There is a version of The Conners that works. It is not the version that aired.
The 2018 spin-off from Roseanne had a hard job. The show had to move past its star’s exit and become its own thing. It mostly did, but the thing it became is a sitcom that strains for relevance and settles for noise. This paper’s score is 5.0/10, a lower estimate than the TMDB audience score of 7.0/10 from 127 votes. We do not pretend the two agree.
Trailer, via TVsBest.
Review Running Order
| Order | Section |
|---|---|
| 1 | Missing a Star’s Gravity |
| 2 | Punchlines That Land Late |
| 3 | Young Cast Carries the Best Scenes |
| 4 | A Compromise, Not a Triumph |
| 5 | Final Score |
Missing a Star’s Gravity
The Conners centers on the working-class family in Lanford, Illinois. John Goodman’s Dan Conner carries the show, and he does it well. His weary, gruff warmth is the engine that keeps the series from stalling.
But the absence of Roseanne Barr is a structural wound. The show writes around her, mentioning her character’s death and moving on. The problem is tonal. The family’s sharp, specific voice—the thing that made the original matter—becomes a softer, broader imitation. It is a cover band playing its own hits.
The show is 8 years old now, and age has not sharpened its instincts.
Punchlines That Land Late
The humor leans on arguments. Dan yells, Jackie panics, Darlene sighs. The rhythms are familiar, but the punchlines often arrive late or not at all.
When the show aims for political commentary, it gets clumsy. A storyline about Darlene’s struggles with a low-wage job has real stakes, but the dialogue spells out the lesson instead of letting the scene breathe. The result is a lecture with a laugh track.
Young Cast Carries the Best Scenes
The younger actors give the show its best moments. Emma Kenney’s Harris and Ames McNamara’s Mark bring a freshness the adult scenes lack. Mark’s dry observations about his family are the closest the series comes to its former wit.
These performances suggest a sharper show hiding inside the one on screen. They deserve better material.
A Compromise, Not a Triumph
The Conners is not a failure. It is a competent, occasionally touching family sitcom that never regains its edge.
The cast is game, the production is solid, and moments of genuine emotion break through the noise. But the show’s identity is a compromise, and compromises rarely make for great art.
It is television that works in the background. It rarely demands your full attention, and that is the problem.
A show about a family this loud should not feel this quiet.
Final Score
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