Big Bang Theory: The season 6 question that was never answered

Throughout its time on the air, The Big Bang Theory delighted fans with many moments that came full circle in the final season.

However, there was one subplot that was never addressed again, leaving viewers frustrated when thinking back to a particular season six episode.

This episode, titled “The Tenure Turbulence”, was broadcast 10 years ago this week, and follows the attempts of Leonard (Johnny Galecki), Sheldon (Jim Parsons), Raj (Kunal Nayyar) and Barry Kripke (John Ross Bowie) to get a tenure position at California Institute of Technology (Caltech) university.

Despite this instalment focusing on their attempts, which include wooing HR administrator Janine Davis (Regina King) the series would never reveal which character got the position. Since the episode aired, fans have posted messages of consternation to message boards and discussion pages.

“Yeah, that annoyed me too,” one fan wrote on Reddit this week, adding: “You can’t just drop that thread, it’s important to their dynamic.”

Another fan replied: “I guess we’ll never know...”

“It still bothers me that they didn’t tell us who got the tenure position in The Big Bang Theory,” one fan tweeted.

While the subplot was never addressed again, it’s worth noting that the fact Sheldon won a Nobel Prize probably tipped the scales in his favour.

Others have argued that the series presented several storylines it eventually dropped episodes later, which was in fact part of the sitcom’s charm.

The Big Bang Theory ended in 2020 after 12 seasons.