Young Sheldon – Seven Deadly Sins and a Small Carl Sagan

By: Ujjyani Banerjee

The episode opens with Mary (Zoe Perry), Pastor Jeff (Mat Hobby) and his hard-smoking secretary (Nancy Linehan Charles) watching an old interview about the church’s Halloween Hell House being too gruesome. While pastor Jeff says that the intention was to restore people’s faith in God, a clip showing a drunk bloke committing murder gives a rather gory message out to people.

As the secretary pauses the tape, Jeff tells Mary that he wants her to head this year’s production and it’s got to be more family-friendly this time. He assures her of a good budget and receiving ample assistance across different departments.

Back home at dinner Mary excitedly reveals her first change: Hell House to Heck House. George (Lance Barber) appreciates it but Georgie (Montana Jordan) snorts. Missy (Raegan Revord) feels it’d be lackluster sans blood and gore. Connie (Annie Potts) thinks it’s basically scaring people into joining the church, but Mary explains that people are already ready to be scared on Halloween anyways so this would just nudge them in the right direction. Mary is displeased when Sheldon (Iain Armitage) compares it to how religious groups have been using fear as a popular recruitment tactic since centuries.

The next morning at school Georgie jealously watches Sheldon getting hugged by Veronica Duncan (Isabel May), a female senior. Apparently, he’s tutoring her in Trigonometry for $2/lesson. Georgie asks Sheldon to introduce him to Veronica.

Meanwhile, Mary has come to get notes regarding her Halloween production from the school drama teacher, Mr. Lundy (Jason Alexander). She shares her idea of putting on little plays in individual rooms wherein each location would portray one of the seven deadly sins. He suggests having Satan do a parallel narration noting that he’d be perfect for the role.

Under the same roof, Georgie and Sheldon wait for Veronica outside the girls’ restroom. As she comes out, Sheldon greets her and introduces her to Georgie. She complements his hair.

Later, Mary and Connie go to realtor Fred Murphy’s (Adam Kulbersh) house that he’s rented for free against getting to play lead in the Heck House lust room. Just then, Mr. Lundy joins the duo and starts suggesting spiderwebs and smoke entries for Satan according to script. Mary’s puzzled as she was supposed to be playwright and asks about there already being a script. Lundy tells to drop the worry as he’s already written one. Mary neither likes his attitude nor his sin-glorifying writing when she sits to read it at night.

In another room Sheldon, Billy Sparks (Wyatt McClure) and Tam (Ryan Phuong) are playing when Georgie comes to call them for dinner. Tam tells he spotted him and Veronica at school talking. Georgie grins and says he’ll know her more gradually. Sheldon adds that he introduced them and that Veronica’s Math skills are dreadful.

The scene shifts to Heck House rehearsals where Lundy clearly is taking charge sidelining Mary and it even reflects in the posters reading A Gene Lundy Production. During lust room rehearsals, as Lundy directs heavy physical intimacies, Mary reminds him to stop glorifying sins. He vehemently denies any glorification as the story entails the sinful man passing syphilis to his wife down the line. Shortly, the lust scene actress (Joy Jacobson) joins them in stripper clothes. Mary, who’s had enough, orders to put brakes on all of this right now as she won’t let children watch a half-naked woman making out with a lust-maniac on Halloween. Lundy cunningly calms her down asking her to rely on him, a theater professional, and she could go home and make a tuna casserole.

Adult Sheldon (Jim Parsons) recollects his mom having been angry enough to tear Lundy to shreds that night, but she was morally compelled to follow Jesus. So, she goes back home to prepare tuna casserole, which turns out to be a little too briny for their tastebuds.

Finally, the event arrives. The kids start coming in to the Heck House and they’re horrifyingly greeted by Satan. Mary, dressed as angel, watches Lundy taking center stage and leading the Heck House tour. Meanwhile, the kids are making the rounds trick-or-treating. Billy is Superman, Missy is Cyndi Lauper, Tam is a wizard and Sheldon is Carl Sagan, the host of “Cosmos.” Georgie’s out on a Halloween date night with Veronica. She asks him if he’s as smart as Sheldon. Georgie says nobody is that smart, bus she mentions her elder sister being a genius (i.e. a high-school graduate) who’s now in jail for selling weed to an undercover cop. The lovebirds make out and she suggests they crash at her place as her parents are out.

Coming back to Heck House, Connie and George are giving Mary company at her heaven- themed party, which is awfully devoid of visitors. Mary feels people are rather interested in exploring sins and don’t even want to be saved. Connie blames the timing. She feels a war or plague would’ve seen a boatload of converts. George adds advertising their free cupcakes might have lured kids in or, as Connie said, maybe a famine would’ve done the trick.

Pastor Jeff joins them at the Cooper’s dressed in a feminine consume. He’s overjoyed at the donations received, unlike Mary who feels money collection shouldn’t just be a factor of contentment – nobody’s wanted to convert! Jeff explains her that the money shall help them do good for people. Tossing her a bunch of grapes from his fruit-decked headgear, he twirls out of the heaven themed party leaving Mary in complete awe.

Veronica brings George to the Heck House instead of going to her place. George isn’t too stoked. Adult Sheldon tells us that his mom’s fear of having no one being interested in faith was proven to be incorrect that night. Veronica is deeply impacted as she witnesses the lust room events. She watches through her tears as Satan shows how the prostitute trades her beauty for a few tawdry dollars being left with nothing but shame. She rushes to heaven sobbing and prays to be saved from the wretches of hell. Mary, who’s faith gets restored from the brink of humanity, helps her that night. According to adult Sheldon, Veronica undergoes a deep change that night. She grows up to live a life devoted to God, feeding the poor, helping her sister and starting a literacy program for female prisoners. That very night; however, converts Georgie to a devout atheist as he witnesses his potential girlfriend abandon lust for life!

The episode ends with a moment of vindication for Sheldon who jumps up in joy when a trick-or-treat lady (Hilda Boulware) finally identifies him as Carl Sagan. This is a personal highlight on that spooky Halloween night.