"Roseanne" - 2018 Revival on ABC

[rickylu]

It would be a mistake to have Darlene be the main character. Frankly, I don't think Sara Gilbert could carry a show on her own. With heavyweights like John Goodman and Laurie Metcalf already on board, it needs to be a true ensemble comedy for it to make it past its first year. Also, I hope they don't kill off Roseanne Conner. That seems too easy. Plus, although the chances are slim, the door should be open a crack for at least a cameo somewhere down the road.

[Mot Morenzi]

7 hours ago, rickylu said:

It would be a mistake to have Darlene be the main character. Frankly, I don't think Sara Gilbert could carry a show on her own. With heavyweights like John Goodman and Laurie Metcalf already on board, it needs to be a true ensemble comedy for it to make it past its first year. Also, I hope they don't kill off Roseanne Conner. That seems too easy. Plus, although the chances are slim, the door should be open a crack for at least a cameo somewhere down the road.

Agreed about it being an ensemble show. That's a far stronger option than focusing primarily on one character. 

I also agree that killing Roseanne off would be too easy. Have her leave home to seek psychiatric treatment at a medical institution or something. 

[Mot Morenzi]

Thoughts?

[Neil]

On 6/22/2018 at 11:53 AM, Mr. Wilson said:

The show will never work without Roseanne.  The first episode might get a good sampling but after that it will be all downhill.  You need Roseanne, without her there is no show.  That's like I Love Lucy without Lucille Ball.  There are certain stars that just can't be replaced.  The Conners will be finished after the first ten episodes.  

You may be right.  (I think much of this post is a "re-broadcast" but I'm too lazy to check.   )However, Roseanne is much more of an ensemble than Lucy.  Darlene's character is strong enough to pick up the wisecracks that would normally go to Roseanne.  The actress who plays Darlene is now older than the original Roseanne!   I'm hoping that Roseanne herself will eventually return to the series.  I have to confess: I don't know who Roseanne is talking about in her ill-fated tweet; or why Roseanne was targeting this woman NOW.  I can't make heads or tails of her wording.  I don't get tweet-shorthand.  I think I get the general gist, comparing her to an animal (as in perhaps my favorite Ethel line of all time: "I am getting a little TIRED of being called a COW")  I will trust others who say it was incredibly racist on a series-cancelling level.   Didn't Roseanne try to explain that it was "misinterpreted" and Ambien-fueled?  A bit short of a total mea culpa but at least it's something.  Certainly other performers have held racist unpopular personal views.  Mel Gibson was able to keep on working after his well-publicized anti-semitic remarks.  As long as their damaging personal politics are  not carried over to their product, I ,for one, can pay it no never-mind.  I think people have lost sight of the fact that the reboot's tone was actually pretty progressive: African-American granddaughter,  cross-dressing grandson, and JACKIE, who pokes holes in Roseanne's Trump-inspired logic -- and vice versa. Both sides can have black/white simple-minded opinions.  Accurate analysis takes more research than relying on sound-bytes.  Though I'm decidedly for the "left", the Democratic Party does not have clean hands when it comes to a lot of the messes we're in, so picturing them as the party of halo-wearing saviors will most likely end up in disillusionment.   If there is a pro-Trump bent to "Roseanne", it went over my head.   It would be interesting to fast-forward 50 years into the future to see how Trump is going to be portrayed in history books.  I don't think the outcomes between now and then will put him on the right side of history.  Oh GOD, I HOPE NOT.   (I won't be around so you youngsters will have to contact me via an Ethel Mertzola seance or ouija board and let me know). 

 I would think that a depiction of barely-making-it working class folk (those who "do drywall", whatever that is...) that voted Trump,  humanizing their situation, would be profound, much-needed  social commentary.  I think these real-life people in the Connor's economic situation who support Trump were duped by his "populist" message, expounded and unsubtly spoon-fed (with a pitchfork sized spoon) by the astoundingly popular Fox "News" channel. (I refuse to refer to them as news without sarcastic air quotes).  How they were fooled into thinking billionaire bankruptcy-declaring real estate mogul Trump was "one of them"  and why they continue to cut him so much slack.is amazing.  The fraudulent Trump University and his p-grabbing off-camera crack ALONE would have sunk anyone else's political aspiration.  His simple-minded "I'm real smart. I can fix everything" message is appealing in that he wasn't part of the DC status quo.  But he is NOT smart.  His ham-handed approach to complex issues will do "the Connors" more harm than they realize.  It will eventually occur to them when higher prices to live become reality (which Fox will blame on Democrats).   Tariff's on imported goods: YAY!! Paying higher prices: "WAIT....HUH?"   With SO MUCH insanity coming out of DC these days, not enough time can be spent dwelling on single issues, most of which need in-depth analysis.    Have the rally-cheerers forgot that Mexico was DEFINITELY paying for this almost comically impractical wall?--just to name one of his highly unworkable campaign promises. 

One of my guilty, though stomach-churning pleasures is watching Kellyanne Conway dodge, shift blame, loop around to evoke Hillary (STILL??) with hypocritical  "How dare you!" indignation.  Now Ms. Conway, one of Trumps's earlier harsh critics, is truly deplorable, but I have to admit, she's good at what she does.  Having no conscience helps. 

Sorry this went on so long, but I got on a Sunday-moring role. 

[Freddie2]

The big issue was Roseanne saying that Valerie Jarrett looked like she was from Planet of The Apes or something. Comparing a black person to an ape= horrifically bad news. I do believe that Roseanne didn't know that Jarrett is African American, because she really doesn't look it, but even still- there is absolutely no reason for a major network star to be insulting someone's looks on social media; that goes for people on every part of the political spectrum. Peter Fonda's recent Tweet about Barron Trump was equally inappropriate. 

On the lighter side of things, I saw Kellyanne in DC not long before the inauguration. As far as Conways go, she ain't no Tim. I didn't interact with her.

ABC should allow Roseanne to come back but put a "No Tweeting" clause in her contract and cancel her cable subscription to Fox News! 

Brainstorm: Fellow hit sitcom firee Delta Burke could redeem herself and join the cast as Roseanne's long-lost sister!

 

[Neil]

I've forgotten: was Delta actually FIRED from Designing Women?  Not knocking the other 3, but the only time the series showed any real spark is when Delta walked into a scene.   With her comedic knack, it's too bad her 2 subsequent sitcoms failed so miserably: "Delta" and "Woman of the House", the latter reprising her Suzanne character with the same production team.  (They evidently made up.)  I haven't seen Delta in a while but the poor thing suffered the same fate as our own Ann Sothern, viewers and critics fixated on their  weight instead of their considerable charm and talent.   I don't remember Delta growing to Chris Christie proportions. 

Delta playing Roseanne's sister?  That has possibilities.  What was Roseanne Connor's maiden surname?

[Mot Morenzi]

Delta was indeed fired. At the time it wasn't known, but she was suffering a form of severe depression and it caused her to become difficult and unreliable. All was forgiven later once the cause was discovered. 

Designing Women was a hit and miss show. Some great moments, but it took itself too seriously at times. For a sitcom, it was often more serious than funny, and the serious moments were often cheapened by schmaltzy underscoring.  

I love the idea of her playing Roseanne's other sister. 

[Freddie2]

My grandma loves Designing Women but I have some qualms with the writing- particularly when paired against the many sitcoms that have superior scripts. I like the idea of it, and the actresses (and actors) involved are all really great, it's just hard to make it through an actual episode sometimes. The humor frequently comes from the characters making witty observances or cutting down others. The reason Delta is such a standout is probably because she was just about the only character who was allowed to have flaws, making her more comedic, more relatable, and more human.

Roseanne's surname was "Harris", as per sister Jackie Harris and mother Beverly Harris- plus the new teenage granddaughter whose first name was Harris.

I wonder how Delta is doing health-wise. She didn't appear at this year's Primetime Emmys with husband Gerald McRaney, who'd won at the Creative Arts ceremony for This Is Us. I remember him on the red carpet or something telling a story about why she couldn't make it. Hopefully all is well.

[Neil]

On 6/24/2018 at 3:02 PM, Freddie2 said:

I do believe that Roseanne didn't know that Jarrett is African American, because she really doesn't look it,

 

You're right (I looked up her pic), so now I'm really confused by this tweet, but it's given me an idea for a Roseanne next-season premiere that could get her off the hot plate she's on now. 

[Neil]

“ROSEANNE”’ 2018-19 season premiere!---PART ONE

Pre-production notes: ROSEANNE REALIZES THERE’S ONLY ONE WAY TO GET BACK IN THE PUBLIC’S GOOD GRACES AND REACHES OUT TO VALERIE JARRETT PLEADING WITH HER TO GUEST-STAR ON HER SEASON PREMIERE (“Name your own price!!”) AND SENDS HER THE FOLLOWING SCRIPT TREATMENT.  GOOD-SPORT VALERIE AGREES (with certain conditions). 

The top-secret guest star show is tentatively entitled “Roseanne is Ambi-text-erous”.  Another title under consideration: “Roseanne’s Mea-GULP-a”

Here’s the plot:  Roseanne takes too much Ambien and falls asleep watching an old Charlton Heston movie, while fumbling with the keyboard of her cell phone.  When Jackie wakes her up and pries Roseanne’s cell phone out of her hand, she is aghast at what Roseanne, in her drug-induced delirium has tweeted.

Roseanne: “Oh fer Christs sake, Jackie, calm down. No one will pay any attention.”

Knowing better, Jackie panics and goes into damage control, contacting some of her old friends from the Obama campaign.  “Kick Valerie’s phone out of her hand!!!”.  Too late, because VJ is on her way to Lanford with a head full of steam, out to confront Roseanne herself.  Roseanne tries to escape upstairs on her electric stair-chair, but Jackie pulls the plug leaving Roseanne a sitting duck.  When the doorbell rings, Roseanne quickly summons her granddaughter (DJ's daughter)  to sit on her lap; and awaits her comeuppance.  

FIRST COMMERCIAL BREAK.

[Neil]

“ROSEANNE”’ 2018-19 season premiere!---PART TWO 

Valerie bursts in with Tasmanian Devil-ferocity.   Rosanne with DJ's daughter on her lap: “SEE?  If I was racist would I love this little pick-a-nin…..?” stopping herself when she realizes what she’s saying.

VJ: I’LL be the one to, as you say, “pick a ninny” and the only ninny in this room is YOU.

Producer’s Script memo to VJ's people: “at this point we’re giving VJ 5 minutes carte blanche to say whatever she wants to Roseanne in the classic Dixie Carter/“Designing Women” fashion. We’ve hired as your script consultants the team of Norman Lear, to paraphrase the social commentary and Milt Josefsburg to punch it up with one-liners. .   Roseanne is contractually bound to keep her big bazzoo shut during your soliloquy.” 

 VJ’s reponse: “No need for writers. I’ll ad-lib my own material. Some portions will be courtesy of the Joan Rivers estate”  (Melissa has turned over her mother’s entire Elizabeth Taylor fat joke file).

After VJ’s speech and the generous audience applause, the camera cuts to an extreme close up of  Roseanne who remains quiet with her mouth agape for a full 30 seconds before saying:  “But what about Hillary and Bengaz--?"  Before she’s able to finish the word, VJ slams her in the face with a pie.  (Note from VJ’s people: “VJ okay’s this descent into slapstick with one caveat: Pie must be mincemeat She wants this to HURT!)

 A humbled Roseanne, extracting mincemeat chips embedded in her face,  says….”well maybe I need to rethink how I come across.”   Then smiles and says (as the opening chords of “Bosom Buddies” play)  “I guess we’re just two peas in a pod”. 

Sizing Roseanne up, VJ : “We’re going to have to get a bigger pod.”

Then the two share a Hollywood half-hug before breaking the 4^thwall to sing: 

Both: We’ll never be bosom buddies

RC: Not even just pals?

VJ: You and all your fuddy-duddies

Repeat the insanity

Spewed by Sean Hannity.

 VJ: If I say that your crack is showing, please hoist up your pants.

Remember the

Consequences of your tweeting.

So stop with the dumb racist rants. 

 VJ: I feel it’s my duty to tell you, it’s time to adjust to your weight.

You try to be Lucille Ball when you’re Countess Frambois

Exactly what size clothes do you wear, Rosanne?  

RC: What size do you  think?

VJ: I’d say everything’s triple-X (pause) …except for your bras.

RC ( spoken): Well, ZING!!

(continuing , jumping to Bosom Buddies last verse)

 RC: I listen to Sarah Sanders

VJ: I vote for Jill Stein

You’re shaped like Mur- 

iel Landers

RC: One tweet’s not a basis

For calling me racist

 Hey! 

Just look at my show’s track record. My

granddaughter’s a doll.

This year I’ll cast

Trump-hating Rosie O’Donnell

And black-ish Rachael Dolezal

(CU: VJ’s “whatya-gonna-do?” grimace into camera)

Both: Just turn on your nemis-sister

Vj: Try Twitter redacting

RC: You’re over-reacting!

VJ: Well, thanks to your friend Donald Trump

You’ll wipe out your

savings  without health insurance

So next time you tweet us

Check your diabetes

Then shove your cell phone up your rump!

RC (humble simultaneous harmonizing): I’ll send my next tweet from my rump. 

After the great reception by the studio audience, Roseanne thought things would be smooth sailing.   However ABC execs, so impressed with Jarrett’s unexpected comedic snap-worthy delivery, offer her a contract on the spot, and proposes a series revamp: demoting Roseanne to “semi-regular” status (her name now listed in the closing credits only under “with”.)  VJ moves in with the Connors for the show now titled “VALERIE’S FAMILY”.

THE END

(The above plot assumes people know who Muriel Landers and Rachel Dolezal are. Most likely the first, and I would venture, the last time those two names appeared in the same sentence)

[Mot Morenzi]

!!!!!!!

Words can't describe how brilliant and funny this is. Genius!

[Freddie2]

BRILLIANT work Neil, definitely some of your best. Had me LOLing the whole time!

[Brock]

On 6/22/2018 at 2:53 PM, Mr. Wilson said:

The show will never work without Roseanne.  The first episode might get a good sampling but after that it will be all downhill.  You need Roseanne, without her there is no show.  That's like I Love Lucy without Lucille Ball.  There are certain stars that just can't be replaced.  The Conners will be finished after the first ten episodes.  

I'm not sure I agree with you. Personally, even in the first run, I never encountered anyone who actually watched Roseanne for bar. It was usually in spite of her because they wanted more Goodman and Metcalf.

[Mot Morenzi]

22 hours ago, Brock said:

I'm not sure I agree with you. Personally, even in the first run, I never encountered anyone who actually watched Roseanne for bar. It was usually in spite of her because they wanted more Goodman and Metcalf.

Agreed. She was the title of the show, but it was always about the ensemble. 

Similar situation to Cybil. Christine Baranski was the reason people watched that show. 

[Freddie2]

I'll vouch for Roseanne in the early years. In the first couple of seasons, she exudes warmth while killing it with bone dry one-liners. Even if her acting was (and is) stiff, she still projected a special quality that you don't often see on TV. The Conners felt like a family you could know in your real life. The later seasons are another story.

Roseanne did win the Emmy for the show's fifth season, in one of the best episodes of the entire series, "Wait Till Your Father Gets Home", which not only contains some of her best acting, but also brilliant performances from Laurie Metcalf and Estelle Parsons. Absolutely worth checking out.

[LittleRickyII]

On 6/24/2018 at 3:02 PM, Freddie2 said:

The big issue was Roseanne saying that Valerie Jarrett looked like she was from Planet of The Apes or something. Comparing a black person to an ape= horrifically bad news. I do believe that Roseanne didn't know that Jarrett is African American, because she really doesn't look it,

Spare me, please.  Valerie Jarrett didn't just show up out of nowhere.  She's been a high profile person for years now and has never hidden her ethnicity.  And that goes for Susan Rice, too.  So when Roseanne tweeted "Susan Rice is a man with big swinging ape balls," did she also not know Susan Rice is African American?  Give me a break!  Roseanne tweeted that Hillary Clinton is a "jew hater" (never mind that Clinton's son-in-law is Jewish), that Huma Abedin is "a filthy nazi whore," lied about George Soros, calling him a " a nazi who turned in his fellow Jews 2 be murdered in German concentration camps & stole their wealth" (all lies), has tweeted anti-transgender comments and negative tweets about the gay community, and tweeted multiple conspiracy theories like "pizzagate," and on and on.  ABC should have never put this woman back on the air.  People like Roseanne Barr should not be normalized because that just gives them a bigger platform.  What she represents with her words  in recent years is the very darkest and most dangerous nature of our society.  Our country is in a very precarious position at this moment in our nation's history (read "How Democracies Die").  Our defenses are dwindling, so anything commercial entities like ABC can do to push back and protect our values needs to be supported.

[Neil]

4 hours ago, LittleRickyII said:

Spare me, please.  Valerie Jarrett didn't just show up out of nowhere.  She's been a high profile person for years now and has never hidden her ethnicity.  And that goes for Susan Rice, too.  So when Roseanne tweeted "Susan Rice is a man with big swinging ape balls," did she also not know Susan Rice is African American?  Give me a break!  Roseanne tweeted that Hillary Clinton is a "jew hater" (never mind that Clinton's son-in-law is Jewish), that Huma Abedin is "a filthy nazi whore," lied about George Soros, calling him a " a nazi who turned in his fellow Jews 2 be murdered in German concentration camps & stole their wealth" (all lies), has tweeted anti-transgender comments and negative tweets about the gay community, and tweeted multiple conspiracy theories like "pizzagate," and on and on.  ABC should have never put this woman back on the air.  People like Roseanne Barr should not be normalized because that just gives them a bigger platform.  What she represents with her words  in recent years is the very darkest and most dangerous nature of our society.  Our country is in a very precarious position at this moment in our nation's history (read "How Democracies Die").  Our defenses are dwindling, so anything commercial entities like ABC can do to push back and protect our values needs to be supported.

I was not aware of these Rosanne Barr's tweet-rants.  But if her show's subtext reflected or reinforced her bigoted views, it went over my head.  In fact, the episode which featured Muslim neighbors seemed to conclude with Roseanne realizing they were just people and they were both afraid of each other without reason. 

[Neil]

Imagine if William Frawley had had the Twitter outlet for his (allegedly) bigoted views in the 50s.  CBS would have fired him and searched for a replacement.  Vivian Vance would have pulled a crumpled piece of paper from her cleavage: this "must stay 20 pounds overweight" contract with the small print proviso, inserted by Vivian's agent, that Vance had casting approval for the role of Fred should Frawley ever leave the series.  The next season's Ethel and Fred credit would be

"with Vivian Vance and Tab Hunter".  

Vivian strapping the button of Tab's union suit to the bed frame: Lucy "You do that every NIGHT??".  Tab: "Yeah, but it took years of practice". 

[Mot Morenzi]

I'm not trying to open a can of worms here, but there are some interesting points about double standards in this article.

http://thehill.com/homenews/media/389858-conservatives-sees-double-standard-on-roseanne-cite-olbermann-joy-reid

[Luvsbway]

17 hours ago, Neil said:

I was not aware of these Rosanne Barr's tweet-rants.  But if her show's subtext reflected or reinforced her bigoted views, it went over my head.  In fact, the episode which featured Muslim neighbors seemed to conclude with Roseanne realizing they were just people and they were both afraid of each other without reason. 

That's what gets me. For someone who tweeted such awful that plot points of the show focused on, it just confused me. Wouldn't her creative control and power been used to at least push those issues towards her point of view. It's this weird duality. It makes me wonder if she didn't do it all for attention but knew for the show to go it had to appeal to the more rational and not fringe America.

[Brock]

Roseanne is so much more enjoyable without Roseanne. It’s time for Laurie Metcalf’s genius to shine through. Her two scenes reorganizing the kitchen were tours de force!

[Neil]

39 minutes ago, Brock said:

Roseanne is so much more enjoyable without Roseanne. It’s time for Laurie Metcalf’s genius to shine through. Her two scenes reorganizing the kitchen were tours de force!

If you want to see Laurie at her absolute finest, I recommend you rent, stream, download, upload, tweet, Hulu, snapchat, instantgram (or whatever it is you youngsters do these days) the HBO series "Getting On" of a few years ago.   There were only 18 episodes, 3 seasons of 6 half-hour shows. If you "like" her as Jackie you'll LOVE her as Dr. Jenna James. (to borrow the tag line from the full page TV Guide ad for "The Mary Tyler Moore Hour"---"If you liked Mary Richards, you'll LOVE Mary McKinnon!!"...but we didn't.)

[Brock]

8 hours ago, Neil said:

If you want to see Laurie at her absolute finest, I recommend you rent, stream, download, upload, tweet, Hulu, snapchat, instantgram (or whatever it is you youngsters do these days) the HBO series "Getting On" of a few years ago.   There were only 18 episodes, 3 seasons of 6 half-hour shows. If you "like" her as Jackie you'll LOVE her as Dr. Jenna James. (to borrow the tag line from the full page TV Guide ad for "The Mary Tyler Moore Hour"---"If you liked Mary Richards, you'll LOVE Mary McKinnon!!"...but we didn't.)

Can I pick it up on the toaster I bought from Dolores Hope’s estate sale?

[Freddie2]

I certainly miss Roseanne (Conner), but oddly enough, this premiere felt more like an episode of the original series than anything from the previous season.