It seemed like a dream. Roseanne was coming back. Sure, in this time of rampant nostalgia it wasn’t surprising but it was still a welcome surprise. Then to have it come back and be not just good, but really good, was like getting a chance to have the ultimate do-over. Then, just as quickly as it had come back, it was gone. Canceled. The casualty of a disgusting tweet written by the the very person who (seemed) to make the show possible. This was accepted but left such a bitter taste that rumblings of a spin-off quickly caught fire. In no time it seemed like The Conners was a living breathing entity. With the main cast of John Goodman (Dan Conner), Laurie Metcalf (Aunt Jackie), Sara Gilbert (Darlene Conner), Lecy Goranson (Becky Conner) and Michael Fishman (D.J. Conner) also on board, all other information about this show has gone dark. Big questions loom such as what will The Conners be like? And, obviously, how will it carry on without Roseanne?
When the show originally aired from 1988 to 1997, it was sort of seen as something great that ultimately jumped the shark (does anybody even say that anymore?). Sure, the first 5 or so seasons were incredible. As Roseanne continued it waned and almost became unrecognizable. There were avant-garde episodes. The lottery episodes (or, season if you want to call it that). And just a host of misplaced ideas that all seemed determined to soil the show we had all loved and lived with. I’m all for a show spreading its wings. Roseanne seemed bent on flying away.
Now, the majority of this abomination took place in the last season of that first incarnation but the damage had been done. The 2018 version of Roseanne seemed destined to right that wrong. And it did. Okay, it wasn’t perfect but, like the show’s previous incarnation, it spoke to deeper truths about the human condition. It was confusing in a confusing time but Roseanne offered hope. A light at the end of the tunnel saying no matter who you are, no matter what you are, everything is going to be okay.
Sure, Roseanne Barr being a supporter of Donald Trump didn’t make sense. The character of Roseanne Conner supporting him did. None of that mattered because Roseanne was never about one dominant ideology. It was about people and their differences naturally receded into the background. Roseanne’s tweet wasn’t indicative of any political movement. Rather it just showed really poor judgement, short-sightedness and awful taste. It was Roseanne Barr being mean, impulsive, and racially insensitive. Roseanne Conner had nothing to do with it.
Which brings us to the The Conners or Roseanne without Roseanne Barr. So what is this show going to be? How can it exist? Without it’s firebrand at the helm what will it be? After years of being groundbreaking, it would be a shame if The Conners was little more than your garden variety sitcom. Relegating this show to that homogenous status would be poor judgement, short-sightedness and awful, too. That can’t happen and that’s why this is what we need to know…
