"The Big Bang Theory" ended season six with a cliffhanger. No, Penny and Leonard aren’t breaking up, but Leonard will be spending his summer away from Penny, played by Kaley Cuoco, on a boat working for world-class physicist and all-around smart guy Stephen Hawking.

Sadly though, Lucy had enough of Raj in the "Big Bang Theory" finale. After too much pressure, they called it quits. But the breakup was a breakthrough moment to Raj, who usually needs a stiff drink before he can gather enough courage to talk to girls. Penny, who there to lend some comfort and support, thought Raj was being hard on himself because she thought the booze was talking, but Raj denied this, explaining "I haven’t had a drink since last night.”

Yes, Raj, who is played by Kunal Nayyar, was talking to a girl without the aid of alcohol. His social anxiety was cured. He could talk to women at a zero alcohol blood level. And talk he did. To three women at once. Without a drink. On and on he talked. Through the closing credits. This set TV critics abuzz with questions about what this could all mean.

TV.com seemed to know it was coming and opined that this turn of events would open the nerdy show to new comic possibilities. Entertainment Weekly gasped, "What does this mean for the show going forward? If Raj is really somehow cured of his selective mutism, I will miss the comedy that always comes with him whispering in Howard’s ear. But maybe after six seasons, it was time for this change for Raj; maybe his can’t-talk-to-women comedy has run its course.”

Simon Helberg, who plays aerospace engineer Howard Wolowitz on the geeky CBS sitcom said, "This time, the adventure is for Leonard. Howard finds Stephen Hawking's crew is sending out an expedition to the North Sea, and he gets Leonard a job, going on a boat for four months. The obstacle is Penny and Leonard have never been better.”

The shy astrophysicist Raj Koothrappali is played by Kunal Nayyar. Lucy is played by Kate Micucci.

The season-six finale of "The Big Bang Theory" aired last night on CBS.