tara Hernandez / Teleplay by: Steven Molaro & Jim Reynolds & Steve Holland

Script

Script: S08E16 - The Intimacy Acceleration

Quotes

Sheldon: What?
Penny: Just thinking about the day I met you and Leonard.
Sheldon: It was a Monday afternoon. You joined us for Indian food.
Penny: Can you believe it's been eight years?
Sheldon: And you're still eating our food.

Sheldon: If you could wake up tomorrow, having gained any one quality or ability, what would it be?
Penny: Well, not to steal from the Bible, but turning water into wine sounds pretty good.

Amy: So that's the key to the door? That's it?
Leonard: Spent $200 on 6 minutes of fun?

Penny: I'm comfortable around you too.
Sheldon: Of course you are. I'm warm and soothing. I'm like a human bowl of tomato soup.

Bernadette: You'd better find my husband's mother, 'cause one way or another, we're walkin' out of this airport with a dead woman!

Raj: Question one: Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?
Leonard: Honestly, I would choose Penny.
Amy: Aww. Then I choose a janitor, because I'm about to to throw up.

Sheldon: If this experiment does make us fall in love, would you drive me to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin for Gary Con? It's the only convention celebrating the life and work of Gary Gygax, the co-creator of Dungeons and Dragons.
Penny: You know what, I can honestly say if we fall in love, not only will I drive you there, I will buy you all the dragon t-shirts you want.
Sheldon: Okay, Babe, let's do this.

Penny: Question one: Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?
Sheldon: Hmm. Living or dead?
Penny: Just says "anyone in the world." Guess that means living.
Sheldon: Oh, that's just as well. As much as I'd love to meet Euclid, inventor of the geometric proof, he probably wore sandals, and I cannot look at toes during dinner. Oh, I know! The person I'd most like to have dinner with is myself.
Penny: You sure that's your choice? 'Cause I've had that dinner.
Sheldon: Well, I haven't. And while they say never meet your heroes, I just don't see how I could disappoint. Who would you choose?
Penny: Robert Downey Jr.
Sheldon: You... Oh! I didn't think of Iron Man. You know, maybe after myself and I have dinner, we can meet you two for dessert.

Raj: I believe in not tempting fate. That's why I don't pick a fight with an Asian. They might not know karate, but why risk it?
Amy: I think you're safe.
Raj: That's what the bullies in Bruce Lee's school said, and bam! - karate.

Zombie: No refund if finish early.

Sheldon: Well, what I meant was... I often misinterpret how others are feeling. Like, I can't always tell if someone is only joking or laughing at me. You know, if they're mad at something I've done or just in a bad mood. It's incredibly stressful.
Penny: Really? You always seem so confident.
Sheldon: Well, I'm not. And if I could read people's minds, life would be so much simpler.
Penny: Well, now I wish I had the ability to make that stuff easier for you.
Sheldon: Thank you.
Penny: Wow, I just felt this wave of affection for you.
Sheldon: (referring to Penny's glass of wine) Are you sure it's not too much Bible juice?
Penny: ...And the wave is gone.

Howard: Are you kidding me? You *lost my mother's ashes*?

Penny: That is so funny. I never would have pegged you for a Pisces.
Sheldon: You're making it difficult to love you right now.

Sheldon: You ready to begin?
Penny: Yep, be right there. I assume you don't want wine.
Sheldon: Correct. You're not supposed to drink alcohol when operating heavy machinery.
Penny: What heavy machinery?
(Sheldon points to his head)

Penny: What about you, Raj? Would you use that test on Emily?
Raj: No, I have my family's wealth for that.

Penny: Honestly, if I could have one quality, I wish I could be as smart as you guys.
Sheldon: Ha! Keep dreaming.

Emily: Have you ever been to an escape room?
Leonard: What's that?
Emily: It's like interactive theater, but with puzzles. There's one downtown where you're trapped in a room with a zombie.
Raj: Kind of like what Penny is doing right now.

Penny: Wow. I just felt this wave of affection for you.
Sheldon: You sure it's not too much Bible juice?

Penny: If you were to die this evening with no opportunity to communicate with anyone, what would you most regret not having told someone?
Sheldon: So it would be today? Huh. Well, I suppose there's something satisfying about dying on my birthday.
Penny: Today's your birthday?
Sheldon: Yes.
Penny: Well, that's always been a secret! Not even Amy knows.
Sheldon: Well, I don't enjoy presents. And the thought of people jumping out and yell, "Surprise!" fills me with more dread than the words "George Lucas' Director's Cut."

Sheldon: What would constitute a perfect day for you?
Penny: Oh. Well, I'd probably sleep in, do a little yoga, then lie on the beach while cute cabana boys brought me drinks, and probably get a massage, and then cap off the night with some dancing.
Sheldon: That's it?
Penny: Yeah, why?
Sheldon: You didn't mention Leonard.
Penny: (pauses, looking a little guilty) He's there.
Sheldon: I don't think so. Leonard can't stand yoga, the beach, massages, or dancing.
Penny: Yeah, well, he brought a book, okay, what's yours?
Sheldon: Yeah, uh, I wake up. Uh, I enjoy some French toast with butter and syrup. Then a wormhole opens and whisks me millions of years into the future, where my towering intellect is used to save the last remnants of mankind from a predatory alien race.
Penny: Interesting. You didn't mention Amy.
Sheldon: Who do you think made the French toast with butter and syrup?

Sheldon: Now, let's tabulate the results of the experiment. I think it's safe to say that you're not in love with me, and I'm not in love with you. And psychology has once again proved itself the doofus of the sciences.

Notes and Trivia

In this episode, Sheldon reveals to Penny it's his birthday, a long-held secret from the rest of the friends. In the subsequent spin-off series, Young Sheldon, season 2 episode 2, Sheldon states his birthday is February 26th, the date this episode first aired.

Molly Morgan (Hostess) played 'Bethany,' one of the two Goth girls chatted up by Howard and Raj, in the season 3 episode The Gothowitz Deviation (2009).

Penny say that she was thinking about the day she first met Leonard and Sheldon. Sheldon says it was a Monday afternoon. The first episode aired on September 24 2007, which was a Monday.

The flight number Bernadette gives the baggage attendant, '816' is a reference to the episode the show is on, season 8 episode 16.

The late Dr. David Saltzberg is mentioned as a key character in the escape room that Emily, Raj, Leonard and Amy attend. In reality, Dr. David Saltzberg is the science consultant for the show.

Title Reference: Sheldon and Penny conduct an experiment designed to make people fall in love.

While trying to solve a mystery in the escape room, Amy and Emily are dressed like Velma and Daphne (Scooby-Doo) respectively.

Goofs

None

Cast

Johnny GaleckiLeonard Hofstadter
Jim ParsonsSheldon Cooper
Kaley CuocoPenny
Simon HelbergHoward Wolowitz
Kunal NayyarRaj Koothrappali
Mayim BialikAmy Farrah Fowler
Melissa RauchBernadette Rostenkowski
Laura SpencerEmily Sweeney
Stephanie EscajedaCindy
Molly MorganHostess
Max AdlerZombie