Young Sheldon – An 8-Bit Princess and a Flat Tire Genius

By: Ujjyani Banerjee

The episode begins with adult Sheldon (Jim Parsons) recollecting how he always hated home videogames unlike kids his age. Hence, it’s understandable when young Sheldon (Iain Armitage) cringes upon getting one as a gift from Meemaw (Annie Potts). According to him, they’re unproductive. Connie coyly says that she’ll play by herself and Sheldon comments that it’s indeed tickling to accept that old folks can handle technology. Meemaw tickles him for real until he agrees to play, but she’s bored to death when the boy starts intricately reading all legal, technical and manufacturing instructions on the game.

Next, we see George (Lance Barber) driving up their truck along with Georgie (Montana Jordan) to Herschel Sparks’ (Billy Gardell) auto-repair shop. George feels he needs a new radiator, but Georgie thinks the issue lies in the thermostat and according to Herschel, latter’s the right answer. George is surprised.

Back at Meemaw’s place, Sheldon and Meemaw decide on naming the player for the game. Sheldon wants a name-merge. Meemaw suggests ShelMaw, but he pitches Emelda Showmen. Loving it, Meemaw asks to go with it. When Sheldon starts playing solo Meemaw gives him a questioning look. He says she didn’t read the manual. Shortly as the game starts picking up and Sheldon plays extraordinarily safe, Meemaw starts guiding him through it and ultimately has to take charge.

At the auto-repair, Herschel says it’ll take twenty minutes tops to repair the thermostat. Georgie offers to assist him. Surprised, George mockingly asks Herschel if he’s paying him so that Georgie can do the repair. Herschel says he could take his son Billy’s (Wyatt McClure) help but everybody knows how that would end up. The father-son duo come back from the auto-repair shop and Georgie discloses to Mary (Zoe Perry) that Herschel has offered him a part-time job. While she’s appreciative, she’s also worried that football practice and job would affect his education, unlike George who feels it’ll be good for him. She gives in provided Georgie won’t miss dinner or mess up his grades.

Over the next few days, Sheldon and Meemaw remain transfixed on saving the 8-bit princess from the game while at dinners. Georgie keeps sharing bits from his part-time job and sings the praises about Herschel being a genius. George visibly gets jealous. Frenzied over their ongoing game, Sheldon and Meemaw rush to the dinner table, grab their plates and rush back as the whole family watches them in awe. Shortly, Mary goes over to call him home as it’s past bedtime. He retires for the night asking Meemaw not to play by herself.

Late at night Herschel approaches George for some help. Apparently, he is short-staffed for the next day and he could really use Georgie to volunteer. George doesn’t like the idea as the kid’s got football practice after school. Just then, Georgie stumbles by and is thrilled at the idea of earning some money instead of sitting at the bench during football practice like other days. George annoyingly asks Georgie to discuss with him first. Witnessing the heated discussion, Herschel apologizes for sparking up the topic and leaves saying he’ll arrange an alternative. George is mad that his son is willing to abandon football to work at a garage. Georgie feels that he’s just not cut out for the game and he’s hurt when his dad stresses that it’s not his decision to make.

Sheldon, meanwhile, is dreaming about the game wherein he and Meemaw are struggling to kill the cyclops as they’ve exhausted their ammunitions and only have a piccolo left. He wakes up with a jolt and goes straight to call Meemaw telling her about the piccolo. He asks her how she answered her phone immediately given the fact that it’s not next to her bed. Meemaw, who had kept the game paused while being on phone, lies about being on her way to the bathroom. Sheldon smells the lie, thanks to his binoculars, and is mad that she’s playing all by herself. Meemaw promises to go to sleep right away and hangs up the phone cursing those binoculars.

The next morning Sheldon is surprised to not find Georgie being driven to school along with him. Georgie says he needed a break from him and Mary’s driving him to school. Sheldon compares Georgie to be an acquired taste, kind of like grape nuts which though tasted like gravel to Sheldon initially, soon became one amongst his favorite cereals (adding sugar and letting it get soggy had done the trick). They share a hearty laugh when George sarcastically shares he’ll try soaking Georgie in milk to make him more likeable.

Back at her place, Meemaw is struggling to resist the game and ends up calling Sheldon from school on the false pretext of taking him to meet his very sick aunt Emelda! Gaming like professionals, the duo delightfully enters the last stage of the game, a/k/a the final dungeon, which Meemaw offers him to play. As reminisced by present-day Sheldon, this game still remains his most cherished digital battle to date as it was the first time he felt like the hero that his Meemaw unflinchingly trusted.

Later in the day, Herschel joins George for drinks and tells him about Georgie’s sixth sense of spotting punctures on flat tires like a specially gifted human – something he’s never witnessed in his 25-years career. He predicts Georgie’s stellar future in the tire business.

Across the very road, Meemaw and Sheldon play until the end and jump up in joy as Emelda Showmen comes out unscathed saving the princess. After the thrill dies out, both enter the delirious existential crisis phase and ponder over what to do next. Meemaw suggests maybe they could buy another game at the store. Without wasting another second, they leap across the hall to their car in their quest to save more digital princesses.

Adult Sheldon remembers that none of his future quests involving orks, zombies, etc. ever came close to this first quest of his that he shared with his Meemaw. Finally, George and Herschel witness Georgie in action as he rests his ear close to the tire whispering to it amidst a melodious tune filling the garage air. He feels the tire edges with a sound ear and in no time taps over the camouflaging puncture that silently had been trying to kill the melody, leaving his awestruck father in goosebumps.