The Big Bang Theory may have started to resolve Penny (Kaley Cuoco) and Leonard's (Johnny Galecki) lingering baby conflict. Early this season, the hit sitcom threw Lenny fans a curveball when Penny informed her husband that she doesn't want to have kids - ever. While Leonard initially supported his wife, it's still apparent that he's just not ready yet to give up his dreams on becoming a father. This is why when the opportunity presented itself to donate his sperm to Zack (Brian Thomas Smith) and Marissa (Lindsey Kraft), he was quickly onboard with it.
For a couple of episodes, The Big Bang Theory subplot was cast aside to focus on other characters. It's finally come back to the forefront of the show this week in "The Donation Oscillation" after Zack and Marissa came back to the Hofstadters to ask about Leonard's final decision. Operating on the notion that Penny has given him consent to do whatever he pleases, Leonard was ready to commit to the medical procedure - that is, until Penny started acting strange, trying to bed him despite fully knowing that he needs to abstain in preparation for his upcoming test. Things took an even weirder turn when Penny's father, Wyatt (Keith Carradine) visited the couple.
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Penny tried everything to elude Wyatt, scared that he might chastise her for her unorthodox decision. Toward the end of the episode, he was finally able to corner her daughter, allowing him to impart some wise words to her. Wyatt talked to Penny about potentially risking missing out on having kids. He explained that while Penny wasn’t exactly a model daughter, having her was the best thing that has ever happened in his life. Penny admitted that she feels that she’s disappointing a lot of people with her decision - which was actually the first time we see her express her doubts about not wanting to get pregnant. Instead of convincing her daughter to change her mind, Wyatt told her that he'll be on her side regardless of the choice she makes.
Interestingly, this whole conversation happened around the same time Leonard decided that he didn’t want to donate his sperm to Zack and Marissa. Barging in on Penny and Wyatt, he was ready to tell his father-in-law to back-off and let his wife do what she wants to do. For the first time in a while, the Hofstadters are genuinely on the same page about something relating to this issue, and this could be the beginning of the two of them finally sitting down and openly talking about this issue instead of dancing around it.
Penny's talk with Wyatt will more likely factor in her final say on the matter - regardless of whether or not she'll be sticking to her initial choice. While she can still go either way about this issue, it helps that fans finally hear her side of the story. Since she announced that she doesn't want kids, she had barely opened up about her choice. This made it difficult for fans, and even Leonard to accept it especially since it's something that she's never brought up before.
If Penny changes her mind about the her no-kid decision, it won't feel forced considering that we hear her finally admitting, that even at this point, she's still torn about the issue. With both Wyatt and Leonard assuring her that they’ll support her no matter what, she'll more likely be more comfortable in seriously contemplating about this and maybe even come up with a decision soon. That said, it remains to be seen what's the primary driving force behind her stance on not wanting to have kids.
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The Big Bang Theory season 12 air Thursday nights on CBS.