The Big Bang Theory Was Business as Usual in Its Final Season Premiere

The Big Bang Theory's current season is its last, but you wouldn't know it from watching the Season 12 premiere. The episode made no nods to the impending end (probably because it had already been shot when the Jim Parsons-fueled decision to end was made). It didn't even feel much like season premiere. Instead, it was exactly what showrunner Steve Holland told TV Guide it would be: a solid episode of The Big Bang Theory.

It picked up right where Season 11 left off, with Sheldon (Jim Parsons) and Amy (Mayim Bialik) on their honeymoon in New York. Back in California, Amy's meek father (Teller) was hiding in Sheldon and Amy's apartment from his overbearing wife (Kathy Bates), and their strained relationship forced Leonard (Johnny Galecki) and Penny (Kaley Cuoco) to take a look at their own relationship dynamic. And in the funniest plot, Raj (Kunal Nayyar) got into a Twitter feud with celebrity astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, who made his second appearance on the show and apparently didn't remember meeting Raj back in Season 4.

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The Raj-NdGT feud highlighted the 21st century brain disease of starting social media beef to raise one's profile as well as the way we as spectators get off on it. "Everybody loves a good Twitter feud," Raj said at one point, right before he humiliated himself by engaging in childish insults like calling him "Mike Tyson's little sister." And then, of course, when Tyson invited him to drive to Temecula meet him at his book signing and say it to his face, Raj immediately declined, because internet tough guys are not tough in real life. And then for the kicker on the whole episode, Tyson, still looking for a fight, called up Bill Nye, who hung up as soon as he heard who it was.

But that's such a random, unimportant subplot that it's genuinely kinda weird that it was in the final season premiere. The Big Bang Theory does just what it does, no matter what's going on in the world or behind the scenes.

The Big Bang Theory airs Thursdays at 8/7c on CBS.

(Full disclosure: TV Guide is owned by CBS.)