Loobenfeld Decay

Loobenfeld Decay
Loobenfeld Decay
Writers	Chuck Lorre (Story), Bill Prady (Story), Lee Aronsohn (teleplay)
Director	Mark Cendrowski
Starring	D.J. Qualls as Toby Loobenfeld
Air Date	24 March 2008
Vanity	Card #198
Guide	Episode #110
Quotes	Episode #110
Forums	Discuss Episode

Season 1, Episode 10 (0110)

Cooper-Hofstadter Polarization . . . << Loobenfeld Decay >> . . . Pancake Batter Anomaly

Summary

(Edited from Wikipedia:)

Penny is given a part in Rent, though after hearing her sing "Out Tonight" extremely off-key ("What the hell is that?" "I don't know, but if cats could sing...they'd hate it too."), Leonard lies to avoid seeing her performance so he won't hurt her feelings. Sheldon becomes paranoid that Leonard's lie was 'laughably transparent' and eventually creates an intricate lie about his non-existent drug addicted cousin Leo, who was in need of an intervention (and thus why they could not see the play). Sheldon becomes so obsessed with his fictional story that he actually has a fellow physicist (who double-majored in theatre) play the cousin to convince Penny that the lie is true. In the end, Leonard still has to see the tape of Penny's performance, thus showing that the lie did him no good at all.

Episode Outline

I. First floor of the building

• Leonard and Sheldon talk about Terminator when they hear Penny singing "Out Tonight", but very off-key. Penny tells them she got a part in a one-night showcase of a workshop production of Rent. She invites them to come, but Leonard creates a lie to avoid having to go.

Titles and opening theme

II. in front of Leonard's bedroom and Living room, 2 am

• Sheldon tells Leonard he's afraid Penny could find out he lied to her.

III. In front of Leonard's bedroom, still at night

• Sheldon gets more and more paranoid that Penny could find out the truth.

IV. Hallway in front of apartments, in the morning

• Sheldon tells Penny that Leonard lied and tells her a new, (from his point of view) "un-unravelable" lie.

V. Living room

• Sheldon tells Leonard about his "explicitly convoluted" new lie involving an imaginary cousin Leo, a drug addict who has escaped rehab.

VI. Living room, Friday evening

• Penny is ready to leave for her performance. Howard and Raj turn up and Penny explains them that Leonard and Sheldon are going to a drug intervention with Leo.

VII. In front of Leonard's bedroom, Friday night

• Sheldon is paranoid that Penny wouldn't believe that they convinced Leo to go into rehab.

VIII. Living room, Saturday morning

• Leonard wakes up to find an unknown man in his kitchen, a physics research assistant that Sheldon invited to play Leo
• Penny enters and Sheldon introduces her to Leo
• To give Leo and Sheldon privacy, Penny invites Leonard to see her video of last night's performance.

IX. Living room, Sunday

• Penny and Leo are watching a movie, while Leonard wonders how long Leo will stay.

Resources

List of entries from this episode

Wikipedia episode guide

IMDb page for this episode

Timeline

This episode starts with most likely on a Saturday, Sunday or Monday since Penny invites the guys for her performance "this Friday" while Sheldon says to Leonard that the symposium would be "Tuesday in a week". The next events happen during the night and the following day. Finally, we see events on Friday evening, the following Saturday morning and at least the Sunday as well, since the clothes of Penny, Leonard and Sheldon change during Leo's/Toby Loobenfeld's stay in their apartment. For the purpose of the "real world" timeline, we could assume that all events happen within a week, starting on Monday and finishing on Sunday.

Title

The title refers to the scientist Sheldon hired to play Leo, Toby Loobenfeld, with "Decay" referencing his fictional drug use.

The title could also refer to the 'decay' of the ever more convuluted lie told by Sheldon, that eventually decays into nothing and results in Leonard having to watch Penny's performance anyway.