‘Roseanne’ Mocks Diverse ABC Family Comedies

Nobody is safe from Roseanne‘s brutal sense of humor.

The reboot has mocked the family discord surrounding the 2016 presidential election and made cutthroat jokes as Roseanne (Barr) and Dan (John Goodman) came to understand their gender non-conforming grandson Mark (Ames McNamara). In episode three, the ABC series went after its diverse Tuesday night lineup partners.

In between discussions about the proper way to handle spoiled teenagers and and the introduction of Roseanne’s elevator chair, fans see Dan and Roseanne fast asleep in the Conner living room, having missed all of their shows.

Roseanne is scared awake by one of Dan’s loud snores and she realizes the two have overslept.

“Dan! You’re snoring, wake up!” Roseanne says as she jolts her husband awake. Dan asks what time it is and if he missed dinner.

“It’s 11 o’clock! We slept from Wheel to Kimmel,” Roseanne says referencing Wheel of Fortune and ABC’s Late Night with Jimmy Kimmel.

“We missed all the shows about black and Asian families,” Dan says.

“Hmmm, they’re just like us. There you’re all caught up,” Roseanne responds, dismissing Dan’s comment.

While not mentioning them by name, Roseanne referred to ABC comedies Black-ish and Fresh Off The Boat, family comedies that have been well received by critics for representing minorities on primetime television.

Many took the sitcom’s joke with a grain of salt, criticizing Roseanne, as well as ABC for making fun the comedy series.

Others enjoyed the series mocking its own network, noting that it was just a joke and shouldn’t be taken too seriously.

Starring Anthony Anderson and Tracy Ellis Ross, Black-ish centers on an upper-middle-class African-American family. The series, much like Roseanne, has used humor to address society’s treatment of minorities, the current political climate.

Currently in its fourth season, the series made headlines in early 2018 after ABC decided to shelf an episode, titled “Please, Baby, Please” aimed to address the controversial topic of football players kneeling during the National Anthem before football games.

The episode, which was supposed to air February 27, was shelved due to “creative differences” between series creator Kenya Barris and ABC. The series airs Tuesdays on ABC.

Fresh Off The Boat stars Hudson Yang, Randall Park and Constance Wu and it is the first American television sequel starring an Asian-American family to air on primetime network television since 1994. The series wrapped up its fourth season on March 20.

Roseanne airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.