The Big Bang Theory (TV Series) The Luminous Fish Effect (2007) User Reviews

Fourth episode of "The Big Bang Theory" is very amusing thanks to guest star Laurie Metcalf

[tavm · 7/10 · 16 October 2007]

After Sheldon insults his new boss at his party at the university and gets fired, he spends time at home doing "experiments" on scrambled eggs and flabbergasts Penny when he goes grocery shopping with her. So Leonard brings Sheldon's mom (Laurie Metcalf, another former co-star of Galecki's from "Rosanne") to talk some sense into her son. As Sheldon gets his job back, his new boss and his mom start to get acquainted...With this episode, we find out Sheldon's background as the son of a southern religious mother with father long departed. Some very good lines from guest star Metcalf whom I guess we'll see even more in the coming weeks. Not too hilarious but a very amusing episode of "The Big Band Theory" overall.

Hooray for Mom

[Hitchcoc · 9/10 · 29 September 2021]

When Sheldon can't keep his mouth shut at a luncheon to meet the new department head, he gets fired. His loss of work leads to his doing all kinds of goofy experiments in the apartment. Leonard call his mom (Laurie Metcalf, who is fantastic) ande she moves in for a while and waits him out. We get a dose of her fundamentalism and her judgmentalism but it is really funny as Sheldon reacts to her. Excellent episode.

First episode with a Sheldon & Penny scene!

[stomaino · 9/10 · 20 July 2020]

This is a significant episode as it's the first one with a scene with just Sheldon & Penny. These would turn out to be comedy gold and show just how much chemistry the actors have.

The One With The Glow-In-The-Dark Fish...

[taylorkingston · 10/10 · 31 October 2015]

I really love this episode. I love the character of Mary Cooper, even though she's a bit too preachy for my taste. She's just so funny, and the way Sheldon interacts with her, he acts like he's still a child, which makes him even funnier, and makes the episode a lot more enjoyable.

In this episode, Sheldon is not looking forward to the mandatory faculty mixer that he's forced into going to. While there, he meets his new boss, and after saying something inappropriate to him, Sheldon gets fired. Now that he has all of this free time, he starts doing a lot of strange things. He does different experiments, weaves things on a loom, and even finds a way to make glow-in-the-dark fish, which I think is awesome. After seeing all of this, Leonard asks Sheldon's Mother, Mary, to come to town to talk some sense into him. His Mother ends up helping in her own special way, and Sheldon agrees to try and get his job back.

Fun Fact: We discover Sheldon's last name.

Fun Fact: When eating dinner, Sheldon's Mother sits in his spot, and this is the only time he does not object to someone sitting there.

First appearance of: Mary Cooper.

Best part of the episode: Sheldon being at home.

Overall, I give this episode a 10 out of 10, which in my ratings book is: Freaking Ridonkulous.

The Luminous Fish Effect (#1.4)

[ComedyFan2010 · 10/10 · 12 June 2019]

Pretty much a perfect episode. Sheldon was great in this episode. It was so funny to watch him shopping with Penny and all the crazy things he was working on when fired. But the best part was the introduction of Sheldon's mom. She is the best secondary character on this show (and it will have many great ones). Her religion references were pretty funny. As well as her telling Howard and Raj they don't need to join in praising Jesus. And her teaching Sheldon not to tell others that he is smarter because they don't like it was very well acted. More of Sheldon's mom please!

The Luminous Fish Effect

[studioAT · 6/10 · 25 February 2021]

This was a fun early episode of the show, introducing Sheldon's Mum (though I suppose you could say reintroducing if you count 'Young Sheldon').

I agree with previous reviewers - the Sheldon and Penny scenes are the highlight of the episode for me.

How not to handle stereotypes

[yatinsrivastava · 1/10 · 29 November 2018]

I love Big Bang Theory,but till this episode Raj's character is simply kept as a comic relief,mostly harbouring on his Indian roots to evoke laughter. In this particular episode Raj denigerates Indian food and says some Victorian era stuff about Mumbai. Later in the episode,Sheldon's mom asks Raj whether chicken is one of the animals that they consider magical back in India (it doesn't even make any sense). The writers can surely do better than using these racial stereotypes for the sake of comic relief. Disappointed!!!