Cushion Saturation

Cushion Saturation
Cushion Saturation
Writers	Chuck Lorre (Story), Bill Prady (Teleplay), Lee Aronsohn (Teleplay)
Director	Mark Cendrowski
Starring	Sara Gilbert as Leslie Winkle, Carol Ann Susi as Mrs. Wolowitz
Air Date	2 March 2009
Vanity	Card #242
Guide	Episode #216
Quotes	Episode #216
Forums	Discuss Episode

Season 2, Episode 16 (0216)

Maternal Capacitance . . . << Cushion Saturation >> . . . Terminator Decoupling

Summary

A paintball game leads to a fight between Penny and Sheldon, and romance for Wolowitz and Leslie

(Edited from Wikipedia:)

Penny accidently shoots a paintball gun at Sheldon's couch cushion (his "spot"), and she and Leonard have a hard time getting it cleaned. Penny has the cushion dry-cleaned, but it takes a week and Sheldon goes through withdrawal during that time. Sheldon gets his revenge by shooting Penny at the beginning of the group's next paintball game. Meanwhile, Leslie and Howard start sleeping together at Howard's home, which lead to funny exchanges with Mrs. Wolowitz. Leslie is able to give Howard's work project some much-needed funds, although it turns out to be her way of controlling him. After getting over his initial reluctance to be in that sort of relationship, Howard accepts his "sex toy/arm candy" role.

Episode Outline

I. Shed on the Paintball ground

• The guys are cornered in their Paintball battle. Howard is supposed to cover them, the other three leave.
• Leslie turns up and starts kissing Howard.

Titles and opening themes

II. Cafeteria

• The guys talk about cutbacks at the Physics department, when Leslie confuses them with a strange conversation with Howard.
• Howard confesses that he hooked up with her.

III. Living room

• Sheldon tells Penny about the importance of his "spot".
• After he leaves, Penny accidentally shoots Paintball paint onto his "spot".

IV. Howard's bedroom

• Howard and Leslie just had sex, when Howard's mother comes home.

V. Living room

• Penny and Leonard fail to clean Sheldon's spot. Sheldon comes back and freaks out about the damage.

VI. Living room

• The guys and Penny are having dinner, while a deeply disturbed Sheldon cannot find a place to sit with the cushion from his "spot" being at the dry cleaner.
• Howard gets a booty call from Leslie.

VII. Howard's bedroom

• Leslie pressures Howard into accompanying her to her sister's wedding.

VIII. Living room

• Penny brings back the cushion from Sheldon's spot. He still feels uncomfortable. Leonard tries to distract him.

IX. Shed on the Paintball ground

• The guys, Leslie and Penny prepare for their next battle, but before they can start Sheldon shoots Penny in revenge for his cushion.

Resources

List of entries from this episode

[Still to come Wikipedia episode guide]

IMDb page for this episode

TV Squad review

Timeline

The episode starts and ends on a weekend when the guys play paintball. A few days later Penny states that Sheldon's cushion will only be at the dry cleaner "for a week". This suggests that in total this episode covers the events of two consecutive weeks and three consecutive weekends.

Title

The cushion refers to the particular couch cushion which Sheldon always sits on, his "spot".

Saturation: To cause to become completely penetrated, impregnated, or soaked

This term appears to refer to the fact that the cushion was hit with a bright green paintball pellet. The paint didn't actually saturate the cushion, which was covered in leather, so the term could be better thought to refer to the way the incident completely permeated Sheldon's psyche, making it impossible for him to go about his normal routine, and therefore "saturated" everyone's lives for a week.