Young Sheldon season 4 wrapped with a cliffhanger, but beyond from the glaring question about George's future, the whole year has also left a few other queries regarding what lies ahead for the Coopers. Despite it having a shorter run, a lot has happened for Sheldon and his family in the recently-finished season 4. Some of their latest experiences set up what can be expected from Young Sheldon season 5 with loose plot points that are meant to continue developing in the next season.
Titled "The Wild and Woolly World of Nonlinear Dynamics," the Young Sheldon season 4 finale started with Missy's first romantic problem at school but it became more than that. While she and her twin, Sheldon, hashed out her issues in an unused cabin, their parents at home were locked in an intense argument that may have very well caused irreparable damage to their marriage. In the end, Mary and George backed off from their fight without resolving it: while she isolated herself in their room, he let off steam in a bar where he coincidentally met their newly-single neighbor Brenda Sparks. The season 4 cliffhanger ending sparked many theories.
Before Young Sheldon season 4 even ended, CBS already awarded The Big Bang Theory prequel a rare three-year renewal, proving that it has become the comedy juggernaut that the network needed when its parent series wrapped up. Given the fact that the show's team knows it will be around for a long time, it's not surprising that its recent season left several open questions — most of them will likely be answered when it returns with fresh episodes later in 2021. Further, the creatives behind the series will be free to start plot-lines that can play out for multiple seasons, now that they're sure that Young Sheldon will run until the 2023/2024 TV year.
Will George Cheat On Mary With Brenda Sparks?
The biggest question going into Young Sheldon season 5 is whether or not George and Brenda will get together. At the end of the season 4 finale, George finally admitted to Mary that he's unhappy with how his life turned out because he had to sacrifice a lot for her and the family — which includes staying in Medford and living across from Meemaw's house. As he cooled down at the bar, Brenda approached him and offered to keep him company, which he accepted. While Young Sheldon didn't explicitly confirm that their time together will lead to an affair, it's heavily hinted at, especially with the way the episode suddenly cut to black and ended right there. In The Big Bang Theory lore, George is predestined to cheat on Mary, as Sheldon previously revealed that a couple of years before his dad died, he caught him in bed with another woman. However, George's mistress may very well not be Brenda; since Mary has been nothing but supportive of her ever since she was left by her husband Herschel, she might think twice about getting into a relationship with George.
Will Dr. Sturgis Return To East Texas Tech?
One of the deciding factors for Mary allowing Sheldon to go to college this year was that his mentor Dr. Sturgis will be in East Texas Tech to look after her son. That's why it was baffling that, by the time Sheldon was going to actually begin school, it was revealed that Dr. Sturgis moved to Waxahachie, Texas to work on the supercollider there. It's never really explained what brought on this sudden narrative change, but it forced Sheldon to broaden his horizon and develop a new relationship with Dr. Linkletter, who unfortunately was less than thrilled with his presence. But, in Young Sheldon's season 4's penultimate episode, Dr. Sturgis finally returned to Medford after being fired. Losing his dream job was tough for him and instead of reclaiming his old job at East Texas Tech, he decided to be a bagger at the local supermarket. From the looks of it, he'll continue to work there in the foreseeable future, but with his level of genius, what are the odds that he'll get his old teaching job at Sheldon's school? Narratively, this is the natural progression of his arc as it would allow him and his protege to spend more time together again.
Will Meemaw & Dr. Sturgis Get Back Together?
In conjunction with Dr. Sturgis' return to Medford, there's also the question of whether there's a chance that he and Sheldon's grandma, Meemaw, will get back together. The pair begrudgingly parted ways and Sheldon's grandmother has since then started dating Dale, but the pair remained in contact, even when the brilliant physicist left town and moved to Waxahachie. Clearly, both continue to be deeply concerned about each other's feelings as they kept in touch even after their break-up. This was made more obvious in Young Sheldon's penultimate episode where Dr. Sturgis imagined an alternate reality where they confessed that they are still in love and reunited. With Dr. Sturgis back in town, the chances are high that they'll rekindle their romance.
How Will Mary Treat George After His Revelation?
One of the most heartbreaking moments in all of Young Sheldon season 4 was George admitting that he's not happy anywhere. It was something that, in hindsight, came out of nowhere, considering that there was barely any big conflict between him and Mary before that confession. It was never revisited in the show as The Big Bang Theory prequel tackled other storylines, but it factored into the finale during the Coopers' intense argument. While George didn't blatantly reveal why he's unhappy with his life, it's hinted that the lack of appreciation from his family, particularly his wife, played a part in it. In the aftermath of their fight, Mary did acknowledge that she's been insensitive to her husband's woes, and maybe she is indeed partly to blame for his misery. Since Young Sheldon season 4 ended with the couple's issue unresolved, it's unclear what their dynamic will be moving forward as they inevitably reunite in season 5. Will Mary be more empathetic to George or will she ignore his confession?
Will There Be More Cameos from The Big Bang Theory?
While Sheldon's Pasadena friends appeared as kids in the Young Sheldon season 2 finale to celebrate The Big Bang Theory's end, only Amy has guest-starred in the prequel. The Young Sheldon season 4 premiere featured her voice during adult Sheldon's narration. Amy's surprise involvement was tied to the revelation that the couple will have a son in the future — Leonard Cooper, named after Sheldon's favorite Star Trek actor, Leonard Nimoy, and potentially also his best friend, Leonard Hofstadter. Previously, Kaley Cuoco voiced the pool water during Sheldon's dream, but she hasn't made a cameo as Penny. With The Big Bang Theory now wrapped for two years, it'll be interesting to see if any other characters from the parent series will make it into the spin-off.