The Middle-Earth Paradigm

The Big Bang Theory"The Middle-Earth Paradigm"
Season 1
Number 6
Episode information
Teleplay by	David Litt & Robert Cohen
Story by	Dave Goetsch
Directed by	Mark Cendrowski
Original air date	October 29, 2007
The Big Bang Theory Episodes
Previous	"The Hamburger Postulate"
Next	"The Dumpling Paradox"

"The Middle-Earth Paradigm" is the sixth episode of the first season of the American sitcom The Big Bang Theory. This episode first aired on Monday, October 29, 2007.

In this episode, The gang is invited to Penny's Halloween party where Leonard comes face-to-face with Kurt again, causing a tipsy Penny's emotions to surface.

Plot

After the gang gets their butts kicked (from 13-year-olds) at paintball, they meet Penny who invites them to her Halloween party. As the party is costumed, the gang is extremely excited. Initially, all four of them dress up as The Flash, so they all agree to change. Leonard calls for Frodo who is everyone's second choice. Leonard asks Sheldon not to embarrass him at the party as he feels this party could be a milestone in his relationship with Penny interacting with her social group.

The gang arrives at Penny's apartment on time while everyone else arrives much later. Leonard is Frodo from Lord of the Rings, Sheldon is the Doppler Effect (which no one understands), Howard is Robin Hood (though everybody thinks he's Peter Pan) and Raj is the Norse god Thor (not the Marvel Comics character). After the party starts, the guys seem left out just sitting on Penny's couch. Howard spots a girl and manages to creep her out. As Leonard wants to talk to Penny's friends, but is afraid to do so, Sheldon becomes his wingman. A girl named Cheryl approaches Raj and talks to him asking him how "wasted" she is, but he still is unable to respond though does react with her.

Suddenly, Penny's ex-boyfriend Kurt arrives at the party. Penny greets him warmly. As they both want Penny, Leonard decides to confront Kurt. After saying Kurt is less evolved than himself and Kurt seems to understand Leonard, Kurt lifts Leonard up intimidatingly. Penny tells Kurt to stop and says that he was just having fun with his little buddy. Leonard is a little shaken up so he and Sheldon leave the party.

Later, Penny feels bad about what happened so she stops by at Leonard's apartment. She gets emotional and claims that she invited Kurt because he was all apologetic, but she can't go back to her party and wonders what is wrong with her. Leonard says that there is nothing wrong and that she is perfect. Penny realizes he feels that way and then kisses him. He stops her advances because she had been drinking. Then Penny tells him that he's really smart and Leonard sarcastically replies that he's a frickin' genius (for stopping Penny). Penny wonders why all guys couldn't be like him. Leonard replies that if all guys were like him, the world wouldn't survive. Despite that, when she leaves she kisses him again. This time, Kurt saw them and Leonard stands his ground saying, "that's right; you saw what you saw," and then quickly shuts and locks the door behind him. Later, Howard asks if Sheldon has seen Raj; Sheldon answers he hasn't.

Raj is seen having just finished having sex with Cheryl (the girl from the party), despite having not said a word the entire time he's been with her. Cheryl describes Raj as a good listener

Trivia

• The costumes of the characters:
  • Sheldon is the Doppler Effect (no one understands, because they don't know much about physics).
  • Leonard is Frodo from "The_Lord_of_the_Rings".
  • Penny is a cat.
  • Howard is Robin Hood. (mistaken for Peter Pan).
  • Raj is Thor, Norse God of Thunder. (not the Marvel Comics character)
  • Kurt is a Jungle Hermit.
• Leonard's middle name is revealed to be Leakey, because his father once worked with archaeologist Louis Leakey. Interestingly, this show is even before Leonard's family name (Hofstadter) is first revealed.
• For once Sheldon is not detail-oriented, specifically regarding whether Raj as Thor is the Marvel Comics Avenger or Thor, the original Norse God.
• Penny kisses Leonard on the lips for the first time.
• Raj has sex for the first time (in the series).
• Howard stashed condoms in his costume quiver.
• Howard tries to hit on a sexy nurse with the mirror technique.
• The favorite superhero among the guys appears to be The Flash, though in future episodes, Sheldon prefers Batman and Leonard prefers Superman.
• The second choice among everyone was Frodo, which Leonard called dibs on.
• Among Penny's costumed guests are Raggedy Ann, a construction worker, a football player, a sexy nurse, a hippie, a witch, a king in over-sized novelty eye glasses (possibly Flava Flav), a rabbit, a knight, a fairy, a flapper, a cheerleader, a ladybug, a American Indian chief, a cave girl, a monk, and a police woman. Amy dressed up as a Raggedy Ann in the "The Holographic Excitation".
• The woman that Raj hooks up with is dressed like a ladybug. She finds him a great listener especially since he can't talk to her due to his selective mutism.

External links

• The Middle-Earth Paradigm on The Big Bang Theory Wiki
• The Middle-Earth Paradigm at the Internet Movie Database

v - e - d

Media The Big Bang Theory • Young Sheldon • Video Characters Main Characters: Leonard Hofstadter • Sheldon Cooper • Penny Hofstadter • Howard Wolowitz • Rajesh Koothrappali • Amy Farrah Fowler • Bernadette Rostenkowski-Wolowitz • Stuart Bloom • Emily Sweeney • Leslie Winkle Recurring Characters: Barry Kripke • Wil Wheaton • Althea • Kurt • Eric Gablehauser • Mary Cooper • Debbie Wolowitz • V.M. Koothrappali • Mrs. Koothrappali • Mike • Stephanie Barnett • Beverley Hofstadter • President Siebert • Zack Johnson • Priya Koothrappali • Wyatt • Mike Rostenkowski • Mrs. Rostenkowski • Alex Jensen • Janine Davis • Lucy • Professor Proton • David Gibbs • Claire • Stephen Hawking • Alfred Hofstadter • Colonel Richard Williams • Denise Minor Characters: Christy Vanderbel • Lalita Gupta • Toby Loobenfeld • Dennis Kim • Dimitri • Missy Cooper • Blain • Tom • Octavia • Maria • Lourdes • Ramona Nowitzki • Kathy O'Brian • David Underhill • Alicia • Mikayla • Captain Sweatpants • Lonely Larry • Dr. Crawley • Bethany • Sarah • Skeeter • Professor Laughlin • Abby • Martha • Officer Hackett • Sandy • Glen • Venkatesh Koothrappali • Sebastian • Louie/Louise • Joyce Kim • Mrs. Gunderson • Joy • Mrs. Fowler • Angela Page • Professor Glenn • Mrs. Latham • Todd Zarnecki • Susan • Randall • Colonel Richard Williams Episodes Season 1: Pilot • The Big Bran Hypothesis • The Fuzzy Boots Corollary • The Luminous Fish Effect • The Hamburger Postulate • The Middle-Earth Paradigm • The Dumpling Paradox • The Grasshopper Experiment • The Cooper-Hofstadter Polarization • The Loobenfeld Decay • The Pancake Batter Anomaly • The Jerusalem Duality • The Bat Jar Conjecture • The Nerdvana Annihilation • The Porkchop Indeterminacy • The Peanut Reaction • The Tangerine Factor Season 2: The Bad Fish Paradigm • The Codpiece Topology • The Barbarian Sublimation • The Griffin Equivalency • The Euclid Alternative • The Cooper-Nowitzki Theorem • The Panty Piñata Polarization • The Lizard-Spock Expansion • The White Asparagus Triangulation • The Vartabedian Conundrum • The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis • The Killer Robot Instability • The Friendship Algorithm • The Financial Permeability • The Maternal Capacitance • The Cushion Saturation • The Terminator Decoupling • The Work Song Nanocluster • The Dead Hooker Juxtaposition • The Hofstadter Isotope • The Vegas Renormalization • The Classified Materials Turbulence • The Monopolar Expedition Season 3: The Electric Can Opener Fluctuation • The Jiminy Conjecture • The Gothowitz Deviation • The Pirate Solution • The Creepy Candy Coating Corollary • The Cornhusker Vortex • The Guitarist Amplification • The Adhesive Duck Deficiency • The Vengeance Formulation • The Gorilla Experiment • The Maternal Congruence • The Psychic Vortex • The Bozeman Reaction • The Einstein Approximation • The Large Hadron Collision • The Excelsior Acquisition • The Precious Fragmentation • The Pants Alternative • The Wheaton Recurrence • The Spaghetti Catalyst • The Plimpton Stimulation • The Staircase Implementation • The Lunar Excitation Season 4: The Robotic Manipulation • The Cruciferous Vegetable Amplification • The Zazzy Substitution • The Hot Troll Deviation • The Desperation Emanation • The Irish Pub Formulation • The Apology Insufficiency • The 21-Second Excitation • The Boyfriend Complexity • The Alien Parasite Hypothesis • The Justice League Recombination • The Bus Pants Utilization • The Love Car Displacement • The Thespian Catalyst • The Benefactor Factor • The Cohabitation Formulation • The Toast Derivation • The Prestidigitation Approximation • The Zarnecki Incursion • The Herb Garden Germination • The Agreement Dissection • The Wildebeest Implementation • The Engagement Reaction • The Roommate Transmogrification Season 5: The Skank Reflex Analysis • The Infestation Hypothesis • The Pulled Groin Extrapolation • The Wiggly Finger Catalyst • The Russian Rocket Reaction • The Rhinitis Revelation • The Good Guy Fluctuation • The Isolation Permutation • The Ornithophobia Diffusion • The Flaming Spittoon Acquisition • The Speckerman Recurrence • The Shiny Trinket Maneuver • The Recombination Hypothesis • The Beta Test Initiation • The Friendship Contraction • The Vacation Solution • The Rothman Disintegration • The Werewolf Transformation • The Weekend Vortex • The Transporter Malfunction • The Hawking Excitation • The Stag Convergence • The Launch Acceleration • The Countdown Reflection Season 6: The Date Night Variable • The Decoupling Fluctuation • The Higgs Boson Observation • The Re-Entry Minimization • The Holographic Excitation • The Extract Obliteration • The Habitation Configuration • The 43 Peculiarity • The Parking Lot Escalation • The Fish Guts Displacement • The Santa Simulation • The Egg Salad Equivalency • The Bakersfield Expedition • The Cooper/Kripke Inversion • The Spoiler Alert Segmentation • The Tangible Affection Proof • The Monster Isolation • The Contractual Obligation Implementation • The Closet Reconfiguration • The Tenure Turbulence • The Closure Alternative • The Proton Resurgence • The Love Spell Potential • The Bon Voyage Reaction Season 7: The Hofstadter Insufficiency • The Deception Verification • The Scavenger Vortex • The Raiders Minimization • The Workplace Proximity • The Romance Resonance • The Proton Displacement • The Itchy Brain Simulation • The Thanksgiving Decoupling • The Discovery Dissipation • The Cooper Extraction • The Hesitation Ramification • The Occupation Recalibration • The Convention Conundrum • The Locomotive Manipulation • The Table Polarization • The Friendship Turbulence • The Mommy Observation • The Indecision Amalgamation • The Relationship Diremption • The Anything Can Happen Recurrence • The Proton Transmogrification • The Gorilla Dissolution • The Status Quo Combustion Season 8: The Locomotion Interruption • The Junior Professor Solution • The First Pitch Insufficiency • The Hook-up Reverberation • The Focus Attenuation • The Expedition Approximation • The Misinterpretation Agitation • The Prom Equivalency • The Septum Deviation • The Champagne Reflection • The Clean Room Infiltration • The Space Probe Disintegration • The Anxiety Optimization • The Troll Manifestation • The Comic Book Store Regeneration • The Intimacy Acceleration • The Colonization Application • The Leftover Thermalization • The Skywalker Incursion • The Fortification Implementation • The Communication Deterioration • The Graduation Transmission • The Maternal Combustion • The Commitment Determination Season 9: The Matrimonial Momentum • The Separation Oscillation • The Bachelor Party Corrosion • The 2003 Approximation • The Perspiration Implementation • The Helium Insufficiency • The Spock Resonance • The Mystery Date Observation • The Platonic Permutation • The Earworm Reverberation • The Opening Night Excitation • The Sales Call Sublimation • The Empathy Optimization • The Meemaw Materialization • The Valentino Submergence • The Positive Negative Reaction • The Celebration Experimentation • The Application Deterioration • The Solder Excursion Diversion • The Big Bear Precipitation • The Viewing Party Combustion • The Fermentation Bifurcation • The Line Substitution Solution • The Convergence-Convergence Season 10: The Conjugal Conjecture • The Military Miniaturization • The Dependence Transcendence • The Cohabitation Experimentation • The Hot Tub Contamination • The Fetal Kick Catalyst • The Veracity Elasticity • The Brain Bowl Incubation • The Geology Elevation • The Property Division Collision • The Birthday Synchronicity • The Holiday Summation • The Romance Recalibration • The Emotion Detection Automation • The Locomotion Reverberation • The Allowance Evaporation • The Comic-Con Conundrum • The Escape Hatch Identification • The Collaboration Fluctuation • The Recollection Dissipation • The Separation Agitation • The Cognition Regeneration • The Gyroscopic Collapse • The Long Distance Dissonance Season 11: The Proposal Proposal • The Retraction Reaction • The Relaxation Integration • The Explosion Implosion • The Collaboration Contamination • The Proton Regeneration • The Geology Methodology • The Tesla Recoil • The Bitcoin Entanglement • The Confidence Erosion • The Celebration Reverberation • The Matrimonial Metric • The Solo Oscillation • The Separation Triangulation • The Novelization Correlation • The Neonatal Nomenclature • The Athenaeum Allocation • The Gates Excitation • The Tenant Disassociation • The Reclusive Potential • The Comet Polarization • The Monetary Insufficiency • The Sibling Realignment • The Bow Tie Asymmetry Season 12: The Conjugal Configuration • The Wedding Gift Wormhole • The Procreation Calculation • The Tam Turbulence • The Planetarium Collision • The Imitation Perturbation • The Grant Allocation Derivation • The Consummation Deviation • The Citation Negation • The VCR Illumination • The Paintball Scattering • The Propagation Proposition • The Confirmation Polarization • The Meteorite Manifestation • The Donation Oscillation • The D & D Vortex • The Conference Valuation • The Laureate Accumulation • The Inspiration Deprivation • The Decision Reverberation • The Plagiarism Schism • The Maternal Conclusion • The Change Constant • The Stockholm Syndrome Locations The Apartment Building • Apartment 4A • Apartment 4B • The Elevator • California Institute of Technology • Wolowitz House • The Comic Center of Pasadena • Pasadena • The Cheesecake Factory • Raj's Apartment • Amy's Apartment • Howard and Bernadette's Apartment • The Stairs • Sheldon's Old Office • Raj's Old Office • Sheldon's New Office • Howard's Lab • The University Cafeteria • Kripke's Plasma Lab • International Space Station • The Kinetics Lab Songs Transportations See Also Unaired Pilot