Sheldon Cooper’s (Jim Parsons) genius takes center stage on The Big Bang Theory, but it’s his friends who humble him when his intelligence gets the best of him. As smart as Sheldon is, he’s stumped when it comes to empathy, social cues, and communication. Because of his shortcomings, it was hard to feel sorry for Sheldon whenever he unintentionally hurt someone.
As the series continued, Sheldon’s character was fleshed out, as his wife and friends helped educate him on what was appropriate and what was not. Ironically, there was one The Big Bang Theory side character who was so devious towards Sheldon that he made viewers feel sorry for him, which was hard to do: Barry Kripke (John Ross Bowie).
Barry Kripke Flipped The Switch And Made Audiences Feel Bad For Sheldon
Sheldon Cooper eventually became a beloved sitcom character, but he had his moments when it was hard to support him because of how he treated those around him. That was, until his nemesis, Barry Kripke, appeared on screen.
Like Sheldon, Barry was a fellow physicist at Caltech who studied string theory. For the most part, instead of joining forces to conquer string theory, Sheldon and Barry were at each other’s throats for most of the season.
Barry didn’t like Sheldon and made it well-known. He outwardly insulted or demeaned Sheldon to the point where audiences felt sorry for Sheldon, which was hard to do.
The onset of realizing Sheldon wasn’t the bad guy in their scenes together was at the start of season 3. Sheldon and the gang came back from an arctic expedition after researching moving monopoles. Sheldon thought his journey was a success and emailed the entire department about his findings, only to find out that he had been pranked. He made no progress in his research.
Barry took solace in Sheldon’s embarrassment. He humiliated Sheldon in front of their department for his retraction, and later filled Sheldon’s office with helium to make his voice rise during a radio interview.
The two later duke it out over a nicer office. Barry got too involved in Sheldon and Amy’s (Mayim Bialik) sex life, and later mocked Sheldon for his incorrect analysis of the existence of a new super-heavy element.
Sheldon wasn’t always a pleasant person to be around, but Barry’s unnerving treatment of him made it impossible to side with him. Supporting Sheldon and hoping he came out on top during his disagreements with Barry was something most viewers agreed on.
The change on The Big Bang Theory was a slow one. Sheldon soon became an empathetic and humorous character. Barry’s behavior towards Sheldon humanized him and made him likable.
Sheldon Had A Long List Of Enemies, But Kripke Gave Them A Run For Their Money
Sheldon Cooper had a long list of enemies, which included the likes of Wil Wheaton, Billy Sparks, and Leslie Winkle (Sara Gilbert). It can be assumed that Sheldon disliked Barry Kripke because of the way Barry treated him, but the deeper reason for their disdain for each other is based on competition.
As string theorists, they competed to make the next breakthrough. Sheldon is typically the smartest in every room, so he didn’t appreciate Barry’s competitive tone, and the thought of losing out on a scientific breakthrough to Barry was too much to bare.
He was one of the few enemies, however, to give Sheldon a run for his money.
In season 6, a tenure position became available at Caltech. Barry and Sheldon soon went head-to-head for the opportunity. Unlike Sheldon, Barry was a social butterfly and knew how to connect with those on the board for the tenure position. Because of the connection that Barry curated, Sheldon was not a likely contender.
In the season 6 episode, “The Cooper/Kripke Inversion,” the two were forced to work together on a research project. Sheldon assumed he would take the lead on the project but quickly realized Barry’s work was far superior to his own.
Barry humanized Sheldon by being cruel to him, but by the end of the series, the two formed an unlikely friendship on the basis that they were equals in science. The two shared a love for nerd culture on The Big Bang Theory, and became unlikely friends.
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