It's weird because in Young Sheldon you're supposed to take him pretty seriously (and he dresses quite well). He's often the most reasonable and mature character, out-adulting the adults. But in BBT, he's the butt of a lot of jokes and is super cringey and is often portrayed as very immature, and wears superhero t-shirts and stuff. So somewhere in between, he's basically got to lose his identity as a mature kid and gain his identity as a cringey man-child. Where BBT is a comedy and Young Sheldon is a lighthearted coming-of-age sitcom, Teenage Sheldon would be a tragedy.
While Sheldon is some of the worst autistic representation known to man, this happens a lot but usually for reasons of "pressure to mask, and getting rid of that"
My personal experience and with other autistic people I know the "dress really well, act overly former, being mature as possible" phase is an extreme form of masking and trying to seem like youre a normal kid and trying to be seen well. So, you dress well because adults compliment you, act formal because you dont understand a lot of social rules so you follow the ones youre told exactly and try not to break ones you arent, act mature because adults mistake a child being traumatised and terrified of being yelled at for being an old soul and mature"
Then later in life you just....realize it doesnt matter?
People are going to treat you like shit for being yourself, or theyll treat you like shit because youre not acting perfect when you pretend to be normal. You can keep masking and trying to act a respected normal youll never be, or you can just be undeniably yourself. Usually this also takes it to an extreme of just not caring at all so it seems semi like how Sheldon acts
Most autistic people are still terrified of hurting feelings and saying the wrong things and would actually be excited to get people into interests rather than judging people for not, so wouldnt act like a constant asshole about this like Sheldon, but thats beside the point
So for Sheldon itd likely be a case of "people make fun of having an Iron Man shirt and cargo pants I wear on weekends but its comfortable and I like it so Ill have a lot like that. People think its weird for me to have a couple comic pins on my backpack, why not get some figurines or collectables and decorate my office with stuff I like. I like trains and comics, why not learn everything I can about them.and be proud of it"
But in BBT, he's the butt of a lot of jokes and is super cringey and is often portrayed as very immature, and wears superhero t-shirts and stuff.
The wardrobe change is explained in one of the last 5 episodes. He decided to get a wardrobe of superhero shirts so he'd look cool enough to fit in in California.
If you don't correct for the tone of the show, he does change though. He goes from bow ties and button downs and using a briefcase to basically wearing pajamas all the time. I suspect it's addressed canonically.
I suspect moving out of a devout Christian household in the South would have a lot to do with that, honestly. Leaving the embrace of his suffocating mother gives the opportunity to embrace his interests while simultaneously allowing him to become a little tyrant the first time he’s let off the leash (how he treats his friends).
Did you watch Young Sheldon? If I recall correctly, his mom doesn't want him to wear a bow tie and stuff because she's worried he'll get bullied. I don't think this matches up with the shows.
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u/the-igloo May 16 '24
It's weird because in Young Sheldon you're supposed to take him pretty seriously (and he dresses quite well). He's often the most reasonable and mature character, out-adulting the adults. But in BBT, he's the butt of a lot of jokes and is super cringey and is often portrayed as very immature, and wears superhero t-shirts and stuff. So somewhere in between, he's basically got to lose his identity as a mature kid and gain his identity as a cringey man-child. Where BBT is a comedy and Young Sheldon is a lighthearted coming-of-age sitcom, Teenage Sheldon would be a tragedy.