The Conners Season 6: Avoiding Roseanne's Costly Errors to Secure Success

The news that The Conners season 6 might be its last season should not lead to the sitcom repeating the same mistake made by its predecessor, Roseanne. According to showrunner Bruce Helford, there is a possibility that the Roseanne spinoff will conclude with its upcoming sixth season. However, this is not necessarily negative news for the series, as The Conners is already older than it appears due to its unique history. The series initially premiered in 1988 as Roseanne, running for nine seasons before ending on a divisive note in 1997. It was eventually revived in 2017.

Although the Roseanne revival was successful, it faced challenges when its star, Roseanne Barr, made racist remarks on Twitter. As a result, Barr was dismissed from the show, her character was written off, and Roseanne transformed into The Conners. While it is impossible to bring back Roseanne due to Barr's actions, the show has previously killed off and then altered the fate of one of its main characters. In the widely criticized ninth season of Roseanne, John Goodman's character, Dan, Roseanne's husband, met his demise. However, in the tenth season revival, it was revealed that Dan's death only occurred in a fictional book authored by Roseanne, which conveniently covered the events of the ninth season.

The Conners Shouldn’t Kill Off Dan Again

If The Conners season 6 marks the end of the series, it would be unwise to have the spinoff kill off Dan once again. While his dramatic death would undoubtedly attract attention and generate publicity for the show, Dan is an integral part of The Conners, along with Aunt Jackie, and the character deserves some peace and happiness instead of an untimely departure. The original finale of Roseanne erred in killing off Dan, as the 2017 revival immediately rectified this fate. Given the shorter run of The Conners season 6, it would be even more detrimental as the show would not have sufficient time to properly explore the impact of Dan's death on the family.

Following Roseanne's demise, it took The Conners years to find the right balance between grounded drama and light-hearted sitcom elements. Introducing another jarring event such as Dan's death would inevitably throw the series off balance once again, torn between honoring the character's memory and maintaining a comedic tone with jokes. Though The Conners season 5 hinted at Dan's aging through storylines about his failing memory and physical ailments, it would be a misstep for the show's sixth season to now kill off Dan merely for the sake of cheap drama, especially when his family life has finally achieved some level of stability.

The Conners Season 6 Ending Tragically Would Be A Mistake

The Conners Season 6 Should Kill Off Another Fan Favorite

Roseanne season 9 was infamous for its tragic conclusion, which was one of the significant blunders that led to its downfall. Both Roseanne and The Conners have extensively portrayed the hardships of a working-class family, so giving the Conner family a bleak ending in The Conners season 6 would be excessive. It is worth mentioning that Roseanne season 9 required some form of redemption due to the absurd twist at the beginning of the season where the Conners unexpectedly won the lottery. However, there is no valid justification in The Conners season 6 for the decision to kill off Dan. Therefore, it would only come across as a transparent ploy to manipulate the emotions of loyal viewers.

The Conners season 6 would benefit from saying goodbye to another character whose death would be more fitting in terms of the overall storyline. Estelle Parsons’ Bev, the mother of Jackie and Roseanne, should pass away in The Conners season 6. Bev is significantly older than Dan, suffers from debilitating dementia, and tragically outlived her daughter Roseanne. She resolved her long-standing feud with Jackie in The Conners season 5, tying up most of her loose ends. Additionally, Bev has been known to stash away money from the Conners throughout the years. Thus, her death could plausibly reveal that Bev left whatever money she had to the Conners.

It would be a practical way for The Conners season 6 to enhance the family's financial situation. Throughout the years, the sitcom has made an effort to portray the challenges of working-class life without sugarcoating them. The show has addressed issues such as Roseanne's David Healy leaving The Conners due to his inability to support his children, as well as Dan's struggle to afford health insurance. The series doesn't shy away from portraying harsh realities. Consequently, the Conners deserve a positive outcome that reflects the real world. Therefore, in The Conners season 6, they could rectify the mistake made in Roseanne season 9 by keeping Dan alive, and instead, having Bev pass away and leave behind a will that improves the family's financial standing to some extent.