9 Shows to Watch While You Wait For the Roseanne Reboot
Roseanne returns to TV in just a couple months, but if you can't wait until March 27 to dive back into the no-holds-barred look at American family life, we have a few suggestions for other shows you might enjoy watching (or revisiting).
From the Midwestern Heck family to the Belcher's burger biz, here are nine comedies that will definitely have you laughing, crying, and marveling at how accurate they are for so many families. Some are current shows and some are classics, but they are all worth a watch.
Bob's Burgers
This animated sitcom is very much like Roseanne in that it's about a working-class family that is perhaps a tad dysfunctional, but everyone still loves each other. The humor is also in the same vein — nothing too inappropriate for kids, but plenty of jokes that are going to go over their heads and have the adults rolling.
Bojack Horseman
If you like the fact that Roseanne isn't afraid to tackle issues and show people how they really are, try out this Netflix show. Be warned, this animated series about a washed up actor and his screwed-up friends and family is a satire, and therefore it's a little darker than the Conner family's exploits, but it's an excellent show.
Family Guy
This send-up of American culture is a lot like Roseanne . . . if that show also had an anthropomorphic talking dog and youngest son DJ was a precocious, diabolical supervillain.
The Goldbergs
If you thought Roseanne needed just a touch more sentimentality, check out this other ABC family sitcom. The Goldbergs aren't rich and they may yell at each other a lot, but the love runs deep. Plus, the '80s setting lends itself to a lot of fun references and pop culture touchstones.
Grace Under Fire
After the success of Roseanne, ABC launched this family sitcom in 1993. It's based on comedian Brett Butler's stand-up comedy, which is also how Roseanne came about. Butler plays Grace, a divorced single mom and recovering alcoholic raising her three kids in a small Missouri town.
Married... With Children
Married... With Children is arguably Roseanne's trashy cousin. The show aired from 1987 to 1997, following the hijinks of the blue-collar Bundy family and their friends. It's a lot like the ABC sitcom, but with more of a satirical vibe.
The Middle
Like The Goldbergs, this sitcom about a Midwestern family is like Roseanne — but with a little more heart. Its nine-season run is coming to an end in 2018, but the adventures of the Heck family are timeless.
Raising Hope
This gone-too-soon series pulled OK ratings, but never really found a huge audience and was canceled after its fourth season. But it's a gem. Martha Plimpton and Garret Dillahunt star as high school sweethearts who suddenly become grandparents when their son finds out he fathered a child — which he must now raise because the baby's mother is in prison. Cloris Leachman is a standout as Great-Grandma Barbara June.
Shameless
This might be the closest thing to Roseanne currently on TV. It's a "comedy," even though some of the adventures of Showtime's Gallagher family are quite serious. But the show does a good job filtering all the bumps and setbacks through a humorous lens. Bonus points: It also stars Emma Kenney, who is playing Darlene's daughter Harris in the Roseanne revival.