Young Sheldon is a popular series for CBS and one that fans of The Big Bang Theory have embraced as a worthy prequel to the show that started it all. People say a lot about Young Sheldon, but I’m not sure anyone has offered the take that scientist and notable free-thinker Richard Dawkins gave recently. Dawkins is noteworthy for some bonkers tweets over the years, and he offered up another social media jewel in likening Sheldon's origin story to The Simpsons.
Richard Dawkins isn’t a television critic and tends to excel in the field of evolutionary biology, but he gave it his best shot in trying to explain the allure of Young Sheldon, which may or may not be directly tied to exercise machines. Check out his thoughts on the series and the bizarre way the free-thinker decided to bring The Simpsons into his review.
US series called Young Sheldon nicely passes dull time on exercise machine. Witty like Simpsons – not just contrast of solemn young genius vs sibs, but gentle satire on “normal” US family: fat football-coach father, airhead religious mother, brash, in-your-face grandma. Fun.November 26, 2021
At first, I was like, “What is Richard Dawkins thinking,” but I kind of get where the comparison comes in. Sheldon is definitely a Lisa Simpson-type character, and his brother Georgie has the energy of Bart Simpson. I wouldn’t exactly describe the two shows as similar in terms of wit, especially if we're talking current-day Simpsons compared to the classic era, but then I’m not the person who wrote this tweet. Overall, I’m thoroughly confused (while also amused) by Richard Dawkins’ tweet, and I’m not the only one.
Much of what makes this tweet so great is that it came from Richard Dawkins, who has put his brainpower to work on some truly important issues. Dawkins is often cited as a champion of atheism, and his arguments against religion are something people actively seek out. As such, some decided to poke fun at that while commenting on his confusing take about Young Sheldon.
Young Sheldon proves that there's no god more definitively then any book Dawkins ever wrote https://t.co/YTYn96LJVnNovember 26, 2021
Young Sheldon is a popular show, but comparing it to The Simpsons is something fans of the latter would see as an insult. The Simpsons is a show that’s a part of television history, and its legacy and impact on pop culture is hard to encapsulate. Young Sheldon is a spinoff of The Big Bang Theory and doesn’t have quite the same legacy in comparison, even though Sheldon's adulthood was full of pop culture commentary.
Perhaps Richard Dawkins is too caught up in other thoughts to truly weigh the value of his comparison. Or, this is just a tweet from a guy talking about his favorite shows to watch while on an exercise machine, and it’s so hilarious because of who it’s coming from more than anything. I can legitimately say that had I not seen the tweet for myself, I might have assumed someone photoshopped these words together all in the name of some goofy joke. Seeing it’s real makes the opinion all the more enjoyable, and it's another all-time great tweet from Dawkins even if folks don’t agree with it.
Young Sheldon airs on CBS on Thursday nights at 8:00 p.m. ET. Fans of The Simpsons who haven’t watched the series may want to check it out, or they can just stick to what they know and check out classic episodes of the Matt Groening series on Disney+.
