After two decades off, “Rosanne” will return on March 27th for a nine-episode reboot. It is said that the show “starts up where they left off” and this is true for the most part, as long as you keep in mind that 20 years have passed, even in their world.
Aside from the obvious age difference there are a few more distinctions. One of which is the fact that the the youngest of the siblings, D.J., has served overseas and has a wife that is currently serving. This isn’t really expanded upon as it is really only brought up, seemingly in passing, in the heat of an argument between Roseanne and Jackie. After this, we don’t really hear or see much of D.J. in the first two episodes.
One thing that avid “Roseanne” fans may have noticed is that Dan is in fact still alive. In the ending of the original show, Dan passed away due to a heart attack. In the reboot though you can clearly see that Dan is alive and kicking. This is addressed in the very beginning as he is wearing a CPAP machine and comes home later on with a bag of medicine that he and Roseanne divide and trade amongst themselves.
After the reviving of Dan, the producers have also brought back Lecy Goranson, otherwise known as Becky number one. Goranson was the original Becky, but later decided to attend college, putting her acting career on the back burner. The way the writers decided to handle this was by allowing Goranson to share the roll with Sarah Chalke as they switched between the two actresses regularly.
In spite of these differences, just as in the original “Roseanne,” the show still brings light to very important and touchy subjects in a light-hearted manner and shows how the characters navigate through said issues. In the latest episodes, this is demonstrated through Roseanne and her sister Jackie, played by Laurie Metcalf, going back and forth on their differing political views. Roseanne, being an avid Trump supporter, was called out for bullying Jackie for her political views, which later resulted in Jackie not voting how she originally believed. This creates a hostile environment when Roseanne’s daughter Darlene, portrayed by Sarah Gilbert, calls her aunt for a ride to a job interview.
This theme is carried on throughout the first and second episodes as they also go through the differing opinions on identity, cross dressing, LGBTQ+ and women’s rights.
The show is only coming back for nine episodes, the first of which aired in a one hour special on March 27th, at 8 pm/ET and will slide in its usual air time on Tuesday, April 3rd, at 8 pm/ET.
