"The Conners" ends its run this week.

Never followed this. Just glad crazy Roseanne didn’t cost everyone else their careers.

Hi Lacey, I mean...OP

I agree about Alicia. She was the gem of the show.

Sara was sour and depressing and Jackie has been too hammy to matter for a while.

Wow, how the hell did I not realize Alicia Goranson was 50 years old!

I watched this, but mostly for nostagia. The story lines seemed forced, and every episode felt like an after-school special for adults. Worst of all, it wasn't funny.

John and Laurie looked terrible on the show. Did they even have a makeup crew?

The thing with the original was that no matter how cynical it could get, there was always an undercurrent of hope there. This show was just depressing. And I'm sorry, but Sara Gilbert cannot play heterosexual convincingly, and it was ridiculous that they kept trying to put her in romantic triangles with men.

With The Conners over, I hope Laurie Metcalf can get back to doing quality projects again. Scott Rudin’s cancellation unfortunately meant her steady stream of Tony-worthy roles ended, but she got fantastic reviews for a play she did in Chicago last summer.

Laurie is playing Ed Gein's mother in Monster:Ed Gein. If the writing is good and Laurie can perform well, she probably get an Emmy nod.

I’ll miss it.

I always thought the episodes were decent when I caught them, but I so rarely watch TV over the air live these days and I can never seem to catch up.

But it was nice to revisit those characters. I'll always wish they hadn't taken Jackie in the particular direction they did in the reboot, though.

"The Conners" seventh season begins Wednesday, March 26th on ABC 8:00 PM ET.

I want my sister back.

I didn’t even know this was still on.

I can’t believe it’s been on for 7 years. Seems like just recently there was the hub bub about Roseanne not coming back on the reboot.

Hopefully Lecy isn't reduced to reading tarot cards under a NYC bridge like last time. It's insane to me that sara gilbert had more success being so god-damned unpleasant in every possible way.

Sorry but pleasant wasn't the right word I meant repulsive.

Sara Gilbert deserves a wallop from the Shitbra!

I like the big hunky bearded guy.

I watched for awhile but there seemed to be no consistency to the storylines or characters. John Goodman looked ill and like he wanted to be anywhere else.

I find this show comforting to watch because I grew up watching the original before Roseanne was crazy

I'm the opposite, r20. I still watch the original Roseanne reruns and find them comforting (the earlier seasons anyway) but The Conners is dark and depressing.

I can't believe they fired the actor who played DJ. The rumors were that the producers didn't think he was a good enough actor. I thought he did a great job on the last big episode they gave him before they wrote him off. There were plenty of storylines they could have done with him as a veteran with PTSD raising a kid while his wife was deployed. What was more odd: they wrote him off, but they kept his TV kid on the show. And the kid ended up moving into the crowded Conner house. Eventually they got rid of that kid too.

There is only one celebrity who has let ne down, andbthats Roseanne Barr

The reboot wasnt funny. Original was

R22 - it appears he’ll be on the final season. Not sure to what degree, but he posted about it on instagram. I think he was written out because they really didn’t build up the adult DJ character and so had nothing for him to really do. The focus is more on Darlene and her kids, and Becky. It might have also been cost cutting.

Adult DJ wasn't great, though, and his family members were all bores. He should have been on two episodes a year or something.

Laurie was so good in the original (the ep where Roseanne and Dan discovered her boyfriend was beating her showed what she could do) — but in this it's just endless mugging and sitcom delivery.

Goodman looks ill.

Metcalf looks pissed.

Gilbert looks tired from her all-fish diet.

At least the afghan is still there.

I could never quite get over the fact that neither Roseanne/Dan's young kid Jerry nor Fred and Jackie's kid were included....indeed, treated as if they didn't exist.

[quote]There were plenty of storylines they could have done with him as a veteran with PTSD raising a kid while his wife was deployed.

I think it would have been interesting to have DJ be a Trump supporter — one who loves his black wife and gay nephew but is a veteran who supports the president. It would have driven Darlene crazy.

What a waste of Katey Sagal.

[quote]I could never quite get over the fact that neither Roseanne/Dan's young kid Jerry nor Fred and Jackie's kid were included....indeed, treated as if they didn't exist.

In the initial reboot before Roseanne got fired Jerry was mentioned as working in Alaska but I don't think he was ever referenced again after that. I think they just convenientlyignored Jackie's kid so she could play the wacky spinster aunt with no ties to an ex-husband or kid. But maybe they did mention her kid and I just forgot. That's what I meant about no consistency in the writing. Even if you disregard the changes and retcons between the original Roseanne and The Conners there was often no consistency from one episode of The Conners to the next.

I believe there are only 7 episodes in their final season.

I actually enjoy the show. But boy did they do David dirty.

How so, R34? I think David being a bit of an unmotivated deadbeat fits. I also think Jackie’s character tracks, too. She was always a bit of a wishy washy neurotic, and those types tend to get nuttier with age.

I watched this reboot, all the way through, but it was always just a defanged version of the original. Say what you will of Roseanne, but her character was central to the show.

The reboot has a lot of good additions, good actors like Katey Sagal and Jay R Ferguson, but the storylines left a lot to be desired.

I was really ticked off when Michael Fishman was written out. That made no sense and was such a slap in the face to him as a person. As others have said, there were definite storyline possibilities for DJ. I can’t imagine it was a budget thing because I can’t see him being paid a whole lot. He deserved better.

I do agree, R36, that the loss of Roseanne left a big hole. I enjoy watching The Conners, but it still seems sad that Roseanne the character is dead. Having said that, I am surprised, but happy, it lasted 7 seasons without Roseanne the actor. She’s become a hateful person - the complete opposite of the Roseanne character - and I am glad The Conners has had some success.

So who watched the finale?

DJ should been in the finale

*have been

Thank God it's over....

How did they wrap up Beverly Harris' storyline which the op thinks is so weird.

I’m glad they got rid of DJ. Wish they kept Bev, Crystal was fun too. Happy Nancy didn’t return.

The original Roseanne is one of the best sitcoms of all time and even better than the Cosby Show. The way it could shift from comedy to drama. That crazy old biddie just had something special. Perfect comedic timing but still dramatic chops.

I said what I said.

The first 6 seasons of Roseanne were gold. The 7th was okay, but the 8th and 9th fell off the rails. She’ll never admit it but the Tom Arnold years were the best.

That was the most ridiculous, boring series send off I've ever seen. I was hoping the iconic afghan would've caught a spark and burned them all up in a house fire.

Thank god. I always thought it was weird they got Grandma Walton to play Dan.

The actor that plays Mark...gawd, he's awful. His character was also a hot mess. He could play Barron Trump in some biopic, as long as he stays silent like Barron.

I watch “Roseanne” every Saturday morning on TVLand while I clean. It’s hard to watch “The Conners” and having them all with raspy old voices. It’s not the way they look, it’s the voices.

John Goodman looked better fat. Now he looks like an old basset hound.

Well, R50, he's now quite old, thinner and SOBER.

Well, R51, that’s no fun. I’m very happy being 72, chubby and periodically schnockered.

I tuned in sven years ago, and gave it shot. After that season, I felt I was in group therapy every week, not entertainment. It was so idiotic and depressing. I tuned in last night and didn't know any of the characters or actors.

Who's the deflated balloon with the terrible dentures playing Dan ?

Why is 50 year old Sara Gilbert still playing a Goth 16 year old incel ?

Why is Katy Sagal on the show, and are there no make-up artists to cover up her dry, pock-mocked face ?

Who's the skinny person with lipstick who cried with Sara Gilbert towards the end ?

Was Laurie Metcalf supposed to play a Tourette's Syndrome character with a meth addiction ? (She aced it).

Why does Lecy Goranson, 50, play an 18 year old with a coke addiction ? Who's the baby hippo she was paired up with ?

Sara was a terrific teen actress who regressed as an adult actress. She has none of the charisma she used to have and who wanted to spend time with her?

Jackie was a great character whom they ruined over the course of the original run. The portrayal became too broad (because the writers gave her shit and just counted on Laurie chewing the scenery).

I hope they saved their money this time. It's very rare to get a second oppty as these big paychecks - particularly Lecy Goranson.

I'll never understand why they centered things around Sara Gilbert - bizarre. She's not funny anymore - just a bitter, sarcastic middle-aged woman.

Watching last night, it was sad to see Laurie reduced to playing 'Sophia Petrillo'. Just give her a straw handbage and a white curly wig, and let her shoot her mouth off with inappropriate dialogue for cheap laughs. Sophia was actually funny and original, and her condition was explained as 'having a stroke'. What's Jackie's excuse ?

R56 - she's the same age as Estelle Getty was on Golden Girls. Both started at age 62, and ended 7 seasons later at 69. Yeah - I know Sophia character was 17 yrs older - but just a funny way to compare aging. And Estelle had early dementia the last few years (!).

R55, Sara is the executive producer of The Conners. She All About Eve'd her way into the leading role by taking out Roseanne.

I tuned in for the finale and it was just as bad as I remembered. Just a depressing, poorly acted, poorly written sitcom. I suppose they kept the crying goodbye take at the end because it was the only genuine emoting these actresses have ever shown. Just a manipulation of the audience which had nothing to do with the characters saying goodnight.

I remember having enough of this show when I tuned in one night and they had a rotting Halloween display as a centerpiece on the kitchen table. It was such an OTT "look at how poor and depressing we are" move by the writers/set decorator. I mean really? Even poor people clean up their rotting Halloween decorations. The entire series was a downer. Roseanne had good comedy writing and an underlying warmth beneath all of the sarcasm. This show had no heart it was soulless.

Did they have the Jackie character become a cop again? The woman has to be approaching 70. How in the fuck would any police force take her?

Sara Gilbert SAVED the reboot after Roseanne self destructed. It wasn’t good, but she hardly All About Eved psycho Roseanne, R58. Even with Roseanne, the new show sucked. The most interesting thing about it was the recreated set.

It’s interesting that they didn’t brig DJ back at least for the final episode.

R61 I follow him on social media and he seems like a well-adjusted nice guy. I wonder if there’s animosity between him and Sara.

Lecy Goranson looks so much younger than Sara Gilbert. They even eluded to that obvious fact several times on the show. She could easily pass for 10 years younger. She is nearly 51 years old.

DJ (Michael Fishman) posted a nice tribute to his Conners/Roseanne co stars, leaving Rozilla out.

[quote] They even eluded to that obvious fact

Oh, dear.

The magazine start-up storyline was so bizarre. Who does that in 2025, or 2005 for that matter?

Darlene gives up a high-paying job to work in her son's college cafeteria so she can pay for his tuition. The kid then drops out and decides to hack computers illegally. WTF? What a shitty storyline and horrible character.

1-Can the people who cast shows please look at the parents of child actors for eventual height discrepancies? When Sara Gilbert stands next to Ames McNamara it's like putting a Munchkin next to the Transamerica Building. Darlene and David had this child. Neither of them are very tall. How is that possible? It looks absurd on the tv screen.

2-Does Jackie's hairstyle have to be so unflattering? In the past she looked better with a different 'do.

3-I agree with rep 66. Magazines and newspapers have taken a beating in the online age.

4-DJ is missing from the final ep. That is a terrible mistake. Is this cost-cutting?

5-As noted elsewhere, Roseanne and Jackie's infant children at the end of the first run have disappeared. Not even a grave marker.

6-I agree John Goodman looked better when fatter. Billy Gardell also is probably healthier with less weight. He looks like he's at death's door.

7-I agree the series has become grim and depressing. But it would have been out of character for the family to have received a big settlement check

The plot for the finale was senseless. Dan gives a deposition and then they send a check for $700 and that's it? That's not even close to how these things work.

One of the most ridiculous episodes had Jane Curtain playing the mother of 70 year old Katey Sagal.

R68 I’m glad I’m not the only one who feels that way about Billy Gardell. He looks awful.

Fishman posted on his social media several months ago about what it was like to grow up looking up to somebody and then being so disillusioned by them as an adult and how painful that was.

To paraphrase Beverly Harris, “Don’t think I can’t read between those lines.”

Most ridiculous, R70, is Katey Sagal going near old moldy shriveled Dan Conner. Or even sweaty fat younger Dan Conner.

[quote]One of the most ridiculous episodes had Jane Curtain playing the mother of 70 year old Katey Sagal.

They originally wanted Jane Curtin.

R68 - to be fair, Ames was a small kid when the series started. They might have not realized he’d end up being 7 feet tall.

Now when we want to see Becky we’ll have to settle for this freak

Did they ever mention the fact that Becky was originally a straight A goody goody whose life went to shit because she eloped?

I’ll give both shows credit that with both the original and the reboot, the kids did not grow up to be super successful and wealthy. Becky and Darlene’s lives ended up less than stellar. Becky didn’t go to college right away, Darlene and David did not become big comic creators. Did Darlene graduate high school either? Didn’t she just get a GED or something to go to art school?

Good lord, who is that, R76?

R75 "Like my big boy Barron. One minute he munchkin of OZ, next minute he - how you say? - Giant of Jolly Green."

[quote]Did they ever mention the fact that Becky was originally a straight A goody goody whose life went to shit because she eloped?

They actually did have a moment where they addressed that, and it was probably the only good moment of the reboot.

Jackie dumping Bev off at a train station so she could see the world, even though she has dementia, was one of the worst. The excuse was Jackie had a tracker on Bev's phone so she could always find Bev, but what happened if the phone got stolen? Or Bev misplaced it?

Very weak storylines.

R60, I respectfully disagree. She even took Roseanne's place at the kitchen table during the intro and did the laugh. At least John Goodman and Laurie Metcalf showed some loyalty to Roseanne when she was fired from the show, but not Gilbert, she threw her under the media bus as soon as the news broke.

I hated that sausage thing Goodman did in the opening credits.

[quote]At least John Goodman and Laurie Metcalf showed some loyalty to Roseanne when she was fired from the show, but not Gilbert, she threw her under the media bus as soon as the news broke.

Perhaps she had had sufficient at that point. Roseanne had become a complete mental case and was solely responsible for getting herself sacked.

Roseanne deserves no loyalty. She sabotaged the entire new show and everyone and everything in it. I can’t believe it wasn’t on purpose.

The Conners was great. Hilarious stuff—especially Metcalf

R73 - don’t forget broke-ass Dan Conner.

r82 I did too. Gross and stupid looking.

R86. Thanks, Zoe Perry.

R84 It was just like when she falsely accused her own dad of rape. Sad.

The show was far from great but I really loved seeing the original cast members from Roseanne. It was an inferior show to the original but comfort tv for me.

ITA, R90. I’ll miss it. I also like that despite what Roseanne’s MAGA followers predicted, it had a relatively long, successful run - without that bitch.

R89, she accused her father of being a perv, not a rapist. I believe it.

[post redacted because linking to dailymail.co.uk clearly indicates that the poster is either a troll or an idiot (probably both, honestly.) Our advice is that you just ignore this poster but whatever you do, don't click on any link to this putrid rag.]

But in her 2011 memoir, Roseannearchy: Dispatches from the Nut Farm, she apologized for using the word 'incest' to describe the abuse, saying she was mistaken to use the word.

In an Oprah appearance to promote the book in 2011, she called the allegations 'the worst thing I've ever done' and 'the biggest mistake that I've ever made.'

When asked whether she meant calling 'calling it incest or going public?', Barr said she regretted both.

'I was in a very unhappy relationship. I was prescribed numerous psychiatric drugs, incredible mixtures of psychiatric drugs to deal with the fact that I had — and still in some ways have and always will have — some mental illness. And [with] the drugs and the combination of drugs that I was given — which were some strong, strong drugs — I totally lost touch with reality in a big, big way."

R94. She always had issues with her prescription drug intake. That was the original blame for the Valerie Jarrett tweets too.

Was it a coincidence that they used prescription drugs (and addiction to them) as the reason her character died on the show ?

Back to Roseanne and her confession her 'repressed memories' (she recalled her father sexually abusing her when she was an infant) was all a lie - it seems to have ended the pop psychology phenomenon of 'repressed memories'.

Remember the “three way marriage” she and Tom Arnold were in as a “joke” but nobody thought it was a joke. They separated soon thereafter.

I never watched a single episode of the reboot but this thread inspired me to pull some clips on YouTube.

Laurie Metcalf needs to teach an acting class. When I tell she is one of the GOATS, she is one of the mafuckin GOATS.

OR, R95, she used prescription drug use for everything she does as an excuse.

R92 ok maybe not rape but sexual assault. Let’s not whitewash this no pun intended. This stupid bitch accused her adult dad of touching her minor private parts. That is sexual assault and pedophilia. But more importantly.

IT NEVER FUCKING HAPPENED. If it was a liberal who did that shit her crazy ass would talk about it on Twitter every single day.

R98. When she smacked Darlene I said, "Finally"

Dear white people,

Why do some prescription drugs make some white people behave racist? I’m just asking questions.

Roseann was a popular comic who wore out her welcome and morphed into something macabre.

I absolutely loved how the show ended with all the tired out, fortunate to be in a Roseanne sequel, actors at Roseanne's grave site with the big reveal that Roseanne's life was reduced to $700 bucks. What a roman à clef in real life.

Post show possibilities:

Becky and hubby move to Glenwood. Darlene is killed by her bar-boyfriend, who turned into a stalker. Jacky is killed by him in the roundup, Greene kills himself in the end. All with guns. Ben moves to Chicago after Dan has ANOTHER heart attack and really dies.

And because Chuck Lorre cannot give up sitcoms, Mark ends up at Columbia and becomes friends with the youngest professor at Columbia in Quantum Computing named Paige Swanson played by Mckenna Grace, and they become the Holmes and Watson of Global Computer crime. And a laugh riot.

Is anyone going to Connerscon?

R96 - I always thought the reason they gave her a prescription drug habit and a need for surgery was so there would be a convenient way to kill her off. They knew she couldn’t contain her online ramblings, so it wasn’t a question of if, but when. The Conners seemed to come together pretty quickly after Roseanne was canned, almost like The Conners was always Plan B. I think they gave her the rights to the Roseanne character when she agreed to separate, which is probably why there were no flashbacks or even photos containing her likeness. They couldn’t even include her character from the Roseanne show in the sendoff episode. Instead, they just gathered around her grave.

R105 You hit it on the nail. Thats exactly what happened.

R195 There were many other ways to kill her character off. She could have had a heart-attack, a stroke ('Edith Bunker'), a car accident ('Valerie Hogan'), etc. A prescription drug addiction death just came across as a little too personally insulting, as Roseanne's real life antics were always blamed on prescription drugs.

R107 I think they were going for American realism.

R107. She needed to die by drug so that they could have that heart wrenching 10 mins where it's revealed that all the Housewives in Lanford are poor and swap meds. Remember, they had that hack Mary Steenbergen in a ratted fright wig and a cardigan full of holes and stained.

R103, it would be funnier if you knew how to spell names correctly

Opioid overdose was a big news story, that why they went with that.

Can we talk about how Laurie Metcalf is the Glenn Close of television.

R112...HA! with only one nomination.

R113 Why won’t you return my calls?

The rx addiction was requisite as it represented the 'war on opioids ' that was THE societal scourge of the moment. If the same show and antics happened between 2018/19-2019/20 she'd have died of covid related pneumonia or heart attack.

R115 see R111

R115 Michelle Obama created COVID.

R115 - I agree - I don't think anyone wrote in the addiction preparing to get rid of her. I think it was Roseanne putting that in - opiod usage in rural areas was and still is off the charts.

As far as Roseanne blaming her actions on medications, I don't buy it. She double and tripled down on her statements way too often. She went all racist and MAGA because that's what the older white working class did.

She deserves equal praise and scorn for her career, but more scorn than praise because she hurt a lot of people and didn't give a fuck.

R110 it wasn't meant to be funny, only provocative.

But as to r105, I don't think there was any plan b considering they killed Dan off in the first place.

Wasn't plan b the horrible lottery win sections that ended up with Dan dying the first time of the first heart attack?

So the Connors were Plan c?

I would have loved for Roseanne to have died choking on a dildo after Dan went limp after the heart attack.

Now THAT'S COMEDY!

R103

R98 was so satisfying - Darlene has needed a slap and a punch for 40 years. She runs her mouth criticizing everyone and looking down on them.

Words hurt just as much or more as physical abuse. Everyone always wants to say there is no excuse for violence - I disagree. People can run their mouth and say anything and they are just allowed to get away with it? Provocation IS real.

Laurie Meltcalf is amazing

Is her performance of Doll House anywhere?

I heard it was remarkable.

not sure why DJ was written out; maybe not the best actor but he should have been there for finale

DJ was basically an ancillary character in the original run as well. They barely wrote for him. Can you name many front burner episodes about him? Let’s see, when Todd couldn’t sleep over in the backyard and when Roseanne spanked him.

I can’t imagine the writers had many ideas for a DJ storyline.

I have not seen a frame of Roseanne and The Connors because I was always repulsed by Roseanne herself and I have only been proven right as the years progressed. But I still found it weird how Roseanne made no money from The Connors. It doesn’t seem right.

I think DJ was also a casualty of cost-cutting.

R124, I get it.

But the show is the Conners; and he's a Conner.

Family Ties didn't dump Jennifer or send her off to school. It wouldn't have matched the show's title.

I did like her singing and her zinger to Alex about arresting him in ten years was classic.

Adult DJ’s nose job is very distracting, worse than Darlene’s.

R127. I miss Tina Yothers

Roseanne going insane and become racist was disappointing because the original show was actually quite progressive for the time. Roseanne and Dan had black friends and didn’t tolerate discrimination.

And unfortunately it's all on her. So disappointing.

I'm glad Laurie Metcalf and John Goodman got great paychecks for this.

Sara Gilbert really bailed on The Talk at the right time, didn't she?

R125 after Sara Gilbert and Lecy Goranson exited the show (or in Gilbert's case cut back) the writers had no choice but to use DJ more often. Before that, yes, he was basically window dressing as a character.

He's the central character in two of the better season 6 episodes - I Pray the Lord my Stove to Keep and Homeward Bound.

DJ

I think of that episode when Roseanne dresses up like some kind of nutcase and walks him to school as some kind of punishment. I still liked the show back then but that bugged me as much as smartass dad Cosby always winning over his kids.

I've never watched it and never will but I got curious about the storyline so I looked up the episode synopses on Wiki. There are so many reused names and diminutives of names that I never did figure out who was who. I'm glad I never wasted my time with it.

The whole thing was plot driven - poor meets woke. People talking about life rather than showing it. They own a restaurant, a magazine & a hardware store but remain impoverished. The elderly spinster bags a younger vet, but doesn’t help the family. They’re nearly indigent but the gifted son can’t get a scholarship or reduced tuition to a decent state university. They send dementia granny off on an Amtrak to see the USA and it’s a noble right of passage instead of elder abuse. In the 2020s they can’t afford the house they bought in the 80s. Not ONE of them gets ahead. I kept watching. I don’t know why. Sitcom hate fuck I suspect.

And that Lecy shouted her lines. They should have revisited Becky's fart problems.

Original Roseanne star Michael Fishman spoke out after the series finale of The Conners spinoff aired on ABC.

Fishman, who played youngest child D.J. Conner in both series, did not appear in the finale—and his character wasn’t even mentioned. Soon after the episode aired, he posted a video to social media to share his reaction to the end of the spinoff series.

Addressing fans in an Instagram reel, Fishman, 43, said he has been “inundated with people looking for [his] reaction” to The Conners finale.

“People seem to want there to be some kind of conflict or controversy, especially on my part,” the actor said. “And the reality is, all I’ve ever had was empathy and understanding. For all the people on set and all of our audience that’s grieving, I prefer to be a lighthouse in the dark.”

Fishman credited the legacy of the sitcom franchise to Roseanne Barr, who parted ways with the revival series amid a 2018 Twitter scandal. “I have only gratitude,” he added of his experience on the show. “And I believe the legacy belongs to you in the audience.”

The actor also said he continues to shine a light on The Conners. “And it’s been my honor because I believe it’s been a comfort to so many people,” he said.

Fishman captioned his post with, “Thankful for the Gift of Grief, that it happened, that I got to share the experience, forever changed by it. To everyone who built our shows and all those who empowered it. #Legacy #Community #Love #Family #Roseanne.”

He also responded to a commenter who questioned, “They fire you and your name wasn’t even mentioned in the finale. What’s up with that?”

“Creative choice. I move forward,” Fishman positively replied.

Fishman made his debut as D.J. Conner at just six years old on the original Roseanne series. The show aired for nine seasons, from 1988 to 1997, and he returned as the character for the reboot in 2018.

Fishman also joined The Conners spinoff in 2018, but after four seasons, he was let go from the series with the explanation that his military veteran character went to join his wife overseas.

At the time, he issued a positive statement to People magazine. “It has been my honor to play D.J. Conner," Fishman said in 2022. "While I was told I would not be returning for Season 5, Lanford was a valuable place to grow up, learn, and develop. I was incredibly lucky to return home and demonstrate my expansion. As I venture into the world to build the future, I send tremendous love and success to everyone involved in production.”

As for why Fishman wasn’t brought back for The Conners series finale, it all came down to the final season being just six episodes, with a lot to wrap up with all of the other characters.

“Honestly, once you see the arcs [you will understand],” showrunner Bruce Helford told TVLine in March. “What we never want to do is just bring somebody in just to see that person on the show. We want everyone to have something important to play.”

Never trust a lesbian.

Reading through the lines of various PR talk.....

ABC cancelled the show last year and someone moved heaven and earth to get these 6-7 additional episodes made for this year to tie things up a bit.

I bet if they'd had 18 episodes they probably would have solved a few hanging stories.

Like what was the last episode he appeared. Did they write the character off 3 seasons ago or more recently.

I think he left after the 4th or 5th season

Fishman is the ultimate class act.

Fishman was a bad actor

They kicked Michael Fishman off the show, but they kept the character of his daughter, who was half white / half black, and the show had her move into Dan Conner's house. I guess the show wanted to do some storylines about race, but they eventually gave up, because they were too busy doing storylines about Darlene's trans boss and Becky's undocumented immigrant baby daddy. So they dropped the character of DJ's daughter, too.

Who did get to appear in the short final season? Laurie's real-life daughter appeared in two episodes, as Jackie tried to regain her job on the police force (at the age of 70). Jane Lynch appeared as an alcoholic lawyer. Harris' boyfriend of two episodes, because ...? (The actor must be related to someone on the show.). I would have rather seen DJ.

They didn’t even really have Ben on this season. The storyline around him was so lame. Especially bringing on Seth Green’s character - why?

R145 You see I don’t like that. I don’t like sitcoms that always display a certain amount of realism than to just drop characters like that with no explanation. It cheapens it.

It was the latest in a long line of wringing the last cent out of a franchise.

If Roseann hadn't kept the Roseanne character her own property, we would probably be subject to Young Roseanne by now.

Now what the fuck is Sara Gilbert gonna do? Flip houses like Ellen?

No, a new skincare line.

She’s probably set for life with them residuals.

[quote]I can’t imagine the writers had many ideas for a DJ storyline.

If they were going to write off DJ, they could have done it in a way that respected the original. He's a vet. He could have had PTSD and inherited Roseanne's addictive personality. After a fight with his wife, he ends up living in his car and then on the streets of downtown Lanford. One last scene where Dan or the girls tries to reach out to homeless DJ and he viciously rejects them would have felt more like the original show, given him something to do, and gotten him off the show.

The first five seasons of the original Roseanne were so good, but the series went into an inexplicable downward spiral of awfulness after that season. The reboot was unwatchable on every level...terrible writing, bad acting,, etc. Can't believe it lasted beyond the first episode. They should have just torn down the sets and moved on after Roseanne's tweet.

*after that 5th season.

The show definitely seemed to want Laurie Metcalf to play Jackie as if she were still in her forties or early fifties. I wonder if it was Laurie’s ego driving the choice, or if they thought that’s just how quirky Jackie is best remembered so why change it.

R248. We already had that in the form of Little Rosie back in the 90s. It blows my mind that once upon a time just about anybody could get a cartoon. Like Louie Anderson Rosie O'Donnell Roseanne Barr Ll Cool j MC Hammer Mr t.