Young Sheldon Season 7’s Jim Parsons Cameo Exposes An Awkward Truth About That TBBT Reunion We All Hope For

While a reunion from The Big Bang Theory cast sounds exciting, the news that Jim Parsons will appear in Young Sheldon’s series finale highlights an uncomfortable truth about this prospect. When The Big Bang Theory’s finale aired, the episode’s plot revealed something strange about the series. When the show first began, The Big Bang Theory mostly focused on the meek Leonard’s attempts to woo his glamorous new neighbor Penny. His socially inept roommate Sheldon provided comic relief, but Jim Parsons’s character was hardly the show’s protagonist. Despite this, the series finale centered on Sheldon’s Nobel Prize acceptance ceremony.

While The Big Bang Theory’s cast of characters grew and changed as the show continued, Sheldon consistently gained more screen time and story focus with each season. This was understandable, since Sheldon was the show’s breakout character and viewers wanted to see more from him. Eventually, this even resulted in The Big Bang Theory’s first spinoff focusing entirely on him. Young Sheldon’s cast of characters was made up of Sheldon’s small-town family as the show flashed back to the ‘90s to fill in the character’s childhood. Unfortunately, this will impact any potential reunion for The Big Bang Theory.

Young Sheldon’s Success Complicates A Big Bang Theory Reunion

A TBBT Reunion Wouldn’t Be Complete Without The Coopers

While it would be fun to see the cast of the classic sitcom reunited for a special, there is avoiding the fact that Sheldon’s presence would overshadow the rest of The Big Bang Theory’s returning cast. Since Young Sheldon opted to focus on the character’s early life, Sheldon has now become the main character of the franchise as a whole. A special that starred Penny, Howard, Raj, Bernadette, Leonard, and Amy would inevitably lead viewers to wonder what happened to Missy, Mary, and Georgie. When The Big Bang Theory ended, these characters were minor supporting characters. Now, Sheldon’s family are stars.

The fact that Young Sheldon‘s spinoff will focus on Georgie and Mandy proves that the series can stand on its own and has succeeded in emerging from The Big Bang Theory’s shadow. However, this comes at a cost to the original show. Now, any reunion that updates viewers on the lives of The Big Bang Theory’s heroes would be incomplete without any reference to Sheldon’s family. In much the same way that Frasier’s success complicated a potential Cheers comeback, Young Sheldon expanding the show’s fictional universe made a straightforward reunion impossible for the creators of the popular sitcom.

The Big Bang Theory’s Spinoff Overshadowed Its Original Stars

Missy & Georgie Are As Important As Any TBBT Character

Since Young Sheldon has proven as popular as its predecessor, the spinoff has ensured that The Big Bang Theory’s future is now tied to its spinoff. Mary and Georgie’s futures would be as interesting as Leonard and Penny’s fate or an update from Howard and Bernadette, especially after both The Big Bang Theory’s and Young Sheldon let down Missy’s character with shoddy plotting and a mean-spirited ending. If anything, the fact that The Big Bang Theory’s heroes got a happy ending while Young Sheldon‘s Georgie and Missy weren’t as lucky means a reunion would be better off focusing on Sheldon’s siblings.