“We have a perfect life. We go to the lab, we do our research, we eat, we watch Lord of the Rings. Who has a better life than us?”

—Dr. Sheldon Cooper, to Dr. Leonard Hofstadter, in the 2006 pilot

Movies and television shows about geeks are nothing new. In fact, the premise of The Big Bang Theory is simple: geeky guys meet beautiful girl. This premise has proven to be profitable through the years, but most often at the geeks’ expense: we laugh at them, not with them. For instance, in Revenge of the Nerds, the geeks/nerds are portrayed as physically unappealing and socially awkward, and thus ripe for abuse at the hands of the beauties (cheerleaders) and the beasts (football players). It’s little wonder, then, that when CBS announced yet another show about geeks, the media was skeptical. What could be said about one more show about geeks gawking at gorgeous girls as muscular goons look on and laugh?

It depends, of course, on the show. The Big Bang Theory didn’t simply serve warmed-up leftovers, but instead gave viewers new, tasty fare. Although we have geeks and girls aplenty, the critical difference is that The Big Bang Theory is a celebration, not a denigration, of cerebration. The good-natured humor can be found in the show’s situations, not in lampooning the characters themselves.

The tried-and-true formula of mocking geeks is so pervasive that in the 2006 pilot of the show, the cocreators took the path more traveled: they, too, made fun of the geeks. Wisely, and despite this misstep, CBS saw the potential in the pilot and, after retooling, came up with a  …