The Big Bang Theory's Stars -- Then and Now

Yup, we all started out in "a hot, dense state" as the theme song says but after twelve seasons and nearly three hundred episodes, The Big Bang Theory is wrapping it up.

It's been quite the journey for a cast that started out as a rather stereotypical posse of characters. Not only have they grown in number, balancing out the gender representation, but they have grown into multi-faceted, well-rounded individuals with nuanced goals and intentions.

The legacy they leave behind is a mainstream audience that is more accepting of geek culture, more aware of the symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder, and with better recognition of some of the brightest minds in the IRL science world.

Seriously, the cameos alone should stand as a high-water mark of awesomeness for sitcoms.

And it all started with The Big Bang! (Theory) You can watch The Big Bang Theory online to remember it all from the beginning.

1. Leonard Then

Leonard at the start of the series was an optimistic dreamer. On The Big Bang Theory Season 1 Episode 1, when Sheldon questioned his roommate's sanity in pursuing a relationship with Penny, his response was that their children would be "smart AND beautiful" to which Sheldon responded,"not to mention imaginary."

2. Leonard Now

Today, Leonard has achieved some of his seemingly unattainable dreams. He's married to Penny and no longer living with Sheldon. In addition, he's developed a better rapport with his mother and recently learned to stand up for himself on both a personal and professional level.

3. Sheldon Then

Sheldon Cooper's role in representing neurodiverse individuals on mainstream television cannot be understated. Although his behavior on The Big Bang Theory Season 1 Episode 1 was "quirky" to a large degree, we soon came to understand the rigidity of his personality as well as the scripts he had learned to cope with societal protocols.

4. Sheldon Now

Sheldon today has added considerably to his understanding of human interactions, including the application of many physical skills he never had need of before meeting his wife, Amy Farrah Fowler. Of course, they met through the Internet on The Big Bang Theory Season 3 Episode 23 (credit to Howard and Raj)

5. Penny Then

Penny (maiden surname STILL unknown) came in like a wrecking ball (at least in Sheldon's opinion) with her sweet Nebraskan optimism and starry-eyed dreams of becoming a famous actress and disrupted the predictable world of our fave foursome of science-y guys.

6. Penny Now

Having lived out some of her Hollywood dream -- never forget the cinematic gem that was "Serial Ape-ist" -- Penny found true career success as a pharmaceutical sales manager for Bernadette's company. Twice married to Leonard and thoroughly entrenched in the expanded social circle, she's come to know her value in a collective of mostly academic intellectuals.

7. Howard Then

Howard Wolowitz was a grinning, smarmy, self-propelled punching bag of a creep when the curtain went up on our merry gang. Literally punched out by Penny on The Big Bang Theory Season 2 Episode 12, he looked as likely to give up his horn-dog ways as to move out of his mother's house.

8. Howard Now

Well, he's still living in his mother's house but she's passed away (written in upon the sudden passing of voice actress, Carol Ann Susi) and, remarkably, the most emotional episodes of the series have been Wolowitz-centred. Whether it was the Schrodinger-esque solution to his father's letter reveal or him serenading a quarantined Bernadette on The Big Bang Theory Season 7 Episode 6, it's amazing how much emotional mileage this little puking astronaut can rack up. Howard as Papa Wolowitz has also been a bit of a revelation. I muse about a flash-forward episode of him dealing with a promiscuous teenage Halley...

9. Raj Then

In the beginning, Raj couldn't talk to women unless drinking (or believing he was drinking) alcohol and that usually added up to incredibly awkward interactions. He and Howard's bromance was (still is) the stuff of legend.

10. Raj Now

Throughout the series, Raj has been indisputably been the most character most desperate for a relationship. After two failed arranged marriages, multiple disastrous dates, and the traumatic dumping by Lucy which cured his selective mutism, his most lasting relationship is still with his dog, Cinnamon. Happily, his latest failed arranged marriage has grown into the beginnings of a potential long-term situation with Anu.

11. Amy Then

I've always loved that the show mentioned real-life Blossom star, Mayim Bialik, before she was ever cast as Amy Farrah Fowler (The Big Bang Theory Season 1 Episode 13). When she first appeared as Amy, she seemed to be a more sheltered, genetically female version of Sheldon, a fact that Sheldon recognized and seemed to appreciate.

12. Amy Now

Today, Amy's landed herself a Sheldon-sized matrimonial fish with all the relationship agreement paperwork that entails. She has friends and enjoys her life outside the laboratory and she and Sheldon have produced their first offspring in the form of a scientific breakthrough regarding a concept called "super asymmetry". This is a forerunner to them having actual biological offspring, a spoiler dropped on Young Sheldon Season 1 Episode 22.

13. Bernadette Then

When we first encounter Bernadette Rostenkowski, she is a waitress at the Cheesecake Factory, working alongside Penny, and the unwitting sacrificial lamb to an age-old pledge between Howard and Leonard that whoever got a girlfriend first would set the other up with a friend of said girlfriend. Her first date with Howard looks pretty darn bleak until the two connect over their overbearing mothers.

14. Bernadette Now

Having paid for her Ph.D. with her Cheesecake Factory wages, Bernadette launches her petite person into the pharmaceutical industry at full speed and ruthlessly claws herself into a position of power, feared by most of her co-workers and subordinates. Despite stating her dislike of children, she and Howard quickly beget a couple of kidlets and sort of adopt Stuart as a live-in nanny.

15. The Gang Then

In the beginning, we had four nerds and a pretty girl. We came to know for their quirks and genius and grew to love them for their ability (and sometimes inability) to roll with the changes happening to their world.

16. The Gang Now

And what have we learned twelve seasons later? A selective mute can have a lot to say. A tough-as-nails pageant queen can be understanding and accepting. A womanizer can be a good husband. A neurally-atypical thinker can develop intimate relationships with other humans. A recluse can enjoy being part of the crowd. A "satisficer" can stand up for his own needs. A party girl can discover her own genius.

In a nutshell, The Big Bang Theory has proven that no one starts out their best selves. Everyone's on a path and it's a lot more fun to walk that path with friends than without them.