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Roseanne the TV Series 1988–1997


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Since we're hijacking the other thread talking about [link=http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094540/]Roseanne[/link], I figured we'd better start a new topic dedicated to it!

What did you love about the show? What did you hate? Who was your favorite character and what was your favorite, and even not so favorite, storylines?

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Roseanne reminds me alot of my Mother, who is a huge Roseanne fan. I like it because parts of it where kinda true, working to make ends meet, kids fighting on and on. I HATED the last season and the last episode was just awful and wrong to me on so many levels.

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Guest Anonymous

Favorite character was Darlene. I am the same age as Sara Gilbert so I feel like I grew up with her while I watched the show back in the 80"s. I also loved Aunt Jackie. She was hilarious! Loved all the earlier episodes but after they won the lottery the show just wasn't the same.

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I really loved this show for its realistic, down to earth, and flawed characters and family dynamics.

It was very much like my own family growing up. My sister was definitely the Becky, and I very much felt like the Darlene growing up!

My parents were very much like Dan and Roseanne, both working hard just to make ends meet and to try and get ahead!

The yelling and overtalking, was also significant of my own family. But then of course so was the talking it out and basically NO topic being off limits, even when it was embarrassing!

I think especially now I am older, its nice to look back and watch this show on reruns, basically reminding me of different things from my childhood and growing up etc.

There really has been no other family like it on TV, so its not hard to tell why it remains a favorite of many people the world over!

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oh and I agree, the last season I was not happy with either. Didn't care for the character assassination of Dan, and the bizarre plot twist of the final episode. :snooty:

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My favorite show. I love/loved it because it's real and still relevant even 20+ years later. My favorite characters were Jackie and Nana Mary. Even though she wasn't a series regular, she is who I want to be when I'm old. Funny about the last season, I liked it and wrote a post about it on Roseanne's old message board. She liked it and published it on her blog, which I'm sure I don't have to tell you was awesome.

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Been so long I'm not sure I can answer any of the questions, I can say that I used to love the show. My whole family did.

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I used to love Roseanne, though the final season was crap. My favourite character was Darleen.

True story; one night just before Roseanne was due to come on, I thought I'd run a bath and have a quick dip before it started. Well of course Roseanne came on, and of course I forgot I was running a bath. First thing I knew was my neighbour underneath banging on the ceiling as she had water coming out of her light socket in her bathroom.

Yep, I'd flooded the block.

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I loved Roseanne when it first came out. It was such an antidote to Cosbyism and like many have said,and a coworker and I said to each other at the time, finally somebody who looks like us. It was probably the last time on TV that working class people (when the still existed in the US) were shown with respect. The very first episode--with the snotty teacher, the problems leaving work, the love for the kids shown--was just wonderful.

The crazier the real Roseanne got the worse the show got--once they took the focus away from the family I got less interested and by the end it was pretty much unwatchable. But the first few years were terrific.

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Roseanne's reality show "Roseanne's nuts" was pretty entertaining. I think it was oxygen or something like that last year. It seemed lightly scripted but you could definitely see the some of the real Roseanne.

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oh and I agree, the last season I was not happy with either. Didn't care for the character assassination of Dan, and the bizarre plot twist of the final episode. :snooty:

The last season was the pits, but it had jumped the shark a few years earlier. Rumor has it there was animosity between Roseanne and John Goodman and I can't help but wonder if impugning Dan's character was a bit of a stab.

I liked the one where DJ is going to church and they wrestling with their own beliefs. I didn't like making fun of some cousin who was religious and clog danced when he was filled with the spirit. You're not Christian? OK. You don't have to make them look ridiculous. And, I feel the same way when any group of people or religious practice or culture is made fun of.

Martin's character got to be just over the top, IMO.

Darlene was my favorite.

While I hated THAT Becky ran off and got married (with a loser) after being such a promising student, I appreciate the writers portraying that life doesn't follow a neat, orderly pattern. Children make bad decisions and you love them, anyway.

I thought the ending was rather touching, actually. Some of the characters had become charicatures in the last few seasons and her revealing that Dan actually did die of a heart attack and that her mom wasn't really a lesbian, but she wanted to give her some power to not have to rely on a man, was kinda nice. Her explaining it all made it seem that SHE'd written the people as caricatures of themselves.

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My favorite character was Darlene because I was going through the same changes in my body and life as she was at the same time. Going from being a tomboy to a teen girl that is into boys, but not going to wear dresses and skirts like my older sister. I still am not girlie in the least. My mom made me wear skirts or dresses to Mass every Sunday just so she could see me "look like a girl". My favorite episode is when Darlene is going to the prom with David and she tries on a lot of dresses with Becky's help and she tells Darlene she needs to take off her socks,but she wasn't wearing socks it was just her hairy ankles and legs.

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The show did feature gay and lesbian characters, and in a positive light no less, long before it was mainstream. Not too many of them on late 80's/early 90's TV. Roseanne's 'gay kiss' was a bit over the top I thought - mainly because it didn't fit the character.

How could I forget the episode where their new neighbors are nudists - and in their 80's. That was hilarious. Roseanne flashing the old man her boobs and asking 'what color are my eyes?'.

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Though the last season really sucked, I thought "Roseanne" was a great show and very ground-breaking. And 15 years after it went off the air, it still holds up in a way "The Cosby Show" doesn't. I wish TV execs would look into making another show that focuses on a less than perfect family that struggles with economic issues. It would be very timely in this day and age.

Instead we get reality TV that celebrates the tacky rich. "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," anyone?

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Though the last season really sucked, I thought "Roseanne" was a great show and very ground-breaking. And 15 years after it went off the air, it still holds up in a way "The Cosby Show" doesn't. I wish TV execs would look into making another show that focuses on a less than perfect family that struggles with economic issues. It would be very timely in this day and age.

Instead we get reality TV that celebrates the tacky rich. "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," anyone?

I so agree with you!!! So over disgusting reality tv, showing us the worst of humanity! I wish they would make a show like this today, something that makes you feel good but teaches you a lesson etc.

I've actually heard a few people compare Roseanne with Modern Family, but I disagree! I hate the stereotypical gay parents and way in which its almost are making fun of them, like they want you to laugh AT them, not WITH them!!! Don't get me started on the harpy Sofia Vergara (in real life she has said some outlandish shit!). But thats a discussion for another topic I dare say ;-)

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Though the last season really sucked, I thought "Roseanne" was a great show and very ground-breaking. And 15 years after it went off the air, it still holds up in a way "The Cosby Show" doesn't. I wish TV execs would look into making another show that focuses on a less than perfect family that struggles with economic issues. It would be very timely in this day and age.

Instead we get reality TV that celebrates the tacky rich. "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," anyone?

I remember reading somewhere that Roseanne and Bill Cosby feuded back in the 80s or 90s. The feud involved something in which Bill disliked some of the content of Roseanne and she shot back, "Well at least my show is realistic". Another rumor related the Cosby/Roseanne feud was that Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner favored the Roseanne cast more than the Cobsy Show cast. When I was very young I liked The Cosby Show. Later when I watched reruns of it, I didn't like it. Most of the characters came off as smug and unlikeable. On Roseanne, the characters were flawed but likable. John Goodman and Laurie Metcalfe's performances still hold up today.

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I found some interesting stuff, according to TVTropes (supposedly taken from a blog post by Roseanne that is no longer in existence), about the future of the Conners if the attempted revival had gained any traction.

DJ gets published.

Mark dies in Iraq.

David leaves Darlene for a woman half his age.

Darlene meets a woman and they have a test tube baby.

Becky works at Wal-Mart.

Roseanne and Jackie open the first medical marijuana dispensary in Lanford, Illinois and pay off the mortgage before the house is foreclosed on.

Arnie becomes the best friend of the governor of Illinois.

Mom sells a painting for ten grand.

Nancy and Arnie remarry.

Jerry and the grandsons form a band like the Jonas Brothers

Dan shows up alive after faking his death.

Leon has a sex change op.

Bonnie gets busted for selling crack.

Some of it sounds good and/or good but sad, such as Mark dying in Iraq (irl, Mark's actor is dead) I also have a weird love for the idea of Jerry and the grandsons forming a boyband. Other parts are just awful, like Dan faking his death (because that's so hilarious, to make your wife and children think you're dead for over a year... that seems even worse character assassination than the cheating (which, as a metaphor for the betrayal Roseanne felt over him dying, I understood)) and Leon getting a sex change operation (even more Flanderization of a character who started out as a regular, if slightly bastardy, guy who just happened to be gay but by the end of the show pretty much embodied every camp gay stereotype known to man)

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I never caught the show in its original run (considering I wasn't even born when it first aired), but I did see reruns on Nick at Nite. What I liked about it is that nothing seemed glamorous. While I realize it was the 90s at the time of the show (yeah, watch Roseanne talking on her car phone in the 2000s...) the family was working class, not the typical upper middle class or better you see on every show now. None of the characters seemed conventionally pretty (at least by mid-2000s standards). Every character could be related to. I loved Darlene, even though I went through the reverse- I was VERY girly when I was younger, but now, I'm not very feminine at all and am closer in personality to her.

I missed most of the best 90s TV, but seriously, it's better than the uber-glamorous dreck that's on TV now. And that's not even counting all the reality shows. I agree that the lower classes get the shaft from TV execs, it seems they're always portrayed as trashy now if they exist at all.

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I found some interesting stuff, according to TVTropes (supposedly taken from a blog post by Roseanne that is no longer in existence), about the future of the Conners if the attempted revival had gained any traction.

Some of it sounds good and/or good but sad, such as Mark dying in Iraq (irl, Mark's actor is dead) I also have a weird love for the idea of Jerry and the grandsons forming a boyband. Other parts are just awful, like Dan faking his death (because that's so hilarious, to make your wife and children think you're dead for over a year... that seems even worse character assassination than the cheating (which, as a metaphor for the betrayal Roseanne felt over him dying, I understood)) and Leon getting a sex change operation (even more Flanderization of a character who started out as a regular, if slightly bastardy, guy who just happened to be gay but by the end of the show pretty much embodied every camp gay stereotype known to man)

That changes randomly. Orignally she said DJ died in Iraq. And how can David leave Darlene if he was actually with Becky? The others just seem stupid. Why the hell would Dan fake his death? He loved his family and would never do something like that. Darlene having a test tube baby is stupid, too, but I suspect that's because Sarah Gilbert did that in real life. Leon would never have a sex change. He was way too embarrassed of being a happily married gay man. He was so uncomfortable with society knowing about his sexuality. I think Roseanne says stupid shit like that just for the attention and to boost DVD sales. We all know there will never be a reunion episode or movie or anything like that. The actors have all gone off to do different things and they weren't even all getting along toward the end. It's stupid shit like this that makes me lose respect for her. I love the show and I greatly respect it for everything it did and continues to do. But Roseanne herself? I really can't stand her.

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I never caught the show in its original run (considering I wasn't even born when it first aired), but I did see reruns on Nick at Nite. What I liked about it is that nothing seemed glamorous. While I realize it was the 90s at the time of the show (yeah, watch Roseanne talking on her car phone in the 2000s...) the family was working class, not the typical upper middle class or better you see on every show now. None of the characters seemed conventionally pretty (at least by mid-2000s standards). Every character could be related to. I loved Darlene, even though I went through the reverse- I was VERY girly when I was younger, but now, I'm not very feminine at all and am closer in personality to her.

I missed most of the best 90s TV, but seriously, it's better than the uber-glamorous dreck that's on TV now. And that's not even counting all the reality shows. I agree that the lower classes get the shaft from TV execs, it seems they're always portrayed as trashy now if they exist at all.

I never caught the original series either. I'm only a year older the show. But I really do miss 90s tv. I love Roseanne and I love Seinfeld. The first dvd box set of a tv show I ever bought was sex and the city. They were all fabulous. I'm sure there are other shows that aren't coming to memory right now. Really, the only post 2000s shows I want on dvd is Smallville. (Plus close to anything on science channel, bc I'm a nerd)

The 2000s shows that tried to emulate the strong female lead all were horrifically stupid. It always featured a smart, intelligent, beautiful, headstrong wife and a stupid, easily manipulated husband. My mother loves Everybody Loves Raymond and King of Queens. I can't stand either show. They're so unrealistic. And the characters are very unrelatable. Plus the shows themselves are extremely predictable.

What's changed? Respect for the audience. In the 80s and 90s, writers had respect for the audience. They didn't water down language and they didn't explain every little thing. The next action or line wasn't easily predicted by someone with half a brain. But now, with so many people doing nothing but rotting their brains with the crap food they eat and then doing nothing but sitting in front of a tv all day, the writers have lost respect for the audience and need to explain everything. It's really quite obnoxious.

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I loved this show from day one. I liked that I reconized these people, they lost jobs like the parents around me were. The kids wanted things like the other kids, but couldn't have them, because everyone was layed off. The kids fought, the parents fought, everyone screwed up and not everything had an easy fix.

I also hated the last season, the last episode made me mad, as it tried to make the characters different then they were, mostly switching the siblings and partners pissed me off. I loved David and Darlene together! For me it was funny I started the series liking Becky more, but quickly as she became more like me in my life I identified more with Darlene. I even had some of the same shirts and posters. I also threatened wearing Docs to rom, but skipped prom, cause I couln't wear the dress from the Duran Duran video Ordinary World.

I was lucky to see the show taped, by luck we got the season finale (or premier forget which one) where Roseanne announces she was pregnant. At that point they were a tight cast, amazing to watch and of all the tapings that I have seen, only one other ever came close, and that was Third Rock from the Sun. The show filmed mostly like a play. Most shows needed tons of retakes, the only issues they had were crying babies (the Jaq baby fushed some mid scene), and the poor guy laying Darlenes bf needed retakes. Otherwise they filmed straight threw. The cast was all very nice as well. I am so glad we went. Though still bummed I never did Will and Grace.

Best scene for me might be the conversation with DJ when they do a pregnancy test. He asks if he was an accident llike his sisters said, and she tells him no, he was a surprise, he asks what the difference was, she said an accident is something you wouldn't do over, a surprise is getting something you never knew you needed. He asks about Darlene and Dan said no she was a disaster.

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I can not believe people are trying to compare Modern Family to Roseanne it is just so laughable. If we are going to compare a current sitcom with Roseanne it should be The Middle hands down.

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I liked the one where DJ is going to church and they wrestling with their own beliefs. I didn't like making fun of some cousin who was religious and clog danced when he was filled with the spirit. You're not Christian? OK. You don't have to make them look ridiculous. And, I feel the same way when any group of people or religious practice or culture is made fun of.

Actually, that is Jesco White, from the Dancin' Outlaw and the Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Va. fame...which should be a whole 'nother thread! :o

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I ADORE this show, every fucking bit of it, even the terrible ones. It's one of the few shows whose final episode makes me feel a little like someone I love died.

It's just plain funny, and it's realistic (in places :p). The characters repeat clothing, for example, which I love. It makes fun of itself - one of my favorite episodes is the one where Lecy Goranson comes back. When she makes her entrance, Roseanne's been yelling at her to come upstairs and when she finally appears, Roseanne says, "Where the hell have you been? I feel like I haven't seen you in two years." There's also the great tag about the Identical Beckys.

Also the two episodes involving Fisher hitting Jackie are some of the best TV ever, IMHO. Jackie breaking into tears, saying "I just don't want anyone to know," the moment when Dan silently walks out the door and picks up his jacket on the way to see Fisher, when Roseanne finds out he's hit her before and says she'll just leave Jackie with him and forget about her and Jackie says "no, you won't" - OMG I think I have to watch it tonight. Another heartbreaker is when Dan has to commit his mother to a mental hospital - there were so many storyline problems all over the place by then - but the scene when he says, "I can't take this" and just loses it - I weep every time. And then the episode when DJ has to kiss a girl in the school play but doesn't want to because she's black. Her father comes to the restaurant late at night and forces Roseanne to realize that she's more prejudiced than she likes to think. I could go on forever, but I'll stop. :D

I loved seeing Sara Gilbert & Johnny Galecki reunite on The Big Bang Theory a few years ago, because they pretty much had the same relationship that they did as David and Darlene.

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