Big Bang Theory spanking
Posted at 16:00 on 7 Dec 2012 by Pandora / Blake
I don't watch the Big Bang Theory, but I still enjoyed watching this snippet of a mainstream TV spanking that seems to understand our kink, as well as playing it for laughs.
Sheldon was obligated to take care of Amy while she was sick. This included rubbing vapor rub on her chest and helping her take a bath."Oh my," she murmurs, eyes wide, as the first smack lands over her jeans.Amy hadn't realized how exciting how much intimacy getting taken care of by Sheldon could foster. So it was no wonder she kept up the ruse of being sick even longer to keep getting those moments with him.
In the end, though, Sheldon caught her. He decided that the only right thing to do was give her a punishment. When he settled on corporal punishment, she got excited at the prospect of a spanking.
"You're not supposed to be enjoying this!"
Amy's hopeful reply: "Then maybe you should spank me harder!"
Without seeing the rest of the show it's hard to say for sure, but it looks like this sequence understands something fundamental about hurt/comfort and caretaking dynamics in power relationships, and the role consensual discipline can play in that. Of course it's still spanking-as-comedy, but this whole plotline seems to be based on the idea that spanking is an extension of intimacy, and loving discipline a form of intimate attention that some people might need and want.
I wonder if Sheldon would have thought to use it as punishment if he hadn't experienced a new closeness with Amy through looking after her. Can anyone who has seen the full storyline add their opinion?
Edit: The scene is now on Youtube - probably not for long, but here's the link while it lasts. Edit #2: Spanking Blog has transcribed the full dialogue leading up to this scene. Awesome!
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I guess I'm a little troubled by this because, as Erica says, Sheldon is asexual and generally portrayed as aromantic (not universally, and IIRC there are hints he has some sense of possessive-romantic feelings for Amy). The basic story arc seems to be (again as Erica explains) Amy constantly pushing at Sheldon's boundaries.
As I understand it, the relationship arc started with Amy as being similarly asexual and seeking a pretend boyfriend to satisfy her parent's (I forget parent) desire to see her partnered off; Amy then seems to have become excited at the possibility of exploring her sexuality in various ways, and discovering there's more to it than she originally hypothesised. She also seems to have taken an approach in this exploration of looking at others' relationships or sexual behaviours and thinking, "That is how it is done, I must try that too!" This exploration/excitement has been one of the most engaging parts of the series for me, as Amy figures herself out.
However, this clip on that basis feels a bit problematic to me, in that it seems to show a form of non-consensual behaviour - Amy is seeking a type of connection or intimacy that is not on offer, and manipulating Sheldon into providing it (from the description, that's the theme of the whole episode). (In contrast, the episode in which Amy negotiates a "comforting" scene with Sheldon which goes something like compromises offered from Amy's "wild passionate sex" versus Sheldon's "make a hot beverage" and finally agreeing to "A hug and a pat on the back").
I might feel differently after I've seen the full episode (it seems to be season 6 ep. 10, which I think is going to be in a few weeks' time in the UK, 4oD seems to up to ep. 4) but that's the difficulty I feel with a lot of the Sheldon/Amy stuff.
As I understand it, the relationship arc started with Amy as being similarly asexual and seeking a pretend boyfriend to satisfy her parent's (I forget parent) desire to see her partnered off; Amy then seems to have become excited at the possibility of exploring her sexuality in various ways, and discovering there's more to it than she originally hypothesised. She also seems to have taken an approach in this exploration of looking at others' relationships or sexual behaviours and thinking, "That is how it is done, I must try that too!" This exploration/excitement has been one of the most engaging parts of the series for me, as Amy figures herself out.
However, this clip on that basis feels a bit problematic to me, in that it seems to show a form of non-consensual behaviour - Amy is seeking a type of connection or intimacy that is not on offer, and manipulating Sheldon into providing it (from the description, that's the theme of the whole episode). (In contrast, the episode in which Amy negotiates a "comforting" scene with Sheldon which goes something like compromises offered from Amy's "wild passionate sex" versus Sheldon's "make a hot beverage" and finally agreeing to "A hug and a pat on the back").
I might feel differently after I've seen the full episode (it seems to be season 6 ep. 10, which I think is going to be in a few weeks' time in the UK, 4oD seems to up to ep. 4) but that's the difficulty I feel with a lot of the Sheldon/Amy stuff.
As a huge BBT fan, I can definitely speak up on this one! :-)
What made the spanking extra funny, in this case, is that Sheldon is completely sexually clueless. He has no interest in any sort of intimacy, and Amy is constantly struggling to get him to take on more "boyfriend-ly" activity. When she got sick, Sheldon's first instinct was to walk away, then he grudgingly changed his mind and settled in to take care of her.
He then proceeded to do all the comforting things his mother used to do when he was sick -- put VapoRub on Amy's chest, bathe her, etc. He had absolutely no clue that these things take on a different intimacy when between adults -- but Amy knew, and she reveled in it. So she pretended to be sick long after she'd recovered.
The spanking was perfect, because it continued the theme -- Sheldon being clueless that it's an intimate activity, and Amy loving it. And yes, this is most physical that the two of them have been thusfar. So it was quite a milestone, as well as being funny and quite adorable.
I normally cringe at mainstream TV spankings; I'm very picky about them and I think most of them are played for ridicule or they are done badly, technique-wise. But this one made me giggle. I guess it helps that I love the characters so much. :-)
What made the spanking extra funny, in this case, is that Sheldon is completely sexually clueless. He has no interest in any sort of intimacy, and Amy is constantly struggling to get him to take on more "boyfriend-ly" activity. When she got sick, Sheldon's first instinct was to walk away, then he grudgingly changed his mind and settled in to take care of her.
He then proceeded to do all the comforting things his mother used to do when he was sick -- put VapoRub on Amy's chest, bathe her, etc. He had absolutely no clue that these things take on a different intimacy when between adults -- but Amy knew, and she reveled in it. So she pretended to be sick long after she'd recovered.
The spanking was perfect, because it continued the theme -- Sheldon being clueless that it's an intimate activity, and Amy loving it. And yes, this is most physical that the two of them have been thusfar. So it was quite a milestone, as well as being funny and quite adorable.
I normally cringe at mainstream TV spankings; I'm very picky about them and I think most of them are played for ridicule or they are done badly, technique-wise. But this one made me giggle. I guess it helps that I love the characters so much. :-)
Thankyou for this comment, it's really reassuring to know that this scene works within the context of the show. I know what you mean about being picky about mainstream spankings - the ones that are played for laughs especially. Even my favourite type (serious punishments in period dramas) are usually horrendous from a technique point of view.
With this scene, as well as the awesome assumption that spanking and adult discipline can be a positive part of intimate relationships, there's the fact that it's not the spanking itself that's funny. It's sort of a given that spanking is desirable - the joke isn't on Amy for wanting it, but on Sheldon for not realising. So the humour isn't in Amy's kink, it's in Sheldon's innocence. I like that.
Apropos of these previews and conversations I've just ordered the first five seasons of Big Bang Theory. Yay, new show to watch!
With this scene, as well as the awesome assumption that spanking and adult discipline can be a positive part of intimate relationships, there's the fact that it's not the spanking itself that's funny. It's sort of a given that spanking is desirable - the joke isn't on Amy for wanting it, but on Sheldon for not realising. So the humour isn't in Amy's kink, it's in Sheldon's innocence. I like that.
Apropos of these previews and conversations I've just ordered the first five seasons of Big Bang Theory. Yay, new show to watch!
Your post was awesome! Thanks so much for posting those extended clips from the show - this scene is even cooler when you've seen a bit more of Amy and Sheldon's relationship. They're both adorable characters. I can't get over the way the actress playing Amy handled the spanking scene. So much nuance in her voice. And the sympathy is clearly with Amy in this scene. It was beautifully done!
Like Erica, I am a huge fan of The Big Bang Theory and I also found the scene totally awesome. It made me grin from ear to ear. I've just published a whole post about Sheldon and Amy and their kinky appeal for me. It explains in more detail why I enjoyed the scene so much and why I think it is a really good mainstream media spanking scene, one that neither presents our kink in a negative light nor ridicules it. :-)
Your post was awesome! Thanks so much for posting those extended clips from the show - this scene is even cooler when you've seen a bit more of Amy and Sheldon's relationship. They're both adorable characters. I can't get over the way the actress playing Amy handled the spanking scene. So much nuance in her voice. And the sympathy is clearly with Amy in this scene. It was beautifully done!
There's quite a lot of spanking referred to in recent(ish) US sitcoms. Phoebe in Friends, who is often referred to as kinky, has a classic moment in this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vf9-mxgzWeQ) at 3:47 onwards - what she says and the look on her future husband's face says that this is a relationship in which kinky play is an important part. In How I Met Your Mother Lily enjoys a spanking, and in Two and a Half Men it's revealed at Charlie Harper's funeral that he enjoyed being spanked by sexual partners whilst wearing their underwear. There are probably others that I can't bring to mind right now. (I'm not counting Scrubs, because the spanking scene I remember is a male character's daydream, though there are a couple of women who suggestively slap their own behinds.)
What is interesting about all of these is that it is the bottom that is the instigator. Of the tops, Mike seems to be the only one who is really into it (it's clear from other references that he and Phoebe are switches - at one point Phoebe says she's handcuffed him to a pipe, but she ma just be messing with Chandler's and Monica's heads). Charlie's partners are okay with it, but Lily's husband Marshall, at least at one point, worries about being too hard, whilst Sheldon clearly doesn't understand that there's a sexual element to this at all.
What's novel about the Sheldon/Amy scene is that you actually see the spanking, if only the start, rather than just have it talked about. Possibly this is because in the other cases, bare bottoms would eventually be involved, whilst the Sheldon/Amy scene is never going to even involve lifting her nightdress.
What is interesting about all of these is that it is the bottom that is the instigator. Of the tops, Mike seems to be the only one who is really into it (it's clear from other references that he and Phoebe are switches - at one point Phoebe says she's handcuffed him to a pipe, but she ma just be messing with Chandler's and Monica's heads). Charlie's partners are okay with it, but Lily's husband Marshall, at least at one point, worries about being too hard, whilst Sheldon clearly doesn't understand that there's a sexual element to this at all.
What's novel about the Sheldon/Amy scene is that you actually see the spanking, if only the start, rather than just have it talked about. Possibly this is because in the other cases, bare bottoms would eventually be involved, whilst the Sheldon/Amy scene is never going to even involve lifting her nightdress.
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