Instead of fixing a glaring issue because of a The Big Bang Theory character absence, Young Sheldon season 7 somehow makes the issue worse.
Young Sheldon season 7 somehow makes its biggest The Big Bang Theory absence more disrespectful to that character’s legacy. For a while, the prequel was focused on other storylines, including setting up the reason for Georgie and Mandy’s break-up ahead of their spinoff and Meemaw’s business problem. This was a cause for concern since Sheldon was relegated to the sidelines, with no significant movement on his personal arc. That all changes in Young Sheldon season 7, episode 9, “A Fancy Article and a Scholarship for a Baby,” as the family comedy/drama finally puts the storytelling focus back on Sheldon.
In the outing, Sheldon prepares for life after college at East Texas Tech. Despite being clear about wanting to go to Caltech for a while, the boy genius is unexpectedly torn about where he’ll go for his post-grad studies. While he leaves all the sifting of his choices to George and Mary, his parents still leave the final decision to him. Surprisingly, he even contemplates staying at East Texas Tech — something that both Dr. Sturgis and Dr. Linkletter are instructed to push for. Ultimately, however, Dr. Sturgis caves and tells Sheldon to move on.
Young Sheldon Season 7, Episode 9 Proves Dr. Sturgis Always Championed Sheldon
Dr. Sturgis Couldn’t Take Advantage Of Sheldon.
In The Big Bang Theory, Sheldon mentioned his Popop, Meemaw’s late husband, as the only member of the family who pushed him to pursue science. However, he never talked about Dr. Sturgis being his first true mentor. Since meeting each other, there has been an immediate sense of kinship between the pair, and Young Sheldon has developed it, albeit sporadically, over the years. Dr. Sturgis introduced Sheldon to applied physics, inspiring his specialization. He was also there when the boy genius needed support for his doomed grant database while Dr. Linkletter and President Hagemeyer attempted to take advantage of him.
Young Sheldon season 7, episode 9 makes it clear that Dr. Sturgis has always had Sheldon’s back.
Young Sheldon season 7, episode 9 makes it clear that Dr. Sturgis has always had Sheldon’s back. Despite the stern instruction of President Hagemeyer, he just couldn’t lead his mentee down the wrong path. This makes his omission from Sheldon’s story in The Big Bang Theory more disrespectful. Characters such as Tam and Billy, who had far less impact on his life were referenced in the nerd-centric sitcom, but not his mentor. The socially-inept genius didn’t even thank him during his Nobel Prize in Physics acceptance speech in The Big Bang Theory finale.
Can Young Sheldon Still Fix The Big Bang Theory’s Dr. Sturgis Failure?
Young Sheldon Only Has A Few Episodes Left.
Dr. Sturgis was missing for most of Young Sheldon season 7, but now that he is back, the prequel still has time to make some amends. Ideally, the prequel would team up with Sheldon and his mentor for a special project one last time before he leaves for California. However, the limited time makes this impossible to do. Instead, Young Sheldon can make up for The Big Bang Theory’s crime by giving Dr. Sturgis the credit that he deserves. That can easily be done with a short acknowledgment of his indelible impact from Jim Parsons’ adult Sheldon’s narration.
