‘The Conners’ Fans React to Tonight’s Heartbreaking Episode

Tuesday’s episode of The Conners had teased that it was bringing back a character that fans never would’ve thought could return. The penultimate episode in the show’s second season, Dan (John Goodman) has been remorseful over his failed relationship with Louise (Katey Sagal, and that his feelings for his late wife, Roseanne (Roseanne Barr), were ultimately what caused him to push her away.

“I miss her,” Dan tells his daughter. “Every time I think about the things I’d be doing with [Louise] — going to concerts, ballgames… anything fun — I feel guilty because I was supposed to be doing that with your mom.” While Becky refutes her father’s claim, he quickly fires back that “she made it very clear that if she went first she wanted me to be miserable for the rest of my life.” After a can fell in the garage, it prompted Dan to proclaim “she’s here.”

However, Dan ultimately decided to try and move on, and went to see Louise sing with her band. However, as he was about to try and patch things up, it was revealed that she’d moved on herself, leaving Dan broken-hearted, and no doubt filled with some regret. Of course, it goes without saying that the show’s fanbase quickly took to Twitter to process their reactions.

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Back in 2018, Roseanne returned for a Season 10 revival, which starred the show’s original cast. However, weeks later, Barr was fired after posting a racist tweet directed at former Barack Obama aide, Valerie Jarret. 

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The show was quickly retooled as The Conners, which brought back the rest of the cast, minus Barr, and premiered in October 2018. 

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Barr’s character, Roseanne Conner, was written out of the spinoff, as it was explained that she died from an opium overdose. While she obviously hasn’t appeared on The Conners, her presence has a tendency to loom large. 

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After it was renewed for a second season, The Conners got particularly ambitious, including taping two live episodes (one for each coast) that incorporated the results of the New Hampshire primary in real-time. 

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The show also brought back Dan’s half-brother, “Little” Ed, Jr. While the character was an infant during the original run of Roseanne, his adult counterpart appeared for a two-episode arc and was played by Noel Fisher. 

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That also meant Season 2 ended up being a mini-Shameless reunion, as Fisher and The Conners regular Emma Kenney both starred on the Showtime series. 

The Conners airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.