Roseanne: Sherwood Schwartz-- A Loving Tribute

Roseanne: Sherwood Schwartz-- A Loving Tribute
ABC
May 24, 1995
Sitcom
DVD
B-

Allan Stephan's first of seven Roseanne scripts and William Lucas Walker's middle of five is an odd one, for a few reasons.  It starts out well, with David graduating from college and deciding to go to Europe with money his mom sent him.  OK, it does seem weird that she'd do that, but whatever.  Darlene doesn't want David to leave, since they just got back together.  Dan and David have a good talk.  Then Roseanne wants Dan to not work on his boat, for what is the first time in about six years.  This somehow segues into the "tribute" to Gilligan's Island.  (Yes, on the same night that CBS was saluting The Brady Bunch.)  The cast (minus Becky) appear as the GI characters, except David is still David.  Roseanne realizes that she's been asking Dan to give up his dream and encourages David to follow his dream to go to Europe.  Then in the tag, the surviving four GI cast members act together for what I'm guessing is the first time in twenty-eight years, with Louise as Roseanne (ironically the 100th show of hers I've reviewed), Johnson as Mark, Wells as Darlene, and best of all Denver as Jackie (wearing, as you can see in the photo below, one of Jackie's regular sweaters).  Schwartz himself appears as a new staff writer.  Some of the gags are cheap, but I did laugh out loud a few times.  It's just an odd blend, mixing the slapstick and the realism, as if to say that the days of Roseanne smoothly changing tones are long over.

Dave Mallow, who was a voice actor on the American version of The Noozles, is the Radio Announcer here.  For I believe the third time, I have to omit Michael Fishman from the credits, but I'll note that he plays a cannibal.  I'm also omitting Glenn Quinn, Martin Mull, and Estelle Parsons, who appear as the Professor and the Howells but not as their regular characters.

Roseanne in its seventh season ranges from C to B, averaging out to a high B-, so saying it's in decline isn't that harsh, yet.  It's still a fine show at times, but the Flanderization and sometimes laziness of the writing (and to some degree Mancuso's direction) don't bode well for Season Eight....