Thanks Murph! Oh I'm getting all teary again...it's like IMDB but better!

By the way what do you think of this site? I am really liking it - it seems to combine the best elements of IMDB (individual movie/tv pages) and facebook (ability to like posts) as well as having a lovely clean set up.

EPISODE 10.18 - THE ESCAPE HATCH IDENTIFICATION http://forum.the-big-bang-theory.com/topic/6647-spoilers-discussion-season-10/?do=findComment&comment=566748

Thanks everyone for the best wishes on the taping, I had a great time! Ok here is my TR, the usual disclaimers apply--the quotes are close to what was said as I did take some notes, hopefully it rings true for those that read it when this episode airs. And if not, my apologies! The main thing I took from this episode was Beverly's take on the intro of Raj into Lenny's lives. As a lightweight Lenny shipper I didn't care for how this was framed, and I heard gasps from some in the audience too, because it just sounded too logical and all too real. I think that couple is still in for a haul this season despite how this episode ends. I could be wrong. As for Shamy's own drama, I think the "escape hatch" theory was somewhat logical too but Sheldon's reaction to it was more of a panic that Amys response was able to squash. Anyway, here ya go and I'm happy to answer any questions you have if I can....

"The Escape Hatch Identification"

The opening scene was pre-taped and starts with Leonard on the couch in 4A. He looks upset and tells Penny Raj's latest post (unknown what he posted on) was sad. Raj is looking for a cheap place to live. Lenny feel sorry for Raj because of his money situation. They discuss offering Sheldon's old room to Raj. The scene switches to Howard and Bernie in bed, and an amused Howard is reading Raj's post too and he thinks the post is pathetic. Bernie gives Howard a "give him a break" look. Howard says he told Raj to try "India" in response to where he could live cheaply. They discuss setting Raj up in there garage. The scene switches to Shamy in bed with Sheldon looking at his laptop. Amy is annoyed and tells Sheldon no matter what he says they are not giving him a place to stay. Sheldon has the perfect spot for a life size Spider-Man statue. When Amy shoots him down he pleads for a life size Hulk or Batman statue, and Amy shoots them all down. Sheldon mumbles that he's beginning to think Amys offer of redecorating the apartment wasn't genuine...End of opening scene.

The next scene begins with Howard phoning Raj and proposing he moves into their garage. Howard explains that it will fit all his furniture and also has a cool button that moves an entire wall up and down when pushed. Raj puts Howard on hold to take another call and its Leonard calling to offer Sheldon's old room. Raj puts Leonard on hold and goes back and forth between the two asking what the perks are ( how's the WiFi in the garage, can he use the  downstairs bathroom, how is sharing a bathroom with Penny and does she own a loofah?) The last time he switches back to Leonard and tells him he's close to a decision Penny is on the line instead. She's annoyed and demands to know if he's moving in or not. Raj answers "Yes ma'am" in a meek tone. Footnote: Kaley looked really cute in a navy pullover sweater over a collared shirt and jeans, hair on her shoulders. I only mention it because to me she has been generally in the sweatpants hair in a messy bun mode lately (no offense intended so please don't flame me lol).

In the next scene Shamy are following Lenny up the stairs from the mailbox lobby. Sheldon is holding a letter and tells Leonard he's confused by it since it is addressed to Occupant and he no longer occupies 4A and isn't sure if it belongs to him or Leonard. Leonard asks who the letter is from and Sheldon replies "A roofer" . Leonard said "It's yours", and Sheldon turns to Amy and smack her arm with the letter in a derisive manner while stating "Just throw it out" in a way that suggests Amy had told him to just toss it as junk mail when he first got it.

The four of them continue walking upstairs with Sheldon expressing sympathy for Raj's predicament. Leonard tells Amy he's glad she has him on medication and that she "nailed the dosage" in reference to Sheldon's empathy. Sheldon gets annoyed at the comment and complains that people always get upset at his behavior. Penny chimes in and says "That's because for every ACTION you have a gigantic annoying REACTION". Leonard is pleased and tells Penny "just when I thought you couldn't get any sexier!". Amy drops her shoulders and is annoyed at Penny for her comment as they split up to go in their respective apartments. As they enter 4B Sheldon tells Amy that Leonard is only annoyed because he thinks he will be upset at his old room being taken by Raj. Amy asks "and aren't you?" and Sheldon replies "I'm outraged!"...Amy expresses bewilderment that Penny almost got a scientific theory right...

Sheldon has a seat on 4B's couch and Amy asks him to talk about what's bothering him. Sheldon explains he feels like he's being replaced by Raj in 4A and that his old room holds a lot of memories for him. Amy sympathizes and says that room has memories for her too, and that it was where Sheldon first told her he loved her. Sheldon corrects Amy and says it didn't happen in the room but instead in the hall outside his room. Amy replies sarcastically "And THAT'S the love I'm talking about". She then continues and says that Raj is broke and is "probably" humiliated- Sheldon responds with "Until we know for sure how will I feel better?".

The next scene is a group meal in 4A with everyone but Shamy, who are in 4B preparing to come over. Raj has just finished moving in and Raj asks Everyone if he can get them anything else after setting up the food containers. They decline and say he's done enough for them already and Raj says it's the least he could do since they helped carry all of his stuff up. Howard chuckles and tells Leonard "Look, you got a Raj and I got a Stuart-we should take them to a park where they can run around together!" Bernie shoots Howard a dry look and said "yeah, Mister paper towels" indicating Howard took the light stuff up the stairs.

Shamy are in 4A preparing to go to 4B and Amy asks Sheldon what the gift bag is that he's carrying. he explains that he feels bad for Raj and is bringing a house warming gift to him. Amy looks suspicious and asks him if it's a bag full of "springy snakes". Sheldon said no--Amy responds "That was the lousiest anniversary present ever". Sheldon shoots back "Well you said surprise you, and it sure was a surprise when they sprung out" (or something to that effect).

Shamy enter 4A and Sheldon welcomes Raj to the building with his gift. Penny begins to ask if the bag has those--Amy cuts her off and tells her she already asked Sheldon that...Raj is pleasantly surprised and removes a blank journal from the gift bag. Sheldon explains that some of his most brilliant ideas came to him in that room and he's sure that Raj will get some too. Raj is pretty pleased with it. Sheldon then tells Raj that Raj is poor and feeling humiliated and he hopes the book helps. Amy tries to cut Sheldon off with a "Sheldon..." and Sheldon chuckles and looks to Amy while saying "She's such a stickler for citing sources", and explains to Raj that what he said was actually Amy's words. Amy stands up to cut Sheldon off again and Sheldon responds with something to do with the cartoon Charlie Brown (can't remember the line).

Raj is visibly upset and calls Sheldon a jerk, at which time Sheldon turns to the group and asks them "Can you believe this guy??"...they respond in unison "yes" and a bewildered Sheldon turns to Amy and says "I thought that would go differently" ( something like that). Amy suggests that she and Sheldon should eat in 4B. Sheldon is upset and tells the group and Raj "Can you believe him?? You take my apartment AND you turn my friends against me and YOURE the one that's angry?!" Raj responds with something like "you're the angry one and I'm the humiliated one", and Sheldon asks Amy why it's okay for Raj to say it and not him. Amy pushes Sheldon out and the scene ends.

In the next scene Shamy are back in 4B and Sheldon is initiating a Skype call on his laptop to Leonard's mom Beverly. Amy asks why he is Skyping her and a flustered Sheldon says that this bedroom issue with Raj has all of these anger emotions surfacing, and he tells Amy that she (Amy) knows how he hates subconscious thoughts and emotions. Beverly answers and Sheldon explains the situation. There is a brief pause and Sheldon asks Beverly to skip the dramatic pause portion of her thoughts and to just get to the part where she tells him what's wrong. Beverly is amused and said she's still going to give him a pause, and then goes into her explanation as she sees it. Beverly tells Sheldon that he sees his old room in 4A as an "escape hatch" for his relationship after having moved in with "Doctor Amy Fowler", and with Raj taking the room Sheldon is now "trapped in the relationship" without it. A shocked Amy hears this and yells to Sheldon "Don't listen to her!" Beverly also says its a defense mechanism for Amy as well, and a flustered Amy comes from the kitchen to Sheldon's laptop and tells Beverly "No it's not" and Beverly responds "as she says defensively" with a snarky smirk on her face. Beverly is clearly enjoying what's going on. The scene ends with Beverly remarking how interesting it is that Leonard and Penny got another roommate to replace Sheldon.

The next scene has Raj sitting on the couch in 4A with Cinnamon in his lap. Leonard is in the kitchen and Penny in her chair. Raj apologizes to Penny for the drama he created and Penny shakes him off, stating this is all Sheldon's fault. Leonard chuckles and says what Penny said would make a good throw pillow. Sheldon walks in unannounced and is immediately taken aback by Cinnamon's presence and shrinks from her. He excitedly tells Raj to put her on a leash and he tells him she's fine, at which time Sheldon tells Raj to at least hold her still so he can pretend she's a stuffed animal.

Sheldon apologizes to Raj for his behavior yesterday and Raj accepts it. Sheldon confesses he can't take all the credit for his apology because Beverly's advice was responsible for it. Leonard chimes in sarcastically and wanted confirmation that HIS mother was actually helpful. The same mom who made HIS life miserable. Sheldon tells Leonard that Beverly also said Leonard and Penny had marital problems too and Penny denies this, saying "We're fine" in an annoyed tone towards Sheldon. Sheldon responds with "You're okay only when you have a buffer between you and Leonard". Lenny are taken aback by this. As Sheldon turns to leave he tells Raj that if he cries when Lenny are fighting they will take him to McDonalds for ice cream.   The scene immediately switches to Leonard Skyping Beverly demanding to know what her problem was. Beverly explains that Sheldon was used as a buffer and when he left they are trying to replace him with Raj. Lenny both deny this at which time Beverly points out to Leonard that didn't he say Penny wanted her brother to be a roommate not long ago? Leonard appears to ponder that while Penny said that didn't count because it was family. Leonard appears to be shaken a little by this point that Beverly is making. Penny takes notice of this. The scene ends when Beverly tells Leonard "I would never get between you and Penny, I'll leave that to the parade of roommates you have"....

It's evening now and the next scene shows Howard and Bernie sleeping in bed. Raj is standing next to the bed whispering to them which awakens Howard who shrieks at seeing Raj, which causes Raj to scream. Raj explains that Lenny are fighting and he wants to stay at their place instead. Stuart bursts in in his underwear holding a "Walking Dead" barbed wire baseball bat. Bernie tells Stuart it's just Raj but it it's still okay if he hits him. A panting Stuart tells them "If my heart stops just let me go"... Raj tells Howard that because of the drama he wants to stay somewhere else. Howard replies "I said it once and I'll say it again, try India".  Raj asks if he can stay in the garage and Bernie suggests the couch for the night until they sort it all out.

The scene switches to 4B with Shamy in bed. Amy is trying to sleep while a restless Sheldon tosses and moans. Amy asks what's the problem and Sheldon explains he can't sleep because of what Beverly told him. Amy wants to know if it bothered him and Sheldon tells her it did and he asks her "what if I'm feeling insecure about our relationship?". Sheldon appears truly disturbed and scared. Amy sits up and doesn't appear concerned. She tells Sheldon that he probably just sees the "escape hatch" as more of a contingency plan and nothing more. Sheldon ponders this and seems relieved. He smiles and says "well you do know how I like those" and then tells her "you know I even have one in the event of an apocalypse, I have a list of who I would eat first starting with my least liked friend". He ends the list with "and because I love you, you're the dessert". Amy, who appears a little annoyed at the turn the conversation took, says she wants to smile but thinks she's actually disgusted by the thought.

Next scene has Raj and Stuart in the living room at Howard/Bernie's house. Both are in their pajamas with Stuart and Raj making the bedding on the couch for Raj. Stuart warns Raj that if he's looking for spare change in the couch that he already cleaned it out. Raj asks Stuart if they should both get a place to be roommates since they are both down on their luck. Stuart sits Raj down and explains that he has a good thing going on and if everything works out right this house will be his retirement home. Stuart then grabs a sandwich and is devouring it when Raj asks hi if he ever feels bad for sponging off his friends. Stuart tells him there's $6 worth of meat on his sandwich. He then explains that he went to Art Academy to be a graphic artist then a comic book artist, and all he has to show for it is a visible rib cage. He tells Raj that you can actually see his heart beating inside his chest. Raj said he didn't go to Art school and that instead he has a degree in Astrophysics. Stuart looks at Raj and says "It'll be easier to see the stars above without a roof over your head" and continues to eat his sandwich as the scene ends.

The next day has Lenny in the pajamas waking up in the kitchen at 4A. As Penny walks in Leonard is looking at a note and tells her Raj moved out. He reads the note out loud and it ends with "Cinnamon is with me, but if you want to screw with Sheldon just tell him she's loose in the building". Leonard asks Penny if they should ask Raj to come back. Penny replies "You're the one who is worried a roommate is a sign of marital troubles" and Leonard responds with "That's only because my mother possessed my head like Satan, I mean really she IS Satan". Penny tells Leonard to go ahead and ask Raj back and Leonard begins to leave 4A in his robe. Penny asks him if he's going to change first and Leonard says "yeah hold on" and exits. He walks to the door at 4B and yells " Cinnamons loose in the building!"...Sheldon is then heard inside of 4B screaming "Amy lock the front door!"...with a smirk on her face Penny raises her coffee cup in a toasting gesture while seated at the kitchen counter.

The next scene is at Howard/Bernie's house again. Everyone but Shamy are seated in the living room. Penny apologizes to Raj and tells him they were not fighting because of him. Raj feels terrible about the drama involving him and the bedroom. Raj said that not only did he cause the drama between Lenny but that he even made Sheldon mad and that Sheldon wouldn't want to return to 4A if he was there. Penny responds with "even more reason for you to stay with us". Howard offers the garage to Raj but Raj declines and says it's probably best to stay with Lenny. Raj assures everyone though that the living arrangement is only temporary and Bernie replies as she glances at Stuart "that's good, because you don't want a moocher living in your house permanently". Stuart tells Bernie " is that any way to talk about your baby??"

The tag has Shamy sitting on the couch of 4B with Amy on an iPad and Sheldon on his laptop. Sheldon proudly boasts about the strength of their relationship and how glad he is that unlike the others THEY don't need to have a third person be a buffer. Amy dryly says "Yeah that's it". The camera pans out to reveal a full size Dark Knight Batman statue standing proudly behind them near the refrigerator. End of the episode!

BTS: Not much really, the cast looked pretty busy in between takes. Johnny flirted a few times with the guy who does the marker and gave him a hug. Jim and Penny both were eating the fries in their containers before the group meal scene was shot in 4A. Penny blew a line on the stairs and laughed when she faced Jim. Mayim, Johnny, and Kunar all blew lines and so did Kevin Sussman. Kevin appeared to play with the baseball bat in between takes of the bedroom scene.

During the usual crowd chat, Kaley claimed that we were getting two more seasons and that they were all excited and hoped everyone was ready to watch more of them