One of the strengths of The Big Bang Theory as a sitcom is that it portrayed some of the strongest relationships between the characters. Many of the romantic relationships on the show were endgame including Sheldon and Amy, Leonard and Penny, and Howard and Bernadette, even... Raj and his dog, Cinnamon, (kidding...or bazinga! as Sheldon would say). Despite all the heartwarming endgame ships, the best love story on The Big Bang Theory was surprisingly between Sheldon and Penny.
The friendship between opposites, Sheldon and Penny, blossomed over 12 seasons. To Penny, Sheldon went from an annoying and quirky neighbor to a weird but lovable friend. For Sheldon, Penny went from the new girl next door to his most trusted confidant. Sheldon and Penny are proof that platonic relationships can be more powerful than romantic ones. Here's a look at why the best love story on The Big Bang Theory is between Sheldon and Penny.
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Sheldon Allows Penny To Hug Him
The Big Bang Theory slowly builds up Sheldon and Penny's friendship, but this episode shows significant progress in their friendship. Sheldon spends most of Season 2, Episode 11, "The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis," driving himself crazy to search for the perfect Christmas gift for Penny after learning she got him a gift. At the end of the episode, Penny gives Sheldon a napkin used and signed by Star Trek's original Spock, Leonard Nimoy. Since Penny got Sheldon a perfect gift, he gives Penny the best gift imaginable: he hugs her (and gives her every giant gift basket he got for her, including backup presents). This marks the beginning of Sheldon and Penny's friendship growth and Sheldon's series-long transformation from a seemingly unfeeling robot to a real human with emotions.
Sheldon and Penny Learn About Each Other's Worlds
At the beginning of Season 9, Episode 23, "The Maternal Combustion," Leonard walks in on Sheldon and Penny playing a game where they both brush up on knowledge from each other's worlds, showing a more light-hearted side to their friendship. Sheldon holds up pictures of science and math symbols like Helium, Pi and an atom of Hydrogen, while Penny holds up pictures of pop culture icons like Taylor Swift, Khloe Kardashian and Adam Levine. At this point in the show, they're both equally invested in their friendship and make an effort to understand and learn about each other's vastly different interests.
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Sheldon and Penny Are Supportive of One Another's Dreams
Sheldon is seen being more supportive of Penny's acting career than her longtime partner Leonard at various points in the show. The most memorable of these moments comes in Season 6, Episode 17, "The Monster Isolation," when Leonard, Sheldon and Amy go to watch Penny in a production of A Streetcar Named Desire and despite not wanting to attend the show, Sheldon is enthralled by her acting and calls her performance remarkable. Later in the series, in Season 11, Episode 13, "The Solo Oscillation," Penny also shockingly becomes a sounding board for Sheldon when he needs someone to talk to about his work when he feels stuck. While talking through his dilemma with Penny, Sheldon comes up with a breakthrough string theory idea that convinces him to abandon researching dark matter and go back to his string theory research.
Sheldon and Penny Comfort Each Other
There are many soft sides to Sheldon and Penny's friendship, but the most heartwarming is when both of them took care of each other when they were sick. Sheldon even allowed Penny to sing his sacred feel-better song "Soft Kitty" to him on multiple occasions. Penny usually sings "Soft Kitty" to Sheldon whenever he's sick as she mentions in Season 5, Episode 18, "The Werewolf Transformation." But in Season 3, Episode 8, "The Adhesive Duck Deficiency," the roles are lovingly reversed when Sheldon and Penny sing "Soft Kitty" together when Penny injures her shoulder and is hopped up on painkillers. "Soft Kitty" originated as a comfort song that only Sheldon's mother was allowed to sing to him when he was a kid, but Sheldon trusts and cares about Penny enough to share the song with Penny.
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Sheldon and Penny Have Deep and Meaningful Conversations
Sheldon's longtime partner, Amy is often credited for helping Sheldon be more in touch with his emotions, but Penny has always been his moral compass. Sheldon and Penny often have deep conversations about life, and Penny is Sheldon's guide through the world that he finds to be confusing and complicated in many ways that others don't. In Season 9, Episode 17, "The Celebration Experimentation," Penny shows that she unconditionally accepts and loves Sheldon even with his many eccentricities when she comforts him after he gets overwhelmed at a surprise birthday party that Amy throws for him. Penny even calls Sheldon one of her favorite people, cementing that their friendship is a pillar of the show. Sheldon also goes to Penny for advice on his love life on many occasions, including in Season 9, Episode 11, "The Opening Night Excitation," when he goes to Penny and Bernadette to discuss his plans to have sex with Amy for the first time.
Potential Sheldon and Penny Romance Left Unexplored
The Big Bang Theory teases a potential "opposites attract" romance between Sheldon and Penny throughout the show's 12-season run. In Season 9, Episode 21, "The Viewing Party Combustion," their significant others, Amy and Leonard, even discuss their jealousy and annoyance over how close Sheldon and Penny are (not necessarily in a romantic way), but how they discuss their relationships and make decisions behind their significant others' backs. In Season 9, Episode 2, "The Separation Oscillation," Leonard also once has a nightmare about Sheldon and Penny kissing to get even with him after he reveals to Penny that he kissed a colleague while he was away on his summer expedition to the North Sea in the early episodes of Season 7.
Although a romantic relationship between Sheldon and Penny was ultimately left unexplored before the end of the show, it was the best decision to keep Sheldon and Penny's relationship platonic because their dynamic is more powerful as an irreplaceable friendship. If a potential revival is explored, Sheldon and Penny's friendship is sure to be cherished once again by fans.
All 12 Seasons of The Big Bang Theory are streaming now on HBO Max.
