television – 714 Delaware St. Podcast

S7 E7: The Grand Finale

What a bittersweet time, listeners: in our latest episode, we discuss the very last episode of The Conners. Someone fetch the Kleenex! In “The Truck Stops Here,” our beloved Conner family is once again saying goodbye, and this time might be even harder than it was in 1997. The finale wraps things up in perfectly imperfect fashion, with Dan (and Louise) surviving a difficult deposition, Jackie (against all odds) rejoining the Lanford PD, Darlene and Ben finally resolving their issues du jour, and Becky and Harris rolling merrily along, both ending the series in a good place. We discuss the episode’s light touch and references to Roseanne, who is present in spirit during a heartfelt scene at the cemetery, and we contrast The Conners‘s ending with Roseanne‘s – it’s almost as though they’re trying to right the wrongs of that show’s off-the-rails final season. We also discuss the casts’ own thoughts on the ending, as shared in recent interviews, and we consider the “series finale” as a genre, wondering if it’s possible for a long-running sitcom to really meet expectations. Join us for this tearful goodbye to our favorite family, plus tangents on Friends, Mad Men, Cheers, and more. Thank you for listening through the years! We hope to be back for at least one more episode before saying goodbye ourselves.

S7 E6: Mad Dash to Deposition

The Conners is clattering along like a runaway train, cramming as much in as possible ahead of the sixth and final episode. Dive in with us, won’t you? In this installment, we discuss “Danny Boy, the Interview, the New Hire, and the Hanging Chad” and “Exercise Bands, Money Plans, and Faraway Lands.” There’s good and bad news for our favorite family, as Becky gets a new job and a new truck, Harris snags a cute new boyfriend, and Jackie barrels along, confidently delusional, toward her dream of rejoining the PD. Meanwhile, Mark the cybercriminal improbably goes from sullen fixation on the University of Chicago to a college-free life plan, riding off in a cab like the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air to a new job in New York that somehow he never had to even apply for. We’re…happy for him? Dan and Darlene aren’t faring as well, with Dan struggling with the stress of his upcoming deposition, and Darlene dealing with an absent Ben and an all-too-present (and cute and David-like) Chad. We don’t like where this is going, and can’t help but be somewhat hurt by what the show is doing to Ben. He loves Darlene and has been a good stepdad! Why is hardware magazine suddenly ruining lives?? And HOW will it all end? We’re nervous. Join us for this discussion plus tangents on technophobia, Conclave, series finales, John Lithgow, and more. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts!

S7 E5: Reflections on Rosie

In our latest episode, we discuss The Conners season 7 episodes “Fame, Flying Fists and Cold Feet,” and “Applications, Accusations and a Man-Bag.” We’re halfway through the final season and we don’t know how to feel! The main thread in these episodes is that after much family bullying (and an unearthed, heartbreaking text from Roseanne herself), Dan decides moving forward with the lawsuit against the drug companies, with help from charming and hilarious guest star Jane Lynch. But the decision already begins to have consequences when past tensions between Becky and Dan rear their ugly head. Meanwhile, Darlene meets another charming guest star – Sara Gilbert’s real-life pal Seth Green – at the Lobo while drowning her sorrows about Ben. These two have great chemistry, and we’re worried. Ben, stop treating Hardware Magazine like your own personal Megalopolis and go home and see your wife once in a while!! Also, Jackie is still gunning (ha) for a position on the Lanford PD, and Neville is back – incredibly wise, quite buff, and working at the zoo. Mark, on the other hand, is the opposite: foolish, willowy, and performing illegal hacking services. He’s a brat and we’re damn sick of it! Where is all of this going? We’ll have to wait and see. Stay tuned for this plus digressions on Ransom Canyon, the late-80s Justine Bateman film Satisfaction, Thora Birch, Chi-Chi’s and more. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts!

S7 E4: Second Chances & Backward Glances

We’re back for one more round! Join us as we discuss The Conners’ final season. Our discussion of episode 1, “It’s Gonna Be a Great Day,” is tinged with wistful sadness as we contemplate the end of our favorite family’s story. First of all, we’re hit with a gut punch of grief as the episode dares to invoke then name “Roseanne.” Jackie has gotten the idea that the family should bring a lawsuit against the drug company responsible for her death and, in typical Jackie fashion, she goes from zero to sixty, bullying Dan into joining a fight that is certain to open old wounds. In addition to considering lawsuits, Jackie has apparently been listening to 714 Delaware St in her downtime, as she contemplating a return to the Lanford Police Force! Age and physical requirements be damned — can she actually do it? Laurie Metcalf’s daughter, portraying a dismissive young policewoman, surely doesn’t think so. We think it might be better to open the Jackie Harris Detective Agency, our brilliant idea for a spinoff that ABC should really consider. In other unfortunate news, Ben has shaved his beard, and he’s going whole hog on Hardware Magazine, throwing caution to the wind and inspiring predictable plot lines about couples not getting enough time together. And Becky and Tyler are more in love than ever, which is causing problems for her master’s thesis. Give us a listen for all this plus tangential discussions on Beyond the Gates, Elizabeth Taylor,After Midnight, Jason Ritter vs. Josh Ritter, “Power-down TV,” and how we maybe want to see Arnie come back. Just for a scene. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts!

S7 E3: Roseanne, I’m a Cop.

Roseanne, I’m a cop: the famous words uttered by Jackie Harris in the original series of Roseanne, eventually becoming I was a cop but no less bursting with pride. As The Conners draws to a close and our time with the inimitable Jackie Harris dwindles down, we decided to take a look at what Jackie continues to remember as one of the high points of her life: her brief stint as an officer on the Lanford police force, a time when she wore a blue uniform and spent her days “printing perps” and “frisking biscuits.” We look back at four episodes of classic Roseanne: season two’s “Little Sister, “Lobocop” and “All of Me,” and season 3’s “Goodbye, Mr. Right,” exploring why this career was so meaningful to Jackie and how it impacted her relationship with the aforementioned “Mr. Right,” aka the sometimes-likable-sometimes-terrible Gary. Through these episodes, we also learn a lot about Jackie’s approach to relationships, and the regular disrespect—played for laughs—she endures from other characters. While an injury in the line of duty prompted Jackie to impulsively quit the police force, leading to her stint as a trucker and finally as proprietor of the Lanford Lunch Box, we wonder what might have been for our Woman in Blue. Join us for this plus a discussion of what Jackie’s apartment decor reveals about her personality, vampire stuff, the newest Lindsay Lohan Netflix movie, Hot Frosty, Man on the Inside, and more. Listen and subscribe on Apple podcasts!