What happened to the time machine in The Big Bang Theory?

The Big Bang Theory is a superhit American sitcom that ran for 12 seasons from 2007 to 2019. It was created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady for CBS. The show revolves around the lives of four geeky friends- Leonard Hofstadter, Sheldon Cooper, Howard Wolowitz, and Rajesh Koothrapalli played by Johnny Galecki, Jim Parsons, Simon Helberg, and Kunal Nayyar respectively. Their lives turn upside down when they meet Penny (played by Kaley Cuoco), an aspiring actress and a waitress who moves in right across the hall.

In season 1, episode 14 titled "The Nerdvana Annihilation", Leonard bids on a replica of a time machine used in the 1960 film, “The Time Machine”. All four friends chip in to buy the time machine for their love for science fiction. Things get chaotic when they see the size of the time machine when it gets delivered to their building.

What happens in "The Nerdvana Annihilation"?

In the episode “The Nerdvana Annihilation”, Leonard finds a replica of a time machine used in the 1960 film “The Time Machine” on auction on the internet. He bid $800 on the time machine in excitement and won the auction. Since he didn’t have enough money, Howard, Sheldon, and Raj decided to pitch in $200 each to buy it.

They realize how big the size of the time machine is when it gets delivered to their building. They struggled to get the time machine to their apartments as the elevator was broken and they had to take the stairs. The staircase got blocked because of the time machine which made Penny late for her work. When they finally get the time machine into their apartment, they all get excited and take turns sitting in the machine.

Penny gets angry at them as she missed her shift and didn’t get paid for the day because of their time machine. She even questioned them about their hobbies and interest in childish things and called their collectibles 'toys'. Her comments got stuck in Leonard’s mind and it affected him. He decided to sell his sci-fi collection and time machine in the comic store to act mature. He thought that Penny would never date a guy who buys a time machine.

But when Penny sees him selling his stuff, she confronts him and realizes that she overreacted. She makes him understand that his interests and hobbies are the things that make him different from others and it does not make him immature. Leonard decided to not throw his collection away and they all went in to take turns with the time machine again.

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What happened to the time machine?

After buying the time machine, the four of them decide to keep it at their homes for an equal amount of time by taking turns. But the huge size of the time machine makes it a hassle to keep it at their home.

At the end of the episode in a weird dream sequence of Sheldon, they decide to get rid of the time machine because of its size. But in reality, they decide to keep the time machine. There was no mention of that time machine in the following episodes and seasons.