Young Sheldon – A Pineapple and the Bosom of Male Friendship

By starrymag | October 31, 2019

By: Ujjyani Banerjee

 

 

 

Mary (Zoe Perry) is gardening. Connie (Annie Potts) comes over chugging beer and informs her that John (Wallace Shawn) is coming back that Friday. Soon Sheldon (Iain Armitage), Missy (Raegan Revord), Georgie (Montana Jordan) and George (Lance Barber) gather for a family meeting that Mary’s addressing. They learn that Dr. Sturgis will be dining with them and that they need to be in their best behavior. Nobody is supposed to bring up the topic of the mental institution or even stare at him. Connie accompanies John to the dinner. They’re welcomed by Sheldon and Mary. Sheldon shakes Dr. Sturgis’s hand barehanded and is appreciated for that.

 

John loves the home-cooked food as opposed to the hospital’s bland preparations. He understands that it might be awkward for all and is open for discussion to help de-stigmatize the situation. Sheldon wants to know why wasn’t he allowed to visit him at the hospital. John says that he didn’t want him to get disturbed by the much more serious patients there. Georgie asks if he was locked up in a room. It turns out John was confined to the hospital but not his room. Missy wonders how John knew that he got better. He says that he’s developed skills which help him manage his mental health now. Georgie is about to ask another question about The Shining, but Connie cuts him off.

 

After dinner John breaks up with Connie. He doesn’t want her to suffer in case he got another episode in the future and believes that she deserves better. Connie’s devastated. He suggests her to date Ira (Richard Kind) from the furniture store. Connie goes ahead. The next day she narrates it all to Mary and George. Mary thinks John is doing it for the better, but Connie’s ego has been hurt as she never gets dumped. She decides to give Ira a shot. Sheldon later learns that Meemaw and Dr. Sturgis are at an impasse and worries that he lost his science buddy. Seeing him suffer, the family ends up inviting John. He is surprised to be invited and brings a pineapple which it apparently a sign of medieval hospitality. Mary is amused.

 

Connie and Ira go on a dinner date. He’s surprised as he last heard that she was with John. Connie reveals that they broke up while she was calling him, literally. He’s glad that he was the first person that came to her mind. Connie corrects it as John’s but Ira’s still grateful.

 

At home Missy is bummed that Dr. Sturgis is back. Georgie wonders where Meemaw is and Sheldon lets him know that she and Dr. Sturgis are figuring things out. Georgie realizes that he dumped Meemaw. George corrects it as the other way round. John repeats that he’s open to questions as before. Missy gets permission to eat in the living room while Georgie returns to The Shining.

 

Ira can’t believe that John suggested him and smells spite in the whole thing. Connie asks about how things have gone with him. Ira reveals that he’s been working on himself. He’s learning tennis, trying out new foods and dealing with heat burns from the foreign spices.

 

Georgie moves on to ask about how John now finds older women hot when back in the olden days he found the younger ones attractive. Dr. Sturgis starts to praise Connie and how hot she is. Mary brings George aside and orders him to take John to a bar as it’s better than the present topic of conversation. He does as he is told.

 

George and John go to a dive bar where the former’s a regular. John starts filling him in on the history of dive bars. The bartender, Nate (Ed Ackerman), is curious about George’s new acquaintance. He and John get introduced.

 

While Mary is putting the twins to bed, Sheldon is glad that his dad and Dr. Sturgis have become friends. This way they can have him over frequently. Missy doesn’t want that. She’s on Meemaw’s side as she got her a 2-piece bathing suit. Sheldon doesn’t understand why taking sides is necessary. Missy thinks it is important as her friend’s parents got divorced and the girl ended up getting both the doll house and the pink Corvette thanks to the art of taking sides wisely. Mary is surprised.

 

The dessert arrives. Ira says he loves ice-cream and Connie immediately brings up a scientific fact about milking vanilla that John once told her. She finds it weird that she did that. Ira asks if she’s okay. She nods and they dig in.

 

At the bar John explains to George how and why he made the right choice to separate from Connie who was apparently his first girlfriend. He asks George if he’s facing personal or communication issues with Mary. Getting uncomfortable, he nudges him to go play pool with him.

 

Missy is hoping to get at least one American girl doll if dad and mom divorced. Mary is stunned and stresses that it will never happen. Sheldon asks if it was hard for her to see Meemaw date men who weren’t her father. Mary admits that it was initially, but since her mom’s a grown independent woman she tried getting used to it and be happy in her happiness.

 

The bill arrives and Ira pays. Connie thanks him for the date and asks when can they have their second one. Ira keeps deferring the dates and she realizes that he’s blowing her off. In his defense she’s still hung up on John and he doesn’t want his heart broken. Connie is shocked at how bad her week’s going.

 

At the bar John reminisces about his undergrad days when he was a regular at the pool table. He used to calculate the angles in advance, either in degrees or radians, depending on what level of whimsy he was at. George cracks a “radian” joke and they laugh it off. Today John is glad to be living life with such a kind man in George, especially after the recent hospital sabbatical. He asks everyone at the bar to give him his attention and raises a toast to George for lending ears to his woes and helping him row out of his rough phase. He talks about his breakup and the heartache that has followed, but adds that he’s found solace in the bosom of male friendship. George is mortified despite the smile he’s put on. The whole crowd has a unanimous indifferent look on their faces until John announces that all drinks are on him.

 

The next day Mary finds John snoring peacefully on their couch. George explains that he had a few beers while the scientist just had one. Missy walks in and is pissed to find Dr. Sturgis still around. She’s mad that they aren’t allowed to get a dog, but he can still stay here day day after day!