S07.E01: A Weiner Schnitzel and Underwear in a Tree

[Chit Chat]

1 hour ago, SnapHappy said:

Yet Mary still thinks SHE is the only sort of "glue" that can hold the group together. 

It's very relatable to me that she would want to get back to her home/community after a natural disaster occurred.  She wants to be there for her family and friends who had damage and/or lost their homes.  

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

Wasn't there an episode in which Mary rose to the occasion in a crisis and was genuinely supportive? 

She made food for the family whose daughter died.  She tried to console Brenda after her husband left.  With Mary having been an active member in her church, she more than likely made food for other church members during their moments of crisis or illness on many occasions.  

Edited February 18 by Chit Chat

[possibilities]

The sensible thing would be for her to check in, find out how things are going, and make a decision based on actual consultation with the others. 

Talk to Missy, assess how she's doing. Check in again every day until it's clear, then make sure she knows Mom is available if needed.

Talk to her Mom, and George.

And talk to Georgie-- he can step up and has in the past, but he might need directions.

Lots of things can be done over distance. 

I don't hate Mary, but she panics and gets dug in and dogmatic at times. 

Even if she needs to go back home, she might not need to go immediately. The decision can wait until she talks to people and finds out what would be the best for everyone, and they can change their minds about it tomorrow or next week. That will also give them time to see how Sheldon is adjusting and whether he needs her there or not.

Some of Mary's issues are well-earned. But some aren't. George doesn't always step up, but when he has in the past, she has often bullied him out of it because she wants control. She's traumatized by the scare she had when the twins were born, but hasn't really done any work on herself to deal with that, and instead retreats into dogma and control-freak dominating.

[ams1001]

How long is Sheldon supposed to be in Germany? Was Mary planning to stay the whole time?

[Browncoat]

How old is Sheldon meant to be at this time?  I suspect he is required to have a parent or guardian with him.

[ams1001]

6 minutes ago, Browncoat said:

How old is Sheldon meant to be at this time?  I suspect he is required to have a parent or guardian with him.

I've lost track; 13, I think. According to BBT he was 15 and a visiting professor when he went (and I feel like there was a line that implied he did not have a parent with him), so either they've changed it or he goes back again later.

[shura]

14 hours ago, SnapHappy said:

In Medford, there are 2 physical children (Missy and CeCe) being tended to by FIVE adults (George, Georgie, Mandy, Connie & Dale).

Dale 😉?  Dale is drinking Missy’s coffee and making jokes that are going to be funny in two years.  And George doesn’t know they have a linen closet and spare sheets.  Which still leaves more than enough adults taking care of the kids, to be sure.

Come to think of it, Mary’s coming home would actually worsen the situation since she comes with the mega baby that is Sheldon. 

[Guest]

15 hours ago, SnapHappy said:

Mary is one of those ego-driven moms that can be so overbearing to watch.  

In Medford, there are 2 physical children (Missy and CeCe) being tended to by FIVE adults (George, Georgie, Mandy, Connie & Dale).  Yet Mary still thinks SHE is the only sort of "glue" that can hold the group together. 

Frankly, she's the least-needed adult involved.  I'd like them to minimize her role for a while.  

And Schnitzel is delicious, Sheldon!!!

In fairness to Mary, it is one of the literal children that is taking over for her and not one of the many adults. So she’s not wrong to doubt how well the adults could handle the aftermath of a crisis.

Edited February 19 by Guest

[Chit Chat]

18 hours ago, possibilities said:

The sensible thing would be for her to check in, find out how things are going, and make a decision based on actual consultation with the others. 

It may be the sensible thing to do, but her emotions are calling her home.  I can relate.  YMMV. 

[Starchild]

Yeah I think some folks are being too hard on Mary. She's a family-oriented supermom who's family has just suffered a catastrophe. Of course she wants to come home, who wouldn't?

[possibilities]

I think the reflex to want to go home is natural. But her persisting to the point of trying to override her own mother's objections, lying to Sheldon about what her own mother said, refusing to let him talk to her mom after Meemaw says to put him on the phone, not listening to anybody else at all... that's where it gets annoying and dysfunctional.

[Tom Holmberg]

On 2/18/2024 at 7:04 AM, shapeshifter said:

Regardless, leave Sheldon in Germany.

I vote, leave Sheldon in Germany permanently.

[Spartan Girl]

6 hours ago, Starchild said:

Yeah I think some folks are being too hard on Mary. She's a family-oriented supermom who's family has just suffered a catastrophe. Of course she wants to come home, who wouldn't?

 

6 hours ago, possibilities said:

I think the reflex to want to go home is natural. But her persisting to the point of trying to override her own mother's objections, lying to Sheldon about what her own mother said, refusing to let him talk to her mom after Meemaw says to put him on the phone, not listening to anybody else at all... that's where it gets annoying and dysfunctional.

Yes, THAT is our problem with Mary. Wanting to go home, we can understand. But ignoring everyone else telling her it won’t help, trying to bulldoze over Sheldon’s college classes regardless of the opportunity, and being a lying control freak just to get her way—that is why we’re finding it hard to sympathize with her!

And once again, she didn’t give George the benefit of the doubt that he couldn’t handle things at home, just because he didn’t immediately know where everything is. He’s not perfect, but he’s not the incompetent moron she acts like he is just to make herself feel like the most important person in the family.

Edited February 20 by Spartan Girl

[anna0852]

4 hours ago, Tom Holmberg said:

I vote, leave Sheldon in Germany permanently.

I can think of multiple people in Pasadena that would’ve appreciated that choice 😁

[appositival]

11 hours ago, anna0852 said:

I can think of multiple people in Pasadena that would’ve appreciated that choice

Except that Leonard, Raj, and Howard would have died in the explosion that Sheldon moved to the elevator. BBT would have just been Penny riding a working elevator.

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, appositival said:

Except that Leonard, Raj, and Howard would have died in the explosion that Sheldon moved to the elevator. BBT would have just been Penny riding a working elevator.

Actually, without Sheldon, Leonard wouldn't have lived in that apartment in the first place, so that explosion may have never happened or happened somewhere else with other people involved.  The only reason Leonard lived there is because Sheldon advertised for a roommate.

Edited February 20 by Yeah No

[Yeah No]

19 hours ago, possibilities said:

I think the reflex to want to go home is natural. But her persisting to the point of trying to override her own mother's objections, lying to Sheldon about what her own mother said, refusing to let him talk to her mom after Meemaw says to put him on the phone, not listening to anybody else at all... that's where it gets annoying and dysfunctional.

I agree with you and wonder if Mary's annoying and dysfunctional nature is one big reason why no one wants her to come home.  One would think they'd want their daughter/mother/wife around at a time like that.  But Mary has made herself so insufferable, they'd rather not have her there even after a natural disaster!

[shapeshifter]

I have a Mary-type in my extended family, and she would have already landed in Texas by now. I guess the show writers realize viewers can only tolerate TV Mary if she gets thwarted.

[Yeah No]

1 minute ago, shapeshifter said:

I have a Mary-type in my extended family, and she would have already landed in Texas by now. I guess the show writers realize viewers can only tolerate TV Mary if she gets thwarted.

I agree, but I don't know why they would think this would make Mary more tolerable, though.  I think it just makes her annoy the audience no end.

[Spartan Girl]

What would have made Mary more sympathetic n the episode was if instead of being gung-ho about getting her way, she had been more practical. She could’ve wanted to go home, but actually had to think long and hard, about what to do with Sheldon, since it was both stupid and unfair to force him to quit the day before classes start, debate if other arrangements could be made for him to stay with one of the professors or even alone in the dorms and really struggle with if it was really the right thing to do, leaving her underage son in a foreign country to go be with Connie and the rest of the family, despite the fact they already told her they couldn’t do anything. Then, in the end, realize that maybe as much as she wanted to go home, that it was time to put her faith in George and the rest of the family, to handle things on their own, since that was the decision she came to before the tornado happened anyway.

That would have shown some actual character development. And I honestly would have preferred that to Drunk Mary singing Wayne Newton and puking.

46 minutes ago, Yeah No said:

Actually, without Sheldon, Leonard wouldn't have lived in that apartment in the first place, so that explosion may have never happened or happened somewhere else with other people involved.  The only reason Leonard lived there is because Sheldon advertised for a roommate.

There was a whole BBT episode where the group envisions that scenario, Leonard still would’ve been in that apartment.

[MarthaEllisanne]

I understand Mary wanting to go home in time of family crisis, but I believe they are better off without her at this point. They are in survival mode and having to improvise on the fly; Mary is not good at that. She'd have to undo and redo everything they've done and waste time arguing and praying over everything
On Missy's cooking: They eat hearty sit-down dinners - meat, taters, vegetables, dessert, etc. Kids, usually the girls, who came home from school before Mom got off work were often expected to "start dinner" - doing the prep work.  I did at that age. Just filling in a possible blank; it wasn't depicted on the show.

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, Spartan Girl said:

There was a whole BBT episode where the group envisions that scenario, Leonard still would’ve been in that apartment.

Really?  I don't remember that and I've seen every episode multiple times.  The only reason Leonard knew about that building and apartment at all is because Sheldon advertised for a roommate.  I do remember an episode without Leonard where Sheldon is there but with a different roommate.  The only way Leonard would have ended up in that apartment without Sheldon is if someone else lived there and advertised for a roommate at the same time he was looking for a place to live, but that would have been a long shot, not something pretty sure to happen.  And even if the apartment was empty when he was looking (which is another long shot) I don't think he would have been the one to rent it himself and advertise for a roommate.  If something else other than what happened was depicted in a flashback it was just a fantasy and not a foregone conclusion at all.  

As far as other scenarios that have been depicted as fantasy flashbacks by the show, We know that Leonard might have met Penny at the Cheesecake factory even if he didn't live there, but even that is flawed because the only reason they switched to going there is because Leonard had already met Penny at the apartment and knew she worked there.  So those scenarios aren't foregone conclusions either despite how the show depicted them.  The one thing that is certain is that if Sheldon wasn't there when that explosion might have happened and prevented it, they all would have been hurt or killed.

Edited February 20 by Yeah No

[proserpina65]

On 2/15/2024 at 10:37 PM, ams1001 said:

I don't think most homeowners' insurance covers floods, either. Every time I get my renewal packet it includes a reminder that it doesn't cover floods and I have to buy separate coverage if I want that. (I don't live in a flood-prone area and I also live on the second floor, so I don't have it.)

Most do cover tornados.  I'm surprised Connie's didn't, especially being in Texas, but maybe she got really cut-rate insurance which covers nothing but floods.

On 2/16/2024 at 3:58 PM, Chit Chat said:

She did have to brown the ground beef for the spaghetti - which isn't difficult,

Did it have ground beef in it?  I didn't notice and since I rarely make my spaghetti with meat, it didn't occur to me.  It did, however, have vegetables in it.

On 2/16/2024 at 5:48 PM, Browncoat said:

Didn't she say there were vegetables in the spaghetti?

Probably the jar of sauce came with veggies.

On 2/17/2024 at 9:12 AM, Chit Chat said:

Many years ago, Mr. Chat worked for a man from Germany.  He said that American beer is piss water.  He wouldn't drink it.  In fact, he had his own little still that he made his own alcoholic beverages.  His wife made the best egg liqueur. 

Kinda like the Monty Python sketch where they compare American beer to making love in a canoe - both f-ing close to water.

On 2/18/2024 at 8:04 AM, shapeshifter said:

Regardless, leave Sheldon in Germany.

Given that he's 13 (I think), that wouldn't have been an option for Mary.  The whole reason she went to Germany is his age.  Not that I don't endorse leaving Sheldon there, permanently.

On 2/18/2024 at 2:13 PM, ams1001 said:

How long is Sheldon supposed to be in Germany? Was Mary planning to stay the whole time?

I thought it was for the summer, but don't quote me on that.

[proserpina65]

7 hours ago, appositival said:

Except that Leonard, Raj, and Howard would have died in the explosion that Sheldon moved to the elevator. BBT would have just been Penny riding a working elevator.

Leonard wouldn't have been living in that apartment, probably, so they'd have died somewhere else. 😉

[babyhouseman]

The Southern religious mamas I know would've gone to Texas especially if there is a grandbaby involved. 

[Yeah No]

2 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

Leonard wouldn't have been living in that apartment, probably, so they'd have died somewhere else. 😉

If Leonard lived somewhere else the others wouldn't necessarily have been at his place with him at the time of the potential explosion.  It's a possibility but not a necessity.  So they may not have died or been injured at all.

[Chit Chat]

10 hours ago, Yeah No said:

I agree with you and wonder if Mary's annoying and dysfunctional nature is one big reason why no one wants her to come home.

Maybe they didn't want to cut her trip short since this was so important to Sheldon.  I think they're just trying to make her feel better about being so far away.  

[possibilities]

If that was the case, they would have shown chaos in the background, not Meemaw very firmly insisting that they NOT come back, and demanding to talk to Sheldon to make sure he understood that they were not being forced to return.

Both Mary and Sheldon can be pains in the ass. Control freaks, people who think they are indispensable when others disagree, and people who think they are smarter than everybody else (or better in some other way) are usually delusional and annoy more than they assist.

[Dirge]

Somebody could've told Mary "You don't have a bed to sleep in." 

[shapeshifter]

5 hours ago, Dirge said:

Somebody could've told Mary "You don't have a bed to sleep in." 

to which she would reply in her most martyred voice:
"That's alright. I can sleep on the floor"
and/or maybe even "Jesus didn't have a place to lay his head."

Edited February 21 by shapeshifter

[Spartan Girl]

11 hours ago, possibilities said:

 

Both Mary and Sheldon can be pains in the ass. Control freaks, people who think they are indispensable when others disagree, and people who think they are smarter than everybody else (or better in some other way) are usually delusional and annoy more than they assist.

Yes, but the difference is Adult Sheldon (or at least Narrator Sheldon) has undergone some growth and self awareness and has made efforts to try and do better. Mary…not so much, as of yet.

[OlderThanDirt]

I think Mary has grown a lot since her church abandoned her. I like this Mary a lot and look forward to seeing what the actress does with widowhood. Of course it all depends on what the writers do with the new show. Given what Georgie said to Sheldon in the episode before the wedding on TBBT, i think there's a lot of potential. I think Mandy is the wild card because right now she's a pretty blah character. I don't know if it's the actress or the way she's written.  

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 2/15/2024 at 9:04 PM, Katy M said:

That Pastor Jeff should have chosen a wife more wisely,

On 2/15/2024 at 10:06 PM, shura said:

Didn’t his wife use to be (or still is?) a police officer too?

Yes.

On 2/18/2024 at 7:42 AM, SnapHappy said:

In Medford, there are 2 physical children (Missy and CeCe) being tended to by FIVE adults (George, Georgie, Mandy, Connie & Dale).

Mary took surprisingly little interest in CeCe.  It was Connie who stepped up when Mandy was homeless.

On 2/20/2024 at 3:16 PM, proserpina65 said:

Did it have ground beef in it?  I didn't notice and since I rarely make my spaghetti with meat, it didn't occur to me.  It did, however, have vegetables in it.

They're not eating dinners without any meat in Texas back then.  George would never go for it.

On 2/20/2024 at 3:16 PM, proserpina65 said:

Given that he's 13 (I think), that wouldn't have been an option for Mary.  The whole reason she went to Germany is his age. 

Yes.  I don't know if he would have been allowed to stay on his own.

[Sarah 103]

On 2/18/2024 at 2:13 PM, ams1001 said:

How long is Sheldon supposed to be in Germany? Was Mary planning to stay the whole time?

I think for the summer, and yes Mary was planning to spend the whole summer there. 

On 2/18/2024 at 3:04 PM, ams1001 said:

I've lost track; 13, I think. According to BBT he was 15 and a visiting professor when he went (and I feel like there was a line that implied he did not have a parent with him), so either they've changed it or he goes back again later.

I think it's two separate trips to Germany. This is the first one he took that Sheldon did not mention on TBBT. The second trip to Germany occurs two years later when he a visiting professor and is the trip mentioned on TBBT. 

 

[b4pjoe]

On 2/16/2024 at 7:15 AM, mammaM said:

I noticed that too. Is it the same actress who's always played his wife? I don't remember them looking that much alike

Young Sheldon season 7 introduces a new villain, Robin, who is Pastor Jeff's wife and brings a new level of antagonism to the show. Actor couple Matt Hobby and Mary Grill, who play Pastor Jeff and Robin, are actually married in real life, adding a fun twist to their characters.

https://screenrant.com/young-sheldon-season-7-pastor-jeff-robin-married-real-life/

[shapeshifter]

11 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

They're not eating dinners without any meat in Texas back then.  George would never go for it.

O-o-oh. So that’s what the line about the vegetables was about. Missy must’ve made the spaghetti sauce by substituting vegetables for meat, not in addition to the meat — which was alien to the Cooper table.

[proserpina65]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

O-o-oh. So that’s what the line about the vegetables was about. Missy must’ve made the spaghetti sauce by substituting vegetables for meat, not in addition to the meat — which was alien to the Cooper table.

That was how I took it.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

3 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

O-o-oh. So that’s what the line about the vegetables was about. Missy must’ve made the spaghetti sauce by substituting vegetables for meat, not in addition to the meat — which was alien to the Cooper table.

1 hour ago, proserpina65 said:

That was how I took it.

Funny, I took it to mean that she added vegetables to the sauce in addition to the meat, like sautéed onion, mushrooms, etc.  So she enhanced a recipe that Mary customarily prepared, making it healthier. 

 

[Sarah 103]

1 hour ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Funny, I took it to mean that she added vegetables to the sauce in addition to the meat, like sautéed onion, mushrooms, etc.  So she enhanced a recipe that Mary customarily prepared, making it healthier. 

Same here. If there was no meat, someone would have commented on that. To me, the thing they were commenting on was the presence of vegetables, not the absence of meat, which I thought meant the meat was still there. 

[chediavolo]

On 2/15/2024 at 8:34 PM, SoMuchTV said:

Love how Missy turned into a grownup overnight. “Did you wash your hands?”  “I’m not air conditioning the whole neighborhood.”

I guess it could get old fast, but for now it’s funny. Maybe it’s the coffee. 

That was 🤢 because he obviously went #2 ( they mentioned that he went in there with a newspaper) and didn’t wash his hands until she yelled at him. 

[chediavolo]

On 2/16/2024 at 12:24 AM, Dirge said:

This episode made me long for the days when you just plugged a TV in, in about 30 seconds. 

And it was free! And you don’t have to deal with the evil Spectrum. Their app is the worst especially recordings & the internet isn’t so great either. But when you live in a crappy small town you have no choices.