The presence of the word “first” in Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage casts a shadow over the series as a whole, much like how George Cooper Sr.’s (Lance Barber) death and other events talked about by Sheldon (Jim Parsons) in The Big Bang Theory cast a shadow over Young Sheldon. “First” implies there is, at the very least, a second, and possibly even more. So, at some point, we know things break off between Georgie (Montana Jordan) and Mandy (Emily Osment). But the real question is, why do they get a divorce?
The First Season of ‘Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage’ Offers Possibilities
The short answer is, we have no idea, so we can only speculate as to what drives the titular pair apart. That said, the events of the first season offer some real possibilities. At this point, the leading candidate for why the marriage falls apart is money troubles, which has been a key point in the narrative arc of the series. While the pair certainly weren’t rolling in cash heading into their marriage in Season 7 of Young Sheldon, “Secrets, Lies, and a Chunk of Change,” Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage third episode, Mandy comes clean and tells Georgie that she is in massive credit card debt, to the tune of $12,000.
They agree that they will each work nights to pay off the debt, with Georgie taking a second job driving a tow truck, while Mandy works as a waitress at the Bluebell Diner. Georgie seems to be taking it in stride, even enjoying running a tow truck. But when he throws that debt in her face during the finale, it’s made clear that he’s been holding on to resentment over it. And the reason why he throws it back at her is because he’s just made their financial situation even worse by buying the tire shop off of Jim McAllister (Will Sasso), banking their entire future, and the Cooper family home, on the success of the venture.
Finances would be the most logical reason, but there are other factors that could cause, or at least contribute to, the dissolution of Georgie and Mandy’s marriage. Georgie’s relationship with his mother-in-law Audrey (Rachel Bay Jones) has been contentious from the start, with Audrey not even trying to hide her low opinion of him, so she could definitely play a factor. Their age gap hasn’t been much of an issue to date, but certainly could, especially with the bombshell that Mandy is working under her ex, Scott (Christopher Gorham).
The lure of someone her age may be hard to resist, and combined with these other factors – Audrey was only too helpful to remind Mandy that Scott comes from a well-to-do family – it’s not an impossibility. The problem is, it’s far too early in the life of the series to know definitively. Even if the series ends after its second season, which doesn’t seem likely, there are a lot of episodes between now and then for things to change on any of those fronts.
‘The Big Bang Theory’ Offers Little, but Fans Believe a ‘Young Sheldon’ Character Ends ‘Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage’
They agree that they will each work nights to pay off the debt, with Georgie taking a second job driving a tow truck, while Mandy works as a waitress at the Bluebell Diner. Georgie seems to be taking it in stride, even enjoying running a tow truck. But when he throws that debt in her face during the finale, it’s made clear that he’s been holding on to resentment over it. And the reason why he throws it back at her is because he’s just made their financial situation even worse by buying the tire shop off of Jim McAllister (Will Sasso), banking their entire future, and the Cooper family home, on the success of the venture.
Finances would be the most logical reason, but there are other factors that could cause, or at least contribute to, the dissolution of Georgie and Mandy’s marriage. Georgie’s relationship with his mother-in-law Audrey (Rachel Bay Jones) has been contentious from the start, with Audrey not even trying to hide her low opinion of him, so she could definitely play a factor. Their age gap hasn’t been much of an issue to date, but certainly could, especially with the bombshell that Mandy is working under her ex, Scott (Christopher Gorham).
The lure of someone her age may be hard to resist, and combined with these other factors – Audrey was only too helpful to remind Mandy that Scott comes from a well-to-do family – it’s not an impossibility. The problem is, it’s far too early in the life of the series to know definitively. Even if the series ends after its second season, which doesn’t seem likely, there are a lot of episodes between now and then for things to change on any of those fronts.
We may not know the exact reason why the marriage between Georgie and Mandy ends, but parent series The Big Bang Theory does offer some insight into Georgie’s past, and current, relationships. In Season 9’s “The Matrimonial Momentum,” after Amy (Mayim Bialik) breaks up with him, Sheldon calls his mother, Mary (Laurie Metcalf), intending to send back the engagement ring that belonged to his great-grandmother, now that the relationship is over. Mary tells him to keep it, because Missy is already married, and Georgie has a girlfriend, but she would not let him give her grandmother’s ring, and I quote, “to that whore.” Then, in “The Change Constant,” after hearing Sheldon and Amy have won the Nobel Prize, Sheldon notes that he’s received congratulatory messages from his brother and both of his ex-wives.
From those little nuggets, we learn that Georgie had a second marriage that also ended in divorce, which means that the first marriage to Mandy ended long enough ago that Georgie had enough time to be in a second marriage. It also means that the second marriage lasted long enough that his wife got to know Sheldon to at least some degree, and they’re on friendly terms. Now, he’s in a relationship with another woman, one that Mary isn’t, shall we say, too keen about. Assuming those things remain canon, it also sadly means that, after the ending of their marriage, Georgie and Mandy do not get back together, unless Mandy is the “whore” she’s referring to, perhaps because of a past that saw her cheat on Georgie with, oh, let’s say, Scott.
That hasn’t stopped the fan base from positing their own Big Breakup Theories, and popular opinion points to a Young Sheldon character that comes between Mandy and Georgie: Veronica Duncan (Isabel May). If you’ll recall, Veronica appeared in the series in Seasons 2 and 3 as a love interest for Georgie, but the one-time rebel converted to Christianity during the events of “Seven Deadly Sins and a Small Carl Sagan,” and Georgie’s attempt to sell himself as a Christian in a thinly-veiled attempt to woo her fell apart after he tried to kiss her in the baptism tub at church.
Still, they developed a deep friendship, but despite harboring feelings for one another, Veronica ended up being the one that got away. It was hinted that she would spend the rest of her life committed to charity work, but that doesn’t necessarily close the door on the theory. It’s unlikely that she’s the reason for the break-up – Georgie isn’t a cheater, at least at this point, and Veronica’s faith certainly wouldn’t allow for being his mistress – but she certainly could be wife number two. Time will tell, so all we can do as fans is enjoy the journey while we can.
