Warning! Spoilers ahead for Young Sheldon season 6.
Sheldon's new personal arc on The Big Bang Theory. Towards the end of Young Sheldon season 5, the socially-inept genius was relegated to becoming a ing character in his own show, while the focus shifted to Georgie’s pregnancy situation and how it impacted the rest of his family. Young Sheldon season 6, however, seems to be consciously putting the boy genius at the center of its narratives again as he continues his time at East Texas Tech. Interestingly, CBS may be using Sheldon’s latest storyline to justify why he’s meaner and ruder on the nerd-centric sitcom.
As Young Sheldon breaks away from TBBT, its storytelling also diversifies. This means that its narratives no longer primarily revolve around its titular character. Instead, the rest of the Coopers are given their respective dues. This isn’t exactly a bad thing, since Sheldon’s family have their respective appeals. However, the prequel cannot just cast aside its lead players, as the show is mandated to explore more of his character to set up his adult iteration as seen on The Big Bang Theory.
It's Easier For Sheldon To Be Nice In Young Sheldon Than TBBT
After coming up with the idea to create a grant database, Sheldon was faced with the complicated business side of his invention. East Texas Tech attempts to take advantage of his naivete, and so does Dr. Linkletter. Mary and George even had to intervene and make sure that their son was getting a fair deal, considering that he’s the one who will build the database. This frustrated the socially-inept genius in the Young Sheldon season 6 fall finale, to the point that he almost gave up on the whole project because figuring out the legalities of it was sucking the fun from the experience.
This ordeal likely encouraged Sheldon to be always guarded on The Big Bang Theory, because at an early age he realized that people would be willing to backstab him for personal gain. What makes this worse is the fact that East Texas Tech President Hagemeyer and Dr. Linkeletter were the ones leading the efforts to manipulate and undermine him when they were supposed to look out for his best interests. This experience could also explain why Sheldon never really opened himself up to potential friends before being forced to hang out with Leonard, Howard, and Raj - because he was afraid that they would eventually backstab him.
When Will Young Sheldon Show The Big Bang Theory’s Version Of Sheldon?
It’s no secret that Young Sheldon has created many TBBT plot holes. Many of those inconsistencies involve contradicting versions of characters - including Sheldon, who’s more understanding, emotional, and even social than his adult counterpart. Unlike George, however, whose dark turn remains to be seen, CBS using this new narrative to set up the boy genius’ change in attitude towards colleagues and even his supposed friends is a good way to reconcile the different takes for Sheldon. It may still take a while before The Big Bang Theory Sheldon appears on Young Sheldon, but a gradual transition for the character will be better than a rushed one.
Young Sheldon season 6 airs every Thursday on CBS.