Young Sheldon was created as a spinoff of The Big Bang Theory, and the CBS comedy has done really well in its first six seasons. However, Young Sheldon is a bit different from its predecessor. The sense of humor is different, and the stories don’t always line up. For one, the Coopers are much nicer than Sheldon described them on TBBT, and there are a few odd and insulting plot holes.
With that said, Young Sheldon has started to up the drama, as its story closes in with TBBT canon. “A Frat Party, a Sleepover and the Mother of All Blisters” took another step in that direction. Paige showed back up, and fans are worried that they’ve figured out the tragic reason why she was never mentioned on TBBT.
“A Frat Party, a Sleepover and the Mother of All Blisters” was an episode full of lies. Things started when Sheldon tried to stop his dormmates from making too much noise. When they opened the door, Sheldon was shocked to see Paige inside. He tried to stop her from reveling, but she was soon off to another party. Sheldon followed her, but he was even more surprised to see Missy there. She had lied to her parents about being at a sleepover. Together, they saved Paige from going home with a random boy and decided to keep the whole thing a secret.
Viewers were surprised to see how far Paige had fallen. She was introduced in Season 2 as another child prodigy and a fellow student in one of Sheldon’s college classes. She started out as a happy kid, but then, her parents got divorced. She became quiet, shoplifted and even punched Sheldon in the face. Eventually, she dropped out of college and started living at home again. So, seeing her drinking and smoking at a college party was the last thing that fans expected.
If Paige’s drinking wasn’t bad enough, fans were even more surprised to find out why. She wasn’t trying to be cool. She was “actively trying to kill brain cells so that she could escape from real life,” or at least that’s how Sheldon put it. It showed that she had no emotional support from anyone, and a lot of fans on Reddit have started to expect the worst. User mtm4440 wrote, “I’m really worried for Paige in the future episodes. Each guest appearance has shown her progressively getting worse.” The user is right. Paige has been getting worse with every appearance, and Young Sheldon may be building to her heartbreaking death.
While having Paige possibly die in a tragic way seems dark for the series, things (like Georgie’s relationship with Mandy) have been getting more tragic. So, it’s not outside the realm of possibility. It’s odd that TBBT never mentioned her because growing up with another child prodigy seems noteworthy. But if Paige’s death traumatized Sheldon, it would explain why he never talked about her. Obviously, no one wants to see Paige die or George’s tragic affair on Young Sheldon, but unless the series starts clearing some plot holes, it will never be able to line up with TBBT canon. So, fans should hold their breath and expect the worst for Paige.
