What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 2, Episode 6 “Tempest in a Stew Pot” (B)

I think this is going to be my last episode of this show. I’m always reluctant to give up on comedies because they’re usually just half an hour, but that’s still time I don’t need to be spending with a series that isn’t either fulfilling me or one that I’d revisit anyway come Emmy time because it’s nominated for a handful of awards. I just don’t care if the family all comes back together again, and I miss Darlene’s multiple boyfriends. Becky and Jackie planning this elaborate stew restaurant did nothing to convince Darlene that it was a better option than the other offer that she had gotten, and they both seem ready to be militant just for the sake of it and stay bitter instead of accepting her decision. Harris isn’t exactly radiating positive qualities, lying to both her mother and her grandfather about seeing her friend Odessa again after the bike incident. I think part of the issue is that it’s not Odessa who’s the problem, but Harris herself, who seems intent on breaking every rule just for the hell of it without ever trying to do anything nice for someone else. As Darlene pointed out, people do like Mark, and his efforts to make Thanksgiving more personal were sweet. I also liked Dan’s line in response to his objection to Dan’s use of the word Indians to describe Native Americans about how he and his kind are on their way out. That’s a fine note for me to end on – I’d be happy watching an occasional episode in the future, but I’m ready to be done with regular viewing.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 2, Episode 5 “Nightmare on Lunch Box Street” (B)

I was just talking to someone who said that they were also watching this show and weren’t exactly sure why, and I still wonder whether I should be continuing with it or not since it’s far from essential viewing. I watched the new season of “Roseanne” when it premiered because I expected it to earn Emmy nominations (which it did for Laurie Metcalf), and now I’ve become only moderately attached to some of the characters. I continue to find Sara Gilbert to be the strongest member of the ensemble, and she was firing on all cylinders in this half-hour as she first acknowledged Ben’s unsubtle attempts to make her feel less valued at work and then returned with a bold gesture that just ended up being two unfortunate revelations about her not having been divorced and David having dumped her. I like that the Halloween aspects of this episode were in the background, relegated to a few comments, like Darlene dressing up as Becky before she had the baby, and of course as the setup for a more dramatic subplot with the rarely-seen Mary, who had a sweet bonding moment with her cousin Mark about not being accepted. Jackie looking to buy the Lunch Box and discovering that her mother apparently still owns it after all these years seemed to come from out of nowhere. I don’t know what’s going to happen with that or if we’ll see the lawyer played by Patrick Fabian from “Better Call Saul” again, but the idea of a baby acting as a hostess is indeed entertaining.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 2, Episode 4 “Lanford…Lanford” (B)

I should have guessed that Darlene’s double-dipping would end this way, with her trying to break up with David only to have him beat her to it and then Ben do the same thing as soon as she went to finally come clean with him. It was fun while it lasted, and the shock with which she responded when David preempted her at therapy was indeed entertaining. Sara Gilbert definitely deserves the most credit for her performance on this show, constantly on and delivering each and every line in a way that really lands. Investigating Harris’ costume hidden under two layers of decoy clothing was smart, and it’s a good thing that she’ll no longer have to deal with being blackmailed by her daughter so that she can get back to being able to parent with some degree of authority. Darlene isn’t the smartest texter, drafting a very long message to each of her boyfriends and trying to get that out with limited service rather than just a short note for help. I enjoyed Jackie’s commentary on the whole thing, showing up after David, Ben, and Dan all came to help fix Darlene’s tire and then chanting excitedly for Team Ben when they were analyzing the situation back home. Becky pouring out all of Dan’s beer could have been milked for lazier laughs, but instead it appears that they’re just finding ways to get along in close quarters when neither of them are in particularly great shape at the moment.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 2, Episode 3 “The Preemie Monologues” (B)

This show does seem to be able to stretch a lot of its comedy from the notion of its characters not being able to afford much, something that comes up selectively and which often gets blamed on just one resident of the house. Darlene is the most frequently-accosted, in this case for them being out of toilet paper, which they apparently use for everything. The decision that she’s having trouble making about which man she’d like to keep romantically in her life wasn’t made any easier by the fact that Harris knows she’s sleeping with both David and Ben, and I like that Darlene tried to approach her “insane” daughter by talking right to her and being upfront after Harris told her that she knew. Becky being a mother hasn’t been smooth either, though I think she’s struggling most with Jackie driving her crazy, trying to have the baby start learning Mandarin from the nurses at the hospital and other absurd expectations that she’s somehow concocted. Going in to work and trying to guilt a customer into a huge tip because of what she’s going through went predictably poorly, though Louise did do a pretty great job of salvaging the situation by billing it as dinner theater in the early stages of development. It looks like Louise might become a more permanent fixture on the show after suggesting that Dan would want her there for important moments in his life, and he responded by eventually asking her out, which should provide some entertaining fodder for future episodes. I feel like we haven’t seen DJ do anything of substance in a while, and so having him do magic for the wrong baby felt oddly appropriate.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 2, Episode 2 “A Kiss Is Just a Kiss” (B)

This episode focused in on just one plotline more than usual, looking at Darlene as the center of the universe and the multitude of problems that came at her at the same time. She’s doing a very poor job of balancing the two relationships she’s found herself in, and something tells me that Ben isn’t going to be happy at all when he finds out that she’s been carrying on an affair with her ex. Jackie isn’t exactly subtle, physically blockading the stairwell when David was up there so that Ben wouldn’t get any ideas of looking around and finding him after his surprise stop-by. Ben’s suggestion of therapy was hilariously mirrored by Darlene when David tried to get serious about their relationship, and those delay tactics aren’t going to work too well given that David was ready to run in and tell the kids that they were getting back together when Darlene is definitely nowhere close to that point. Mark being in violation of the no-PDA rule and then having his boyfriend deny that there was ever anything between them led to a great opportunity for Darlene and even David to show their support, to “parent the crap out of that kid,” as David put it. I personally enjoyed Dan giving Mark some endearing relationship advice, and it’s good to see the young character featured in a way that isn’t just tangential, like say Harris or DJ, who really don’t get much to do other than show up in a scene for half a second.

What I’m Watching: The Conners (Season Premiere)

The Conners: Season 2, Episode 1 “Preemies, Weed, and Infidelity” (B)

This show concluded its first season back in January, and at that point, it wasn’t yet known if it would be back for another year. I had hoped it would be, and I’m glad that it is. Its humor continues not to be overly complex or ambitious, but it’s still enjoyable. The cast seems to be having fun, which is the best asset, demonstrated most in the scene where Darlene and Jackie kept shaking pillows to pretend that they were looking for Harris’ good earrings while she confided in her aunt about the two relationships she was carrying on at the same time. It definitely won’t be long before Ben finds out that she’s not telling him everything, and I’m not sure if we’re going to be seeing a lot of David or not now that Johnny Galecki is freer with “The Big Bang Theory” having ended. I recognized Lucy Punch from “Ben and Kate” as the mom whose son was Harris’ unfortunate client, even without her natural British accent. This episode did seem to have a much stranger showcase for veteran Estelle Parsons, who is managing to drive everyone crazy as the matriarch of the family. Things seemed like they were going to be getting serious when Becky’s water broke way ahead of her due date, but fortunately it seems like everything’s okay. Naturally, her choice of a name would be unusual, with the middle name Rose as the sole reference to the departed character and actress who used to be the centerpiece of this show. I’m not sure I find watching this show urgent by any definite, but it’s good light, dependable fun.

What I’m Watching: The Conners (Season Finale)

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 11 “We Continue to Truck” (B+)

It’s strange to see this show signing off so early without any confirmation that there will be a second season. The return of the classic series that spun this one off last year was a ratings juggernaut, and then its swift cancellation following Roseanne’s infamous tweet could have doomed this fictional family, but instead this new show was in the works and on the air very quickly. Like last year, the comedy was prominent but things ended on a real and troubling note as Roseanne and Dan realized that their basement was flooding and they would have to pay a lot to repair it. Now, Becky managed to bond with the father of her child and see what a happy family could look like, only to find out that he had been picked up by ICE and deported. It’s interesting to see this show address illegal immigration in this way, with Dan sadly admitting that he was in the country illegally while Darlene shouted at him not to find that acceptable. Jackie also went through a rough time as she finally got confirmation that Dan’s suspicions about Peter were right all along and he tried to blame her for overreacting to the news of his infidelity. Everyone Darlene told about Ben asking her to move in with him in Chicago seemed all for the idea, and David’s bad timing has now put that in doubt, which is a shame since it’s really probably a good step for the whole family. I’d be excited to watch more of this show, which has substantially improved, and I’m hopeful we’ll soon get a renewal announcement!

Season grade: B+
Season MVP: Sara Gilbert as Darlene

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 10 “Don’t Shoot the Piano Teacher” (B+)

Darlene is an extremely sarcastic person, and it makes a lot of sense that both of her children would have inherited some of that. Harris displays it in a relatively unfriendly way, grilling her about having slept with other men they didn’t meet, while Mark was evidently corrupted to pretend to have a tantrum just to mess with his mother. Ben went over well with Dan, even though he caught on right away that Darlene was trying to test him by agreeing to Ben’s suggestion of giving her son piano lessons. Making Mark cry seemed like an unproductive development for their relationship, especially given the way Ben responded when Darlene confronted him, but she’s trying something new by dating someone who is going to challenge her rather than just take what she says, which led to a humorous attempt to have Mark get Ben to come back without implicating her actions in the situation. Ben inviting Darlene and the kids to move in with him was a surprise, and I’m sure there’s going to be some drama if that actually happens. Becky having a baby shower just for the gifts after Blue suggested it was funny, though Jackie got her more upset by inviting Emilio to show his own contribution for the baby. Dan hiring Emilio to do work for him was a sweet gesture, one that hopefully won’t backfire either if he fails to live up to his expectations of a hard worker or, worse, proves less than sincere in his desire to be a part of his future child’s life.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 9 “Rage Against the Machine” (B+)

This show has done a great job of realizing what it should be, and this episode was extremely entertaining. Leave it to Dan to have a vending machine fall on him and then not want to put in much effort to fight the system to get what he deserves. Despite DJ’s job, Darlene was all for pushing as hard as possible to get their bills covered, and as soon as she said the word “lawyer,” the conversation was over and the snacks were taken away. I was very excited to see the always great Peter Gallagher as the lawyer that Darlene decided to hire after seeing his face advertised at a gas station, and though he didn’t have all that much to do, he did have a great line in response to Dan saying he wasn’t hurt as bad as six figures: “Never say that again.” Naturally, the settlement that he ultimately got wasn’t anything to write home about, though Darlene’s persistence and humor helped them conclude that they ended up with $600 extra to spend on a trip to Europe, or, as Dan decided, thirty mail-order steaks. Jackie had a winning half-hour, making jokes that amused even herself, starting with the nickel-and-dime vending machine crack. Serving as a life coach for the very directionless Becky was a fun idea, and I like that Becky went to her competition because she had never actually seen her aunt with a client. Having a flirtatious customer’s girlfriend come in and chew her out was a more serious moment than we’re used to, but, as with how the Conners deal with problems, it all resulted in more comedy.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 8 “O Sister, Where Art Thou?” (B+)

This was a great episode, and I’m starting to really appreciate the rhythm of this show, which I’m glad I opted to continue watching. When Darlene introduced Becky to Dan, she came in hot, and all three of them were hurling around insults that were both entertaining and relatively accurate. Becky being home when Harris got brought back by the cop enabled her to give her niece a bit of guidance that wasn’t altogether parental, and of course Darlene wouldn’t react well to the news that Becky hadn’t told her about this event. Trashing Becky’s life choices in the process came off as very cruel, and I enjoyed their make-up scene by the pool table where they were honest with each other. Becky got in the best licks by analyzing just how terrible Darlene was at pool. Dan not being grumpy for once worked well, though he wasn’t at all picking up on the signals that his friend Louise, played by Katey Sagal of “Sons of Anarchy” and “Married with Children” fame, was sending. Her response to his confrontation of what their relationship was turned out to be very blunt and funny. Jackie commits wholeheartedly to whatever she does, and pretending to be a frontierswoman to help Peter write his latest paper was a difficult endeavor, one that prompted a hilarious takedown of just how one-sided the entire thing was and how much it was driving her crazy. Their relationship may not be over just yet, but it doesn’t seem like it’s going to last too much longer.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 7 “Hold the Salt” (B+)

I really liked this episode, in which both plotlines were quite funny. Darlene dressing up for work had her entire family talking, and I like that Ben started their banter by telling her that she knew exactly what kind of woman he was attracted to. Their sexual chemistry was strong, but they really clashed when it comes to their alpha personalities. Darlene refusing to take off her shoes, trying to open a bottle of white wine, and forcibly adding salt straight into the dish was entertaining, and I love that they both used the phrase “I tried it in my mind and I hated it” to shut down the other’s gentle suggestion of what to do. Meeting Blue to hear her complaints about David’s submissiveness woke her up to the kind of person Ben really was, and the notion of them both letting go of control and trusting each other should prove extremely entertaining going forward. Matthew Broderick’s return as Peter showed that he wasn’t just the most boring person in the world, painfully detailing the meaning of Crayola, but that he might have less genuine intentions when it comes to the joint bank account he opened with Jackie. It was sweet to see Dan stepping in to look out for her best interests and conveying that to her when she yelled at him a lot in their own little way of communicating, clearly wanting the best for the other but never willing to admit that they possibly care for each other.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 6 “One Flew Over the Conners’ Nest” (B)

I wondered if we’d see Sarah Chalke again on this show as Andrea, the woman who was going to have a baby with Becky as her surrogate. Her return appearance was hardly one that was encouraging to Becky’s impending parenthood, and naturally that would affect her state of mind and push her to, say, agree to give her baby to the friendly lesbian couple that spends a lot of nights at the bar. They seemed so excited about it when she was clearly unresolved, and Darlene got to be the one to help Becky realize that she did in fact want to be a parent. Darlene was typically unwilling to go the lengths other will in order to make money, refusing to bend over for the creepy customer played by Kirk Fox, who portrayed garbage man Joe on “Parks and Recreation,” when he purposely dropped her tips on the floor. I like that Ben, after he tried to train her in how to defend herself, showed up intent on punching out the guy, in a very “boyfriend” kind of move. I’m all for them dating since I think it will be fun and different, and I don’t think he’s going to try too hard to impress the Conner clan, which is sure to irritate Dan. He wasn’t happy about the chicken coop idea pitched by Jackie, who just wanted to feel like she was more welcome than she already made herself feel coming over all the time. I do like the dynamic between Dan and Jackie and how they both respond so strongly to each other.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 5 “Miracles” (B)

There are events that happen on shows sometimes which feel like they should be more impactful but aren’t portrayed as such because of how the characters react to them. That’s the definition of Becky’s pregnancy, which she casually figured out when she wouldn’t let her family members order certain menu items and then nearly got taken to a meeting by Dan because he thought she was hung over. The surrogacy storyline with Sarah Chalke happened right at the beginning of last season, and now it’s a matter of whether Becky actually wants to go through with this and support a child on her own. Hoping that the manager and not the busboy was the father didn’t pan out, and now maybe the lesbian couple at the bar will want to adopt her unborn child, which should be interesting. I guess Justin Long isn’t sticking around for too long as Neil, dumped immediately after Darlene got a harsh talking-to from Jackie and Dan about how she was controlling him exactly the way she did with David. It’s great to watch Laurie Metcalf go all-out as Jackie, and though I’m still partial to Sara Gilbert, I’m starting to agree that she makes a strong case as this show’s MVP. I was happy to see Darlene meet Jay R. Ferguson’s stone-faced newspaper editor Ben, who wasn’t at all amused by Darlene’s attempts to liven up the crime blotter with a bit of journalistic enthusiasm. That should be fun to watch, and I’m eager to see how their relationship develops since he’s not about to be told that he can’t eat shrimp.

What I’m Watching: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 4 “The Separation of Church and Dan” (B)

It’s continually interesting to see how this show is moving past the departure of the lead character that used to anchor this family without really including her. Dan’s grief is extremely present, but it’s not like Roseanne or her ideals are still around. Instead, Dan is as stubborn as ever, determined to move on - or refuse to - in his own way and own time. Naturally, he would resist the notion that he needs some help, and he lasted just a few minutes and a few sentences into another guy’s story when he went to a support group, led by M.C. Gainey, who usually plays much meaner characters. Playing cards with his friends and singing is probably the best medicine, since that represents a return to normal behavior for him which would have happened just the same way when Roseanne was around. Geena trying to get everyone to go to church was an enjoyable exercise, one that elicited many jokes from the unwilling, unreligious clan. Probably the most entertaining plotline in this episode was Mark’s assignment which Jackie, representing everything about liberalism, got way too into and completely ruined by trolling the Republican respondent who had some very prepared answers to each of her pointed challenges. As the only cast member to receive an Emmy nomination for last year’s reboot, Metcalf definitely does a superb job of mirroring the people who likely don’t account for much of this show’s audience in a hilarious and not terribly offensive manner.

Take Three: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 3 “There Won’t Be Blood” (B)

This is actually the way to do a Halloween episode: have characters dress up in costumes that mostly serve as fodder for one-liners or figure more specifically into the plot. It’s interesting to have Darlene and Dan remaining on this show as opposite political figures, and in this case of political correctness that Dan decried, Darlene actually ended up arguing against it because she saw it stifling Mark’s creativity and the incredible effort he put in to make his Frida Kahlo costume. That felt to me like a pretty legitimate and unoffensive way to deal with the topic of just how much is too much to censor without providing a decisive answer, since Mark ultimately wasn’t let in to the carnival. Becky’s costume was entertaining, as was her commitment to it. I was surprised to see Matthew Broderick as Jackie’s new boyfriend Peter, who was incredibly boring with his pre-prepared facts about Halloween. It was pretty funny to watch Darlene try to score a job as a waitress insulting diners as she obliterated David Paymer’s self-esteem with her genuinely mean comments. Dan, on the other hand, did his best to hold his tongue and dance around what he really wanted to say about Peter even though Jackie was begging him for something reminiscent of how Roseanne might have skewered him. Harris passing her driver’s test by some miracle helped show a much more mature side of her as she came up with an impressive and adult plan of how she would be able to afford the car and everything related to it.

Round Two: The Conners

The Conners: Season 1, Episode 2 “The Separation of Church and Dan” (B)

I think ABC should be happy – this show works just fine without Roseanne, and she barely even figured into this episode, with only a couple mentions to reference her absence. We had two notable guest stars in the form of Johnny Galecki, best known for “The Big Bang Theory” and who also made an appearance last year as Darlene’s ex David, and Juliette Lewis, currently portraying an equally problematic girlfriend no one invited on “Camping,” as Blue, whose parenting decisions are truly questionable and infuriating to Darlene. It wasn’t too much of a shock that something would happen when Harris stayed over, and Darlene learning that Blue had permitted her to have sex when she knew ahead of time that it was going to happen just made her even angrier. The fact that David and Darlene had sex and he didn’t tell her about it makes it seem that a divorce might not be nearly as permanent as it sounds, and I’m sure both he and Blue will be back again soon long before any of their children go to college. Darlene giving Harris a hard time about opening up to her mother about sex was entertaining, and I still contend that Sara Gilbert is the strongest part of this reboot. In her one scene, Laurie Metcalf wasn’t bad either, going on her own rant when David asked Jackie a single question. Becky arguing that she should be able to work construction for her father led to a more serious mention of her alcoholism, something that’s still being played for laughs, and I’m curious if we’ll see that again. I enjoyed Dan threatening David when he joked about having sex with Darlene years earlier. On that note, I hope we’ll see more of Justin Long’s incredibly awkward love interest.

Pilot Review: The Conners

The Conners (ABC)
Premiered October 16 at 8pm

What we have here is a unique situation: a show brought back two full decades after it ended to experience incredible ratings and then be swiftly cancelled within hours of its title star making deplorable comments on Twitter. Even crazier is the fact that this series is pretty much an exact continuation of the reboot without Roseanne. At first, it seemed like Roseanne was going to be dismissed like Charlie Sheen was on “Two and a Half Men,” but her heart attack turned out to be something much darker: an overdose on prescription drugs, something that was previously foreshadowed when Dan first realized that she was dependent on medication. It’s hard to figure out if this show is trying to say something about drugs in America (and health care, etc.), especially with Roseanne and her political views out of the picture. Much of this pilot, which shouldn’t really be considered a brand-new series launch since it directly continues from the tenth season of the original series, is about moving on, which most profoundly affected Dan and Jackie. Dan coming to terms with his grandson being gay was a positive step, and it was funny to see Jackie start a five-day couch-cleaning process and try to improve the geometric equilibrium of the coffee maker in relation to the kitchen. Becky and Darlene arguing over their joint responsibilities was entertaining too. I was only watching the original because of its awards potential, so I guess I have to decide whether this show is likely to be a stronger contender without its problematic former star.

How will it work as a series? The opening credits started showing up at the very end of the episode as if to declare, “Look, we do it!” and congratulate this show on being its own story without Roseanne. It was fine and fun, and I think it should be more than capable of generating moderately enjoyable episodes.
How long will it last? The reviews are good, which is a positive, and the ratings were quite strong too. There’s no way that, without Roseanne, this show was going to deliver the same audience numbers as last year’s return, but without that enormous expectation, this debut should be considered a success. I’d look for a renewal announcement very soon.

Season grade: B