Roseanne: Season Nine

There is a sad truth about television series. Some shows that deserve to be on are cancelled before their prime. Other series that have enjoyed a good run are permitted to go on past their prime. A term has been coined on the internet that describes the later situation; ‘jumping the shark’. One of the most fundamental reasons for this jump is departing completely from the original parameters of the show, the very aspects that made it a hit in the first place. While a show has to grow and change over the years to remain fresh if the changes remove the heart of the series than there is a shark just waiting for the jumper. In 1988 a revolutionary series premiered on ABC, ‘Roseanne’. There have been many sit-coms that dealt with a blue collar family but usually the point of view was the husband or the children. This series was the mom’s story more than anything else. In television it seemed to be alright to have a feminine point of view if the woman was widowed or in later years divorced. This was a more traditional family, of sorts, with a dad, a mom and three kids. The show was based on the standup comedy of Roseanne Barr. The name has changed over the years but this woman is one of the most controversial and funny people around. The basic premise was founded in her life as a working class wife and mother of three. The ninth and final season is now on DVD thanks to Starz/Anchor Bay and most agree that this is the weakest season.

The reason for the decline in the series, as reflected by the lackluster ratings is simple. The whole tone of the series was changed. People could identify with the struggle a typical American family has to face of a daily basis. We could understand a mother having to work outside the home and still cope with the millions of problems hubby and kids bring to bear. In this season the Conner family wins the lottery and becomes super rich. While Roseanne has stated that this change in financial status was meant to reflect her real life changes after she made it is show business the sudden wealth was something the audience couldn’t connect with and the ratings began to slip. Many of the main characters were absent for much of the season which further removed the plots from the original, successful formula.

As the season begins Roseanne (Roseanne Barr) and her husband Dan (John Goodman) are fighting. Dan is continuing to eat as much of anything he wants even though at the end of season eight he suffered a heart attack at the wedding of their middle child Darlene (Sara Gilbert). Roseanne is upset that given a second chance at life he is still so careless in his eating habits. Roseanne seeks solace from her mother Bev (Estelle Parsons) and her sister Jackie (Laurie Metcalf). Roseanne has left Dan and is staying at Jackie’s. Darleen and her husband David (Johnny Galecki) try to talk her into going back home without success. While flicking through the channels Roseanne fantasizes about being in such shows as Mary Tyler Moore and That Girl. This type of fantasy sequence would become more used in this season. In the second episode Jackie realizes that they have won $108 million in the State lottery. The once financially strapped clan is now flush with money. They call over the whole family to tell them the news including oldest daughter Becky (Sarah Chalke), her less than bright husband Mark (Glenn Quinn) and the next youngest of the Conner kids, now a teen, D.J. (Michael Fishman). They work out just how the money is to be distributed in the family. At first they wonder about what they can do with the sudden wealth; things like getting a new house come to mind. As the season progresses the extravagances take over the family.

The surreal nature of this last season takes root rather quickly. Initially Jackie and Roseanne continue to work at their little restaurant but soon there seems no point to such things. A con man claiming to be Prince Charles of Modavia (Jim Varney), sees Jackie on a television interview and comes to town to be with her. He sweeps her off her feet and takes her to New York City. As the rest of the family follows they all get the taste of what great wealth can bring. A ploy known as stunt casting began to take of this season with many special guest stars of various levels of fame. I have to admit that one episode, ‘Satan, Darling’, actually used this well. The Absolutely Fabulous gals, Edina (Jennifer Saunders) and Patsy (Joanna Lumley) show up chain smoking and drinking to excess at a glamorous New York party. They took things a bit too far though since other guests included Arianna Huffington, Marlo Thomas and Mo Gaffney. Still the Ab Fab girls made the show.

Of course the most famous part of this season is the final episode. I have to admit that it was strange but it was, in a way, a decent send off for a favorite show. It has Roseanne as a writer looking back at her life and disclosing some twists that we could never have imagined. It ties up all the loose ends and most importantly, it returns the series, for a moment at least, to a form of reality.

Even though this last season was a faint echo of its former greatness it still was fun. I did find myself laughing time and time again. Mostly the humor transformed from the working class family to a dysfunctional family trying to fit into a part of society where people only tolerate them for their wealth. The cast was beginning to show some signs of wear in this season. Still, Roseanne is as rowdy and crass as every which is what drew us in nine years before. There is also an undeniable chemistry that this tightly knit cast has developed over the years that gives one last push to the series. For this last season Sarah Chalke returns once again as Becky since Alicia Goranson only signed on through season eight.

Starz/Anchor Bay gives a great send off to this series with their DVD box set. There are some cast interviews where these talented actors look back at their nine year trek. The ‘Legacy of Class’ considers what happens when working class people are suddenly put into situations with the ultra rich class. The last featurette ‘Breaking the Sit-Com Mold’ focuses on how this season would go places that no other television comedy would think of. Even thought this is least popular of the seasons it is still worth having for the die hard fans out there.

Posted 10/08/07