Summary
WhileThe Connersseason 7 might have a hard time ending the sitcom’s story perfectly, the spinoff will almost certainly be better received thanRoseanne’s worst episode.RoseanneandThe Connershave a complicated history, to say the least.Roseannebegan in 1989 and the working-class family sitcom soon became a huge success.Roseanne’s ninth season was a critical catastrophe that ruined the show’s stellar reputation, and its infamously maudlin finale retconned the entire season’s events with a dark twist. In turn, 2017’sRoseannerevival retconned this ending and returned to the canon ofRoseanneseasons 1—8.
Shortly afterward, Roseanne Barr was fired due to racist remarks andRoseanne’s title character was killed off.Roseanne’s revival then becameThe Conners, a spinoff that focused on her grieving family.The Connershas a large cast of characterssince the series held on toRoseanne’s main cast and added more supporting stars as the spinoff continued. However, the show always struggled with Roseanne’s legacy. Barr’s character cast a long shadow over the series and, asThe Connersseason 7 prepares to wrap up the spinoff’s run, the show still hasn’t come to terms with its former heroine’s influence.
I’m So Glad The Conners Moved On From Roseanne To Save The Reboot
Roseanne’s 2017 revival betrayed the original show’s message, but killing off Roseanne herself allowed The Conners to bring back its secret weapon.
The Conners Heroine Parodied Rambo In Roseanne’s Worst Episode
Season 9 Episode 9 Saw Roseanne Spoof Stallone and Seagal
Ever since Roseanne’s offscreen death,The Connershas struggled with memorializing the character of Roseanne without promoting her real-life actor. However, this doesn’t mean that the spinoff has sunk to the critical lows ofRoseanneseason 9.The Connersseason 7 almost definitely can’t be worse thanRoseanneseason 9, an outing that profoundly misread what viewers wanted from the series. Season 9 began with the Conner family winning $108 million, which immediately changed the show’s tone irrevocably. The grounded sitcom about the harsh realities of working-class life became a zany, cartoony mess, as epitomized in its worst episode.
The plot was lifted verbatim fromUnder Siege 2: Dark Territory, and that movie’s star, Steven Seagal, even appeared in the episode.
In season 9, episode 2, “Roseambo,”Roseannesaved then-First Lady Hilary Clinton from terrorists on a train. Although she dressed as Rambo, the plot was lifted verbatim fromUnder Siege 2: Dark Territory, and that movie’s star, Steven Seagal, even appeared in the episode. WhileThe Connersseason 7’s ending problemsmight prove tough to overcome, there is no way the spinoff will take the series in such a misguided direction. “Roseambo” is typically considered the worst episode in the show’s history, which is an impressive achievement when the same season features a bizarrely unfunnyRosemary’s Babyparody.
The episode’s tone felt more like an overstretchedMadTVsketch than the grounded sitcom Roseanne once was.
Why Roseanne’s “Roseambo” Was Considered Its Worst Episode
Dan, Becky, and Darlene Were All Absent From This Outing
“Roseambo” failed for numerous reasons, the most obvious of which was its absurd, far-fetched premise. The episode’s tone felt more like an overstretchedMadTVsketch than the grounded sitcom Roseanne once was, and“Roseambo” came to embody all of the worst mistakesRoseanne’s season 9 made. In this regard, it didn’t help that the episode effectively ignored most of the show’s supporting cast.Mark’sThe Connersseason 7 storyproves a supporting character doesn’t need to be in every episode to play a major role, but “Roseambo” dropped Dan, Becky, and Darlene from its entire story.
“Roseambo" was a bizarre action movie parody with no relatable elements to its humor.
Considering the show was a family sitcom, an episode that didn’t feature Roseanne’s family was always going to have a hard time winning over viewers. Surprisingly, even Roseanne’s best seasons featured episodes that were as surreal and silly as “Roseambo.” As early as season 2, episode 8, “Sweet Dreams,”Roseannewas experimenting with dream sequences and fantasy segues whose heightened tone was more reminiscent ofMarried… With Childrenthan the show’s usual style. Crucially, however, these episodes still focused on Roseanne’s relationship with her family. “Roseambo,” in contrast, was a bizarre action movie parody with no relatable elements to its humor.
Roseanne’s Season 10 Revival Retconned “Roseambo”
Roseanne’s Comeback Undid All Of Season 9’s Divisive Events
Roseanne’s season 9 finale retconned “Roseambo” when Roseanne admitted that the entire season’s events were all a fantasy she used to cope with her crumbling personal life. However, this was then retconned by season 10’s revival.Martin Mull’sRoseannecharacter Leon, Estelle Parsons’ Bev, and John Goodman’s Dan all had season 9 stories that were undone when the show’s season 10 revival began with the revelation that Dan was still alive. Dan mentioned that Roseanne should revisit the manuscript she penned years earlier, implying thatRoseanneseason 9’s events were just an in-universe novel Rosanne herself wrote.
RetconningRoseanneseason 9 was a necessity since the return of John Goodman’s Dan was central to the appeal ofRoseanne’s revival. However, this made “Roseambo” even more pointless in retrospect since the episode’s events were now doubly erased from the show’s overarching narrative. Although all of season 9 was deeply flawed, “Roseambo” is a testament to just how farRoseannestrayed from its original inspiration in the outing. “Roseambo” was not only devoid of the recognizable blue-collar experiences that madeRoseannesuch a refreshing change afterFull HouseandThe Cosby Show, but it also inexplicably cut out Roseanne’s family.
The Conners Has Not Abandoned Reality Like Roseanne
“Roseambo” made the mistake of assuming viewers only cared about Roseanne, as did many of season 9’s worst episodes. The aforementionedRosemary’s Babyparody doubled as anAbsolutely Fabulouscrossover, meaning Roseanne’s family was once again sidelined in favor of a plot that centered on her alone. The family won the lotto and became millionaires at the beginning of season 9, so the entire season struggled to give them a meaningful purpose.The Connersseason 6 wisely ended Jackie’s Lunchboxsubplot, but this flawed storyline at least attempted to address the struggles of American workers in the 2020s.
Roseanneseason 9 proudly ignored its working-class roots in favor of madcap fantastical antics.
In contrast,Roseanneseason 9 proudly ignored its working-class roots in favor of madcap fantastical antics.The Connersis incredibly unlikely to repeat this mistake sinceRoseanne’s ninth season remains one of the most critically lambasted sitcom outings of all time. Furthermore, since the show no longer has a single protagonist, there is no figure like Roseanne for a misguided final season to center upon.The Connershas to focus on the central family, which is both a limitation and its greatest asset. As a result,The Connersseason 7 almost certainly can’t outdoRoseanne’s most hated episode ever.
