After spending seven years rehabilitating George’s image, Meemaw ultimately completed Young Sheldon‘s The Big Bang Theory retcon. Years before the idea of a Sheldon origins story came about, the socially-inept genius’ family was already established in the Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady-created sitcom. While Mary debuted early on and continued to visit Pasadena throughout The Big Bang Theory‘s 12-season run, Georgie and Missy had more limited involvement. Meemaw, on the other hand, only had one cameo. This left George as the only Cooper family member who never physically appeared because he was long dead by then.
While George never got the chance to meet Sheldon’s friends in The Big Bang Theory, there was no shortage of stories about him in the flagship series. This helped the franchise establish an image for the character, although not a good one. According to Sheldon and backed up by Mary, George was a no-good father who did nothing but drink and lounge around. This version of the Cooper patriarch went unchallenged for years until its spinoff debuted in 2017. By the time Young Sheldon ended, he was fully rehabilitated, with the retcon properly capped off by Meemaw of all people.
Meemaw’s Funeral Speech Finishes Young Sheldon’s Rehabilitation Of George’s Image
Young Sheldon’s Retconning Of George’s Image Finished In Time For His Funeral
When George died in Young Sheldon season 7, episode 12, “A Little Snip and Teaching Old Dogs,” Meemaw was with Missy and Mary to receive the devastating news from his co-workers. From there, she became a pillar of the family as they navigated the aftermath of the tragedy. So much so that she even took over Mary’s eulogy during George’s funeral after Sheldon’s mom broke down in the middle of her emotional farewell speech. Annie Potts had a lot of great moments throughout all seven seasons of the show, but this was arguably her best.
So for Meemaw to openly talk about how she genuinely felt about George was a testament to how good of a man he really was.
Aside from the perfect balance of drama and comedy, Meemaw’s tribute completed the rehabilitation of George’s image. When Young Sheldon started, it was clear that she really didn’t like him. Considering the beginning of his and Mary’s marriage, it was understandable for Connie Tucker to still harbor some grudge about him accidentally getting her daughter pregnant. The prequel played with their contentious relationship multiple times, even pitting them against each other for the brisket recipe. So for Meemaw to openly talk about how she genuinely felt about George was a testament to how good of a man he really was.
