'Roseanne' Fans Are Happy The Show Is Back — But Will Roseanne Barr Inject Modern Politics Into A Classic Story?

One thing fans loved about the original #Roseanne series was its connection to everyday people. We liked that the focus was on dealing with bills, school problems and struggling to find a job. It was about a family that didn't have it all but were happy in spite of it.

When the new Roseanne season was announced earlier this week, fans who still consider Roseanne to be the ultimate comedy were ecstatic. Others, though, felt a little differently — thanks to some recent comments from Roseanne Barr herself. In April, the actress (who ran for the 2012 Green Party presidential nomination and expressed support for Donald Trump in 2016) tweeted that she wanted to do a Roseanne reboot, but it was an the addendum that made fans skeptical about the new path these eight episodes will take:

Viewers don't want a Roseanne show that focuses on the political landscape. Instead, they want to be taken back to Illinois to find out what has happened since the show left the air. They want to see Dan and Rosie sitting together again on that plaid sofa in love and trying to decide which bills don't get paid that month, maybe even dealing with grandkids and adult children still living with them.

There is so much ground to cover that eight episodes barely seem like enough to catch us up on the Conner family, but fans are willing to tune in as long as we can be assured we're not in for an election campaign disguised as a sitcom. Sara Gilbert, who portrayed Darlene Conner, said it best when asked if she'd like a reboot:

“Your only fear is that you don’t want to do a bad version, right? Because you don’t want to damage what’s been done, but I think, yeah, I think it’d be amazing.”

Changing the dynamic of Roseanne, reworking what made it great in the first place, would definitely do damage to the legacy of this tremendous show.

So, writers, please tell us about D.J.'s life as an adult, about Jerry Garcia's journey into young adulthood, about Dan and Roseanne's continuing struggles even in their later years, and even Jackie's latest love life crisis — but don't throw in unnecessary political jokes or satire. In fact, the fewer references to anything political, the better!