TVLINE | The family receives the news, unfortunately, that George has suffered this fatal heart attack. It’s a moment the audience has been dreading, it’s a moment I’m sure that you guys have been dreading having to film…. Lance, how long have you known this was coming?
LANCE BARBER | The fact is, I knew because of the history of The Big Bang [Theory]. I was emotionally prepared for this from the pilot, you know? At least the potential of it. I was just thankful for every day, and every season, and every episode, I got to be on, knowing that potentially they could explore that before the show ended. So, mostly, I was grateful to get to the end. It was only in this last season where we discovered — and very close to shooting it — did we know details about how it was going to play out. There was a lot of speculation, always — certainly from fans, and certainly from us — wondering how it was going to play out. I think that the writers are really leaning into something with this that I think is a gamble. But from my perspective, it’s a really beautiful way to do it, regardless of how challenging and potentially polarizing it might be.
ZOE PERRY | It was difficult to grieve the loss of this character and the ending of this run, and these things were happening simultaneously. I think audiences will see a very kind of real reaction.
I knew it was coming, but man this hurts so much! He was such a great father and person.
I only wish he had been portrayed as such on TBBT.
But the Homer Simpson portrayal better for laughs.
Wow, knew it was coming and it still hit. It’s a credit to the actor and the writing that it hurts this much to see a fictional character pass.
Well.. damn. We knew it was coming. I had a feeling it was going to happen in this episode. It still didn’t make it any easier. I am glad they had it off camera. I really liked George. Heck, I came to love his character in my binge-a-thon. I love the depth that Lance Barber gave to his character. He was a hard-working man dedicated to his family who sacrificed a lot for them. It just doesn’t seem fair that when he had his chance at his dream job, he passed. I am going to miss him. I dread the next episode before the finale. I love this series.
And that’s the way things go in my own life. Things finally start to go well, and BAM! From out of left field. It has made me learn to appreciate every day and everything it entails. Even the people.
I kind of knew it was going to happen in this episode because when I saw the episode description I thought “This has to be the one” things are looking up like this screamed “What could possibly go wrong” sometimes being right sucks.
You know what I hope we’ll get updates on the rest of the BBT gang in the final episode
caught the ending just as 911 finished
That ending was brutal … and the end-credit vanity card just reinforced my feelings:
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Chuck Lorre Productions, #742
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Eighteen years ago, when we were writing and producing The Big Bank Theory, it seemed like a good idea to imagine that Sheldon’s childhood was deeply disrupted by the loss of his father. No one could have thought that someday we would regret that decision. That someday is now.
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There were a lot of tears on stage when this episode’s last scene was shot. A reminder that we had all fallen in love with a fictional character. Which is, itself, a reminder to love the characters in our life who are real. To do otherwise, is to live with regret.
Agree. Too brutal. Appreciate that they didn’t show his actual death on screen, but I could’ve done without the “getting the news” scene. The actors did a great job but just too brutal for my taste. I expected it was coming in this episode and got a hunch when he walked out the kitchen that it’d be the last time we’d see him. I was hoping for a voiceover with older Sheldon telling us he never came home. Would’ve been much easier to handle. Don’t love the writing but the actors portrayed it well. Fully agree that it’s even harder since Lance made his character so lovable.
Thank you! Reading through the comments, I thought I was the only one who was more angry than sad. I’ll watch the final episodes but only because I’ve invested years in the Big Bang universe.
The cast was believable showing their grief. Even though I knew George was going to die during the show i choked up because I loved the character.
I completely agree!!! And MeeMaw crying with Missy was heart wrenching. She and George had this love hate relationship but she truly loved him
I tried to “like” this, and only hit “Dislike” to test the system
I have been a fan since day one. Never missed an episode. Watched reruns. This family and the actors in it are exceptional and I truly adore this tv family. I literally cried like a baby at the death of George. Felt like losing someone I knew. I’m 63 years old and have never felt this from a tv family. Thank you to everyone on and affiliated with young Sheldon. Unforgettable.
Young Sheldon is another broadcast network comedy that should have been nominated for an Emmy for outstanding comedy. I am tired of it being overlooked. The actors/actresses are turning in outstanding performances.
I am also 63 years old and felt the same way.
I basically spoiled myself earlier when I was looking through my DVR schedule and saw the next episode is titled “Funeral”.
I caught on here that this was gonna be the one before I got a chance to watch. I don’t know about you, but knowing this was the one, it still hurt harder than i thought it would. Glad it happened off screen, I was getting nervous during that ladder scene that that would be it…
It was sad to watch and it must have been very difficult for the actors. I thought it reflected similar situations that occur in real life. Someone has to break the news and I think it’s better to come from close friends rather than strangers. It’s a time for family and it’s good Mary had hers right there. Tough times ahead for them.
Well that sucked but was big Canon I suppose.
Though the Georgie being divorced line was kind of throw away.
I think The episode was written extremely well. The knowing that George’s death was very close was like constantly looking over my shoulder. Was he going to die from anesthesia? Falling off the ladder? Or some other unknown tragedy. I thought we were going to get away with it at the end of 12. I could actually breathe waiting for the family photo.
And then BAM. I knew just as Mary walked to the door. This was it. The one thing I had been dreading all season.
The one thing a lot of people dread.
A family member leaves in the morning
As usual but never comes home. All the actors did a great job with the episode just like it was any other day. Their reactions to the open door were just like mine. My tears came just like their’s. I knew it was coming but I can’t believe
George is gone. He won’t be coming home. 😪😪
Reminded me of the MASH episode when Henry Blake died.
Agree to an extent—the big difference is that “will they or won’t they have George die” has been a question ever since the beginning of Young Sheldon for viewers of TBBT. Viewers of MASH had NO IDEA that Henry Blake was going to die at some point in the show. If I recall correctly from a MASH anniversary special, even the actors didn’t know until the last minute when they were given the script page just before filming, because the directors or producers wanted to capture the genuine emotion of the actors. But I agree with you, the scene of Mary and family getting the news about George evoked that same spirit of Henry’s death in MASH. George was my favorite YS character, and I would’ve loved to see a series with him and the rest of the family, post-YS.
Question: What was more significant: Edith Bunker dying on All In The Family or Henry Blake dying on M*A*S*H? Though by the time the “Dingbat” died — also off-camera — the show was on its absolute last leg and priming for a spin-off, Archie Bunker’s Place.
For myself, I’d say Henry Blake’s sudden death was more significant because it was so jarring for a show that had been more of a comedy than it was / would become in its later years. The series always had the seriousness of the war weaving through the scripts, of course, but to have a main character like Henry die–on his way back State-side, no less—made it heart-breaking and shocking. I think it was a turning point for the series too, focusing more often on the tragedy and senselessness of war, yet maintaining the comedic camaraderie of the ensemble. For the number of characters in MASH over the years, each was so well-defined and well-written, even when the dynamic changed with Henry’s death and Colonel Potter’s arrival, Trapper John leaving and BJ replacing him, Frank Burns leaving and Charles Emerson Winchester replacing him. Great question, though—what are your thoughts, Ari?
After it happened, I read Henry being killed was in response to Stevenson leaving because of money issues.
Lance Barber was underrated through the entire run, imo. He really brought George to life, & his post-“procedure” was a hoot. I’ll miss this show. I’m glad it moved away from centering on Sheldon, b/c he is a LOT. Looking forward to Georgie & Mandy in the fall.
Wait! Is there a Georgie and Mandy spinoff series???? That would be great!
Yes there is, starting in the Fall
So emotional watched since the very beginning felt like part of the family..cried ….great show ever!!!!
Anyone who has lost a parent unexpectedly felt this like it had happened again! My Dad was only 64 when he had a massive heart attack and died unexpectedly, and I know that news like that really hits you in the gut! When George walked out of the kitchen, I told my wife “uh oh, are they killing him off tonight??” The family’s reaction to the news was SO realistic! We are going to miss the characters in this series! We need the comfort and the stability that watching a beloved series every week more than ever. Knowing that this series is ending hurts my soul!
Absolutely. My father died of an unexpected heart attack when I was 15 and this episode was almost a supermagnet to the 40+ year old memories of the shock and ‘is this happening?’ moments of that time.
I cried my damn eyes out!
I have to admit I had put George’s death out of my mind. I went into this episode blind. I only realized what would happen when they were all dressed in their photo outfits and George wasn’t there yet. Then I knew it was about to happen. It was so sad but I am glad they stuck with the canon from TBBT. I always felt like it was going to happen sudden and quick where the family was not there at his end. Great acting by all!
George Cooper was going to die, we all knew it and expected it but it was still a shock when Mary answered the door. I had tears streaming down my face when Missy said “He’s okay isn’ he?” Both the actors and the writers are to be commended for giving us a such a realistic, human reaction to the inevitability of death.
I just felt this was the episode where George was going to die, so by the time there was that knock at the door, my stomach was in knots!
This pisses me off. Yeah, I know canon, and all that, but I’ve seen canon change on many shows. Honestly, I hate Big Bang right now. Hate that viewers were locked into some crappy canon before Young Sheldon came to be.
“George’s death was a huge part of Sheldon’s growth as a person.”
This statement is actually laughable because adult Sheldon Cooper is an insufferable entitled PITA. He never grew as a person. His marriage to Amy only came about because she pursued him. I’ve never bought that he truly is capable of caring for anyone beyond his mother and Meemaw, and even that is debatable.
Sheldon has become one of the least likeable elements of the entire franchise, and it’s crappy that we lost George Sr. who has turned out to be much more likeable than his adult son.
I am glad they didn’t mess with that storyline, even though George Sr. was probably my favorite character on the series. I actually liked adult Sheldon more than young Sheldon. He cared for his wife and had a close friendship with Penny. George Sr. was a great tv dad.
Plus a brother in Leonard
Dude, chill. It’s fine to mess with small details but this was something that couldn’t be ignored.
I think I understand what you’re saying. It seems unlikely ““George’s death was a huge part of Sheldon’s growth as a person.” TBBT had Sheldon and Mary say horrible things about George, Georgie and Missy, undeserved things as we saw in YS. Sheldon, my least favorite character, only grew IMO in the last episode of TBBT where he seemed to acknowledge the value of his friends in his life.
And that’s the pitfall of a prequel. When a show is set in another show’s universe, they can’t take something happened, and was a major part of the show’s world, and then say it didn’t happen after all. Yes, “canon and all that.” That’s what it means. They can fudge unimportant details or one-off lines played for a laugh. But they can’t say “Pscyh! His father lived until age 85! Gotcha!”
Would Sheldon Cooper accept something like that on a show he liked?
(I still don’t understand why Mary hated George so much in the mother show, or how she became so horrid. Same for Mee Maw.)
My dad passed in 2016. He was fine that morning, had trouble breathing that afternoon, and was gone by suppertime. He and my mom had been married for over 48 years. We were not prepared in any way for it — not emotionally, to be sure, but also not physically and not financially. In hindsight, we should’ve been, given age and time and maladies. In the years since, while my mom loved my dad and still to this day misses him intently, she’s also confessed to being irrationally mad at times at my dad for “leaving.” She freely admits it’s irrational, too. But there it is. We don’t always all act rationally in times of crisis, of loss, or of grief. Maybe we’ll get a little more insight into how the Cooper family went from the moments before George’s death to TBBT next week, and with the spinoff. But my experience surely isn’t the only example in the world of irrational anger at someone for dying.
I thought I was prepared for it. I really wasn’t. Bravo to the cast for being able to deliver that tragic moment so emotionally
Just realized this. George’s first heart attack was in the third episode of the series. Now his fatal heart attack happens in the third to last episode of the series!
I didn’t give the episode high marks but I think it’s because it was so sad. I’m not sure how it could have been better. You get attached to the characters and it feels real. Hate that Mary, Missy and Meemaw won’t be on the spin-off. According to TBBT Georgie takes over as head of the family. They should be in the spin-off.
This brought up memories of when my mother did not return home on her birthday when I was a child younger than Sheldon. I am still up reliving that in my mind even tho I know this is a show.
I knew George was going to die but i thought he should have gotten the new job and sometime in the future died after young Sheldon ended. Real life has enough sad stories. This was a comedy and the fans could have been spared the sadness of his demise.
I’m glad they didn’t do the big hospital death. Kinda like they did with Mrs Wolowitz in Big Bang. We didn’t see it but boy it hurt.
I knew it was coming but wish he could had a year at Rice University and had more last words with family but on the other hand that is life we never know when it’s our time and that’s why it’s important to say good things we feel before it happens
I hated the way George’s death was handled. They dangled his lifelong dream in front of him but he never got a chance to fulfil it, they vastly improved his relationship with Mary but he never got a real chance to enjoy it and he never got a chance to say goodbye to his family. Yes, yes, I know that’s life — I should after 76 years — but I hated being set up like that by a TV show.