Young Sheldon Doubles Down On Big Bang Theory’s Billy Sparks Plot Hole

Warning! Spoilers ahead Young Sheldon season 5.

Young Sheldon double downs on its The Big Bang Theory plot hole about Billy Sparks (Wyatt McClure). Adult Sheldon (Jim Parsons) liked reminiscing about his childhood in Texas in the original series. Most of the time, his stories were about his own family, but occasionally, he would also mention other people including Billy. So naturally, when Young Sheldon premiered in 2017, he’s one of the familiar characters who debuted in the spin-off. But just like the Coopers, his depiction in the prequel is quite different from what was established in The Big Bang Theory. This portrayal highlights a major inconsistency in Billy Sparks’ characterization across the franchise.

While most of Sheldon’s family appeared physically in the nerd-centric sitcom, Billy never did. The youngest child of Herschel (Billy Gardell) and Brenda Sparks (Melissa Peterman), Billy has only been sporadically utilized in Young Sheldon‘s earlier seasons. But by season 5, he was promoted to be a series regular, effectively making him more prominently involved in the show. Thus far, he’s been in several episodes including when he asked George (Lance Barber) about confessing his crush on Missy (Raegan Revord). He’s also been in Sunday school with Sheldon and his twin. Amidst the split of his parents, however, Billy is noticeably getting closer with the Cooper patriarch.

After kicking of Young Sheldon season 5 with a tease of Brenda and George’s potential affair, the spin-off shifted its focus on other characters. But after a few outings, it is finally revisiting the intriguing plotline. In Young Sheldon season 5, episode 9 titled “The Yips and an Oddly Hypnotic Bohemian,” George offers to help fix up the Sparks’ home. Brenda and George keep their interactions fun and lighthearted, although it’s obvious that there’s still tension between them. At one point, their topic of conversation shifts to their kids; Brenda claims that while Billy isn’t the smartest, he’s the sweetest boy. George then responds by saying that Sheldon is the opposite of that. This essentially double downs on the existing The Big Bang Theory plot hole regarding adult Sheldon’s claim that Billy was his biggest childhood bully which clearly isn’t the case in Young Sheldon. 

Interestingly, Young Sheldon is inadvertently making Sheldon seem like an unreliable narrator despite having an eidetic memory. On a few other occasions, the spin-off directly contradicts his stories in The Big Bang Theory. His description of his dad in the original sitcom is a prime example of this. He claimed that George was a lazy and negligent parent, but that’s not really the case. In fact, his narration in Young Sheldon even admits that George is underappreciated in his own home. Similarly, this is what’s happening with Billy — unless Sheldon purposefully lied about the Sparks’ youngest being his bully. Perhaps he developed some sort of grudge against his neighbor after he notices George spending more time with him.

As with all The Big Bang Theoryplot holes that Young Sheldon has created, it needs to address this one way or another. With adult Sheldon narrating the events of the prequel, a short line admitting that he did lie about Billy would suffice. In any case, since Young Sheldon is confirmed to run until season 7, it has plenty of time to resolve this inconsistency.

About The Author