'Young Sheldon', the 'Big Bang Theory' spin-off, looks absolutely terrible
How could they get it so wrong?
It may have its fair share of detractors (literally the entirety of the rest of this office it seems) but I, for one, am a fan of The Big Bang Theory.
It’s easy to mock, and the later seasons have very much run out of juice, but the early years of the show were funny and refreshing, before the bazingas got a bit annoying.
The show remains as popular as ever, with US audience numbers holding at their record levels of 19m for the last four seasons, and the eleventh season is due to hit screens at the end of the month.
Despite it still being a going concern, though, bosses have looked to strike while the iron is hot and the inevitable spin-off – usually reserved for when the show has bitten the dust and they’re desperately trying to replace it in the schedules – is due to premiere on 2 November. It’s called ‘Young Sheldon’ and is, unusually, a spin-off prequel, focusing on – yes, you guessed it – the early years of Sheldon Cooper, as he grows up in East Texas in the late eighties and goes to high school.
‘Old Sheldon’ – ie. Jim Parsons – came up with the idea and narrates the series, whilst also serving as executive producer. However, on the evidence of the trailers so far, to use a phrase the Big Bang characters would understand: Houston we have a problem.
It looks absolute TERRIBLE.
Just take a look at these and see if you laugh even once.
Nope?
Nope.
Oh dear.
Yeah not once.
There’s no live laughter track, presumably as they couldn’t find an audience that would laugh at any of it. Even canned laughter would probably have malfunctioned.
As commenters have pointed out, poor Iain Armitage, who plays Young Sheldon, already looks like one of the least-likeable, most-punchable people to ever appear on screen. But why is he so unlikeable in this guise compared to TBBT? Well, ‘Twimbo’ puts it nicely:
“TBBT is only as good as it is because of the entire cast. No single character steals the show. Even side characters like Stuart have hilarious story lines intertwined with the main plots. Sheldon is a bit of a bore alone, it's his interactions with his socially awkward gang or the advances and thirstiness of Amy (my favorite cast member btw) that are hilarious. As a kid in rural Texas I doubt he would meet the similar likes of their younger versions.”
There you go CBS, consult Twimbo before your next bright idea and they’ll save you a lot of money.
(Image: CBS)
