CBS bids a heartfelt farewell to its successful Big Bang prequel series.
It was a shock to a lot of people when CBS announced that season 7 would be the final season of Young Sheldon. A prequel spinoff of the massively popular Big Bang Theory, Young Sheldon was consistently in the top 10 in the Nielsens. Streaming re-runs of the series are often among the most popular content online, as well. “It seems like such a stupid move,” cast member Annie Potts told Variety.
But the show’s ending synched with two important and overlapping moments that we knew from Big Bang Theory: the death of Sheldon’s father George, Sr., which happened when he was 14, and his subsequent move from the family home in Texas to begin his graduate work at Caltech.
In the final episode before this week’s finale, the show finally told the story of the unexpected death of George, Sr. While the family waited to do a family photo, George, Sr. had a heart attack at his coaching job. The two-part finale saw the family mourning their loss as Sheldon prepares to move on to the next big step in his life.
What happened in the Young Sheldon ending?
In the first half of the hour-long finale, Sheldon tries to process the death of his father. He keeps reimagining alternate realities of the last time he saw George, Sr., each time saying different things. “I am and always shall be your friend,” he says in one, quoting Kirk’s final words to Spock in Star Trek II; “Live long and prosper,” his father replies, giving the Vulcan salute.
Meanwhile Missy is lashing out at everyone, and older brother Georgie is trying to take care of everything. At the funeral, Sheldon’s mom breaks down, telling everyone how mad she is at George, Sr. and at God for letting this happen, while Meemaw offers some funny stories. “There’s a lot of cows out there that are breathing a sigh of relief,” she says. “ The King of Brisket has put down his fork and rode off into the sunset.”
At the end of the funeral Sheldon stands and shares his memories of that last goodbye, how he regretted that he had said nothing when his father left for work, and how he hoped his father knew how much he loved him. But then, in a final twist, it turns out that this, too, is an alternate reality. In fact he did not speak at his father’s funeral.
In the final episode, Sheldon, Missy, Meemaw, and Georgie try to help their mom deal with her loss. Mary insists Missy and Sheldon get baptized so they won’t go to Hell. The two refuse repeatedly, but in the end, Sheldon agrees, saying, as he did when he was first asked to go to church years before, that while he didn’t believe in God, “I do believe in mom.”
The baptism becomes the opportunity for one last costume, as Sheldon wears his own version of scuba gear, with life preserver, yellow gloves and boots, and snorkeling mask.
Meanwhile, in the present day, we find Amy trying to get present-day Sheldon to get ready for their son’s hockey game, an event he refuses to attend. “Children on skates hittiing a rubber puck with a stick…Why would I want to see that?” When Amy points out that it seems like the greatest gift his family gave him was that they supported him no matter what, Sheldon finally relents.
In a touching ending, present-day Sheldon wanders through the family house, sitting in his old spot on the couch and looking at the empty kitchen table, before cutting back to his younger self, about to go to Caltech and doing the same.
Did they change the opening credits in the Young Sheldon ending?
While Young Sheldon has occasionally changed its opening credits to feature Sheldon in different costumes, the final two episodes were the same as they had been all season, Sheldon and his family standing for a photo on the Texas plains with a bull nearby, which Georgie shoos away.
But the very beginning of the finale also included a fun set of “Previously On Young Sheldon” clips from the early days of the show, including his high school librarian asking if he’s having trouble adjusting to high school. “I’m having a hard time adjusting to earth,” he replies. There’s also Sheldon meeting his friend Tam for the first time, and Drs. Sturgis and Linkletter’s first impressions of him. “Kook,” Dr. Linkletter says.
We also see Meemaw’s first meeting with Dale, and George’s with Mandy; Mary discovering Meemaw’s gambling machines in the back of the laundromat; and lots of shots of people punching each other, including the very funny moment when Dr. Linkletter taps Sheldon’s shoulder lightly and then says, “Sorry, that was a little hard.”
Did we see adult Sheldon in the Young Sheldon ending?
Quite a bit. While original/Older Sheldon Jim Parsons has been the narrator of Young Sheldon (occasionally joined by the voice of his wife Amy aka Mayim Bialik), the finale is the first time the two have appeared together in-universe since the finale of Big Bang Theory, when they both won the Nobel Prize for Physics.
Their scenes together revealed many things: First, that the entire series is a memoir that Sheldon is writing about his life—and a not-always accurate one. “As a child I was always doing things to make my mother happy,” he writes at one point, to which Amy responds, “Do things to make people happy? You’ve got to be kidding… Are you writing a memoir or a fantasy novel?
We also learn that the two now have two children, a son Leonard and an unnamed daughter. While Amy was giving birth to Leonard, Sheldon actually Zoomed into a seminar. “You were taking forever to dilate,” he says, “and I’d already made my contribution to the project, which need I remind you, was on your birthday.”
Leonard plays hockey, a fact that Sheldon cannot fathom. “This is why I wanted to wait until cloning was possible, because the old-fashioned way got us a hockey player.” At the end Amy also reveals that their daughter has just told her she wants to take acting lessons. “I told you we never should have let Penny babysit,” Sheldon says, horrified.
Were there any special guest stars in the Young Sheldon ending?
Mostly the final two episodes focused on the central cast—Sheldon’s family, his professors, Pastor Jeff and George, Sr.’s work friends.
In the funeral episode, though, there are a couple cameos: Reba McIntyre’s June brings a casserole, as does Mandy’s mom, their neighbor Brenda, and the chain-smoking church secretary Peg. Mandy’s dad is also at the funeral, as is Sheldon’s high school science teacher Mr. Givens. Hearing that he was Sheldon’s science teacher, Brenda says, “Oh, I’m sorry.” The two subsequently each note that they’re single.
Were there other funny moments in the Young Sheldon finale?
In the finale just before the baptism we get a shot of the exterior of the church. The church sign reads, “Sheldon Cooper Baptism Today. It’s a miracle!!” Inside, Pastor Jeff confides, “This is a big get for me.”
Earlier in the finale, in a nod to playing with their iPhones in church today, we also get Sheldon in church pulling out the laptop that Drs. Sturgis and Linkletter have given him as a graduation gift. When asked by Pastor Jeff whether that seems appropriate for church, he says, “It’s a miracle of technology,” and then shows it to the entire congregation, saying “Luddites, this is a portable computer….Behold and worship!”
Was there a Young Sheldon ending mid or end-credits scene?
Nope. The series ends with young Sheldon standing on the campus of Caltech with his suitcase. A man walking by asks him if he’s lost. “No. I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be,” he says. He walks toward Caltech Hall, while Dire Straits’ “Walk of Life,” the same song that opened the series in 2017, plays.
Will there be more Young Sheldon?
While season 7 is the end of the Young Sheldon series, CBS recently greenlit a spinoff of the series focused on Georgie and Mandy called Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage. So we’ll certainly see characters from the Young Sheldon series again. Whether that includes Iain Armitage’s Sheldon himself, we’ll have to wait and see.
In January Big Bang Theory creator Chuck Lorre also spoke about a Big Bang Theory spinoff show being developed on Max. But so far the details of that show are unclear.
