Young Sheldon: George got one key thing right before his death

After George’s death, fans are looking back on his best scenes in Young Sheldon — and he got something key right very early on.

Young Sheldon Season 7 Episode 12 was an emotional rollercoaster for fans, with the Coopers learning that George died of a heart attack while coaching at Medford High School.

George’s death hasn’t been a complete surprise thanks to existing storylines from the prequel and The Big Bang Theory, but it’s got fans on a trip down memory lane — noticing that George was right about something pretty key.

Way before Sheldon chose Caltech as his grad school of choice in Season 7, he visited back in Season 3 to attend a talk with Stephen Hawking. George accompanied him, and the two were introduced to the infamous TBBT canteen set for the first time.

“Imagine all the stimulating conversations that must go on at these tables,” Sheldon tells his dad. “I can see myself going here one day.”

“I think you’d fit right in,” George replied. In hindsight, George lived long enough to see Sheldon choose Caltech, but not long enough to see him move there.

As fans know, Sheldon goes from not having a friend in the world to developing a family of friends in The Big Bang Theory, enabling him to emotionally grow into adulthood. While he later cites not having had anybody to help him through George’s death, he is able to be there for others, such as when Howard’s mom dies.

However, the scene also highlights the huge inconsistencies between how George was presented in each show.

“Initially in Big Bang Theory, George was just a tertiary character to add to Sheldon’s family background,” one fan clarified on Reddit. “Once Young Sheldon went on air, TBBT corrected course in the last season by paying homage to his dad. Let’s not forget that without TBBT’s George, we wouldn’t have YS’s George.”

Season 7 Episode 13 is expected to show George’s funeral, while the follow-up part to the hour-long finale will show TBBT actor Jim Parsons in his highly-anticipated cameo.

Young Sheldon Season 7 continues on CBS until May 16, 2024. Catch up with plenty more great TV shows to stream this month in the meantime.