Top 10 The Big Bang Theory Scenes That Needed a Laugh Track to Not Be Creepy

“The Robotic Manipulation”
In the season four premier Howard “borrows” a robotic arm from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and shows it off to the gang by having it unpack their Chinese food. Pretty cool, totally not creepy. Later at home he programs the hand to massage his shoulder. Helpful, and still not creepy. Then he gets an idea. A very creepy idea. Howard, the king of “self-gratification” sees the hand as the perfect tool for his, shall we say, “pleasure.” The fact that the program glitches and he finds himself and his genitals in a very precarious position… well, okay, that’s funny. But the fact that it went that far… we’re sticking with creepy.

“The Spoiler Alert Segmentation”
In the season 6 episode, “The Spoiler Alert Segmentation” Howard asks Raj to look in on his mother while he and Bernadette are away for the weekend. Raj agrees, but what starts off as just going over for dinner, turns into dessert, a sleepover and breakfast the next morning. And no, Raj doesn’t sleep with Howard’s mom, but she does - as Howard warned him - take his clothes as a way of making sure he can’t leave. It all gets a good laugh, but an older lady imprisoning her son’s friend by taking away his clothes… come on.

“The Pirate Solution”
In season three Raj reveals to the gang that his grant money is running out and that - with his research not showing any results - he might be deported back to India. Later, at the University, Howard tells Raj that a steller research team is looking for people and Raj quickly sets up an interview. The interview goes very well when it’s just him and the male professor in charge. However, when a female member of the team walks in, Raj quickly downs a little alcohol in order to be able to talk to her. Unfortunately, that talking involves asking her if she would want to join him in his hot tub. Funny with a laugh track… harassment without one.

Various
You know what’s really funny? A little boy whose mother never celebrates his birthday. Oh, and isn’t it hysterical when a parent sets up an Easter egg hunt for their child but doesn’t hide any eggs? And let’s not overlook the humor of a child building a “hugging” machine in order to feel the human affection that his mother isn’t giving him. These are just some of the stories Leonard has recounted about his mother and his emotionally difficult childhood. And while they all came with audience laughter - are they really that funny?

“The Isolation Permutation”
In preparation for Bernadette’s wedding the girls go out to try on dresses and maid of honor Amy films the shopping experience. It’s a nice idea to get it on tape, but Amy doesn’t just film them in the dresses. At the end of the episode an anxious Amy actually walks into Penny’s dressing room, camera on, and catches her bestie in her underwear. Barging into the private dressing room is bad enough, but in an extra funny - and creepy - moment, she swings the camera back to get a second look at her beautiful, and very uncomfortable, friend.

“The Sales Call Sublimation”
In season 9, after having lived with Howard and Bernadette for years, Stuart tells the couple that - with everything going on - he’s decided to move into his own apartment. Besides the fact that Howard and Bernadette are in bed and naked under the covers, this is a pretty normal conversation. That is, until Stuart looks around the room and casually mentions that it’s the first time he’s been in said room when the two of them were awake…. Hold on, what? The line gets a nice laugh, but think about what he just said, and if your creepy-radar isn’t going off right now, then you need to get it fixed.

“The Egg Salad Equivalency”
In most cases comparing your female assistant to an egg salad sandwich would be anything but funny. However, Sheldon does just that when reprimanding Alex about her previous flirtations toward Leonard. His heart might’ve been in the right place, but his decision to employ the misogynistic words of his late father was oh so wrong, and it made us feel almost as uncomfortable as Alex. Yes, it got laughs. However, take away the laugh track and the scene could’ve just as easily been taken from an office training video on workplace harassment.

“The Misinterpretation Agitation”
In the season 8 episode “The Misinterpretation Agitation,” Billy Bob Thornton guest stars as Dr. Oliver Lorvis - one of Penny’s pharmaceutical clients who misinterprets her friendly nature for romantic desire. Take away the laugh track on this one and you have a scary stalker episode. Not to mention the fact that Penny is essentially victim-shamed for her flirty nature on the job. Also, Lorvis imprisons her friends and her fiance in his house in order to return to woo Penny. Again, locking them in his nerd-paradise of a basement is played for laughs, but behind those laughs it’s downright creepy.

“The Panty Piñata Polarization”
From one supposedly funny stalker to another. Many seasons before Dr. Lorvis became obsessed with Penny, Howard and Raj became obsessed with “America’s Next Top Model.” Not just the show, but the models themselves and the quest to find and infiltrate the house they were all living in. And using their smarts, the positions of the stars and a military spy drone they do it. They find the house, show up pretending to be cable repair guys and get inside. There are lots of laughs throughout their quest, but even Leonard recognizes how “creepy” it all is.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Amy Might Enjoy It, but the Way the Guys Stare at Them Is Definitely Creepy

A Shockingly Ugly Thing for Raj to Say

Various
When it comes to laughs, Howard Wolowitz got some of the biggest of the series. However, there’s also no character on the show that better represents the word “creepy” either. Remember, this is the guy who lost his virginity to his second cousin. This is also the guy who awkwardly hit on Summer Glau and couldn’t read her very uncomfortable and possibly slightly afraid body language. And possibly the most creepy thing he did… Howard is the guy who gave his friend Penny a Teddy Bear with a hidden webcam in it. Crossing the line, don’t you think?