8.3/104,687 votes#1 - The Electric Can Opener Fluctuation
Season 3 Episode 1 - Aired 9/21/2009
When Sheldon learns the guys tampered with his expedition data he got from the arctic, he leaves to Texas in disgrace. This results in the guys following him, which threatens Leonard's hope for some romantic time with Penny and the guys' friendship with Sheldon.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: Steven Molaro
7.7/104,285 votes#2 - The Jiminy Conjecture
Season 3 Episode 2 - Aired 9/28/2009
Leonard and Penny struggle to recover from an awkward first hookup while Sheldon and Howard stake their best comic books on a bet to determine the species of a cricket.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: Jim Reynolds
8.1/104,391 votes#3 - The Gothowitz Deviation
Season 3 Episode 3 - Aired 10/5/2009
Howard and Raj visit a Goth nightclub to pick up women while Sheldon attempts to build a better Penny using chocolate-based behavior modification.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.0/104,304 votes#4 - The Pirate Solution
Season 3 Episode 4 - Aired 10/12/2009
Raj must find a new job or be sent back to India, but Sheldon has a solution, which leaves Leonard and Penny dealing with Howard as a third wheel.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: Steve Holland
8.3/104,408 votes#5 - The Creepy Candy Coating Corollary
Season 3 Episode 5 - Aired 10/19/2009
After overhearing that Wil Wheaton is entering a trading-card competition, Sheldon decides to enter it himself. Meanwhile, Penny sets up one of her friends on a date with Wolowitz.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
7.4/104,146 votes#6 - The Cornhusker Vortex
Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 11/2/2009
Sheldon becomes Leonard's teacher in order to understand football, while an incident with flying a kite threatens Howard and Raj's friendship.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
7.8/104,174 votes#7 - The Guitarist Amplification
Season 3 Episode 7 - Aired 11/9/2009
A squabble between Leonard and Penny sees Sheldon playing mediator, though out of his own incovenience from the sitiation rather than altruism.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.9/105,882 votes#8 - The Adhesive Duck Deficiency
Season 3 Episode 8 - Aired 11/16/2009
With Leonard, Howard and Raj away camping in the desert, an injured Penny has only Sheldon to rely on.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.3/104,384 votes#9 - The Vengeance Formulation
Season 3 Episode 9 - Aired 11/23/2009
After he's humiliated on National Public Radio, Sheldon vows to destroy Kripke, while Wolowitz tries not to destroy his new relationship with Bernadette.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.4/104,444 votes#10 - The Gorilla Experiment
Season 3 Episode 10 - Aired 12/7/2009
Penny gets help from Sheldon in order to understand what Leonard's work is, while Wolowitz develops a jealousy when Leonard starts hanging out with his new girlfriend.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.3/104,348 votes#11 - The Maternal Congruence
Season 3 Episode 11 - Aired 12/14/2009
A Christmas visit from his mother has Leonard discovering she's kept a lot of news from him that she shares with Sheldon and worrying if she'll approve of his romance with Penny.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.2/104,265 votes#12 - The Psychic Vortex
Season 3 Episode 12 - Aired 1/11/2010
Leonard is aghast to find out a secret of Penny's: she believes in psychics. Meanwhile, Sheldon tries to assist Koothrappali in picking up a girl at a university mixer.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.0/104,172 votes#13 - The Bozeman Reaction
Season 3 Episode 13 - Aired 1/18/2010
When their apartment is robbed, Leonard and Sheldon turn to their friends to create a state-of-the-art security system.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.4/104,535 votes#14 - The Einstein Approximation
Season 3 Episode 14 - Aired 2/1/2010
Sheldon's search for the answer to a physics problem leads him to work at the Cheesecake Factory with Penny.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.0/104,097 votes#15 - The Large Hadron Collision
Season 3 Episode 15 - Aired 2/8/2010
Leonard can only bring one guest on a trip to see CERN's Large Hadron Collider (the world's largest and highest energy particle accelerator) in Switzerland on Valentine's Day.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.2/104,205 votes#16 - The Excelsior Acquisition
Season 3 Episode 16 - Aired 3/1/2010
Sheldon winds up in traffic court when he gets a ticket because of Penny.
Director: Peter Chakos
Writer: N/A
8.4/104,441 votes#17 - The Precious Fragmentation
Season 3 Episode 17 - Aired 3/8/2010
When the guys find a ring from "The Lord of the Rings" at a garage sale, it threatens to tear them apart.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.4/104,364 votes#18 - The Pants Alternative
Season 3 Episode 18 - Aired 3/22/2010
Sheldon's friends come to his aid when his fear of public speaking stands between him and a coveted award.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
7.8/104,083 votes#19 - The Wheaton Recurrence
Season 3 Episode 19 - Aired 4/12/2010
A fight between Leonard and Penny threatens their relationship, while Sheldon battles Wil Wheaton in bowling.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.1/104,088 votes#20 - The Spaghetti Catalyst
Season 3 Episode 20 - Aired 5/3/2010
When Leonard and Penny aren't speaking, Sheldon goes to extremes to keep them both happy.
Director: Anthony Joseph Rich
Writer: Chuck Lorre, Bill Prady, Lee Aronsohn, Steven Molaro
8.1/104,369 votes#21 - The Plimpton Stimulation
Season 3 Episode 21 - Aired 5/10/2010
Leonard and Sheldon compete for the attention of a famous female physicist.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
9.0/105,647 votes#22 - The Staircase Implementation
Season 3 Episode 22 - Aired 5/17/2010
Leonard tells Penny about how he met Sheldon for the first time...and what happened to the elevator.
Director: Mark Cendrowski
Writer: N/A
8.6/104,459 votes#23 - The Lunar Excitation
Season 3 Episode 23 - Aired 5/24/2010
While Penny worries that dating Leonard has ruined her for normal guys, Wolowitz and Koothrappali search for Sheldon's perfect match online.
Director: Peter Chakos
Writer: N/A
The Best Episodes of The Big Bang Theory Season 3
Every episode of The Big Bang Theory Season 3 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of The Big Bang Theory Season 3!
Physicists Leonard and Sheldon find their nerd-centric social circle with pals Howard and Raj expanding when aspiring actress Penny moves in next door.
Genre:Comedy
Network:CBS
Season 3 Ratings Summary
"The Electric Can Opener Fluctuation" is the best rated episode of "The Big Bang Theory" season 3. It scored 8.3/10 based on 4687 votes. Directed by Mark Cendrowski and written by Steven Molaro, it aired on 9/21/2009. This episode is rated 0.6 points higher than the second-best, "The Jiminy Conjecture".