S01.E01: Pilot

[OtterMommy]

13 hours ago, Runningwild said:

I loved the premiere. Iain is adorable. Sure Sheldon can be a jerk but this show really seems to be playing up the autism spectrum  possibility. I wanted to cry when he couldn’t find his tie. And I did tear up when he took his father’s hand. But I’m waiting for the responsive blessing. 

I agree that they seem to be playing up autism, although they've downplayed that on TBBT.  They've made a point to never bring that up with a possibility and Mayim Bialik (who knows a thing or two about this) has said several times that Sheldon is classic OCD, not autistic.  

I did see the OCD part play out--not holding hands with his brother, the stickler for the student handbook--but they seem to have less of a grasp of it here than on the TBBT.

[Kenz]

I really liked the show, and I usually don't like most sitcoms. I can't stand laugh tracks, and I appreciated that this show didn't have one. The actors had great southern accents, and that's a great accomplishment, since fakey ones are so annoying. I'm not bothered by any discrepancies with TBBT, because I haven't watched it that much.  Thanks to all who pointed out that the actress who plays the mother is Laurie Metcalf's daughter. My husband and I kept commenting on how much she reminded us of her, and now we know why!

Edited September 27, 2017 by Kenz

[jumper sage]

5 hours ago, 2727 said:

I promise not to reference future Sheldon so much in my future comments! I know it's boring for non TBBT watchers.

Don't stop.  I love it.

[rmontro]

1 hour ago, OtterMommy said:

For this show to work, I think, they need to focus less on Sheldon and more on the rest of the family.  Let Sheldon be the hook, but let the family be the story.

I think you have the right idea here, make it a family show.  The Sheldon character is doing the same thing here that he does on The Big Bang Theory, which is making everybody around him miserable.  So there's very little, if any, character growth there to be had.

The show was better than I thought it would be, considering it's just the pilot.  TV shows usually need some time to find their footing, and I'm sure this will be no different.  They could have gotten off to a worse start though.

[Sarah 103]

2 hours ago, OtterMommy said:

For this show to work, I think, they need to focus less on Sheldon and more on the rest of the family.  Let Sheldon be the hook, but let the family be the story.

I like this idea. I'd love to see what it's like for Missy to longer be in the same class as her genius twin brother. She's no longer in his shadow and gets to develop more of her own identity.  

[backformore]

5 hours ago, LoneHaranguer said:

I found it hard to get a feel for the show, having already seen so many key points of this episode in the ads.

 

Good point.  I saw the ads for this show so many times, and it seemed like the funniest lines were no longer as funny in the actual show, they were kind of tired and over-played.  I still  liked it though. 

Edited September 27, 2017 by backformore

[mojoween]

The actress who plays young Missy is leaps and bounds more enjoyable than the actress who plays grown up Missy with her come-and-go accent.

Also older Missy appears to have much more affection for "Shelly" than snarky younger Missy.  Which actually is true to life, even if the writers who wrote older Missy did so with no knowledge there would ever be a younger one.

[Zoe]

The pilot didn't really grab me, but I'll give it a few episodes.

My only gripe is that young Sheldon would have totally watched DuckTales.  He should already be watching ST:TNG as well.

[DrSpaceman73]

I do like the idea of learning more about the other characters besides Sheldon

[iMonrey]

Quote

For this show to work, I think, they need to focus less on Sheldon and more on the rest of the family. 

That's an ironic observation considering the name of the show is "Young Sheldon," not "The Coopers" or "Young Sheldon's Family." It's supposed to be about him.

I think part of the problem here is that it's easier to overlook grown Sheldon's behavior than it is young Sheldon's. Adults get away with crap that kids can't, especially at that age when they're still in school. It makes all the adults around Sheldon look like crappy parents and teachers. Sheldon is intelligent enough to understand the concept of keeping his opinions to himself - basic things like refraining from commenting on someone's personal appearance. Apparently the reason Sheldon is so socially awkward as an adult is because all the adults in his childhood indulged his idiosyncrasies.

[peacheslatour]

18 hours ago, mojoween said:

I told my 19 year old son while we were watching that The Wonder Years pilot is the greatest pilot in the history of television.  While I like this show, and still love BBT proper, this is not The Wonder Years to me.

I was a sophomore in 1989...and seven years older than Sheldon, heh.

I felt for young George because it had to suck, just like he said.  All the attention went to Sheldon.

I'm having a hard time reconciling this George Sr. with canon George Sr. so I'm going to have to suspend disbelief on this one.

Doesn't Jim Parsons have brown eyes?

According to the Googles, his eyes are blue.

[Chit Chat]

19 hours ago, rmontro said:

I think you have the right idea here, make it a family show. 

We're only 1 episode in.  Give it time!  I'm sure there'll be plenty of storylines for everybody.  ;)

[rmontro]

5 hours ago, iMonrey said:

That's an ironic observation considering the name of the show is "Young Sheldon," not "The Coopers" or "Young Sheldon's Family." It's supposed to be about him.

Yeah, but the problem with that is that it doesn't really work.  They can't do much to grow the character because older Sheldon is just as socially clueless as young Shledon.  And on Big Bang Theory, Sheldon has a very large supporting cast around him.  He may be the main, or breakout, character, but even as an adult he doesn't carry the show on his own.  Considering that the younger version can't really change or develop that much, he is potentially more stagnant than Adult Sheldon.  So he really needs to have other interesting characters around him.

[HurricaneVal]

If there ever were a need for a biopic of Patrick Swayze, the actor who plays young George is a shoo in for the main role. 

[hnygrl]

I don't enjoy seeing kids get bullied and picked on.

I also don't enjoy seeing a precocious little snot pick on and passive-aggressively bully others. 

They need to change this. We already know Sheldon had a hellaciously bad childhood. We don't need to see it. It's sad and unfunny and miserable, and we don't watch a sitcom to  be sad.

I agree with those who said they need to let Sheldon be the hook and make the show about the rest of the family.

But either way you slice it, it's gonna suck. Parents fight fight fight loudly and regularly. Dad moves out and in with his girlfriend and the kids are expected to be okay with that. Mom dives on the deep end into Christianity and leaves her family (pretty much) behind.

And Sheldon gets picked on. At school, at home, on the way to school, on the way home, in the front yard, in the park, at the store, etc.

Tell me: HOW is this funny again????

I don't think I'm gonna make it past maybe episode 3. If I ever get to episode 3...

[eurekagirl mOo]

I LOVED it! Seriously did not think I would. Didn't even set it to tape. Watched it On Demand (damn commercials) and promptly started recording it from here on out. I like Sheldon. Grown up Sheldon. Kid Sheldon. Love! 

I was an only child of a "much" older Mother (41 when I was born--60 years ago!)  who was a school principal. Talk about NOT fitting in! So I love seeing a show about a kid who doesn't fit in. He's not on the football team, he's not social, he's not self aware, look it's me!!! BUT he finds so much happiness in his family, even when they drive him crazy. He reads, he learns and he grows into a very successful man with a new fiancee who loves him. Win, Win

[rmontro]

15 hours ago, hnygrl said:

I don't enjoy seeing kids get bullied and picked on.

I also don't enjoy seeing a precocious little snot pick on and passive-aggressively bully others. 

They need to change this. We already know Sheldon had a hellaciously bad childhood. We don't need to see it. It's sad and unfunny and miserable, and we don't watch a sitcom to  be sad.

That's a good point, and I don't see this show as being deep enough to be interesting as a comedy drama.

One more critique on this show:  I don't really get the impression watching this that "young Sheldon" is really all that smart.  We're supposed to take it for granted that he is, but I don't know, I just don't feel convinced watching him.  But it's early, maybe that will change.

[LoneHaranguer]

15 hours ago, hnygrl said:

Tell me: HOW is this funny again????

They might be able to get some mileage out of his science experiments and trying to invent things. We won't see Missy get her eyebrows burnt off since that happened when she and Sheldon were eight, and they're starting with them being nine, but they ought to be able to invent a couple of seasons worth. This show comes with an expiration date since Sheldon started college at 11 and left home at 12.

 

26 minutes ago, rmontro said:

I don't really get the impression watching this that "young Sheldon" is really all that smart.

A high IQ just means that he's smart for his age, so he's a 9 y.o. at a high school level. Not too many people would say high-schoolers are all that smart, but he gets to toss out some big words.

Edited September 28, 2017 by LoneHaranguer

[TV Anonymous]

This is comedy? It is more like family drama than comedy, in which case it is a wrong reason for me to watch the show. Moreover, looking at the premise, how can this show be a laughing-out-loud comedy without being insensitive? This is a child that clearly has problem growing up. He does not fit his environment and his family is less than fully supporting. Surely viewers as adult do not feel as comfortable laughing at a child's misfortunes as they do at adults?

[SparklesBitch]

I thought this was great! I haven't watched BBT in a long time, so I'm a little fuzzy on all the history between the characters, but this worked for me. 

Iain is adorable and the actress who played Missy cracked me up. I was a lot less taken with the brother and Dad, but I'm willing to give it time. 

Zoe Perry sold it for me, though. She nailed Mary Cooper perfectly. I think the sweet relationship between her and Sheldon was my absolute favorite part of the pilot. I love how they're so close and she defends him despite not really understanding him, just like in BBT. I already knew going into this that she's Laurie Metcalf's daughter and was so happy to see that she's just as talented at portraying Mary as her mom is. 

Oh, and I MAY have teared up a bit at Sheldon holding his dad's hand.....;) 

[rmontro]

1 hour ago, SparklesBitch said:

Zoe Perry sold it for me, though. She nailed Mary Cooper perfectly

She sounds exactly like Laurie Metcalf, I figured she must have worked hard on her voice and accent.  I didn't realize she was actually her daughter, that's good to know!

[atlantaloves]

Well I didn't want to like this show, instead I loved the first episode, and I don't care for The Big Bang  series at all, that little boy is the cutest thing I have ever seen, and I love his zingers.  I have put this delightful program on automatic record, and that says a lot for me, cause I hate everything.  The Mom is Laurie Metcalf's daughter, I'll be damned, thanks guys, I kept thinking, damn that's Laurie's voice. 

[kat165]

Does anyone when the next episode is airing? Our newspaper tv section doesn't show it as airing at all this upcoming week.

[Indy]

6 minutes ago, kat165 said:

Does anyone when the next episode is airing? Our newspaper tv section doesn't show it as airing at all this upcoming week.

Not until November, I believe. This was sort of a teaser episode. It won't be airing after BBT once it airs regularly. 

[chitowngirl]

5 hours ago, Indy said:

Not until November, I believe. This was sort of a teaser episode. It won't be airing after BBT once it airs regularly. 

Actually, it will air after The Big Bang Theory when BBT moves to Thursday's on Nov. 2 after CBS football is done.

[Sarah 103]

On September 27, 2017 at 9:45 AM, Zoe said:

 He should already be watching ST:TNG as well.

My understanding was that DuckTales was on in the afternoon and that ST:TNG would have been on at night. That being said, I would love to see Sheldon having to fight (even if it's with words/logic) for the TV to watch Star Trek. 

On September 28, 2017 at 1:19 PM, LoneHaranguer said:

They might be able to get some mileage out of his science experiments and trying to invent things. We won't see Missy get her eyebrows burnt off since that happened when she and Sheldon were eight, and they're starting with them being nine, but they ought to be able to invent a couple of seasons worth. This show comes with an expiration date since Sheldon started college at 11 and left home at 12.

I would love to see Sheldon's experiments and inventions. As for a built in expiration date, that depends. One season doesn't have to equal one school year. Of course, this is made difficult by the fact that you don't know how child stars are going to age/develop. 

[Sarah 103]

On May 19, 2017 at 0:08 AM, OtterMommy said:

Plus, as I said, I found Sheldon's twin to be far more entertaining in the preview than Sheldon.

Having watched the episode, I thought Missy was one of the highlights. I hope we see more of her and the writers give her some interesting stuff to do. 

On May 19, 2017 at 10:35 AM, Driad said:

We might see how Sheldon develops some of his coping mechanisms, such as making contracts.

I would love to see this. I'll bet the first contract is with Missy or George and the issue is watching TV. 

[kat165]

Thank you, Indy and chitowngirl.

[Indy]

1 hour ago, chitowngirl said:

Actually, it will air after The Big Bang Theory when BBT moves to Thursday's on Nov. 2 after CBS football is done.

Ah that makes more sense. I forgot that BBT moves to Thursdays after football is over and thought it weird that they weren't permanently pairing the shows. The six week or so gap between episodes 1 and 2 is still a bit odd but it's probably so they can use BBT to draw viewers into the regular Monday shows before it moves days. 

[Zoe]

On 10/1/2017 at 8:59 PM, Sarah 103 said:

My understanding was that DuckTales was on in the afternoon and that ST:TNG would have been on at night. That being said, I would love to see Sheldon having to fight (even if it's with words/logic) for the TV to watch Star Trek. 

Right, but this Sheldon is currently saying he will only watch educational programming.

[Sarah 103]

1 hour ago, Zoe said:

Right, but this Sheldon is currently saying he will only watch educational programming.

I thought the line meant, if there was a choice between educational programming and entertainment programming, educational programming would win. I don't know what was playing against Next Generation, but if there was nothing Sheldon deemed educational, then he would watch Next Generation.

[WescottF1]

One minor detail I noticed was the Axl Rose poster in George Jr.'s room is a live shot from the Use Your Illusion tour which ran from 1991-1993.  Couple years early if the show is set in 1989.

[msrachelj]

why so long between episodes? is it cancelled already? i haven't checked my dvr.

[chitowngirl]

It got a preview on a Monday after the Big Bang Theory when all the Fall shows started up. Next week, CBS Thursday Night football is over and Big Bang Theory moves back to Thursdays. Young Sheldon will be airing in its permanent slot then. Mom and Life in Pieces will also start back.

 

2 hours ago, msrachelj said:

why so long between episodes? is it cancelled already? i haven't checked my dvr.

[SosaLola]

I loved it! I like the dramady setting and it fits Sheldon's childhood more than yet another sitcom. 

I'm actually interested in seeing 9 year old Sheldon as a student in a high school so I really hope the show wouldn't cast Sheldon aside and just focus on his family. I do like the idea of it being a family show that focuses on all members of the family. 

[atlantaloves]

I think the series starts up again November 5 according to my DVR. That pilot was precious and I can't stand the show that it is based on, so that is a lot coming from me. 

[AnnaRose]

It's supposed to be back next Thursday (November 2nd.) at 8:30pm Eastern time, right after the Big Bang Theory which will finally be back on its regular night.

[Negritude]

I really liked this. Kinda deflated to see so many here didn't :)

Anybody else tear up a little when Sheldon said he didn't believe in God but he believed in mom and the head on her shoulder in church awwww...no, just me then? 

I also have a pet peeve about bad Southern accents by actors in shows/films set in the South so I appreciated the competent accents displayed and the kid playing the older brother is obviously an actual Southener. 

Didn't know the actress playing the mother is Laurie Metcalfe's daughter. Nepotism done right lol.

Edited November 8, 2017 by Negritude

[Driad]

Been meaning to ask about the credits: why a Holstein cow?  Although there must be some in Texas, wouldn’t a Hereford be more iconic?

[nx74defiant]

11 hours ago, Driad said:

Been meaning to ask about the credits: why a Holstein cow?  Although there must be some in Texas, wouldn’t a Hereford be more iconic?

Because that is the most popular image most people have of cows. Think of cows in milk ads, cow decorations, etc.

[Skyflower]

I were skeptic about this show but after the first episode i changed my mind for the better, love it.