I, for one, do not welcome our new Sheldon overlords, which is a reference most Frenchmen don’t get because they’re too busy watching The Mentalist and The Big Bang Theory, the two most popular shows in the world, according to data compiled by Eurodata TV Worldwide. CBS is the Beatles, and NBC is a Beatles cover band. This information was brought to my attention via an article on Salon headlined “Why French people love The Big Bang Theory.” The tempting answer is, the French are skunks, therefore they like smelly things, so…but the real reason is:
The Big Bang Theory [is] a show less about what happens in any given episode than the rag-tag bunch of nerds to which stuff happens. Instead of being plot-driven like CSI or Lost, it’s character-driven.
Also:
Watching ABC’s hyper-verbose Happy Endings in French, I was stunned at how much the French translation left out, but little seemed lost in translation with The Big Bang Theory. Watching it with my French roommates, I was the one not in on the joke, as they laughed harder at the program than I did. Admittedly, I’ve never liked The Big Bang Theory very much, and I felt like an outsider in my own culture.
It’s only a matter of time before “bazinga” is the new “hello.” Now if you’ll excuse me:
For “Drama TV Series”:
The Mentalist (USA)
This programme gathered more than 58.1 million viewers worldwide.
The other nominees were: CSI Miami (USA) and House (USA)
For “Comedy TV Series”:
The Big Bang Theory (USA)
This programme gathered 42.9 million viewers worldwide.
The other nominees were: Two And A Half Men (USA) and Mr Bean (UK).
