Critic’s Rating: 4.2 / 5.0
4.2
I think when we get to any show that involves one person tasked with saving the world, there are questions about whether the right person has been chosen.
Stuart Fails to Save the Universe certainly fits the bill for that method of thinking.
The Big Bang Theory character was always selfish and whiny, and it made him the most unlikely hero.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
And yet, he somehow stepped into the role of savior. He started jumping from universe to universe with his friends to find Sheldon, Leonard, and Howard.
Just how long was he willing to do that, though? Let’s be honest, he was never jumping out of the goodness of his heart.
Each decision came with his life being threatened.
During the first half-hour of the series, soldiers were beating down the door and threatening to kill him.
The second time, he was in a utopian world that threatened his life; in the third, Demon Bernadette was after the device.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
Each time we’ve watched, he’s pressed the button just to get out of a bad situation, and eventually Stuart Fails to Save the Universe has to give him a spot to land.
Stuart and Denise Find a World They’re Happy In
It all comes about during the sixth installment.
At the end of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe Season 1 Episode 5, Denise ate a leaf, and that naturally had us all wondering what type of mess they were in now.
However, the mess itself wasn’t exactly terrible.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
Sure, in this universe, humans were descended from cows, and a plant-based diet was normal. People were literally paying for a lick of a salted beef stack.
Things felt odd to us, but living in that world, it was just expected and normal, and there was actually a sense of relief.
It was safe, and Denise and Stuart found a place where they could be happy, and it adds some heart to the story.
Wouldn’t you think about staying there?
Considering how selfish Stuart was throughout The Big Bang Theory, it wasn’t all too shocking to find out that he was done with attempting to find Leonard, Sheldon, and Howard.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
What I will say is that this was the world where they should have actually done some exploring.
It loses some points because, while I get that the group was split on whether to stay, someone should have mentioned finding Leonard, Sheldon, or Howard in this universe.
Have they all forgotten why they’re jumping through universes? Have they forgotten what the initial mission was in the first place?
It seems so, and it makes me wonder where they’ll go in the final four episodes of the season.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
Bert and Kripke Are Just Along for the Ride
I feel for Bert and Kripke during this episode of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe Season 1.
They realize that really, they’re just along for the ride.
They try to take the device to find a world they are happy in, and it’s all with Stuart’s blessing.
I love that they talk to Stuart and Denise before just taking the thing, and it shows the respect these friends have.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
That being said, they’re taking the device for the wrong reasons, and it reminds us that they’ve all forgotten why they’re universe-jumping.
However, in the end, they realize they’re now stuck in a universe of endless fall.
At least, that’s what they initially think. It’s only when Stuart and Denise do eventually join them that they find out the truth.
They’re between the universes.
Stuart is “The One.”
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
As an alternate version of himself scolds him for being selfish, Stuart has to decide if being happy is really worth the entire universe collapsing in on itself.
Even Raj’s warnings about the stars disappearing do nothing to initially budge his decision to remain where he’s happy.
To be honest, if you told me the universe had centuries left, I’d not really care too much either.
We know the Earth is going to eventually disappear because of the sun, anyway. There’s not much that we can do about that.
It’s after this that Stuart Fails to Save the Universe really cements its place as a heartstring-puller, as it offers more growth for this leading man.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
Stuart can’t just sit around.
As he realizes that in every universe he runs a comic book store, he realizes that he needs to do something more.
He needs to be more.
Now that he’s tied himself to the safety of the universe, he needs to see it through.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
He doesn’t do this because his friends ask him, and he doesn’t do it because there’s some guilt-tripping.
He’s not even doing it because he’ll get a lot of recognition for it.
Like Spider-Man, Iron Man, Wolverine, and even Jessica Jones, Stuart sees that the world — or more like, the worlds — need him.
He didn’t choose this, but it’s time to step up and be the hero.
Even when Trevor and Kyle don’t really care too much about Stuart’s speech about going to save the world, it doesn’t stop Stuart from doing the right thing.
(Colin Remas Brown/HBO Max)
This is the type of growth we need, and the type of growth that could make Stuart Fails to Save the Universe Season 2 worthwhile.
It’s sad for Bert and Kripke to realize that Stuart had to be there to merge the two universe-hopping machines together and get them to safety, but it’s a huge moment for our leading man.
Now he just needs to continue that growth — and that development needs to rub off on the others.
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Stuart faces a conundrum that offers realism and heart on Stuart Fails to Save the Universe Season 1 Episode 6.
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You know when Stuart and the gang find something good they’re going to destory it on Stuart Fails to Save the Universe.
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At some point, I completely lost the plot of Stuart Fails to Save the Universe Season 1 Episode 4. It’s my least favorite episode so far.
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