But I did like the character of Sheldon (Jim Parsons), a theoretical physicist whose eccentricities place him on the autism spectrum. At first I thought he was gay; then he starts dating a girl,but insists on no physical contact, so I concluded that he was a hetero-romantic asexual.
The prequel, Young Sheldon (2017-) cost an exorbitant $35 per season on Vudu (I won't even pay that much for Riverdale),but it just dropped to $15,so I plugged it in. I've seen the first three episodes.
It's 1989, and 9-year old Sheldon (Iain Armitage) is living in East Texaa with his Dad, football coach George (Lance Barber) and his Mom Mary (Zoe Perry), who is a quasi-fundamentalist Baptist (there are wine and cards in the house, which a real Baptist would never permit).He also has a 9-year old twin sister (Reagan Revord), the standard pre-teen operator, and a jock older brother Georgie (Montana Jordan, the only one of the cast with beefcake photos available).
"Meemaw" Connie (Annie Potts) differs considerably from how she is described on The Big Bang Theory. Here she is a chaotic presence, drunken, shady ("Shelly, can you use science to predict who will win the big game? Meemaw owes some people money...") I'm surprised the parents let her babysit; she'll just get drunk, fall asleep, and leave the kids alone to get into mischief.
His parents can't afford to send him to a private school for the gifted, so Sheldon is going to high school with teenagers. This would be a problem for any 9-year old, but Sheldon's quirks make it worse. For instance, he insists on pointing out the violationa of the school dress code and hygiene code, for both students and teachers.
After three episodes, it is obvious that this is no sitcom; it is a family warmedy, like The Wonder Years (with the adult Sheldon narrating), dedicated to demonstrating that, in spite of his intelligence and various quirks, Sheldon loves his family and will do anything to help them.
Mom: Who's going to church with me today?
Sheldon: I'll go.
Sister: But you don't believe in God
Sheldon: But I believe in Mom.
They get the church right, anyway, instead of making the Baptists Catholic. Pastor Jeff (Matt Hobby) is apparently a regular, stopping the service to spar with Sheldon about the six-day creation of the world:
Jeff: There was no Big Bang, just the Word.
Sheldon: What word was that, "Kaboom"?
I was interested in the episode where Sheldon promises to demolish Pastor Jeff's belief in God "next week." But then his Dad has a heart attack,so Sheldon finds the hospital chapel and prays for his recovery (to French philosopher Blaise Pascal, not to God, but still...).
Beefcake: None. There are some locker room scenes, but the entire football team seems to be comprised of 14-year olds.
Other Sights: No. There are some exteriors, but nothing impressive. By the way, they drive through endless farmland to get to school, but the psychiatrist's office is walking distance. Somebody check the geography of this town!
Gay Characters: Like on The Big Bang Theory, gay people do not exist. But like The Big Bang Theory, Sheldon's lack of heterosexual interest can give him a gay reading ("Cheerleaders hugged me! It was dreadful!"). The other 9-year olds on the show, Sheldon's sister and the dimwitted boy next door, are hetero-horny.
In the next episode, Tam shows up at the front door, wearing a suit, and asks "Is Sheldon at home? I want to ask him to come wijth me to a party."). It turns out that he is just using the newly-popular Sheldon to get into a popular party, where he can meet girls, but he acts precisely as if he is asking Sheldon out on a date.
I'm not even going to go into the gay symbolism of the scene where Tam is eating Red Vines, and Sheldon becomes fixated with his mouth. He's actually just hungry, having had no solid food for several days, but still....
See Also: 10 Homophobic Things about the Big Bang Theory
Never liked The Big Bang Theory. Just not my cup of tea. 😏 I did notice that it is for tens and tens millions of viewers.
ReplyDeleteBut you see, just like with How I Met Your Mother's Neil Patrick Harris, Jim Parsons is gay in real life. I didn't know the gays didn't have literally any air-time in TBBT and I think that sucks because, all the nerds who watch that show could use that extra-push. I mean, the show could've helped them experiment or at least get laid with someone because, in 90% of cases, girls probably won't even notice them. They could finally lose their virginity or at least get a HJ or a BJ from a lost gay guy who has no self-respect, there's too many of 'em in the world as well.
So, why not just connect the dots that way and make both groups of people "happy"...? They blew that chance. 🤷♂️
The purpose of gay representation is not to convince straight guys to have sex with gay guys. It's to help gay people who are isolated and alone, lost in a heteronormative society, feel less alone. Especially gay youth, who are usually raised in an environment where heterosexual desire and behavior is assumed to be universal human experience, and gay people do not exist. It's also to help heterosexuals living in that same heteronormative environment, who think that gay people do not exist outside of hair salons in San Francisco, to see gay people living real, everyday lives. That's why a non-stereotyped gay character, especially in children's media, is cause for celebration.
DeleteLike I said, both parties would "get lucky" this way. The lost gays who don't think they deserve love so they go around with whoever and the nerds who would stay virgins. Everyone would get something out of that. Of course, the representation on TV as well but, I'm talkin' from this angle. Their viewers.
DeleteI agree with you that at least one of the nerds might have turn out to be gay- I did see the final episode at it was all very heterosexist
DeleteWhy do you pay for a show you can see for free on network tv? Jim Parson is gay and very successful I saw him on the Broadway revival of "Boys in the Band".
ReplyDeleteBob convinced me to get rid of network tv shortly after we started dating. Too many commercials, and you have to watch at a specific time. We have Netflix, Vudu, and Amazon Prime, and if I really want to watch a show, I can do it at a friend's house or on campus
DeleteA very minor point, but not all Baptists are opposed to playing cards. I grew up in a Southern Baptist household, and card-playing was just fine -- as long as it wasn't on Sunday. (By the same token, it's also a stereotype that all Baptists are opposed to dancing. Mama loved to dance.) But you're right about no wine. Mama wouldn't allow alcohol in the house.
ReplyDeleteYou can never say that 100% of members of a group have any belief or practice; there are always variations. About 20% of evangelical Christians support same-sex marriage, and about 10% of Unitarians oppose it. There are about 30 Baptist denominations in the U.S., ranging from the Primitive and Regular Baptists (ultra strict) to the American Baptists (moderate)
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