After sporting a lot of short shorts and crop tops in the first few seasons, Penny’s outfits became more mature as she got older, yet still amazingly stylish. As her confidence grew in her relationship with Leonard, and she got her own friendship group, Penny’s style grew with the character, and by the end of the series she’s more often seen sporting casual formalwear than the shorts and t-shirts she used to enjoy.

Penny made a few questionable life decisions initially, but over the course of the 12 seasons, she began to realise that she could still have a fulfilling and affirming life with her friends, in her relationship with Leonard and in her career.

Penny began to put her foot down. She quit her job as a waitress, and asked Bernadette to help her get a job in pharmaceutical sales. After a rough start, Penny began to excel in her new career as she had found something that she was amazing at.

A lot of Penny and Leonard’s initial problems stemmed from the fact that they were both fairly insecure at first. However, after spending some more time together as just friends, they eventually got together again which led to them being married and having a child.

When Bernadette and Amy made their debut in Season 3 though, Penny began to form her own group of friends. It was great seeing Penny have a proper social life outside of the guys and, by Season 12, Amy and Penny had the best Big Bang Theory friendship.

Penny’s friendship with Sheldon was the epitome of a ‘slow burn’. In the early seasons, they often annoyed and offended each other, with Sheldon being incredibly derisive about Penny’s intellect, and Penny judging Sheldon for his lack of social skills.

Over the course of the series however, Penny and Sheldon became one of the shows best friendships. She was the first person he hugged onscreen in Season 2 and they continued to give each other advice right up until the end. Every time those two shared a screen, fans knew they were in for a lovely moment between friends.

Even from Season 1, Penny could put almost everyone at ease as she was very warm and cheerful. This ability only increased by Season 12, with Penny able to empathise with Sheldon and bring him out of his shell enough so that he could date and eventually marry the love of his life in one of The Big Bang Theory’s best episodes.

Despite Penny still having a way to go when they got back together in Season 5, she managed to overcome her doubts and realise that Leonard actually made her very happy. She also worked up the courage to recognise that acting was hurting her self confidence and found a much better career.

In terms of her own family, Penny was always slightly against the idea. It took a long time for her to feel comfortable with Leonard, let alone starting a family with him. In fact, it was a main theme throughout Season 12. In the series finale however, Penny revealed that she was pregnant.