The Rhinitis Revelation
Sheldon's mother visits; he gets a cold and is cared for.
"The Rhinitis Revelation" is the 94th episode of *The Big Bang Theory*, airing as the sixth installment of its fifth season on CBS on October 20, 2011. The plot centers on Sheldon’s mother, Mary Cooper, who stops in Pasadena for a weekend before embarking on a Christian cruise called the "Born Again Boat Ride." Sheldon becomes upset when Mary ignores his planned itinerary—she opts for sushi instead of homemade fried chicken and pecan pie, and while doing laundry, she gets distracted by Penny and leaves. The next day, she skips a lecture by a fictional Nobel laureate to go sightseeing and leads the group to a Roman Catholic church for prayer. During the session, Penny prays for her brother to stop cooking meth, Leonard prays about his relationship with Priya, Raj (a Hindu) prays to lose weight, and Howard (a Jew) declines to pray. Sheldon denies to Amy that his mother’s neglect has put him in a bad mood, but Amy insists he experiences emotions like anyone else. Later, sitting next to a stranger in the rain, Sheldon delivers a soliloquy about their similarities despite his intelligence. He catches a cold, and Mary cares for him with VapoRub and a rendition of "Soft Kitty," while urging him to act more mature.
In production, a brief plot description was posted on Twitter a week before the episode aired, confirming Mary Cooper’s return. The episode drew 14.93 million U.S. households on its initial broadcast, earning a Nielsen rating of 5.1/16. It aired opposite the start of a 2011 World Series game on Fox (14.28 million viewers), as well as episodes of *Charlie’s Angels* (5.57 million) and *Community* (2.39 million) on ABC and NBC, respectively. On CBS, it was followed by the season premiere of *Rules of Engagement*, an hour of *Person of Interest*, and *The Mentalist*—all exceeding 10 million viewers, with *The Big Bang Theory* leading at 14.93 million and *The Mentalist* second at 12.54 million. The episode outperformed both the preceding and following episodes in the same Thursday 8 p.m. timeslot. In Canada, it aired simultaneously on CTV Total, drawing 3.550 million viewers to become the week’s most-watched show, ahead of *The Amazing Race 19* (2.608 million) and *Grey’s Anatomy* (2.246 million) that same night. In Australia, it aired on Nine Network on October 31, 2011, at 8 p.m., attracting 1.397 million viewers—the night’s top show and sixth for the week
- Episode number
- 94th overall, sixth of season five
- First aired
- October 20, 2011
- Network
- CBS
- US viewers (households)
- 14.93 million
- Nielsen rating
- 5.1/16
- Series
- The Big Bang Theory
Quick Facts
- Series
- The Big Bang Theory
- Season
- 5
- Episode
- 6
- Guests
- Laurie Metcalf as Mary Cooper
- Teleplay
- Bill Prady / Steven Molaro / Jim Reynolds
- Story
- Chuck Lorre / Eric Kaplan / Steve Holland
- Director
- Howard Murray
- Airdate
- 2011-10-20
- Production
- 3X6856
- Length
- 22 minutes
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- Next
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Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
In the episode, Sheldon's mother Mary Cooper visits Pasadena before departing on a Christian cruise called the "Born Again Boat Ride." Sheldon is upset when she ignores his itinerary, opting instead for sushi, sight-seeing, and leading the group to a Roman Catholic church for prayer. Sheldon denies to Amy that he is in a bad mood because of his mother neglecting him, but Amy tells him he experiences emotions like everyone else. Later, sitting next to a stranger in the rain, Sheldon makes a soliloquy about their similarities despite his intelligence. He catches a cold, and his mother takes care of him, applying VapoRub and singing "Soft Kitty," though she urges him to act more mature.
Reader's Guide
The episode is notable for its exploration of Sheldon's emotional vulnerability and his relationship with his mother. It received mixed reviews: Jenna Busch of IGN rated it 8 out of 10, praising Mary's humor but noting the divisive nature of political correctness in comedy. Oliver Sava of The A.V. Club gave it a B, criticizing the lack of a scene between Amy and Mary. A TV critic rated it 42 out of 100, calling it "dull" and "stasis," with Mary's prayer session described as "inappropriate" and her political incorrectness as "predictable and basic." Despite the mixed critical reception, the episode was a ratings success, drawing 14.93 million US households and outperforming competing shows on other networks, including the 2011 World Series.
Did You Know?
- The episode aired on October 20, 2011, alongside the start of a 2011 World Series match on Fox, which received 14.28 million viewers.
- In Canada, the episode was the most watched television show that week, with 3.550 million viewers on CTV Total.
- In Australia, the episode aired on October 31, 2011, on Nine Network and received 1.397 million viewers, making it the most watched that night.
- A week before airing, a brief plot description was posted on Twitter revealing that Sheldon's mother would appear again.
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