Young Sheldon Season 7 Needs to Finally Deal with George Sr.'s Death

Summary

• Season 7 to be the last for Young Sheldon
• TBBT fans already know that George Sr's death is imminent.
• Not tackling this storyline would be a mistake for the franchise.

While Sheldon's mom has appeared in at least 14 episodes of The Big Bang Theory, his dad has only been mentioned. Through Sheldon's recollections of his childhood, we learned that he didn't have much time for his father after discovering George Sr. in the throes of an affair, and that his father had died when Sheldon was 14.

The George Sr. problem

A dislikable character who is dead and never appears on screen is easy for writers to deal with. But when Young Sheldon came along, it was almost inevitable that George Sr. would have to be somewhat decent.

As it is, there is very little to dislike about him. Ok, so there's the affair with Brenda, which was hinted at. But the breakdown of the marriage between George and Mary seems to be more a case of them growing apart. Let's not forget that when the story was explained in The Big Bang Theory, it was through Sheldon's eyes.

Had it not been mentioned in TBBT, the affair might never have been brought up in Young Sheldon. But as a key moment in Sheldon's formative years, it had to be covered. Having dealt with this story in Season 6, the show's timeline seems to indicate that Season 7 will reveal the truth behind George Sr.'s untimely demise.

Will Young Sheldon Season 7 address what happened to George Sr.?

We know that Sheldon and his twin sister Missy were 13 at the end of Season 6. With their birthday in February, they could turn 14 quite early in the final season. This would seem to make sense, as George's death looks set to be a heartbreaking moment for the Cooper family, as well as for fans of the show.

Whether they choose to end the whole thing with the sad passing of Sheldon's father or bring it into the penultimate episode to give us a glimpse of life after George Sr. is unknown. But failing to deal with the issues seems like a non-starter.

We all know what happens in the family. Ignoring it and not including George Sr.'s final days in the show at all will not change the fact that we know he dies. Omitting this storyline would be a complete cop-out and would most likely leave many fans of the show feeling short-changed.

A foreboding comment

TV shows often like to hint at what is to come. And it seems that George Sr's death was hinted at at the end of Season 6. After Missy stole his car, George went with Mary to pick up their daughter.

On the way, the couple talked about their relationship, with George making it clear that they would only get a divorce "over (his) dead body".

It's the sort of throwaway comment that could easily fit the circumstances and the conversation the two were in. But that may be the genius of it. Assuming George's death isn't the very last action of the series, this will make for a great little flashback. And as many fans of Young Sheldon have also seen The Big Bang Theory, the inclusion of this comment was a signpost that this storyline will be picked up at some point in Season 7.