Sitcoms tend to have a lot of similarities including characters' personalities, their backgrounds, and plot lines. Most of all, they all have complicated love interests. You create true bonds with the characters, forcing fans to experience their lives first hand, resulting in laughs, tears, and shock.
and are two very different stories: is made to be a modern series about a group of geniuses growing up in a crazy world, and is about a group of adults with little money trying to . They may be opposing series, but you can't deny the overlaps between them.
There is always one couple who withstands all the drama and remains the group's rock throughout the show. In Howard Wolowitz and Bernadette Rostenkowski are the power couple, after meeting in season 3 and getting married early on in the series. They may face obstacles along the way, but always find their way back to each other.
Monica Geller and Chandler Bing are the power couple in , as they sparked a romantic connection in season 4. Both couples follow the pattern of a sensitive and comedic man, and a
. These couples end up in stable relationships, getting married and having children throughout the course of their shows.
There is always an on--and-off couple to spice up the series. has Penny Teller and Leonard Hofstadter, where Leonard loves Penny from day one and waits until she was ready to start their relationship. They have many bumps in the road, but of course, end up with their happily-ever-after by the end.
Rachel Green and Ross Geller are the questionable couple in
which, again, shows Ross loving Rachel as teenagers and waiting for her while she discovers who she is. Their relationship's status is unknown until the final episode, giving fans little time to see their happy ending.
Both series place a friend in the group that can't seem to catch a break with love. They both remain single for the majority of the storyline, but for different reasons entirely. Raj Koothrappali is the lonesome 7th wheel in who is desperate for love but can't seem to find the one.
Joey Tribbiani is a player in the early seasons but changes in the later seasons when he falls in love with Rachel and realizes a relationship isn't so bad after all. Both series sadly end with Raj and Joey still single even after their attempts at finding love.
There are two main hangout areas for each series. sets up camp in Leonard and Sheldon Cooper's apartment. The group hangs out here for the majority of the series, but when they aren't in the apartment they socialize in the university, cafeteria, or laboratories.
has a similar setup, where they mainly hang out in Monica's apartment. She swaps roommates between Phoebe Buffay and Rachel, and ends the series living with Chandler. Their second main setting is at the Central Perk Café, where , Rachel and Joey would work, and they would all gossip and drink coffee.
includes Leonard's and Sheldon's apartment, where Penny lives right across the hall, giving plenty of opportunities for the group to socialize. It adds a special connection to their friend group since they don't have to constantly travel to make time for one another.
Monica's apartment is right across the hall from Chandler and Joey's. Only Phoebe and Ross have to travel to see their friends, though Ross does get an apartment looking into Monica's window for most of the series. This layout is a must to allow the friends to meet up daily.
Both shows include screen time for the characters' parents, who all seem to find the visits embarrassing. mostly brings in Sheldon and Leonard's parents, where Leonard has a difficult relationship with his mother and Sheldon has contrasting views with his own.
we see the parents of Monica and Ross, Rachel, and Chandler. They find their parents difficult to relate to and are embarrassed to introduce them to others. Monica and Ross's parents favor Ross and have very high standards for their children, Rachel's parents don't understand her life choices in living independently, and Chandler experienced many issues with his childhood, making the relationship with his parents difficult.
In Penny's character is an aspiring actress working at The Cheesecake Factory.
Her attempts at her dream career often end in failure, and she later - reluctantly - becomes a salesperson at Bernadette's pharmaceutical company.Joey from has a rough start to his acting career, but unlike Penny, it does take a turn for the best when he . He gets quite famous from this role, but it still comes to an end. Joey doesn't give up on his acting career and remains prevalent with his dream right to the end.
Both series have roles dedicated to doctors in the friend group.
is drowning with doctors including Leonard, Sheldon, Bernadette, and Amy Farrah Fowler, many of whom are located in a college carrying out experiments.There is only one doctor in Ross, who has a doctorate in paleontology. He ends up becoming a professor in a college spreading his knowledge to the next generation. Ross's career isn't focused on as much as The Big Bang Theory's group, but this is a given the latter's science-based plot.
Love triangles are a brilliant way to spice up the series.
contains an entanglement between Penny and Raj on one regretted night. This happens between the time of Leonard and Penny dating, creating a complicated relationship within the group. Raj also falls in love with Bernadette while Howard is married to her, but he never acts on this emotion.has a lot more love triangles, including a fake triangle between Monica, Chandler, and Phoebe. Joey falls in love with Rachel while Ross is also in love with her, creating undeniable awkwardness and heartbreak. Joey and Chandler also fall in love with the same girl named Kathy, but Joey ends up being the bigger man in both situations, allowing his friends to sweep the girls off their feet as he takes a step back.
