IfRoseanne’s original title character hadn’t been killed off,The Connerswould be a very different show in 2025.The Connersseason 7will bring the long-running sitcom franchise to an end after a staggering 36 years.The Connersbegan life in 1988 asRoseanne, a sitcom about a working-class middle-American family and their eponymous matriarch. AlongsideThe Simpsons andMarried… With Children,Roseannewas part of a string of late ’80s sitcoms that moved away from the schmaltzy sentimentality ofFull HouseandThe Cosby Showin favor of something cruder, crasser, and more cynical.
The blue-collar Conner family was more relatable than many idealized TV families, andthe large cast ofThe Connersremains more lovable than aspirational. However, eagle-eyed viewers will note that Roseanne is now missing from the show’s title and its lineup. That is because Roseanne Barr’s title character was killed off afterRoseannewas revived for a new season in 2017.Roseanneseason 10 was a success, but Barr’s racist remarks onX(thenTwitter) led to her dismissal. In the years since,The Connershas become a fundamentally different show due to this behind-the-scenes change.
9The Conners Would Be A Much Lighter Show Without Roseanne’s Death
Losing Roseanne Made The Sitcom Fundamentally Darker
WhenThe Connersbegan, the spinoff made no attempt to paper over Roseanne’s death. The entire first episode centered on the titular family finding out that Roseanne had overdosed on pain medication and died, resulting in a sitcom pilot that was uniquely downbeat and bleak.The Connershas remained a darker show thanRoseannethroughout its run, and that is a considerable achievement whenRoseanneitself never shied away from heavy, serious issues.Roseanne’s original run tackled poverty, unemployment, domestic abuse, and parental neglect, butThe Connersventured into darker territory.
Ames McNamara
Mark Conner-Healy
In its six seasons,The Connershas dealt with prescription drug addiction, alcoholism, deportation, corporate corruption, mass shootings, miscarriage, infertility, medical debt, unplanned pregnancy, student loan debt, and workplace discrimination.The Connersis an undeniably dark sitcom, and a big part of the show’s tonal shift comes from the formative impact of Roseanne’s death. Without that incident, it is tough to know what the series would feel like, but it certainly wouldn’t have the pronounced dark tone the show currently boasts.
8Dan’s New Love Interest Louise Wouldn’t Exist
Dan Remarried Katey Sagal’s Independent Musician In Season 4
While characters likeThe Connersheroine Beckywere more subtly impacted by Roseanne’s off-screen overdose,there is no doubt that Dan’s story was the most heavily reshaped by Roseanne’s death. Overnight, John Goodman’s iconic sitcom father went from a loving loyal husband to a grieving widower, and the character who defined Dan in constrast abruptly exited the world of the series. Over the ensuing seasons, Dan’s personality changed as he adapted to life without his late wife.
Louise might have shared Roseanne’s sardonic sense of humor, but she was by no means a replacement for the show’s former title character.
Dan eventually began dating and, by season 4, he had married Katey Sagal’s rock musician Louise. Louise might have shared Roseanne’s sardonic sense of humor, but she was by no means a replacement for the show’s former title character. To underline this, Louise spent her first few years in the series complaining about Dan prioritizing his adult children over her and clarifying that she had no intention of acting as a mother to them.
7DJ May Never Have Left If Roseanne Lived
Michael Fishman’s Roseanne Character Left The Conners In Season 5
WhileThe Connersseason 7 still centers on Darleneand Becky in its storylines, the show gradually lost interest in the third original Conner sibling.Michael Fishman’s rebellious little brother DJ was a mainstay inRoseanne, but he played a progressively smaller role in each passing season ofThe Conners. It is hard to know if he would have moved out of Lanford if Roseanne were still alive and around but, since she was not, DJ ended up moving to a new city and effectively exiting the series before season 5 of the spinoff began.
6Becky’s Addiction Story Would Have Been Completely Different
Becky’s Struggles Were Worsened By Roseanne’s Overdose
Although DJ vanished entirely a few years after Roseanne’s death thanks to his big move, Becky is arguably the Conner child who was most adversely impacted by the loss of her mother.Becky struggled with addiction for years after Roseanne died, imperiling her job, her relationship with her daughter’s father, Emilio, and even her custody of her daughter, Beverly-Rose. She has been sober for a few years now, but it is tough to tell whether Becky’s drinking problem started as a result of her mother’s untimely passing.
5Roseanne Wouldn’t Have Needed The Rebrand To The Conners
The Show’s Title Change Came About After Roseanne’s Demise
One of the more obvious changes that the series needed to make after Roseanne’s death came in the form of its title.The Connerswould still be calledRoseanneif Roseanne had not died, and the character’s presence would still be central to the series. By switching the name, the sitcom signaled that its focus would also now be spread throughout the family and not centered on one character who could have acted as a replacement for Barr’s protagonist, like Dan or Darlene.
4Roseanne’s Survival Would Have Changed A Major Mark Plot
Mark’s Abuse of ADHD Medication Was Worsened By Roseanne’s Death
Darlene’s son Mark has struggled a lot throughoutRoseanneseason 10 andThe Conners, but he might be the only character who indirectly benefited from Roseanne’s death. Since he always had a hard time fitting in living in his small-town home,Mark’s ferocious academic ambition eventually led him to abuse ADHD medication to study harder. He was taken off this dark path when his relatives reminded him of what happened to his grandmother, meaningMark’sThe Connersstorycould have been a lot worse if he hadn’t had this sobering experience.
3Jackie’s Best Love Story May Never Have Happened
Cutting Louise Would Mean Nat Faxon’s Neville Never Meets Jackie
While Jackie was a figure of fun throughoutRoseanne’s original run and its revival, it eventually became a little sad to see nothing ever work out for her romantically or professionally. As such, the arc wherein she fell in love with Nat Faxon’s mild-mannered vet Neville and eventually ended up marrying him in season 4’s finale was a delight. However, without Neville’s sister Louise to introduce the two, it is unlikely that this relationship would ever have happened if Roseanne were still around.
2Jerry Garcia Conner Might Still Have Remained A Character
Jerry Garcia Conner Might Have A Bigger Chance Of Appearing
Bizarrely,The Connersretconned a character’s entire existence after Roseanne’s death,since they no longer had a role in the series. Jerry Garcia Conner was born near the end ofRoseanne’s original run, and he was working on an Alaskan fishing boat when season 10’s story took place. Crucially, although he wasn’t home, he did exist in the revival. However, he was quietly retconned between seasons as the show’s creators had no plans to facilitate his return after killing off Roseanne for good. It is tough to tell whether this would have happened with Barr’s heroine still around.
1The Conners Would Have Far Fewer Main Characters With Roseanne Around
The Show’s Original Title Character Was Its Main Focus
A look back onthe best episodes ofThe Connersproves a surprising truth.Roseannewas always about the Conner family as much as it was about Roseanne herself, and Barr’s character alone wasn’t the entire heart and soul of the series.Roseanne’s infamously disastrous season 9 already proved this, as episodes where Roseanne went on cartoony adventures on her own were among the show’s worst outings.
The Conners Season 7 Star Is Right About The Roseanne Spinoff’s Biggest Problem
The Conners season 7 has a lot of plot to cover, and star Emma Kenney’s comments imply the final outing Roseanne’s spinoff may struggle with this.
Ultimately, the biggest difference betweenRoseanne and The Connersis revealed by the show’s new name. Roseanne would still be the show’s main focus if she hadn’t died, meaning there wouldn’t be storylines that split the show’s screen time pretty much equally across its ten main characters. While this is tricky and can result in some uneven outings, it makes the storytelling of the spinoff more commendably ambitious. As such,The Connersbenefited from killing offRoseanne’s heroine as this shone a spotlight on the rest of the cast.
