HBO released the second episode of its The Big Bang Theory spinoff, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, and it is growing evidently clear with each episode what kind of show it aspires to be. For one, the HBO show does not care about plot holes or a tight storyline, and while this does not really take away from the breezy fun experience it promises, it does make one wonder every now and then what it could have become with that crazy multiversal concept if executed with a little bit more care.

Anyhow, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe episode 2 brings the audience to another reality, which is the complete opposite of the post-apocalyptic Mad Max-style universe that they left behind. This one appears to be a utopia where people do not seem to fight or even argue - the world here seems to be devoid of the basic human emotion of anger. But how is this possible? It is because of an AI chip installed at the back of every person’s neck that gives them a paralyzing shock every time they have an angry outburst.  

This immediately prompts the gang - Stuart (Kevin Sussman), Kripke (John Ross Bowie), and Bert (Brian Posehn) - to try to find the creators of the quantum interference device - Sheldon, Leonard, and Howard and get out of this universe.

After the gang realizes that they are transported from one disturbing reality to another (quite the hard way), they try to make things right one more time but are divided in priorities. Kripke and Bert feel that they should head out and look for Sheldon, Leonard, and Howard, while Stuart wants to find Denise (Lauren Lapkus) first, as he realises that she is his one true love and he cannot afford to lose her again.

Therefore, they part ways, and Kripke and Bert end up bumping into Riki Lindhome's Ramona Nowitzki, who works as a receptionist at Caltech now. She really tests their patience with her indifferent replies to their query and the total uselessness of her service as a receptionist. In a hilarious moment, she unintentionally makes fun of Kripke’s confusing accent, forcing an outburst out of him, which ultimately results in him getting zapped.

In another attempt to get her to cooperate, Bert takes a crack at her, and yet she somehow manages to anger one of the calmest characters in the show. She touches a nerve when she informs him that Clatech in this universe did not find Geology an actual science and hence shifted the entire department into the storeroom. As a result, Bert got worked up, and he too was zapped.

Elsewhere, Stuart gets to Denise’s apartment only to find out that she is now married to Gary. Fearing their reaction to the weird thing he has to say about his love for Denise, he musters all his courage and lays it straight on them. But to his utter amazement, he finds their reaction a bit endearing and awfully jolly. He is baffled by this and asks what is actually happening. 

Gary informs him that Denise cannot stand him but has to live with him, as he would be upset if she left, and the AI does not like anyone to be upset. On top of that, he is told that Denise is a raging alcoholic who suppresses her feelings with rum and Diet Coke. This dump of information is obviously too much for Stuart, and it deservedly incites a frustrating reaction from him, only to be zapped midway through his meltdown.

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The gang seems to have failed in their respective endeavors, but things are only going to get harder from here.

After their failed attempts at getting what they want in this universe, the gang is arrested by very friendly police officers who have to zap Kripke as he runs in an effort to flee. Bert is immediately taken to the idea of cooperation, seeing Kripke in pain. In the car, he meets Stuart, who is already there, probably hauled directly from Denise’s home. 

The officers lock them up in a reeducation camp where a friendly face is waiting for them and the audience. On a big screen in the camp, we see Christine Baranski, who played Dr. Beverly Hofstadter, Leonard's obnoxious and manipulative mother, in 16 episodes of The Big Bang Theory throughout nine of the sitcom's twelve seasons. But in this universe, she is playing her actual self from films and television.

Baranski is the face of the propaganda movies that are used to brainwash inmates at the reeducation camp run by the AI regime. She gets a monologue that gives a brief history of how things fell out of the hands of humans and into the AI. In short, it was a flawed attempt to save humanity from growing violence among themselves using AI. 

Things took a bad turn, and the AI took complete control over human free will. There is a subtle commentary on the current state of things in the entertainment industry pertaining to AI, and the makers are kind of trying to warn everyone of the future it might lead everyone into. Anyhow, talking more about Baranski’s cameo, it is brilliant. The cadence with which she delivers her monologue is absolutely hilarious given the disturbing nature of the history she recounts in the video.

The video also warns the gang that their rehabilitation into the way of this world will be painful, as the program is 30 months long. The scene then cuts to 30 months later, where, after spending two and a half years in the camp, all three of them are changed individuals with little to no urge for conflicts and anger. 

The gang is now released after being brainwashed, but as happy as they are for being finally free, they are soon kidnapped.

Stuart Fails to Save the Universe episode 1 brought back Raj in a brief appearance to kick things off for the spinoff. Episode 2 brings back another veteran and a side character to keep things interesting. When they are unmasked after being kidnapped by unknown men, they find out that it was Zack, Penny’s dumb ex-boyfriend from the original series, who kidnapped them. This is also where the title of the episode, Spoiler: Zack’s in this One, comes from.

However, Zack is not the one in charge, which was no surprise given how he was treated in the original series. Anyhow, he is pretty much the same dubious person who fails to understand the seriousness of the situation or read the room, even though now he is a part of a rebellion against a tyrannical AI program. 

The head of this group is revealed to be Penny (Kaley Cuoco), who has assumed the role of the leader of this resistance. Without a hello or how are you, she starts slapping the fellas, and when asked why, she replies, de-programming. She wants them to feel rage, but Bert asks the obvious question: why is Penny herself not getting zapped at this act of aggression? This is because her base is protected by a blocking shield that renders the AI chip useless inside it. 

After enough slapping and deprogramming, Denise reveals herself to be the one who called Penny 30 months ago to help them escape the reeducation camp. However, she could not rescue them in time. Denise brings with her the quantum interference device, thinking that it will somehow defeat the fascist AI regime, but Stuart straightforwardly tells her that it will only help him and the guys leave this awful reality and not them with their fight against the AI.

Penny loses her cool at the revelation and orders her soldiers to kill them. Kripke tries to buy some time with a futile attempt to run away with the device. In time, AI drones engage the soldiers in a shootout, giving the gang ample time to take the device and get out of the universe, but this time with Denise.                

However, the device did not work as it was supposed to this time again, and the gang is now transported into a world where magic is real. This means that the next episode of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe promises a Harry Potter-esque adventure where we will meet some more veteran characters from The Big Bang Theory universe.

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Do you think that Stuart is even close to saving the universe? Do let us know.