While The Conners season 7 has a chance to wrap up the family sitcom’s story perfectly, one awkward issue works against the Roseanne spinoff. The Conners has a large cast of characters, most of whom the show shares with its predecessor, Roseanne. This means the family sitcom has historically struggled to give all of its protagonists sufficient screen time and story focus, an issue that worsened after the off-screen death of the show’s former title character. For better or worse, Roseanne was the main character of Roseanne. Since her death, The Conners has been without a primary protagonist.
John Goodman’s Dan, Sara Gilbert’s Darlene, and even Laurie Metcalf’s Jackie could arguably be called the protagonists of the series, but The Conners doesn’t generally center one character over another. This is an admirable way to ensure everyone gets a storyline of their own, but it could prove a problem in The Conners season 7. This upcoming outing will be the Roseanne spinoff’s final season, bringing to an end a sitcom franchise that has lasted 35 years. As such, there will be a lot of pressure on The Conners season 7, and this won’t be helped by one strange behind-the-scenes decision.
Roseanne’s 35th anniversary makes this the perfect time to look back on the family sitcom, but The Conners predecessor had some uncomfortable issues.
The Conners Season 7 Will Be Short
The Final Season May Be The Show’s Shortest Ever
Much like its first and sixth seasons, The Conners season 7 will be a lot shorter than normal. While announcing the spinoff’s season 7 renewal, The Hollywood Reporter mentioned that the outing will have “An episode count likely in the single digits.” This comes as something of a surprise after the 13-episode season 6 was already shortened by 2023’s industry strikes, but it fits with a larger trend in network sitcoms. Young Sheldon, New Girl, and Brooklyn Nine-Nine had similarly short final seasons, dropping their typical 22-episode seasons down to 14, 8, and 10 episodes in their final outings, respectively.
It will be tough for The Conners to give every character a satisfying send-off.
While this approach gives the cast the freedom to pursue other opportunities, it causes an ending problem for The Conners season 7. The spinoff’s lack of a lead character means that The Conners typically follows a handful of interconnected storylines throughout each season. As a result, there are a lot of lingering plots from season 6 that the show’s final outing will now need to clear up. With less than ten episodes, it will be tough for The Conners to give every character a satisfying send-off while also simultaneously concluding all of their individual plots.
The Conners Season 7 Has A Lot Of Plots To Wrap Up
Roseanne’s Spinoff Must End An Array Of Storylines
After the show’s season 6 finale, The Conners season 7 has at least six major storylines that the series needs to end in less than ten episodes. First and foremost, there is Mark’s email scam job. Mark took a shady job as part of an illegal operation in the season 6 finale due to his desperation to save for university. This will likely come back to bite him and may even result in legal troubles. This is the most dramatic of season 7’s storylines, but Mark’s The Conners season 7 arc is only one of many pivotal plots.
It would be a surprise if the young, inexperienced Harris could turn the family’s restaurant around.
There is also Harris running the Lunchbox, Becky finishing her college course, the future of Becky and Tyler’s relationship, Ben running a magazine, and Darlene finding a new job. Since The Lunchbox ended up being, as Jackie pithily put it, “An albatross around the neck” of other Conner family members, it would be a surprise if the young, inexperienced Harris could turn the family’s restaurant around. Becky’s education has dragged on without any clear progress since season 3, meaning her future plans have been unclear for some time. Meanwhile, Ben’s decision to purchase a magazine could imperil his and Darlene’s newfound financial stability.
The Conners Season 7 Has Two Character Fates To Decide
Crystal And Bev Are Likely To Be Killed Off
Even if Ben, Mark, Harris, and Becky all receive fitting endings, Darlene’s employment remains a concern in The Conners season 7. Her job as a lunch lady frustrated her throughout season 6, but she remained in the role since the job paid Mark’s tuition. Now that this is no longer a relevant factor, Darlene should theoretically be free to pursue a new, more fitting job. She was already frustrated by her lack of prospects before she began working at Mark’s college, and the fact that she has experience in publishing and journalism means she could join Ben in revamping Hardware Magazine.
However, before The Conners season 7 can wrap up Darlene’s story, the show needs to decide the fate of two Roseanne alumni. The Conners season 7 must bring back Crystal now that season 6 of the spinoff revealed that Dan was paying her medical bills, and Bev’s fate also needs to be set in stone. It would make sense for either of these characters to die, as The Conners foreshadowed this fate throughout season 6. Bev’s death would be more moving since Crystal has not played a major role in recent seasons but, either way, the spinoff must address both characters.
