When you consider the fact that Johnny Galecki starred as experimental physicist Leonard Hofstadter for 12 seasons and as many years on The Big Bang Theory, it's probably not much of a surprise that the guy prefers some episodes over others. (In fact, for a while Galecki and his co-star Kaley Cuoco, who was also his real-life girlfriend for a short time, directly thought host and creator Chuck Lorre was kidding them; he wasn't.) So which episodes did Galecki particularly like? In an interview with TBSwhich airs "The Big Bang Theory" in syndication - helping the main cast earn a solid income even though the show ended in 2019 — he specifically mentioned five episodes that hold a special place in his heart, in no particular order.

Galecki opens with the Season 3 episode "The Wheaton Recurrence," featuring real-life "Star Trek" veteran Wil Wheaton (who almost turned down the opportunity to appear in the role as himself) as the antagonist of Leonard's on-screen best friend and roommate Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons). While the whole gang, including Wheaton, is out bowling, Leonard tells his girlfriend Penny (Cuoco) that he loves her ... and while Penny is too embarrassed to say it, Wheaton flips her off and ends up basically causing Leonard to break up and Penny. . "It was very personal moments, like the character having his heart broken, that allowed us to mature," Galecki said of Leonard's experience in the episode. "It was always exciting because I knew it was going to be a changed Leonard going forward." Still Leonard, but that I have to think that he will see things differently."

So what other episodes created fond memories for Johnny Galecki? He also appeared on "The Benefactor Factor", a season 4 episode where Leonard, Sheldon and other employees of the California Institute of Technology have to attract potential benefactors to donate to the financially unstable institution. In the process, Leonard meets Mrs. Latham (the late, great Jessica Walter of Arrested Development and Archer fame), a wealthy older woman who loves Leonard and does. enough it is clear that she will provide a large donation if he ... accedes to her wishes, so to speak. (Whether or not Leonard actually did the deed remains somewhat unclear, but he ends up going on a stereotypical "walk of shame" back at the apartment and is mercilessly teased by Penny and Sheldon.) “I loved working with Jessica Walter. Galecki recalled. "And that Penny saw a side of Leonard that she didn't know before."

On the other side of the emotional spectrum, Galecki also mentioned "Gorilla Breakdown," an episode in the show's seventh season where Penny is fired from her ill-fated role in the horror film Serial Ape-ist 2 alongside Wil Wheaton. after she talks to the principal (Wheaton does the same and ends up getting fired as well). Why does Galecki love this episode? After much back and forth over, of all things, Pop-Tarts and cake, Leonard and Penny realize they want to get married... at which point Leonard discovers he's had a ring for Penny hidden in his wallet for years. "I found it very sweet, Leonard has been quietly wearing a ring for God knows how long," Galecki said. "For all his mathematics and science, Leonard was a stubborn romantic sentimentalist. It's never more evident than in this episode."

Johnny Galecki also likes episodes that feature big moments in Leonard's personal evolution, like the Season 8 episode "The Graduation Transmission." In this installment, Leonard has been asked to give a commencement address at his old high school in New Jersey, but faces an insurmountable obstacle in the process: namely, a canceled flight due to bad weather. Penny, realizing how upset Leonard is that he can't be there in person, tries to cheer him up by suggesting he give the speech to her, but it doesn't help - and when she arranges for Leonard to deliver the address virtually, it turns out that the graduation cap and gown that Penny secretly buys for Leonard is actually a revealing (female) graduation-themed Halloween costume. At the end, he gives a wonderful speech, and Galecki said that Chuck Lorre is indispensable for this episode. "I remember talking to (Chuck) a lot while we were filming this," Galecki said. "He had a great note to play the speech in the tone of someone giving me advice.

Finally, there's "The 43 Peculiarity," which isn't surprising, given that this is the episode where Penny finally she tells Leonard that she loves him. The fact that Penny says she loves Leonard so offensively—while telling him he shouldn't worry about other men seeing her on the street—shows that she really means it, and the filming process was so emotional that it actually made Kaley Cuoco cry in real life. Now you can watch all of Galecki's favorite episodes of The Big Bang Theory streaming on Max.