@BobPeters61 said:

@FormerlyKnownAs said:

Well, I choose not to judge her so harshly...

In a way it was kind of a business arrangement; so she was treating it as such.

Yeah, when I rewatched the ep. I softened my stance a bit on that account. It was the superior air she put on with the waiter that I registered as a red flag, defining the context in which I saw other aspects of her behavior.

Also, how likely is it that the person you described would get down on one knee in a public place to...?

As a manipulative technique, to apply pressure to comply? Quite likely from what I've seen of some people.

Still, valid point that I may have been a little to harsh in my appraisal of her.

However, the condescension to the waiter still seems a red flag to me. I've always firmly believed that you can tell a lot about who someone is by how they treat those "below" them in common situations. At best, it would have kept my evaluation of her for the partnership still indecisive at that point.

I wouldn't feel too bad about any initial opinions you had of Anu, Bob. The writers are keeping us confused as to what her true character is, and right now there's lots of directions she could go.

@FormerlyKnownAs said:

@BobPeters61 said:

@FormerlyKnownAs said:

Well, I choose not to judge her so harshly...

In a way it was kind of a business arrangement; so she was treating it as such.

Yeah, when I rewatched the ep. I softened my stance a bit on that account. It was the superior air she put on with the waiter that I registered as a red flag, defining the context in which I saw other aspects of her behavior.

Also, how likely is it that the person you described would get down on one knee in a public place to...?

As a manipulative technique, to apply pressure to comply? Quite likely from what I've seen of some people.

Still, valid point that I may have been a little to harsh in my appraisal of her.

However, the condescension to the waiter still seems a red flag to me. I've always firmly believed that you can tell a lot about who someone is by how they treat those "below" them in common situations. At best, it would have kept my evaluation of her for the partnership still indecisive at that point.

Couldn't help but think of Bernie during that exchange.

In fact, at that moment I was thinking that Raj has subconsciously chosen the same kind of person Howard had chosen. And, I was expecting us to get a few Bernie/Anu comparison jokes the same way we got some Deb-Deb/Bernie ones.

There are several episodes yet to go, where they can do that.

When the rest of the gang meet her Howard will make a Anu/Apu joke while Sheldon might offer the fun facts of Anu being a Mesapotanian God and Anubis being an Egyptian God, and Leonard refer to the Marvel character of said Gods. Penny will roll her eyes and Bernie find a personality rival. Amy will just be pleased as punch at her beloved Rajeshes good favor.

And maybe Anu will let Amy breast-feed their babies.

@SpecialFlowers said: 8.Raj and Anu… I've made it clear that I'm supportive of the arranged marriage, but engaged after only 2 dates? (Actually, during the 2nd date.) I think the audience would have bought into this arrangement better if they had gone on the full 6 dates over the course of 6 (or more) episodes We all know how desperate Raj is. Some couples have even gotten married on a first date. I don't have any trouble buying it at all.

@rmontro said:

@SpecialFlowers said: 8.Raj and Anu… I've made it clear that I'm supportive of the arranged marriage, but engaged after only 2 dates? (Actually, during the 2nd date.) I think the audience would have bought into this arrangement better if they had gone on the full 6 dates over the course of 6 (or more) episodes

We all know how desperate Raj is. Some couples have even gotten married on a first date. I don't have any trouble buying it at all.

I could have used a better word choice. I didn't mean that the audience wouldn't believe the scenario. I just meant that the audience would have possibly been more supportive of the relationship had a few more dates occurred before the engagement.

@rmontro said:

@SpecialFlowers said: 8.Raj and Anu… I've made it clear that I'm supportive of the arranged marriage, but engaged after only 2 dates? (Actually, during the 2nd date.) I think the audience would have bought into this arrangement better if they had gone on the full 6 dates over the course of 6 (or more) episodes

We all know how desperate Raj is. Some couples have even gotten married on a first date. I don't have any trouble buying it at all.

The way Leonard was so thunderstruck when he met Penny, even a first date wouldn't have been necessary. In the Love-Zombie-like state he was in he would have married her then and there. Of course, she never would have had him!

Even so, I agree with the previous poster. On any given day, Raj is so quick to start picking out baby names when he meets a woman he likes. Not that six dates are so much greater than two when it comes to a relationship; but, I think them taking that giant step forward would have been more palatable with a few more dates showing/confirming that this time for Raj is different than all the other times.

Of course, since she was "down" (ha-ha) with the arrangement--maybe that's different enough.

Not saying all the dates had to be on-screen...it would have been enough to know that they were taking place.

@FormerlyKnownAs said: Even so, I agree with the previous poster. On any given day, Raj is so quick to start picking out baby names when he meets a woman he likes. Not that six dates are so much greater than two when it comes to a relationship; but, I think them taking that giant step forward would have been more palatable with a few more dates showing/confirming that this time for Raj is different than all the other times. Yeah, maybe the fans would have found it more palatable. But it is completely consistent with the Raj character to rush into it.

Besides, I like Anu. Some have complained that she is a bit of a ball buster, but that makes her similar to Bernadette. Not surprising that Raj would end up with a girl similar to Howard's.

@rmontro said:

@FormerlyKnownAs said: Even so, I agree with the previous poster. On any given day, Raj is so quick to start picking out baby names when he meets a woman he likes. Not that six dates are so much greater than two when it comes to a relationship; but, I think them taking that giant step forward would have been more palatable with a few more dates showing/confirming that this time for Raj is different than all the other times. Yeah, maybe the fans would have found it more palatable. But it is completely consistent with the Raj character to rush into it.

Besides, I like Anu. Some have complained that she is a bit of a ball buster, but that makes her similar to Bernadette. Not surprising that Raj would end up with a girl similar to Howard's.

Indeed, why should Raj be any different? All of their women/wives are basically that way. Although in Amy's case it may not matter, since there's as yet no evidence that Sheldon has balls to bust. She pretty much still controls him, though.

@rmontro said:

@FormerlyKnownAs said: Even so, I agree with the previous poster. On any given day, Raj is so quick to start picking out baby names when he meets a woman he likes. Not that six dates are so much greater than two when it comes to a relationship; but, I think them taking that giant step forward would have been more palatable with a few more dates showing/confirming that this time for Raj is different than all the other times.

Yeah, maybe the fans would have found it more palatable. But it is completely consistent with the Raj character to rush into it.

Besides, I like Anu. Some have complained that she is a bit of a ball buster, but that makes her similar to Bernadette. Not surprising that Raj would end up with a girl similar to Howard's.

Do these two statements not make the same point?

As for your comparison of Anu to Bernie and Raj’s choice of Anu to Howard’s choice of Bernie...Been There—Posted That!

@SpecialFlowers said:

Here are my initial thoughts, and I'd also love to hear yours!

1.Not much Sheldon and Amy in this episode which gave other characters more screen time. That was refreshing!

2.Enjoyed the Bernie and Howard scenes again. In the scene where Bernie starts crying on the couch after Stuart's romantic music starts playing, it actually looked to me like the actress (Melissa Rauch) was trying not to laugh. Did anyone else think that?

3.It is time for Stuart to move out.

4.Are the writers trying to break Penny and Leonard up?

5.I thought the Batmobile scene at the end seemed forced and odd, but maybe some fans related to it.

6.I agree with Penny that she should not have kids if she doesn't want them...but why wasn't this topic discussed prior to marriage?

7.Breastfeeding each other's babies? Amy, that is gross. To me, this harkened back to her crushing days on Penny earlier in the show.

8.Raj and Anu… I've made it clear that I'm supportive of the arranged marriage, but engaged after only 2 dates? (Actually, during the 2nd date.) I think the audience would have bought into this arrangement better if they had gone on the full 6 dates over the course of 6 (or more) episodes, giving the relationship some foundation when the engagement occurred. Instead if felt desperate and rushed. I'm still going to keep an open mind, but it felt like the writers were either inadvertently writing the story poorly, or deliberately sabotaging it. And if they're sabotaging it, ugh. I'm beyond tired of them making Raj's love chances crash and burn.

With all this said, this is the first time in a long time that I'm actually looking forward to the next episode(s) and want to see where these storylines go, so kudos to the writers for that! I do feel like they're stepping it up some.

The Penny not wanting kids storyline is pure filler because the writers Don't have anything else for them to do. There's no way they didn't heavily discuss that before they got married.

Raj and Anu....I'm not falling for this again. Raj Is gauranteed to screw this up.

It seems like Leonard and Penny didn't talk about a LOT of things, maybe because they were both afraid of rocking the boat. But Penny was at least letting Leonard believe she was okay with having kids. So this is still a pretty unilateral change on her part.

That is, if they keep up with the "Penny doesn't want kids" angle. But that could change again with the very next episode, or any time thereafter.

@CalabrianQueen said:

@SpecialFlowers said:

Here are my initial thoughts, and I'd also love to hear yours!

1.Not much Sheldon and Amy in this episode which gave other characters more screen time. That was refreshing!

2.Enjoyed the Bernie and Howard scenes again. In the scene where Bernie starts crying on the couch after Stuart's romantic music starts playing, it actually looked to me like the actress (Melissa Rauch) was trying not to laugh. Did anyone else think that?

3.It is time for Stuart to move out.

4.Are the writers trying to break Penny and Leonard up?

5.I thought the Batmobile scene at the end seemed forced and odd, but maybe some fans related to it.

6.I agree with Penny that she should not have kids if she doesn't want them...but why wasn't this topic discussed prior to marriage?

7.Breastfeeding each other's babies? Amy, that is gross. To me, this harkened back to her crushing days on Penny earlier in the show.

8.Raj and Anu… I've made it clear that I'm supportive of the arranged marriage, but engaged after only 2 dates? (Actually, during the 2nd date.) I think the audience would have bought into this arrangement better if they had gone on the full 6 dates over the course of 6 (or more) episodes, giving the relationship some foundation when the engagement occurred. Instead if felt desperate and rushed. I'm still going to keep an open mind, but it felt like the writers were either inadvertently writing the story poorly, or deliberately sabotaging it. And if they're sabotaging it, ugh. I'm beyond tired of them making Raj's love chances crash and burn.

With all this said, this is the first time in a long time that I'm actually looking forward to the next episode(s) and want to see where these storylines go, so kudos to the writers for that! I do feel like they're stepping it up some.

The Penny not wanting kids storyline is pure filler because the writers Don't have anything else for them to do. There's no way they didn't heavily discuss that before they got married.

Raj and Anu....I'm not falling for this again. Raj Is gauranteed to screw this up.

Couldn't help but think: Charlie Brown Football