What a brilliant way to kick off the season. I found this absolutely hilarious, with both storylines working brilliantly in completely different ways.
Sheldon's first proper dating adventure is surprisingly inventive and, despite taking him into unfamiliar territory, it never feels out of character. His bizarrely clinical approach to relationships is exactly the sort of thing I want from Sheldon, while Penny getting dragged into the situation makes it even better.
But Howard's robotic arm is the real ROFL material. His ridiculous misuse of it is funny enough on its own, but Leonard and Raj's reactions and increasingly desperate attempts to help him make the whole thing even more entertaining. The episode keeps the comedy moving without feeling forced, and it genuinely feels like the show is firing on all cylinders again.
8.5/10: A cracking season opener and easily one of the funniest episodes I've seen from the series so far.