Young Sheldon Season 6 was nothing but drama as multiple seasons came to a head. "A Stolen Truck and Going on the Lam" showed the beginning of Missy's difficult phase, and it also showed that George and Mary were nowhere close to making up after their near-affairs. On top of that, Georgie and Mandy were busy dealing with the trials of new parenthood, while Sheldon was processing his recent business failure.
With all of those plots starting to reach their boiling points, fans fully expected things to get out of hand before the season wrapped up. But that didn't happen in Young Sheldon Season 6, Episode 17, "A German Folk Song and an Actual Adult." The episode did an about-face and started to lessen some tension. Here's what happened and how the episode subverted fans' expectations in a big way.
George and Mary Reunited, While Sheldon and Missy Bonded
George and Mary have been having a rough time lately. They both confirmed the other's extra-marital desires, and Mary had been staying with Meemaw. Granted, neither of them actually had an affair, but the secrecy and desires were taking a toll on their marriage. Because of that, fans expected the tension between them to continue indefinitely, even if George's affair and death weren't slated to happen in Season 6. However, "A German Folk Song and an Actual Adult" challenged fans' expectations. The episode showed Mary and George living together again. Their issues weren't fixed, but they both wanted to try to work things out and avoid a divorce.
As fans have noted, George is much nicer than Sheldon's description of him on The Big Bang Theory. Young Sheldon's George is also much more nuanced than Sheldon's TBBT self would have admitted. By showing the complicated reality of George and Mary's marriage -- and their current efforts to rebuild it -- Young Sheldon is taking steps to humanize its characters and show how everyone struggles with some kind of weakness.
If nothing else, George and Mary had to be on the same page with punishing Missy. She was grounded after stealing George's truck, so she recruited Sheldon to watch Beverly Hills, 90210 and report back to her. After a few watches and some lessons on social cues and musical subtext, Sheldon was able to communicate what happened. Seeing them bond was unexpected. Lately, Sheldon has been especially self-absorbed, and Missy has been uncharacteristically rebellious. So, seeing them help each other and bond was an unexpected and happy twist.
Young Sheldon's Georgie Proposed to Mandy
George and Mary have been struggling recently, but Georgie and Mandy have had a complicated relationship from the beginning. Georgie lied about his age, but he had already gotten Mandy pregnant when the truth came out. Since then, they've been planning on parenting their child together, but they weren’t planning on being a couple. However, that changed in "A German Folk Song and an Actual Adult."
Georgie went out on a birthday dinner with his girlfriend, and that made him realize what he wanted. He wanted to settle down with Mandy and be a father. So, he broke up with his girlfriend, and as the episode closed, he popped the question. And in the Season 6 finale, the pair finally sealed the deal by getting engaged.
On TBBT, Georgie wasn't married, but he had been married more than once. With that trajectory in mind, it's implied that Mandy and Georgie won't end well, which would be unfortunate. Who knows what will happen, though, because it's possible that Young Sheldon won't exactly follow TBBT's canon. After all, the series has done a great job of bringing them together, and fans have loved seeing their relationship build while Mary and George's falls apart.
Young Sheldon is available to stream on Paramount+ and Max.