TBBT's Bernadette Should Never Have Had Kids, Here's Why

Summary:

• The Big Bang Theory was a CBS hit sitcom that has been airing for 12 years since 2007.
• The show’s main characters were a group of 4 nerd friends meeting their new neighbor Penny and welcoming her into their friend group.
• Fans are still disappointed about writers ruining the story arcs of two female childfree characters.

So it's no surprise that the 2000s sitcom with a mostly male cast, two male co-creators, and a mostly male audience didn't do much justice to female characters.

The Big Bang Theory was never the show to suggest progressive ideas when it came to women's rights, but rather the show to give all kinds of men the hope of meeting a woman who will eventually fall in love with them, no matter how many quirks they have and how they treat her.

Although there is nothing sinister in this idea alone, the way it was carried out leaves much to be desired. Unfortunately, there was nothing nice about the way any of the characters were treated, either before the relationships or after the couples tied the knot.

If anything, the show did the exact opposite of what was intended: it showed women exactly how they are treated when they give a chance to someone they don't necessarily find interesting at first. Worst of all, however, was the way The Big Bang Theory handled the subject of children and women's desire not to have them.

If Penny’s case of a very sudden change of heart was written off to the show creators catering to the wishes of the audience in the finale, then Bernadette’s case doesn’t get discussed nearly enough.

Why Did Bernadette Never Want Children?

While Penny's reason for never wanting children was never really explained, which didn't make it any less valid, just less explored, Bernadette's active aversion to them was actually very understandable.

Growing up, she had to help her parents raise her siblings, and now that she was an adult and could focus more on herself, she wanted to do just that, without any kind of distraction. She was very vocal about this when she and Howard were dating, and the audience was easily convinced that this was the case.

However, the storyline was ruined with a clichéd unplanned pregnancy twist, and the couple did not even explore any options other than keeping the child. What's worse, Bernadette was happy to have a second child, as if all the boring memories of her own childhood didn't even exist in her mind.

This was not only an unnecessary change, but a hasty one. There were no struggles with Bernadette accepting the fact that she was pregnant, and it was very easy to find positives in her new ‘mommy brain’. Her scolding of Penny for being selfish for not wanting kids was the culmination of the complete 180 turn the character has done in a very short time.

If you need to refresh your memory of Bernadette's character development throughout the show, you can stream The Big Bang Theory on Max.