The Big Bang Theory: 10 Of The Biggest Arguments Between Penny & Leonard, Ranked
Penny and Leonard's relationship timeline was a chaotic one through The Big Bang Theory. From neighbors to friends to lovers to friends again... These two have had their fair share of rough patches in their friendship and relationship.
The more Leonard and Penny became comfortable with each other, the less severe their arguments got. They knew where the other person was coming from and didn't take things too personally. However, there were rare moments where small bickering turned into blow-up fights, which affected the whole group - especially Sheldon.
In 'The Emotion Detection Automation,' Penny tells Leonard that her brother was on a good track and wants him to move in with them for a little while he gets on his feet in Los Angeles. This bothered Leonard for a few reasons. For starters, Penny never ran the idea past Leonard. Secondly, Penny's brother doesn't have the greatest track record and could take advantage of them. Lastly, inviting another person to move in with them (after Sheldon and Raj) could add to the idea of them not being able to live alone.
Considering the couple had ongoing conversations about them subconsciously sabotaging their relationship, this storyline made no sense because it was as if Penny forgot one of their biggest conversations. As bad as this argument was, it wasn't their worst.
While playing a game of Never Have I Ever with Sheldon and Amy, Sheldon let the cat out of the bag that Leonard had a bank account that Penny didn't know about. This upset Penny because they were married and she has always been very honest about her financial problems.
But it was because of her financial problems that Leonard kept it a secret in the first place. Leonard couldn't trust Penny with his extra money, which was another argument entirely. But what it came down to was Penny being unfulfilled in her job and only doing it to make money and pay off her debts. This wasn't the worst thing Leonard did, but Penny couldn't let go of it.
Early on in their relationship, Leonard was bothered when he found out one of Penny's friends (and ex) from Nebraska was coming to Los Angeles for some session work and crashing on her couch. He didn't like the idea of a man staying with his girlfriend, especially since she didn't talk to him about it.
This argument became a blowup because Sheldon was in the middle. This was an argument that proved how close Sheldon and Penny were because he couldn't stand when Penny and Leonard were arguing. They fought about her friend for the entire episode until they eventually agreed that he could stay on Sheldon and Leonard's couch instead.
It's here that the fights between Leonard and Penny became more serious. As much as fans rooted for Penny and her relationship with Leonard, she confused fans in 'The Tangible Affection Proof.'
In the episode, Penny and Leonard went out for Valentine's Day dinner with Bernadette and Howard. The dinner was going well until Penny saw her ex-boyfriend across the restaurant getting engaged to the woman he left her for. Penny began comparing herself to the other woman, which spiraled into comparing relationships. Penny ruined the entire meal for everyone — especially Leonard. As Penny's boyfriend, Leonard couldn't help but feel insecure over Penny's distaste for their relationship and her life.
It's contradictory that Leonard didn't trust Penny around any attractive man when he was the one that ended up cheating in their relationship. He showed his insecurities when Penny had a college project with a man in her class who happened to be from London.
Leonard didn't want Penny around a handsome man with an accent and made a fool of himself trying to intimidate the guy. Penny found out about Leonard's actions and was incredibly embarrassed. His behavior also showed all of the cracks in their relationship, making it a sad night for Penny.
In another disagreement over Penny's life as a college student, Leonard panicked when he read some of Penny's paper for a class of hers. Wanting her to succeed, Leonard edited the paper while she slept. Leonard rewrote the paper and presented it to Penny thinking she'd be happy with him. In reality, Penny felt disrespected.
Leonard had no faith in her intelligence and took matters into his own hands. It was times like this that Leonard and Penny's relationship made no sense. He should have known her well enough to know that's the last thing Penny wanted or needed.
In 'The Romance Recalibration,' Penny began to think that Leonard didn't put enough effort into their relationship. She felt like he didn't do anything romantic or sweet for her anymore and he was too comfortable. Leonard objected, of course, because he felt his effort was the only reason why they were together. This spiraled into a dark argument.
To clear her head, Penny and Amy went away for a girls' getaway. At this point in Amy and Penny's friendship timeline, they were best friends whose differences helped each other gain perspective. While Amy was helping Penny, Leonard and Sheldon crashed their getaway to create a relationship agreement for Leonard and Penny. However, it was not easy getting to this point.
On Thanksgiving, everyone found out that Penny was married to her ex-boyfriend Zack. Penny thought the Las Vegas weddings were a sham but it took Sheldon, Amy, and Leonard to assure her that they were real. This meant that Penny was married to Zack and neither of them knew it.
Leonard was enraged that Penny was unknowingly married to Zack because this meant she saw a hypothetical future with Zack and not him. Whenever Leonard proposed to Penny she always shot him down – proving that maybe Leonard wasn't good enough. Penny was bothered by how much this hurt Leonard and she felt an unnecessary pressure from him that she didn't appreciate. This was one of their worst arguments yet.
After being engaged for years, Penny and Leonard finally agreed to put their differences aside and to get married in Las Vegas. On their way to the chappel, Leonard admitted that he cheated on Penny when he was away at sea. At that moment, Penny could have easily dumped Leonard but she carried on with the wedding anyway.
As bad as that conversation was, the aftermath of Leonard's decision was when the arguments started. Penny felt that Leonard sabotaged their relationship and wondered if getting married was going to fix their issues. Since this argument/discussion lasted multiple episodes, it was one of their worst.
In the episodes leading up to the finale, the topic of kids became more of a conversation. When Leonard brought up kids, Penny lied and said she'd maybe want them in five+ years. It wasn't until later that Leonard found out that Penny changed her mind and didn't want kids at all. This was a make-or-break situation in their relationship.
Leonard always wanted kids and wasn't sure he could be with someone who didn't want kids. This was a hard reality for Penny since she didn't realize Leonard wanted them that badly. Things took a strange turn when Zack and his new wife asked Leonard to be their sperm donor. This was one of Leonard's only chances to have a kid, but Penny didn't want him to go through with it. The ongoing discussion was one of their worst and most heavy arguments. Luckily for Leonard, he found out Penny was pregnant in the series finale.