Turns out the universe isn't infinite for Sheldon, Leonard and the rest of the nerdy gang. Showrunner Steve Molaro revealed that they're working towards a season 10 ending for The Big Bang Theory . "I'm going to move forward along with [co-creator] Chuck [Lorre] that 10 is the end unless we're told otherwise," said Molaro. Of course, we have to make it through three more years first, but at least we know there's a light at the end of that tunnel.
I don't mean to be too hard on TBBT. I've watched it now and again. But you have to admit that the show has a lot of flaws. It might not be so bad for it to come to a graceful planned ending rather than dragging it through a million seasons to the point where even the fans aren't that interested anymore. So I'm going to ignore Molaro's ominous "unless we're told otherwise" comment for now and hope that the show sticks with their current trajectory towards an ending in three more seasons. I think this move is great news for both fans and haters of the show.
FOR THE FANS
Your show won't travel down the Grey's Anatomy road. A.K.A. getting renewed season after season until not even the original fans care anymore because the show is past its prime. Watching your show die a sad, slow, long death is depressing, and if you really love The Big Bang Theory you won't want to see that happen. It's tough to watch your beloved show become a mockery. (Oh, Grey's Anatomy is still on? Are the doctors hitting retirement age yet? Has McDreamy gone bald?) Yeah, not fun.
Secondly, a planned ending means you get an ending you deserve. Your show won't be suddenly canceled without resolution (which happened to Gilligan's Island) and you won't have to watch a million bad story lines as your show struggles to keep things interesting. (Okay, TBBT is kind of guilty of that already, but for the sake of argument let's assume it's the perfect show.) Don't you want it to go out on a high note? Don't you want a Breaking Bad ending instead of a Dexter ending?
Fear not, TBBT wants to give this to you. Molaro said the show has no exact ending in mind, but however they end it, they want to do the show and the fans justice. (The anti-How I Met Your Mother, if you will.) "My concern is that we do it right and we end this show in a way that is as befitting of these characters that we respect and love," he said. "As long as we can have the opportunity to end it in a way that serves them all properly, that's my concern—more than the number of seasons."
For a show to focus on the end goal, rather on simply extending their seasons is rare and should be appreciated. The Big Bang Theory has the unique opportunity to avoid the fate of so many long-running shows that cater to quantity over quality. I hope for the fans' sake that the execs stick to this 10-season plan and go out with, well, a bang.
FOR THE HATERS
Even if you hated TBBT, there's an upside to the news that season 10 could be the last. The show is ending. The sexist jokes, the tired sterotypes—it will all be over soon and then some new show will get to win a million People's Choice Awards. What a time to live in.
Images: CBS; headoverfeels; Blogspot/oncemorewithextremeprejudice
