"The Conners" Discussion Thread

[Soapsuds]

Considering how crappy ABC is...... it should renew Roseanne like this instant. There is nothing I watch on ABC anymore.

[Vee]

I'm sure they'll be locking it down shortly.

[BetterForgotten]

The EW ratings article had some interesting tidbits:

• According to ABC, this is the highest-rated comedy telecast on any network in nearly four years (since a premiere episode of CBS’ The Big Bang Theory from 2014)
• Also kinda incredible, given how ratings have declined over the years: Roseanne’s return was actually higher among total viewers than its 1997 finale 21 years ago! 

• The Roseanne premiere audience also grew slightly from its first quarter to its second, which is a good sign

• This is Tuesday’s highest-rated entertainment telecast in six years among young adults and ABC’s best results in the time slot since 2006

Edited March 28, 2018 by BetterForgotten

[KMan101]

yassssssss!

 

SO HAPPY about the ratings!

 

Also glad it grew in the second episode, I was hoping it didn't dip. Good news!

[Vee]

Holy shít.

[Soapsuds]

The show either had new viewers watching or more of the older viewers returned for the reboot than for the finale. And I was worried the show would drop the second half hour. Glad it gained in viewers.

[Vee]

The little kid playing Mark Jr. is already a star. It's uncanny how much his mannerisms and face remind me of Jennifer Elise Cox - the demented Jan in the Brady Bunch films.

[Faulkner]

 

 

[KMan101]

 

O.M.G.

 

YES!

 

Perfect comparison!

 

Ames is a great, great find.

 

The actress playing Harris seems fine but hasn't had a lot to do yet, which is also fine. (I've not watched Shameless so I have no idea how she is but she seems perfectly cast and talented)

Edited March 28, 2018 by KMan101

[Vee]

So, my thoughts on ep 1:

 

As critics say the pilot is definitely creaky - especially Roseanne, who hasn't had to act in a long time and it shows. And the Barney Fife is turned way up on Jackie, which I didn't care for but which Laurie Metcalf always enjoys. The gaslighting accusation Jackie made was smart though, and has roots in the old show. I thought the treatment of the issue was soft, but realistically I'm not sure how much they could do without getting really ugly and turning people all the way off. So if they want to move on with a more progressive show in spite of Roseanne's complicated politics, so be it.

 

The whole Becky thing comes in out of nowhere but whatever, it's a pilot. I did find it interesting the live audience clearly is cheering for Jackie and booing a lot of Roseanne's Trump lines. The cast, old and new, is what works. I did like the commentary on Roseanne's failed book/Season 9.

 

That's BS about Becky not finishing high school though - I could swear she did. The Becky stuff could easily have been (non-)written for Sarah Chalke, which I didn't like. I hope it improves.

Darlene is softer and a bit more matured but she still has some great lines. She isn't a vicious caricature but she still has some edge. But when she started breaking down talking about having to come home, that got me. They never let Sara do that much on the old show - show that much open vulnerability - and she proved she's still an actual actress. To be the heart of the new show Darlene has to have one, and she does here more than ever because she's grown up.

[KMan101]

I'm pretty sure Becky finished high school too. That was an odd line I thought.

 

I didn't find Jackie's Barney Fife impression as bad as it was towards the end of the show. But yeah a lot of it was there. I thought it was toned down some and some moments worked well. But I'll see how they handle it going forward. I don't want her to be a caricature like she became. I do like the gag of her life coach career. She's always amplified herself in her job and been over the top about it.

[Vee]

Yes, that was definitely very Jackie to pump up her latest job.

 

I did like the tender bit with Darlene and Harris worrying about Mark - I was glad Harris isn't all edge. That gets old, it got older in the later years of the old show.

 

Roseanne had her best moment in a creaky beginning of the season with the kid playing Mark - them cuddling and him taunting her reminded me of how she and Michael Fishman used to interact at that age.

That is Darlene's old teacher from the early seasons at Mark's school! Wow. And the scene with him and Darlene at the end was great. The beat Sara Gilbert took controlling her emotions before she told him kids would play with him really got me. She's so good here. And Ames McNamara is preternaturally good. I liked Dan hugging him and playing ball with him.

Reserving judgment on the Becky story until it moves beyond one note. Lecy does still have the comic timing as Becky ranted about having a dentist who doesn't work out of a van.

Edited March 28, 2018 by Vee

[Vee]

 

A bad headline for a good interview:

 

 

[Vee]

[BetterForgotten]

I have to say that it's nice that an actress like Laurie Metcalf at her age is getting such renewed interest and respect for her craft across film, TV, and theater. The show instantly has some level of credibility because she's in the cast. 

Edited March 28, 2018 by BetterForgotten