"A Lot of Band-Aids and the Cooper Surrender" is an episode of Young Sheldon that first aired January 27, 2022.
Sheldon is studying in his dorm room, while the dorm next to his is playing loud music. Sheldon goes over and asks his dorm neighbors, Oscar (Ivan Mok) and Darren (Caleb Emery), to turn down their music, and they explain that it is from their video game. Sheldon says that he plays some video games, and that he and Connie once beat Quest of Adeera.note Oscar and Darren are impressed, and invite Sheldon in to play games, which Sheldon enjoys. Oscar and Darren later invite Sheldon to play Dungeons & Dragons, starting at 7:00 pm and going until "whenever". Sheldon wants to, but doubts that Mary would let him.
Meanwhile, at Medford High School, George Sr. is called to a closed-door meeting with Principal Petersen (Rex Linn). The football team's boosters are complaining about the team's recent poor performance. George Sr. must talk to the boosters, his job depends on it.
George gets home, and Mary asks George to pick up Sheldon from school, but George doesn't want to, saying that he needs a few minutes to himself after his bad day at work. Mary counters by saying that she also hasn't had any time to herself that day.
Sheldon then calls, and George answers the phone; Sheldon asks if he can spend the night at his dorm to play D&D, and George lets him, so that he won't have to pick him up. Mary doesn't approve of this decision, worrying that the other students will be drinking alcohol.
George explains that her fears are very unfounded, as Sheldon is hesitant to even try root beer. Plus the boy genius is likelier to bore the other students with "fun facts" about alcohol. Mary is not comforted by that, and asks George why he is so grumpy. George explains that his job is under threat, and Mary forgives him, and they stop arguing. Mary then leaves to pick up Sheldon.
Meanwhile, Mary, Missy, and Connie are going clothes-shopping. Missy wants to buy an above-the-knee skirt that she finds, but Mary won't let her. Connie then offers to buy it for her, and Mary agrees, on the condition that Missy won't wear it to school.
The next day, Missy wears a long skirt (approved by Mary) to school, but secretly brings the short skirt to change into. Missy's friends love her new skirt... but then make fun of Missy's hairy legs, as Mary won't let her shave them. After school, Missy tries shaving her legs by herself, but doesn't use shaving cream or anything, and so she cuts herself all over.
She then goes over to Connie's house, and Connie bandages her legs up, utilizing her experience with bandaging Sheldon. Connie then offers to teach Missy how to shave, and encourages her to keep wearing the short skirt (after her legs heal, of course).
In The Tag, Sheldon is playing D&D, and starts feeling sick due to all of the root beer, cheese puffs, and Skittles that he ate while playing. Sheldon feels the need to throw up, but can't make it to the bathroom in his dorm room. Mary arrives right as Oscar and Darren are carrying Sheldon to his dorm bathroom, and tells Sheldon that he has to leave right now.
Tropes
- Bait-and-Switch: Adult Sheldon says that the only thing he didn't like about his dorm was his neighbors playing loud rock-and-roll music. The music we then hear is the chip tune background music from a video game.
- Continuity Nod:
- To 'An 8-Bit Princess and a Flat Tire Genius', in which Connie and Sheldon bonded playing Quest for Adeera.
- Missy being made fun of for her hairy legs goes back to "One Bad Night and Chaos of Selfish Desires", when Missy mentions that Mary won't let her shave her legs.
- Gory Discretion Shot: We are spared the sight of Missy's badly shaved legs.
- Hairy Girl: Mary won't let Missy shave her legs, so she's made fun of when she comes to school in her miniskirt. She tries to shave them herself, but since she was never taught how, she ends up badly cutting them.
- Kids Are Cruel: The two girls who make fun of Missy's hairy legs.
- Like Father, Like Son: Coach Wilkins worries that George will say to the boosters something tactless but brutally honest. Sheldon is very well known for this, he probably gets it from his father. So Coach Wilkins volunteers to talk to the boosters instead of George.
- Mood Whiplash: Missy emerges from the school restroom rocking her new short skirt... and then we cut to her at Connie's in tears.
- Previously on…: We're reminded of 'An Expensive Glitch and a Goof Off Room', in which Sheldon got his own dorm room.
- Vomit Discretion Shot: The camera stays outside Sheldon's dorm room as he throws up inside.
