Summary

• Stephen Hawking’s cameo appearance
  The Big Bang Theory
  helped address Sheldon’s jealousy in a heartwarming way.
• Sheldon’s competitive spirit, which is rooted in his personality, proved difficult to overcome in
  The Big Bang Theory
  .
• Young Sheldon
  Sheldon’s personality was subtly changed to downplay flaws such as jealousy.

Although all The Big Bang TheoryStephen Hawking’s cameo appearances were fun, but the late physicist’s most underrated episode also addressed a major issue with Sheldon. Sheldon Cooper was a pretty flawed character, but that didn’t stop viewers from loving him. The Big Bang TheoryThe entire cast of characters was popular, but it was Sheldon who got a leading role in the first spinoff of the series. Even Young Sheldon‘s offshoot Georgie & Mandy’s first marriage only exists because Sheldon’s prequel series was so popular. Despite that popularity, Sheldon’s character flaws sometimes made him a difficult character to like.

Sheldon was always hilarious, but sometimes the joke was at the expense of his supposed friends. In season 7, episode 8, “The Itchy Brain Simulation,” Sheldon guilt-tripped Leonard into wearing a rash-inducing sweater because Leonard forgot to return a DVD, after which Sheldon revealed that he had returned it himself years earlier. Mean antics like this ran counter to the character’s ultimately well-meaning nature and didn’t seem believable. Sheldon’s competitive nature, however, was a different story. This character detail seemed ingrained in Sheldon’s personality, and thus proved difficult to overcome. Thankfully, a cameo appearance helped.

Stephen Hawking helped Sheldon overcome his jealousy

Season 10, Episode 9: Sheldon deals with the success of a colleague

Instead of just appearing for a punch line, StephanHawking stepped in to help Sheldon deal with his toxic jealousy. In season 10, episode 9, “The Geology Elevation,” Sheldon struggled with all the attention given to his successful new colleague, geologist Bret. After Bret wins the MacArthur Fellowship, Sheldon is furious at all the attention and praise the mild-mannered scientist is receiving. Things get even worse when he reads the geologist’s award-winning work and has to admit that it deserved all the praise. Fortunately, an unusual old friend helps Sheldon overcome his professional jealousy.

In this cameo, Hawking is surprisingly nice to the antihero of the series “The Big Bang Theory”.

Towards the end of the appearance, Hawking calls Sheldon to help him deal with his inability to celebrate Bert’s success. Despite having repeatedly played pranks on Sheldon and the rest of the gang in his previous appearances, Hawking is surprisingly kind to The Big Bang Theory’s antihero in this cameo. He tells Sheldon that someone as brilliant as he is cannot afford to waste his time on petty jealousy, a compliment that resonates with the arrogant figure. With Hawking’s approval, Sheldon is finally able to swallow his pride and accept that Bret’s well-deserved success has not negatively affected him.

Sheldon’s jealousy was one of his defining mistakes

The hero of The Big Bang Theory has not been confronted with this trait for years

While his lover said almost the same thing to him as Hawking at the beginning of the episode, one of the biggest mistakes in The Big Bang TheoryThe reason for Amy and Sheldon’s relationship was his refusal to listen to her. The Big Bang TheoryThe head of had difficulty accepting advice from anyone, but Sheldon’s jealousy was one of his definitive character flaws. His superiority complex led him to believe he was smarter than everyone else around him, and when that was occasionally proven wrong, Sheldon often went off the rails. Fortunately, Penny was good at bringing him back down to earth.

Sheldon often fell into a dynamic of childish competitiveness.

From her first appearance, Penny’s disinterest in science meant that she effectively brought Sheldon back to reality when he became too delusional. However, it was difficult for her to intervene when Sheldon was struggling professionally. Surrounded by other established scientists, Sheldon often fell into a dynamic of childish one-upmanship. While The Big Bang TheoryThe next spin-off of could show whether Hawkins’ lessons lasted. In “The Geology Elevation,” Sheldon at least learned from one of his heroes how to deal constructively with jealousy. Ironically, his younger self didn’t need that lesson quite as much.

The Big Bang Theory spinoff downplayed this mistake

Sheldon was less shamelessly competitive in “Young Sheldon”

Young Sheldon changed many character details of Sheldon’s family, making Mary a sweeter presence and Meemaw a more rebellious character. However, the spinoff also subtly changed Sheldon’s own personality. Sheldon is not as intensely jealous in Young Sheldonwith the character’s jealous side only occasionally coming to the fore in the spin-off. This could be an indication that the move to CalTech was not necessarily beneficial for the young prodigy. Sheldon’s small group of fellow scientists at East Texas Tech seem to work as collaborators, although Dr. Linkletter and Sheldon were pitted against each other in Season 6.

In contrast, Sheldon clearly sees himself as a competitor to his colleagues at CalTech. The move to CalTech was a positive move for Sheldon, and the character explained that upon arriving at Young SheldonThe finale. The new location and the isolation that came with it didn’t help his competitive spirit, however. CalTech apparently increased Sheldon’s competitive spirit, leading to his fateful video call with Hawking in Season 10. This chat left The Big Bang TheoryThe hero is a little better and more open-minded than before the conversation with Hawking.