So I am a
little late to the party, or maybe on time with the recent cancellation, but I
finally saw the Roseanne reboot. What
did I think of it??? Well it’s…well…
So I am a
big fan of the original show. In fact, in terms of American Television, I think
it should be put up there with the greats like Breaking Bad, Seinfeld, and Twin
Peaks.
Roseanne was and still is funny, dark,
and extremely well written except Season 9 which didn’t exist. The
show nails an atmosphere and identity that is completely its own. The
soundtrack still rings in my ears to this day, and Roseanne Barr gave such an
underrated performance. I don’t think people really appreciate just how funny
she was in the original Roseanne.
Despite the annoying voice, she
brought about a relatability and realism to the show in both the writing and
acting. Although in order not to deify Roseanne Barr, I will say a lot of it was
helped by a strong creative team. We are talking about a dream team of comedic
writers. We are talking about early Joss Whedon, Norm Macdonald, Amy
Sherman-Palladino (of Gilmore Girls fame), and many others.
So Roseanne is a fantastic show. I hope
this two-paragraph blurb will suffice for now and will hopefully push you into
checking the show out. It still holds up in my humble opinion.
But now we
got this new show. And I will admit, it has some compelling components. Mark is
a likable addition to the cast and John Goodman’s performance as Dan is somehow
even better that it was 20+ years ago. There were some little nods to the old
show that weren’t obnoxious and were actually quite clever. Some of the
nonpolitical story arcs are fine to say the least and play well into the
20-year gap the show is trying to do. All in all, it had some potential to be
just as great as the old show. But there is one thing that hurts the show for
me and it’s the same person that made original great in the first place, and
that is Roseanne herself.
Do you guys
remember the book Go Set a Watchman? It
is a sequel to the almost universally acclaimed book To Kill A Mockingbird.
If you are
unfamiliar in what I am about to talk about. All I will say to catch you up is
that the iconic lawyer, Atticus Finch, went from the pedestal of morality by
defending a black man in a 1930s racist America to becoming a product of the
1950s racist America.
That being
said, I find that idea rather fascinating (in theory). I do find that drastic
shift in political ideologies could make for some interesting characterization.
But in practice, it leads to a jarring shift that I haven’t really seen until I
watched Roseanne of all things.
Roseanne
Connor, especially at the time, was a
very forward-thinking character. She wasn’t Bernie Sanders, but she promoted a
tremendous step towards LGBT+ acceptance, women’s rights, and women’s
independence.
Yet this
Roseanne Connor, the one we see today, is now a product of 2010s “everything
that is wrong with” America, A character that is afraid of Muslims and voted
for Trump. It is not as extreme as Go Set
a Watchman, but it’s disorientating nonetheless.
This
shattered my immersion for me. I couldn’t buy that Rosanne, the character,
would shift into these xenophobic tendencies or that she would believe one iota
of a politician’s promise to create more jobs, especially when that politician
is Donald Trump.
It doesn’t
help how on the nose the writing is. I felt like I was watching a PSA half the
time. Mediocre on a regular scale but completely shameful when compared to the
original show.
Much like Go
Set a Watchman, the problem is that there is not really an in-between stage
that could really make a person understand why Roseanne shifted so drastically.
All we get is a razor thin motivation that we are expected to accept by the end
of the pilot episode. What was a rather realistic show about a middle-class
family in Illinois now feels like an almost surrealist show because the drastic
shift of one character.
It’s a
shame too, because there is some good in there. It may not be as funny as the
original, but it is trying something culturally different than most sitcoms by
capturing some of the grounded nature of the original show. At least it has
some enthusiasm compared to the Big
Bang Theory and the later seasons of Modern
Family.
So to close
my thoughts in a quick summary, the show is fine. It is a bit sloppier and a
bit jarring, but it wasn’t a waste of time. I may be the only millennial that
actually cares about this show since my generation is probably watching let’s
see *checks google* ‘13 Reasons Why Season
2, ewww.’
But I think
Roseanne reboot operates better as a
case study more than a satisfying watch. I don’t think it retains the same
power as the original, and Roseanne’s political shift is too disorientating for
me. I’d rather have people watched the original over this reboot.
At least it will never reach the epic dumpster fire
that is Season 9 which is oddly comforting.
Like I said
before, it had potential which is why the recent cancellation is a bit tragic.
It’s understandable don’t get me wrong, but it’s disappointing nonetheless.
