No attempt to clone The Big Bang Theory yet?

[billcosby]

I'm surprised at this because the show has basically become a juggernaut. It's got the audience: intellectuals plus Joe Six Pack and that's a big win.

So... where are all the nerdy copycat projects and what network will attempt it? What kind of angle will they use to try and change it (nerdy girl lead characters, etc)?

Wasn't able to dig much up on Google, just this:
http://www.aoltv.com/2009/11/16/big-...coming-to-nbc/

"Coming to NBC: a group of small-town fanboys try to make continuing episodes of their favorite sci fi series after it is canceled" - Written in 2009... I'm guessing this was never made!

[BoxWhatBox]

I fear that one day they will decide do a spin-off series at MIT or Virginia Tech.

[tighr]

The Big Bang Theory is absolute shit television.

I say this as someone who has watched since the pilot and has seen every episode. And there are many funny episodes, but it's your standard generic canned comedy. They are all already clones of each other. This one happens to be about geek guys who have trouble with women and like comics, but they are just sterile enough to be appealing to a wide demographic and thus it has success. It is no different from Lorre's other shows.

[Mr Light]

I started writing my own version of Big Bang but it's based on my life so they're less brilliant intellectuals and more slacker losers

[Robert Maxwell]

No one can credibly claim to be an "intellectual" and be a fan of this garbage.

I've seen quite a few episodes of it, and man, it's terrible. Apart from being pathetically formulaic, the characters are detestable mockeries. Those who call the show "blackface for nerds" aren't far off, although I would be loathe to put it on the same level of offense as minstrel shows.

[The Mirrorball Man]

Robert Maxwell wrote:

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No one can credibly claim to be an "intellectual" and be a fan of this garbage.

Oh please. As if intellectuals cared about whether or not people on the internet think they're credible.

[Nerys Myk]

Love that the show is "shit" and "garbage" yet the people making these claims have watched "quite a few" or every episode!

It's a comedy, lighten up. Basically it's a riff on Friends anyway, so it is a clone.

[tighr]

Nerys Myk wrote:

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Love that the show is "shit" and "garbage" yet the people making these claims have watched "quite a few" or every episode!

I watched the Jackass movies, too, but that doesn't mean I'm going to nominate them for the Best Picture Oscar. I'll freely admit to having watched stupid crap on TV.

As I said, the reason they are ratings juggernauts is because they are bland and formulaic and easy to digest by the greatest numbers of people. They don't upset any demographics, and they don't make any waves. They don't put forth any sort of thoughtful dialog, they just try to cram as many fart jokes into 22 minutes as possible, surrounded by laugh tracks.

I'm a fan of shows like Community (which aired in the same timeslot as TBBT), but those shows get canceled because they don't appeal to a broad audience. And rightfully so, the networks have to make money, but its still disappointing.

[Robert Maxwell]

The Mirrorball Man wrote:

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Oh please. As if intellectuals cared about whether or not people on the internet think they're credible.

A genuine intellectual wouldn't be insecure enough to have to claim to be one, either.

[Borgminister]

God help us if there are spinoffs...

The Trek references notwithstanding, this show is barely one-note from the shows I've seen, and occasionally offers a mildly amusing crude sexual joke.

But that's it.

[The Mirrorball Man]

Robert Maxwell wrote:

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A genuine intellectual wouldn't be insecure enough to have to claim to be one, either.

Actually, denying you're an intellectual is probably the first test you have to pass in order to be considered an intellectual.

[Robert Maxwell]

The Mirrorball Man wrote:

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Actually, denying you're an intellectual is probably the first test you have to pass in order to be considered an intellectual.

Indeed. The smarter you are, the less sure you are of anything.

[Carcazoid]

I know people who act exactly like the characters on the show (and the Sheldons are as clueless about it as he is).

[sojourner]

Everytime I watch BBT it makes me wish Breaking In had survived. The first season of that show was great, the second season, after it got "retooled", not so much.

[Spot's Meow]

Carcazoid wrote:

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I know people who act exactly like the characters on the show (and the Sheldons are as clueless about it as he is).

Same here. That's why I don't get it when people say that it's just making fun of nerds or portraying that sort of culture inaccurately, because from my perspective working at a university and living with someone who was in a PhD program in Physics, the show is dead on. It's so funny to me because there is so much truth in it, kind of the like the first few seasons of The Office (before it got too detached from reality). The jokes make sense and are hilarious because these things happen in real life, and the real life "characters" are just as clueless about it, as Carcazoid said.