Young Sheldon Season 4: Every Big Bang Theory Easter Egg & Foreshadowing Moment Explained

Young Sheldon season 4 wrapped up with a cliffhanger ending that will be significant in the sitcom’s future, but it also features a lot of set-up for some important The Big Bang Theory plotlines involving Sheldon. Young Sheldon season 4 had a much shorter run, only having 18 episodes instead of the traditional 22, primarily due to the coronavirus pandemic. Despite this, there’s still so much that has happened in the sitcom in terms of Sheldon’s personal arc and the Coopers as a unit, including the titular character officially starting college while his parents’ marriage slowly starts to crumble.

It’s been two years since the spin-off has started standing on its own after its parent series ended its 12 season-run in 2019. While Young Sheldon isn’t really known for honoring previously established continuity, it has also taken advantage of opportunities to reference The Big Bang Theory in several different ways. Season 4 featured a surprise voice cameo from Amy in the premiere which confirmed that she and Sheldon do have a son in the future, named Leonard Cooper. Later in the year, the sitcom also revealed where Sheldon got the idea for his Mobile Virtual Presence Device (MVPD). Finally, it subtly explained why Sheldon mocked Howard and his engineering degree so much as well.

The events of the Young Sheldon season 4 finale, “The Wild and Woolly World of Nonlinear Dynamics” were kicked off by Missy dealing with boy issues, but it has become so much more serious than that. At the end of the outing, she has gotten over the problem partly because of Sheldon offering support and enlightenment. But things have turned for the worse back at the Coopers as George and Mary argued — from there, things escalated very quickly. Here’s a breakdown of Young Sheldon season 4’s ending.

Young Sheldon Season 4 Finale Begins George’s Cheating Ways

George’s infidelity storyline has been looming over Young Sheldon ever since Sheldon talked about it for the first time in The Big Bang Theory season 10. The prequel series has been dancing around the dark plotline for years now, as the Cooper patriarch has been mostly depicted as a normal dad who may have his bad days but is always devoted to his family. The show, however, hinted that this will change moving forward. After George tragically admitting that he’s so unhappy with his life during his heated argument with Mary in Young Sheldon‘s season 4 finale, he took off and went to the bar to let off some steam. Initially, he was minding his business until Brenda Sparks — their newly-single neighbor – showed up and offered to stick around, and just like that, the screen cut to black. The sitcom didn’t explicitly show that this encounter will lead to a full-blown affair, but it sets George down a path wherein he considers and eventually seeks comfort from a female companion.

Young Sheldon Sets Up His & Georgie’s TBBT Conflict

With the twins out of the house, only Georgie witnessed the intense debate between his parents back at home. After George left, the eldest Cooper child decided to man up and take care of Mary, who’s still upset over what happened. The usually unmindful Georgie cooked dinner and consoled his mother who, in turn, admitted that she somehow feels guilty for the way her husband feels. This particular moment in Young Sheldon sets up Georgie’s eventual role as the man of the family after his father dies in a few years. In The Big Bang Theory, leading up to Sheldon’s wedding, he was forced to patch things up with his brother, whom he hadn’t spoken to in more than 10 years. It was then revealed that Georgie became a wealthy businessman, owning Dr. Tire – the biggest tire retailer in Texas. As he and Sheldon hashed things out for the first time in years, Georgie talked about how after George died, he had to grow up quickly to take care of Mary and Missy while Sheldon went through life oblivious of his and the family’s struggle.

Young Sheldon Makes Big Bang Theory’s Mary Worse

Sheldon’s stories about his father in The Big Bang Theory were corroborated by Mary, who never missed a chance to dunk on her dead husband. Like her son, she depicted George as an irresponsible father and husband which is clearly not the case in the prequel series. Mary acknowledging their personal woes and even feeling partly guilty about them highlighted that she’s aware that George is not a bad family man. So why did she continue to ruthlessly disparage him even years after his demise in The Big Bang Theory?