Three Storylines Left Unresolved by The Big Bang Theory

I needed a moment to regroup following the Green Bay Packers' loss to the Philadelphia Eagles last night, ending their season and, as is often the case in situations like that, I found some familiarity by watching reruns of The Big Bang Theory. 

As I was doing that, I realized I have now seen every episode at least a half dozen times, despite not even watching the series until a couple years ago, when it was already off the air.  That reflection resulted in me being reminded of some storylines throughout the series that were one-offs without any real resolution. Even to this day, with the added benefit of the Young Sheldon spinoff clearing up a few questions (while creating a few more), these three storylines, which were major plot points for one episode each, remain unresolved.

Who Received Tenure?

The season 6 episode, "The Tenure Turbulence", put Leonard (Johnny Galecki), Sheldon (Jim Parsons), Raj (Kunal Nayyar) and Howard (Simon Helberg) in direct competition with each other as they attempted to get tenure at Caltech. This results in them attending a reception, with three bringing along their significant others, only to ultimately agree to team up and ensure their rival, Barry Kripke (John Ross Bowie) didn't get it.

The problem with this episode is we never are told who received tenure. Despite their friendship, it seems like something that would be brought up whenever they had an argument or, in Sheldon's case, just casual conversation. Kripke certainly would be bragging about it had he received it. 

None of them receiving it (which would be the assumption) is equally problematic because it feels like something that would cause one or more of them to reconsider their employment there had all four been denied. This is especially true of Sheldon, who despite his quirks, easily had seniority.

Did Sheldon Ever Admit the Psychic was Right?

In season 7's "The Anything Can Happen Recurrence", Penny (Kaley Cuoco) takes Sheldon to see a psychic. This has predictable results as, by this point in the series, it had already been well established Penny was the only one of the group of friends to believe in psychic ability.

However, in this case, the psychic (Kimberly Hebert Gregory) correctly predicted Sheldon's career goals would be achievable if he put his relationship with Amy (Mayim Bialik) first. He even came up with his Nobel Prize-winning theory on their wedding day, sharing the honor with his wife in the series finale. 

On the surface, one would assume his skepticism would remain firm despite this. I'm not as certain though since Sheldon, while stubborn, also was willing to accept things at face value when the evidence supported it. In any case, it was something that could have at least created an interesting debate had it been pursued.

Did Sheldon Ever Overcome his Hoarding Issue?

Sheldon's inability to throw things away came to light in season 9, when he revealed his "fortress of shame" to Amy in the episode "The Solder Excursion Diversion" and explained he paid rent on a very large storage unit so he could keep everything from old laptops to a Ziplock bag filled with old Ziplock bags. 

While played off for comedic effect, it was also a moment of intimacy and vulnerability shared between the two with Amy offering to help him. However, that is the last we hear about his secret and even the additional Young Sheldon revelations excluded the outcome. 

Did he continue to have the issue after he became a dad? Did Amy help him overcome it? We may never know.

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