User Reviews

I like how this episode shows how the house changed after Germany. My favorite parts were how Missy and Mary connected after Taylor broke up with her, and the hidden reference to the Big Bang Theory that explains why he knocks 3 times, and I am not sure very many people understood. I also liked Sheldon's new friend and how he kept talking to him, even though he never knew anything about him. It was funny when Sheldon said he fell asleep in the hallway on the way to get a Yoo-hoo. Also, when Sheldon saw there was a bathroom schedule, and accepted that it was Georgie's turn to go to the bathroom.

Throughout this series, we've been working to understand how the honourable, decent George Sr (who gave up a job as a college coach because he refused to participate in something dishonest) became the drunk cheat described by Sheldon as an adult.

A couple of seasons ago, it seemed we were building to a situation where George was going to cheat on Mary with a neighbour - but that unknown to Sheldon, Mary herself would also be a cheat, and it seemed that she would be the first to do so.

Yet the writers had different ideas. Slowly, George and Mary began to find each other again, both having considered cheating, and choosing not to.

Mary being betrayed by her church community over George Jr fathering a child out of wedlock (she was expelled from the church) got her to see how hypocritical that community was. And while she wasn't going to give up bible study, she remembered a little of who she was when she fell in love with George Sr.

I adore the fact that the real reconciliation happened through letters, written by George and Mary to each other while separated for a summer because of Sheldon. It was natural and unforced, unexpected and romantic. To be honest, seeing Mary holding the Polaroid of George Sr kinda broke my heart, as Sheldon's deepest darkest secret about his father loomed large. And there was no way to see it other than as a colossal wrong. But Sheldon had seen his father having sex with another woman, and that is not something that could be waived away.

The postponement of post-separation coitus due to jet lag was again sensitively written, again showed George Sr as a good man, and flowed past, less than 10 seconds in the show.

Mary has a little surprise for George? That's cute - I thought maybe some covert German beer. Didn't register at all that George and Mary were going for some afternoon delight.

Then Mary stepped out in her naughty fraulein outfit, complete with wig, and it all clicked into place. The horrible tragic misunderstanding that was never discussed by the three people involved - and Sheldon lost his father. A good and decent man who had grounded him and been a touchstone for him. And it helps explain his willingness to isolate himself, and his reluctance to be open to friendship, love and even marriage to his beloved Amy.

I'm not sure when Chuck Lorre decided what Sheldon saw that fateful afternoon, but all these years we've been watching a tragedy disguised as comedy.

Bravo to the writers, and the cast for delivering this life altering twist - and the long, long game that was played.

After Sheldon talked about a traumatic experience of witnessing his father having an affair in The Big Bang Theory, the writers of Young Sheldon have toyed with this bit of history by teasing a potential affair with George and the next door neighbour Brenda.

But, as basically a throw away tag of this episode, they played it off for humour, with Sheldon walking in on his father and his mother in a costume.

This betrays the patience of viewers, and shows a lack of courage by the writers to build Sheldon as a character, and create some drama with the family. It's not like the show hasn't had dramatic moments in the past.

Basically.. lame.