It's still not Young Sheldon, and it can't be, but Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage Season 1 Episode 2 was a lot closer to what I've been missing.

Maybe it was the Missy subplot or Georgie talking to George's grave, but the second installment of this new spinoff felt a lot more familiar and comfortable.

I still think live laughter diminishes rather than enhances the show, especially when the audience laughs at more serious material, but we can't have everything.

I love it when a comedy can make me laugh and cry in the same episode.

All the great classic comedies, like All in The Family and The Mary Tyler Moore Show, did that. So did Young Sheldon.

Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage Season 1 Episode 2 found the perfect balance between emotionality and comedy.

I wasn't for the idea of George Sr. dying so close to the end of Young Sheldon because I was afraid it would make the ending too depressing, but without it, we couldn't have had the subplots we had in this story.

Georgie talking to his father's grave made for strong opening and closing narration, so much so that, at first, I wished every episode would frame itself that way.

It would turn into a tired TV trope quickly if they really did that, but it did work well for this episode.

Missy was always my favorite on Young Sheldon. She was bright and sassy but always lost in the shuffle because of all the attention everyone paid Sheldon.

I know what it's like to feel like you're growing up in a sibling's shadow, forever compared to them.

Even though our situations were completely different, I always identified strongly with Missy's feelings and was disappointed there wasn't a lot of her in the final season.

It's not surprising that after her father's death, she became a rebellious troublemaker. Missy was headed in that direction before that, but as she said, she had no one to stop her from going off the rails now.

Missy: Now that you're gone and Sheldon's gone, I'm alone a lot. It's a lot easier to get away with stuff now, but it sucks.

For me, a beat meant to be one of Georgie & Mandy Season 1 Episode 2's funniest moments was its most painful.

Telling someone you're there for them and then being called away the second they start pouring their heart out is an old joke, and I never find it funny.

It's not cool when someone feels invisible and alone and acts out because they have no other way to communicate the pain they're in, and someone who is supposed to be there for them pulls the rug out from under them.

Missy broke my heart when she finally cried at her father's grave.

I can guarantee, though, that this is only the beginning of her rebellious behavior, and not just because we know from The Big Bang Theory that Missy didn't find much success and happiness as an adult.

And that sucks. Georgie is right that she has a good head on her shoulders that she needs to use.

I can understand her not wanting to listen to him, though.

Not only is he her brother and not her father, but he dropped out of high school after learning Mandy was pregnant with his child, so he's not the best person to advise her to stay in school and do what she's supposed to do.

The seeds have already been planted for Georgie and Mandy's breakup.

Though Audrey is wrong that Georgie being little more than a teenager is the entire problem here, the young couple is already showing signs of not being able to weather life's storms together.

Georgie's panic attack was well done. It was understandable that he'd be afraid of having one early in life after losing his father the way he did, although I recognized what it was before he did.

The studio audience didn't agree, but I thought his exchange with the doctor was as hilarious as it was poignant. Only Georgie would try to convince the doctor that it "don't sound right" when the doctor tells him his heart is fine.

I also liked that Jim acknowledged the difficulty many men have with emotions. His self-deprecating joke about eating right and exercising to deal with stress while holding a piece of bacon in his hand was perfect.

This is a serious problem in reality, but sometimes the best way to address a social issue is with humor, and Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage Season 1 Episode 2 did that perfectly.

Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage Season 1 Episode 2 did a great job of dealing with mental health issues... except one.

It's clear that Connor is autistic, or at least autistic-coded and probably meant to be the replacement character for Sheldon in this spinoff.

But too many of his scenes were about Mandy and her mother arguing about whether Connor was "normal," and it felt like the underlying message was that the quirks that came with his neurodivergence deserved to be mocked.

Big Bang Theory did that with Sheldon to an extent, though it didn't feel as mean-spirited.

Even though the adult version of Sheldon was often annoying, his sole purpose wasn't to be the butt of jokes.

His friends loved him despite his self-centeredness and annoying habits, and he was the lead character.

So far, Connor's only purpose in Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage is to come in, say something weird, get laughed at, and leave.

I hope this changes soon. If Connor isn't going to be a major enough character to have a storyline beyond being strange, then he needs to be written out of the show.

A few additional thoughts:

Over to you, Georgie & Mandy fanatics. What did you think of this episode?

Hit the comments with your thoughts, and don't forget to rate the episode by voting in our poll!