The Unexpected Thing Young Sheldon Fans Really Love About The Show

After "The Big Bang Theory" announced it was ending, CBS and Chuck Lorre began to think of ways to continue the rating juggernaut. Jim Parsons, who won four Emmy Awards playing everyone's favorite character to hate, Sheldon Cooper, seemed like an obvious choice. Surprisingly, "Young Sheldon" has an intimate connection to Jim Parsons' life, and he was the one to pitch the idea of a show based on the origins of Sheldon. Lorre told the audience during a CBS TCA Press Day that it was "something we'd been wanting to talk about for a couple of hundred episodes of 'The Big Bang Theory.'"

While some "Young Sheldon" fans have felt that the show seems to be veering away from comedy, the ratings are still going strong, with the show renewed through a seventh season (via The Hollywood Reporter). But the show's drama could also be seen as a foreshadowing of what's to come — the death of George Sr. (Lance Barber), Sheldon's father. "Young Sheldon" fans hope the show will end before George's death or sidestep it with an expository voiceover.

With the show entering Season 6, fans have acknowledged that it's changed since it began but are loving an unexpected evolution that has come about in the show's writing.

When "Young Sheldon" began, the focus was obviously on Iain Armitage as a 9-year-old Sheldon. The stories were about him discovering his first comic book, dealing with his first serious crush, or being caught playing Dungeons & Dragons. There were scenes relating to his family, like Georgie (Montana Jordan) feeling jealous of Sheldon, but for the most part, they were background moments. However, Season 6 started focusing on other family members, and fans loved it. "I love how the show is less about Sheldon and more about the rest of the family," wrote u/jcestre on a "Young Sheldon" Reddit thread.

Some fans think the reason is George's looming death, which — according to "The Big Bang Theory" lore — happens when Sheldon is 13 years old. Redditor u/shoshpenda theorized, "This is exactly why the family dynamics became prominent as they need to be answered and can't be delayed any further at this point." Whatever the reason, fans are enjoying getting to know more of the Cooper family.