Folks of a certain persuasion often had a, shall we say, contentious relationship with “The Big Bang Theory” when it was airing on CBS. The exaggerated characterization and humor of Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady’s comedy series, coupled with its rampant casual sexism early on, made it an object of scorn in certain online social circles and fandoms. (So far as “Community”-heads, in particular, were concerned, “The Big Bang Theory” was public enemy number one.) That it was also a beast in the ratings game only made people that much more comfortable with punching up at it.
However, just as /Film’s BJ Colangelo was right to include “The Big Bang Theory” on her list of the five best Lorre shows, I’m going to extend an olive branch to all those out there who adore Sheldon Cooper and friends and admit: “The Big Bang Theory” doesn’t entirely deserve the bad rap it gets.Â
Yes, the show’s hacky nerd culture jokes can test your patience, and goodness knows its male characters can be emotional terrorists. (This is the part where I give Johnny Galecki’s Leonard Hofstadter the side-eye.) Yet, as the series goes along, its characters not only evolve into better people, but their relationships with one another also take on greater dimensions and become genuinely endearing. “The Big Bang Theory” even improves by leaps and bounds when it comes to its gender dynamics after making Bernadette Rostenkowski (Melissa Rauch) and Amy Farrah Fowler (Mayim Bialik) part of the central ensemble a few seasons in — as co-lead Simon Helberg would gladly tell you.
Ready for another truth bomb? The show’s prequel spin-off, “Young Sheldon,” is good, actually. Just as pertinently, it’s a series that viewers who either despise or have never watched “The Big Bang Theory” can enjoy as much as (and perhaps even more than) those who tuned in for all 12 seasons of grown-up Sheldon’s escapades.
The Big Bang Theory isn’t requisite viewing for Young Sheldon
Prequels to older, famous works come with loaded expectations, but the best ones don’t require you to know anything going in. This frees up audiences to pick and choose how to engage with any particular piece of media, much like how many Gen Z “Star Wars” fans elected to experience the Skywalker Saga for the first time. That’s not to imply Sheldon Cooper and Anakin Skywalker are anything alike. (Then again, has anyone actually seen those two in a room together?) But just as you can enjoy the “Star Wars” prequel trilogy without knowing who little orphan Ani grows up to be in advance, “Young Sheldon” doesn’t bank on those watching having the foggiest notion of what’s to come for its namesake.
Lorre and Prady, who also show-ran all seven seasons of “Young Sheldon” with Steve Holland, thankfully weren’t interested in revealing how the eponymous “The Big Bang Theory” lead amassed his various trademark accessories either. Instead, they made a sitcom — one that’s willing to be serious and even poignant when the occasion merits — all about the challenges of raising (or, in the case of Sheldon’s profoundly different siblings, growing up alongside) a kid genius in an environment that’s not exactly conducive to doing precisely that. “Young Sheldon” doesn’t paint its late 1980s-early 1990s Texan backdrop in the most flattering of colors either. As much as the series evokes “The Wonder Years,” down to the grown-up Sheldon (Jim Parsons reprising his “The Big Bang Theory” role) wistfully narrating about his childhood hijinks, it’s far from overly nostalgic for a bygone era in history.
If there’s one thing you do lose from not watching “The Big Bang Theory” before “Young Sheldon,” it’s the full context for the scenes where the younger Sheldon (Iain Armitage) either misinterprets a situation or isn’t privy to crucial information, and how that feeds into his older counterpart’s behavior on the series’ parent show. Even in those (relatively rare) instances, however, it’s always made clear how these events affect Sheldon as he’s growing up and color his outlook on the series itself. If anything, these moments actually give “The Big Bang Theory” more emotional depth, and when it comes to one particularly dramatic retcon, even a subtle whiff of tragedy. It’s that type of nuanced storytelling that makes “Young Sheldon” much more thoughtful than those who know “The Big Bang Theory” as “the show where the nerdy guy yells ‘Bazinga!'” might be expecting.
“Young Sheldon” is currently streaming in its entirety on Max.