Although The Conners season 7 could technically bring back one major Roseanne star for a final cameo, the spinoff’s storylines have deprived this character’s potential return of any emotional impact. The Conners has a large cast of characters, most of whom the show borrowed from its predecessor, Roseanne. When Roseanne was revived in 2017, the series proved almost as big a hit as the family sitcom was throughout its original 1989-1997 run. However, series star Roseanne Barr went on a racist Twitter rant shortly after the series ended, resulting in the network firing her and retooling the series.
The Conners replaced Roseanne, following the story of the former heroine’s grieving family after they learned of her off-screen death via an opioid overdose. The Conners moved on from Roseanne in the years that followed, with her widow Dan remarrying and the busy lives of her adult children continuing apace. The show still felt like a direct continuation of Roseanne since it shared most of the same main characters, but the series introduced new supporting stars instead of relying heavily on nostalgic comebacks from original cast members. In the process, one potential The Conners season 7 cameo became redundant.
Roseanne’s focus on real-life working-class issues returned when The Conners season 6 finale centered Mark’s attempts to save up for college tuition.
David resurfaced in seasons 1 and 2 of The Conners , attempting to fix his relationship with Darlene. These attempts didn’t succeed and, after a particularly disastrous couples therapy session, David and Darlene ended their lengthy romance for good.
While many characters from the original show could appear in the spinoff’s final outing, Johnny Galecki’s Roseanne hero, David Healy, is the biggest star who could return in The Conners season 7. However, David’s comeback wouldn’t mean much now since his character has effectively been replaced by Jay R. Ferguson’s Ben. Throughout Roseanne’s original run, Galecki played Darlene’s meek boyfriend, David. David was a consistent presence in the series, with the Conner family effectively adopting him due to his turbulent home life. Although he lacked confidence, David truly loved Darlene and planned a future with her.
In one of the show’s saddest twists ever, The Conners proved that Darlene and David’s attempts to keep their family together ended in failure. The Conners supporting stars Harris and Mark were David and Darlene’s children but, by the time the spinoff began, they were already estranged from their absent father. David resurfaced in seasons 1 and 2 of The Conners, attempting to fix his relationship with Darlene. These attempts didn’t succeed and, after a particularly disastrous couples therapy session, David and Darlene ended their lengthy romance for good. As such, there’s not much for David to do in Lanford
David and Ben battled over Darlene in the first two seasons of The Conners, meaning David already received a fitting send-off from Roseanne’s spinoff. David and Darlene’s relationship was always flawed, with Darlene’s sardonic comments often cutting deep into David’s insecurities and David’s lack of self-confidence making him a pushover. Although this seemed to be endearing and typical of most sitcom couples in the original show, Roseanne’s revival proved that these issues were a serious problem for the pair. David and Darlene lived in poverty after moving out and struggled to raise the children thanks to inconsistent employment.
Since Mark’s The Conners season 7 ending is already unlikely to be a happy one, the last thing that he needs is his father re-entering his life. David’s attempts to make his relationship with Darlene work were a disaster in seasons 1 and 2, compromising her promising romance with Ben and providing little support to Mark and Harris. It would be nice to know that David’s life turned out alright before Roseanne’s spinoff ends, but it is hard to see how the series could justify bringing this supporting star back again after he and Darlene ended things on acrimonious terms.
The birth of their daughter, Harris, appeared to bring the bickering couple a sense of peace and purpose, but The Conners revealed that David left Darlene to care for their children alone.
Roseanne’s original series ending is a little tricky to untangle since the show retconned most of its ninth season with a bombshell twist in the finale. That said, David’s return after The Conners killed off Roseanne completely deconstructed any happy ending that Darlene and him shared in the original show. The birth of their daughter, Harris, appeared to bring the bickering couple a sense of peace and purpose, but The Conners revealed that David left Darlene to care for their children alone after Mark was born. This betrayed the duo’s happy ending and lowered the odds of a permanent reconciliation.
The revelation that Darlene and David didn’t stay together after Roseanne ended was sad on its own, but season 6 of the series made this even more tragic. In season 6, episode 6, “Hanging in Dorms with Boys and The Secret Life of Men,” Darlene referred to her and David’s living conditions as “Abject poverty.” This implies that Mark and Harris were raised in an even worse environment than viewers might have assumed, and the line thoroughly debunked any hopes viewers might have had for the couple’s eventual reunion. Season 6 confirmed Darlene and David’s love story ended in tragedy.
It is not clear if David would even be welcome in the family home, especially after Mark gave a speech about how much more Ben meant to him as a father figure.
Since The Conners season 7 could highlight underrated supporting characters if David doesn’t return, the character’s absence may be a good thing for the series. That said, David’s return would be unlikely even if it weren’t for the show’s other priorities. What makes Galecki’s comeback in season 7 particularly unlikely is the fact that David didn’t show up to Mark’s high school graduation in the season 5 finale. In season 5, episode 22, “Grad Finale,” Mark invited his father despite knowing that he might not attend the ceremony due to the unreliable David’s long history of flaking on important arrangements.
Although Mark was aware that David may not make it to his graduation, he was still heartbroken when his father canceled. As such, it is not clear if David would even be welcome in the family home, especially after Mark gave a speech about how much more Ben meant to him as a father figure. This is a pretty crushing end to a sitcom love story that lasted almost 35 years, with Ben and Darlene never overcoming their problems and instead going their separate ways. However, it is now too late for The Conners season 7 to reverse the Roseanne spinoff’s saddest plot.
