The existence of Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage effectively reveals the real reason why Young Sheldon needed to end. Months after Young Sheldon was canceled, despite its popularity, The Big Bang Theory franchise continues with the latest installment in the evolving TV franchise. Georgie and Mandy’s First Marriage will follow Montana Jordan and Emily Osment’s lives as parents to Baby Cece. Picking up a couple of months after Sheldon’s move to California, it moves forward the Coopers’ story in Texas. However, it has always been clear that the spinoff wouldn’t happen if Young Sheldon was still on the air.
Unlike the majority of cancelations, Young Sheldon ending wasn’t because of the lack of interest from the public. Instead, it was supposedly due to The Big Bang Theory canon, which mandated that at 14, Sheldon would graduate college and move to California for his post-graduate studies at Caltech. Despite the many inconsistencies between the projects, Chuck Lorre and his team opted to stick to this particular aspect of the continuity despite calls to disregard it, so the prequel could continue. That being said, new information about Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage reveals a harsher reason for Young Sheldon wrapping up.
Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage Is More Relatable Than Sheldon’s Shows
Sheldon’s Stories Were Starting To Get Boring In The Latter Years Of Young Sheldon
In a new interview, Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage showrunner Steve Holland cites how the new show deviates from the previous shows in the franchise. He also argues why he believes it’s more relatable than Young Sheldon and The Big Bang Theory. It’s mainly because Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage no longer centers on Sheldon. Granted that the character was entertaining and intriguing, but everything about him was heightened. That’s part of his charm, but after almost two decades of dominating the TV universe, it was time for a change. Read his full quote below:
This is the first time in 18 years that we’re not writing for Sheldon, and Sheldon’s a great character and I’m so proud to have been a part of writing that character, but this is a different show. I don’t have to keep Googling science facts anymore or trying to pretend that I know what I’m talking about. This is a much more, I think, relatable family show. These are different characters. It’s the same world, but the slice of this world they inhabit has a different flavor to it.
If Lorre and his team wanted to continue Young Sheldon, they could have. There was an established base that was already more invested in the family comedy-drama than its connections to The Big Bang Theory. It could have become an alternate reality version of what Jim Parsons’ Sheldon experienced, as he revealed in the flagship series. However, they opted to move on from the character and take a big risk of launching a new show in Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage.
Why It’s The Right Time For The Big Bang Theory Franchise To Move On From Sheldon
Shifting The Focus Away From Sheldon Is Good For Its Future
Wrapping up Young Sheldon marked the end of Sheldon’s run on TV. As sad as that was, it was time for The Big Bang Theory universe to move on from the eccentric genius. For starters, Parsons has no plans of reprising the role after his brief cameo in the prequel send-off flashforward. Meanwhile, there’s also no interest in tackling Sheldon’s first years in Caltech without Leonard and the rest of the Pasadena gang. Because of this, expanding beyond the character is the best way to ensure the universe’s sustainability moving forward.
Admittedly, Georgie and Mandy fronting a new show is a massive gamble. However, if it leans towards the family-focused storytelling of Young Sheldon‘s later years, Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage has a good chance of becoming another hit. From there, The Big Bang Theory franchise can be bolder in terms of the kind of stories it wants to tell in any additional spinoff moving forward.