Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage: Did Young Sheldon Cooper Appear in the Thanksgiving Episode?

Young Sheldon
Credit: CBS

Young Sheldon
Credit: CBS

The Young Sheldon spinoff series Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage recently aired its Thanksgiving episode, bringing back most of the Cooper family from the parent series.

Fans have been wondering whether young Sheldon would also appear in the series and reunite with his family. After all, he is a pivotal character in that world.

Did Young Sheldon Appear in Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage Thanksgiving Episode?

Georgie and Mandy's First Marriage Thanksgiving episode
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Credit: CBS

Unfortunately, Young Sheldon Cooper did not appear in the Thanksgiving episode of Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage.

As most fans of the shows might have figured out, Sheldon is still studying college and it seems like he chose not to go home for the holidays (which is arguably an appropriate action that he would do).

The only members of the Cooper family who made guest appearances are Mary, Missy, Meemaw, and Dale (who is fortunately still Meemaw's boyfriend). All of them showed up for the special occasion.

However, the dinner did not go as planned as Jim and Audrey ended up fighting as the former was accused of drinking again. It reminded Mary of her past fights with George Sr.

The night ended with Georgie, Mary, and Missy eating pumpkin pie beside George Sr.'s grave, an emotional moment that reminds us of the heart of the Cooper family.

Showrunner Steve Holland Explains Young Sheldon's Absence in the Episode

In a recent interview, co-showrunner Steve Holland explained why they did not bring back Sheldon in the Thanksgiving episode.

He shared that it was a creative choice based on the story that they were planning to tell in the episode, but he assured that the doors were very much open for him to return at some point.

"Initially, when we were talking about the episode, it was certainly part of the discussion — like, 'Should Sheldon be a part of this?' There are certain occasions where you could bring him back, but as we were breaking the [episode], it just felt like it was actually going to hurt this story," he explained.

"Often, when a matriarch or a patriarch passes away, the family can splinter, and that’s what is happening here. And as fun as it would have been to see him, it felt like there is no world where that family doesn’t get together, and Mary doesn’t celebrate Thanksgiving if Sheldon is coming back from California."

The showrunner concluded, "So, it seemed to make 'Sheldon sense' that he didn’t come back, and it made sense for the story we were trying to tell."

Who knows, perhaps they are brewing a Sheldon return in the series very soon and fans should anticipate news soon on the character's long-awaited appearance.

What do you think of the Thanksgiving episode? Let us know in the comments!

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