S02.E04: A Financial Secret and Fish Sauce

[formerlyfreedom]

When George Sr. asks Sheldon to keep a secret from Mary, the stress of not being honest drives Sheldon to hideout at Tam’s for his first sleepover.

 

[Spartan Girl]

Meemaw is merciless.

George peeing in public outside of the church and Georgie sleeping in the nude to feel "every little breeze"...hard to believe they're related to Sheldon.

[Frost]

Loved it!  This show manages to be fresh and funny.  The exchange between George and Sheldon while Sheldon's hiding in the cupboard cracked me up.  And then the statement that Sheldon couldn't look up to George anymore broke my heart.

I was confused at the end though.  Did Mary banish both George and Georgie to Meemaw's house?  

[Snow Apple]

I was relieved George's secret was about beer and not about another woman. I was afraid they won't reveal what it was and we're left wondering.

Edited October 12, 2018 by Snow Apple

[Babalooie]

My guess was a gambling debt for George or Meemaw or a ticket.

[BckpckFullaNinjas]

I have *no* fondness for Meemaw anymore. Not just merciless, but without conscience. Sheldon gets his egocentricity from her, methinks.

Thst said, Missy & Georgie are close to upstaging Shellybean, even with their minimal scenes!

Edited October 12, 2018 by BckpckFullaNinjas

[MSterling]

It wasn't very smart of Meemaw to rat out George at the end. It just means he will probably be banished to her house for a longer stretch, which is a longer punishment for her, too. She could have continued to hold that over his head as well.

[anna0852]

I don't like that Georgie was swept up in this. He's a kid. An authority figure took him someplace he wasn't supposed to go, got drunk and put him in the position of having to drive her home. And now his mother has banished him from the house over a situation he had *no* control over. Do we really think Mary or George would have been all sunshine and lightness if he'd called from the track to tell them Meemaw took him there or that she needed him to drive home? George has called Georgie an idiot to his face before. I would bet money the kid though he'd be in trouble anyway and he might as well have some fun.

[Zoe]

I was expecting a gambling debt consider the Ray Liotta cameo last season. Still think that was odd...

[SpiritSong]

Not one of their better episodes. Hardly any Missy, which was a major disappointment. MeeMaw wasn't at all funny. In fact, she was downright unlikable. I did enjoy Georgie's scenes. He's always so proud of himself, and it's nice to have a character with no angst whatsoever.

The actor who plays Tam looks to have had a major growth spurt over the hiatus. The sleepover was interesting with Sheldon wanting to confess his secret. Tam: I'm not a priest. Sheldon: I'm not a Catholic. LOL

[Lily H]

I'm just not liking this show as much any more. Meemaw is awful, and not in an endearing way. I also found it irritating that George felt obligated to explain himself and the missing cheque to Sheldon. I know Sheldon was doing their taxes, but he's still a child and George is still the parent, and there is just way too much catering to Sheldon and his eccentricities. I think the character of Young Sheldon is better in small doses and I too want to see more of Missy.

[DkNNy79]

6 hours ago, Lily H said:

I'm just not liking this show as much any more. Meemaw is awful, and not in an endearing way. I also found it irritating that George felt obligated to explain himself and the missing cheque to Sheldon. I know Sheldon was doing their taxes, but he's still a child and George is still the parent, and there is just way too much catering to Sheldon and his eccentricities. I think the character of Young Sheldon is better in small doses and I too want to see more of Missy.

I only think he did it because he wanted to keep the secret.  He could've declined to tell Sheldon but he knew with Sheldon's curiosity/anal ways, Sheldon would just ask Mary.

[kili]

I'm beginning to think Meemaw is a psychopath (superficial charm, no empathy, no guilt, callous, etc). She's the one who did the things that needed hiding and the two George's were just trying to help her out. Next time, George should just not bail her out. Supposedly, she loves Sheldon, but she doesn't care one bit that he's cracking up keeping her secret. What a destructive person to have in their lives. 

Mary, just wash the damn vegetables before you eat them. Wild animals have probably peed on them too and lots of farms use natural fertilizers.

[Frost]

I try to let this show flow over me, without thinking too much about it.  Meemaw has definitely done some questionable things around her gambling, waking Sheldon up to get him to tell her the spread on football games last season, and now taking Georgie to the track.  If I thought about it in 'real life' terms I couldn't enjoy it.  But so far, I've been infected by the gleeful spin the show is putting on things.  It's over the top enough that I can hand wave a lot of the things I'd normally be judgmental about.

[hoodooznoodooz]

I loved Missy asking Mary to explain to Sheldon what “cool” actually means. 

This plot was a little silly, because, clearly, Mary’s mother doesn’t really care if she has angered Mary. 

Georgie and sleeping nude.  He’s hilarious. 

I officially have a crush on Lance Barber with his dimple. That’s how much I love this show.

Tam’s mom looks too young.

[BitterApple]

I thought Georgie was the star of this episode. His explanation of what happened at the track and driving Meemaw home was hilarious. 

I was expecting more laughs during Sheldon's sleepover at Tam's. It was just kind of blah. 

I agree it was messed up for Meemaw to rat George Sr. out over peeing in the vegetable garden. The guy bails you out, gets kicked out of the house for it and that's how you repay him. Nice. 

Definitely not enough Missy.

I'd say this episode was middle of the road. I didn't hate it, but I didn't think it was as funny as the premiere and the one guest starring McKenna Grace.

[Driad]

Meemaw seemed so sweet in early episodes, but now ...

Edited October 12, 2018 by Driad

[AnnaRose]

1 hour ago, Driad said:

Meemaw seemed so sweet in early episodes, but now ...

I thought she was very sweet and empathetic in the previous episode when Mary was going through her crisis of faith.

[SpiritSong]

33 minutes ago, AnnaRose said:

I thought she was very sweet and empathetic in the previous episode when Mary was going through her crisis of faith.

Yeah, the writers really need to get on the same page about her character. She's a free spirit who enjoys her vices and puncturing the bubble of Mary's religiosity. That's all fine with me, because in earlier episodes she really does seem to care about the kids, in her own warped way. (I'm thinking of her taking Missy and Georgie to Dairy Queen for dinner.) And she was good with Mary in last week's episode. But in this one she was just callous and spiteful. That's not funny or entertaining. They took it way too far.

[CherryAmes]

"The Vietnamese are very welcoming people" "Yeah that hasn't always worked out for us".  I loved the sequences with Tam's family.

[AnnaRose]

1 hour ago, SpiritSong said:

Yeah, the writers really need to get on the same page about her character. She's a free spirit who enjoys her vices and puncturing the bubble of Mary's religiosity. That's all fine with me, because in earlier episodes she really does seem to care about the kids, in her own warped way. (I'm thinking of her taking Missy and Georgie to Dairy Queen for dinner.) And she was good with Mary in last week's episode. But in this one she was just callous and spiteful. That's not funny or entertaining. They took it way too far.

Well, she's always had something of a combative relationship with her son in law.  They regularly make negative comments to and about each other.  Sometimes it can seem somewhat playful and other times not so much.

[CherryAmes]

I think they've made it pretty clear that Meemaw dislikes George.  They can joke around together but deep down she thinks he's not good enough for Mary and I suspect she's probably right about that.  Perhaps one reason for the dislike is she sees a lot of herself in George.  

Edited October 12, 2018 by CherryAmes

[Katy M]

16 hours ago, BckpckFullaNinjas said:

I have *no* fondness for Meemaw anymore. Not just merciless, but without conscience. Sheldon gets his egocentricity from her, methinks.

Thst said, Missy & Georgie are close to upstaging Shellybean, even with their minimal scenes!

She wasn't completely without conscience because she took the rap for Georgie.  Of course, she would have been in trouble being the licensed driver in a car with an unlicensed driver, also, but maybe not as bad as a DUI.  not sure.

I liked the scene in the truck where Sheldon tells George that he can't look up to him anymore.  My dad never asked me to lie or keep a secret from my mom (barring birthday and Christmas gifts) and I would have thought a lot differently of him if he did. 

[anna0852]

Now that I've had some time to think about it I've come to the conclusion that George is far kinder to Constance than she deserves. She treats him like crap. And as far as he knows, she was driving drunk with his kid in the car! And not only does he still permit her near his children, he has allowed her to keep her good reputation to her daughter. He's cut her a heck of a lot of slack.

For that matter, Georgie has done her a solid as well. He kept his mouth shut not only about her DWI but that she took him to the track in the first place. I know that was something he probably found fun but still. She's not that kind to him either. I wouldn't be surprised to find out she favors Missy and Sheldon simply because Georgie is the child Mary got pregnant with out of wedlock. There by forcing her marriage to his father.

[2727]

My favorite scene was Meemaw, Georgie and George sitting on the couch while Mary lit into them. "And it didn't occur to you to tell me any of this?!"

"No."

"Never"

"Absolutely not"

I'd watch a show of MeeMaw and Georgie going to the track. I like that she's a rootin' tootin' Texas grandma and Sheldon loves her just the same as he does his conservative religious mother.

Missy again bringing the zingers. She targets, she shoots, she scores!

The acting is at such a high level from the entire cast, but I particularly enjoyed Lance Barber's interactions with Iain this episode. Lance has a very natural way of acting while still being comedic.

[BlossomCulp]

21 minutes ago, 2727 said:

I'd watch a show of MeeMaw and Georgie going to the track. I like that she's a rootin' tootin' Texas grandma and Sheldon loves her just the same as he does his conservative religious mother.

I adore this about Sheldon!  My mother had a very difficult relationship with her own mother - and from what I've been told her mother was borderline abusive when she was growing up but I never saw this in my "meemaw",  To me she was my Nanny and I loved her unconditionally.  It's sometimes hard now as an adult to reconcile these  two versions of my grandmother and I can see that Sheldon doesn't even try with his!

Edited October 12, 2018 by BlossomCulp

[mxc90]

The look on Sheldon's face when the towel was passed to him was hilarious.

[kili]

Quote

She wasn't completely without conscience because she took the rap for Georgie.  Of course, she would have been in trouble being the licensed driver in a car with an unlicensed driver, also, but maybe not as bad as a DUI.  not sure.

Although, Georgie was in the position of possibly taking the rap because she took him (a minor) gambling at a bar, got drunk and then got him to drive her home. If she had a conscience, she might not set up her own grandson to possibly get in trouble in the first place.

There have been cases of drunk passengers being charged with DUIs when a person with a learner's license has been driving. In the case where the driver is a learner, the passenger with the licence is considered to be in control of the car. So, she may have been charged with the DUI regardless.  Although, he didn't even have a learners, so I don't know if that makes the situation better or worse from a legal point of view. 

Next time Meemaw wants to get bailed out, George should just hand the phone over to Mary.

[Sarah 103]

On 10/12/2018 at 3:58 PM, anna0852 said:

I wouldn't be surprised to find out she favors Missy and Sheldon simply because Georgie is the child Mary got pregnant with out of wedlock. There by forcing her marriage to his father.

I don't think that's true. There was that really sweet scene of Mee-Maw with Missy and Georgie in the car and I didn't get the sense she was favoring Missy over Georgie. It seemed like she was trying to go out of her way to do a small something to make Missy and Georgie feel special and appreciated, because Sheldon tends to get more attention than this other siblings. 

On 10/12/2018 at 4:05 PM, 2727 said:

Missy again bringing the zingers. She targets, she shoots, she scores!

Missy is fantastic. She loves watching the chaos around her. I'd love to know what she's like in class. Is she one of the quiet ones struggling along or is she a bit of smart-mouth or class clown type. 

Edited October 14, 2018 by Sarah 103

[TheLastKidPicked]

On 10/12/2018 at 7:40 AM, kili said:

I'm beginning to think Meemaw is a psychopath (superficial charm, no empathy, no guilt, callous, etc). She's the one who did the things that needed hiding and the two George's were just trying to help her out. Next time, George should just not bail her out. Supposedly, she loves Sheldon, but she doesn't care one bit that he's cracking up keeping her secret. What a destructive person to have in their lives. 

In a way, this is the writers doing a good job of writing about real life.

When we see a little old lady at the grocery store, we WANT her to be a sweet old lady, but if you ask her family they might tell you much different.  Some of might project this on to Meemaw.  We WANT her to be a great Meemaw to Sheldon, but in a way, she may be as responsible for his problems as anybody else.

Or, as George said it,

"Grandma's are supposed to be nice!  What went wrong with you?"

Edited October 16, 2018 by TheLastKidPicked

[SmithW6079]

There's no way I'd let a 10-year-old have access to my finances so he could do my taxes. I think that's wildly inappropriate on the part of the parents, especially if they're having money troubles. That shouldn't be something to burden a kid with.

Sheldon's a fine one to be judging George, when he dismantled the refrigerator a few episodes ago without permission.

Meemaw's behavior was reprehensible in this episode, from asking her son-in-law and grandson to lie because she's a drunk and a gambler to telling Mary what George did in the garden. Pissing in a vegetable garden is not the same thing as taking your underage grandson to the racetrack, drinking too much, letting a minor without a license drive, and then getting a DUI. A DUI is a pretty serious thing. She should lose her license for a year. 

I'm also really tired of her fat jokes at George's expense.

Missy's line about loving everything about the argument was good, but I have a hard time reconciling this Missy with the one we saw at Sheldon's wedding.

[Katy M]

54 minutes ago, SmithW6079 said:

Sheldon's a fine one to be judging George, when he dismantled the refrigerator a few episodes ago without permission.

He didn't have permission, but he also wasn't specifically told not to do it, nor did he try to hide the fact or lie about it.  Sheldon's issue wasn't with what George did, but that he was not only keeping a secret, but placing the burden of a secret on Sheldon.  Sheldon has his own moral code where secrets do not belong.

[CherryAmes]

34 minutes ago, Katy M said:

Sheldon's issue wasn't with what George did, but that he was not only keeping a secret, but placing the burden of a secret on Sheldon. 

Exactly.  I don't recall now if Sheldon really cared one way or another about what the secret happened to be, what he cared about was knowing his father was keeping something from his mother and dragging him into the whole thing.  George is the adult here and he should never have put that kind of pressure on a little boy.

[BlossomCulp]

1 hour ago, CherryAmes said:

George is the adult here and he should never have put that kind of pressure on a little boy.

I think this is foreshadowing what we know is going to come soon in the Cooper household.  Actually there have been hints in many of the episodes that George, despite appearances, is not really father of the year material.

[SmithW6079]

2 hours ago, Katy M said:

He didn't have permission, but he also wasn't specifically told not to do it,

Sheldon is a literal genius. He shouldn't have to be told not to take apart the family's refrigerator. 

 

1 hour ago, CherryAmes said:

George is the adult here and he should never have put that kind of pressure on a little boy.

George was protecting Connie. It really was all Meemaw's fault.

[BlossomCulp]

7 minutes ago, SmithW6079 said:

George was protecting Connie. It really was all Meemaw's fault.

  George wasn't protecting Meemaw, he didn't want Mary to know what he did.  He'd have thrown Meemaw under the bus if she hadn't had something on him.

[Katy M]

8 minutes ago, SmithW6079 said:

Sheldon is a literal genius. He shouldn't have to be told not to take apart the family's refrigerator. 

Being a genius is nowhere near the same thing as having common sense. Sheldon assumed he could take apart the refrigeration and put it back together again no problem. Because of that, he didn't see any reason not to do it.  I'm not defending his actions.  Of course he was wrong.  But, in his mind (before it went south), he did nothing wrong.  And he did apologize afterward and work (or at least arranged for the work to be done) to pay it off.  He knew he was in the wrong after the fact.  Again, Sheldon's issue with George wasn't that he may have done something wrong, but that he was keeping it a secret.  

2 minutes ago, BlossomCulp said:

  George wasn't protecting Meemaw, he didn't want Mary to know what he did.  He'd have thrown Meemaw under the bus if she hadn't had something on him.

I think he started lying before she started blackmailing him. But, my bigger issue with that is by lying, in a way he was choosing to protect Connie over his own children.  She showed terrible judgement and shouldn't be able to take them anywhere anymore without supervision.  AT the very least, not by car.  

[BlossomCulp]

3 minutes ago, Katy M said:

But, my bigger issue with that is by lying, in a way he was choosing to protect Connie over his own children.  She showed terrible judgement and shouldn't be able to take them anywhere anymore without supervision.

I may have missed something but my understanding was that George knew about Georgie going to the track on multiple occasions with Meemaw as well, of course, as the time that he had to bail her out.  People are quick to point that Meemaw is acting pretty terribly here by taking Georgie to the track (and I'm not defending this) but if George knew about it did they ever say if Georgie had any consequences for hitting the track before Mary blew up at the three of them?  Because I don't think he did and that makes George as bad or even worse than Meemaw IMO.

[AnnaRose]

1 hour ago, BlossomCulp said:

I may have missed something but my understanding was that George knew about Georgie going to the track on multiple occasions with Meemaw as well, of course, as the time that he had to bail her out.  People are quick to point that Meemaw is acting pretty terribly here by taking Georgie to the track (and I'm not defending this) but if George knew about it did they ever say if Georgie had any consequences for hitting the track before Mary blew up at the three of them?  Because I don't think he did and that makes George as bad or even worse than Meemaw IMO.

I don't think taking a teenager to a racetrack is wrong.  Getting drunk and making him drive home without a license certainly is, but not simply going along with his grandmother to watch horses race.  I went with my family a number of times as a kid, although it was more of a VIP kind of thing, but still... it was fun to watch.  Then again Mary being such a strict Christian may see it as wrong just because some people place bets on the horses.

[Yeah No]

1 hour ago, AnnaRose said:

I don't think taking a teenager to a racetrack is wrong.  Getting drunk and making him drive home without a license certainly is, but not simply going along with his grandmother to watch horses race.  I went with my family a number of times as a kid, although it was more of a VIP kind of thing, but still... it was fun to watch.  Then again Mary being such a strict Christian may see it as wrong just because some people place bets on the horses.

My own grandma took me to the racetrack many times as a teenager but she was no meemaw as in no drinking, no deviousness, etc., so I totally agree with you.

[BlossomCulp]

I gathered that this was a gambling casino kind of place (again perhaps I have that part wrong)  but even if it's gambling on the horses and drinking at the bar I can certainly see why Mary would not have wanted her teenage son going there.  Because it's the kind of thing Mary would not want her teenage son doing!  And Meemaw needed to respect that.  Since she was sneaky about it I think we can all agree that Meemaw knew taking Georgie there was problematic.  And I agree with CherryAmes here if we're going to get all bent out of shape over Meemaw then George is just as bad, even worse, for knowing about it and not doing anything about it (at least as far as we're told).  

I like George but in this episode alone he put Sheldon in a very difficult position - and knew how hard it was affecting Sheldon, and he knew and more or less condoned his teenage son going to watch Meemaw bet the horses and drive without license.  Not such good parenting going on!  But IMO very believable.  I like that they're not afraid to show imperfect adults in a show centred around kids.  Pretty refreshing really.

Edited October 19, 2018 by BlossomCulp

[msrachelj]

On 10/12/2018 at 1:13 AM, SpiritSong said:

Not one of their better episodes. Hardly any Missy, which was a major disappointment. MeeMaw wasn't at all funny. In fact, she was downright unlikable. I did enjoy Georgie's scenes. He's always so proud of himself, and it's nice to have a character with no angst whatsoever.

The actor who plays Tam looks to have had a major growth spurt over the hiatus. The sleepover was interesting with Sheldon wanting to confess his secret. Tam: I'm not a priest. Sheldon: I'm not a Catholic. LOL

mee maw is  unlikable most of the time. 

[Katy M]

On ‎10‎/‎11‎/‎2018 at 11:11 PM, anna0852 said:

And now his mother has banished him from the house over a situation he had *no* control over.

He could have called his parents or a taxi.  He's old enough to take responsibility for his own decisions.

[John Potts]

I liked the episode just fine, but George (Sr) really needs to grow a spine - the two "crimes" were nowhere near equivalent. Peeing in the bushes on some vegetables is an embarrassment: having your unlicensed grandson drive you back from the track because you were drunk is (I presume) a criminal offence.* At least when Sheldon took apart the refrigerator, he not only admitted it, he accepted the consequences too, however much he suffered for it.

* Google says that in Texas getting a DWI is liable to a fine of up to $2000, up to 6 months jail time and/or 1 year driving ban - so they are nothing like equivalent. After all, if the Minister has a dog, it's probably peed on the church vegetables too!