“The Big Bang Theory” was one of the most popular shows on television throughout its 12-season run, but some of the viewers who might’ve best appreciated its nerdy gags — which eventually reached past tedious pop culture references and included scientifically accurate gags revolving around non-mainstream disciplines like theoretical physics — were put off by that shopworn Chuck Lorre sitcom formula and the beyond-broad performances from Kaley Cuoco, Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons.
When the show finally concluded its run, Lorre and “The Big Bang Theory” showrunner Steven Molaro knew there was an appetite for more stories within what, over those many seasons, ha become quite a crowded universe. The duo could’ve gone the “Cheers” route and found its “Frasier” out of that enormous cast, but they took a different tack that paid off in unexpected ways. As with “The Big Bang Theory,” “Young Sheldon” was initially viewed as a derivative piece of pandering middlebrow television. With its single camera approach and winsome narration from Parsons (which called to mind the nostalgia-laden “The Wonder Years”), it was viewed as a for-fans-only endeavor.
And yet, when “Young Sheldon” aired its series finale last May, many prominent television critics admitted they were going to miss what had become a genuinely funny and heartfelt comedy show. The series stayed true to itself throughout, and, in doing so, became what many believe to be far superior to “The Big Bang Theory.”
The series even stuck the tricky landing of bringing Parsons back to play the present-day version of Sheldon, who has been changed by marriage and fatherhood.
A different, daddier Sheldon
CBS
In the final episode, titled “Memoir,” Lorre and Molaro reveal that Sheldon and Amy now live in a house in suburban Los Angeles, where they are raising their son and daughter. Sheldon has been writing a remembrance of his childhood this whole time, and while he’s by no means a perfect father, he has grown into the role.
This also means Sheldon has actually changed up his look. In an interview with Glamour, Molaro explained this stylistic decision thusly:
“I remember us thinking we didn’t want Sheldon in the typical comic book store shirts. He’s a dad now, and we wanted him to be a little more mature. We figured Amy might have encouraged him to no longer wear that, or hidden them all. It was nice that he has on a long-sleeve sweater that he pushed up the sleeves a little bit to sort of evoke the old Sheldon vibes from ‘Big Bang.’ That was intentional. Mayim was happy with what Amy was wearing and thought it was right. And those were Mayim’s personal glasses.”
As an unmarried 50-year-old who’s currently wearing a “Prince of Darkness” t-shirt, I’m not sure how personally I should take this. We all grow up differently, but very few of us are as brilliant as Sheldon. I do wear sweaters in the fall, so I’m not a completely lost cause. But I have given up on my dream to be the next Kip Thorne. Sheldon got a hell of a lot closer than I ever did on that count.
