S02.E02: A Kiss Is Just a Kiss

[Pallas]

Wanna bet? 

[Marley]

The whole Darlene love triangle sucks. Plus it’s like she doesn’t have chemistry with either guy. The whole SL is really dragging down the show.

Dan cracks me up tho.

[BeachDays]

I think she has chemistry with Johnny Galecki I just wish he didn’t look like such a bum.   He used to be a snazzy dresser (for the 90s haha).  

[TigerLynx]

I'm with Aunt Jackie on this one, pick Ben.  David has already proved, more than once, that he will bail when things get tough.

[BeachDays]

21 minutes ago, TigerLynx said:

I'm with Aunt Jackie on this one, pick Ben.  David has already proved, more than once, that he will bail when things get tough.

Didn’t he just bail that one time?   Of course that was a pretty big bail lol

[peacheslatour]

26 minutes ago, BeachDays said:

Didn’t he just bail that one time?   Of course that was a pretty big bail lol

The thing I never like about David was when he lived with Darlene in Chicago, he didn't do anything. He whined to Darlene about how she never spent time with him but she had school, a job and friends. Why didn't he ever enroll in community college, get a job or do anything at all but sit in their apartment all day long. What an absolute bore.

Edited October 1, 2019 by peacheslatour

[BeachDays]

5 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

The thing I never like about Davis was when he lived with Darlene in Chicago, he didn't do anything. He whined to Darlene about how she never spent time with him but she had school, a job and friends. Why didn't he ever enroll in community college, get a job or do anything at all but sit in their apartment all day long. What an absolute bore.

True.  I do like the fact that he is working now at Trader Joe’s as a chalkboard artist.  Not the most glamorous job but seems to be a good fit for him.  

I seem to recall an episode where he got the opportunity to study art in Europe but Darlene told him not to go.  I can’t remember what happened in the end but I get the feeling he never went.  

[peacheslatour]

16 minutes ago, BeachDays said:

True.  I do like the fact that he is working now at Trader Joe’s as a chalkboard artist.  Not the most glamorous job but seems to be a good fit for him.  

I seem to recall an episode where he got the opportunity to study art in Europe but Darlene told him not to go.  I can’t remember what happened in the end but I get the feeling he never went.  

It wasn't to study. His mom (totally out of character) gave him some graduation money and he was going to spend the summer in Europe. Darlene said she would break up with him if he went. A horrible, selfish thing to do. Dan even told him he would regret it because he would never get another chance like that. But he was such a needy little wimp he did what Darlene said.

[BeachDays]

5 minutes ago, peacheslatour said:

It wasn't to study. His mom (totally out of character) gave him some graduation money and he was going to spend the summer in Europe. Darlene said she would break up with him if he went. A horrible, selfish thing to do. Dan even told him he would regret it because he would never get another chance like that. But he was such a needy little wimp he did what Darlene said.

Oh yeah!!  Now I remember.   They really do need therapy don’t they?  Lol 

[Melgaypet]

1 hour ago, BeachDays said:

Didn’t he just bail that one time?   Of course that was a pretty big bail lol

That "one time" lasted ten years. It's pretty much a miracle that Darlene can speak a civil word to him, much less fall back into their (unhealthy) dynamic.

David isn't a bad person, IMO, but he is a weak and cowardly one. In Darlene's place, I might be able to forgive him, but I wouldn't be able to truly trust him ever again, and that makes any good, genuine romantic relationship a non-starter.

[Annber03]

"I heard her coughing in the hallway, one more flu season, you guys are together again." OMG :D. I also liked, "I gotta go, my manager's in a bad mood. He tanked his SATs.", and Darlene calling that woman a crusty old wench as well. 

Aw. Poor Mark. That's rough. I liked the talk Darlene and David had with him about Austin, though. Dan talking to Mark about him was cute, too :). 

And LOL at Jackie having a thing for Ben. 

[ams1001]

Why is Darlene's boyfriend visiting her sister's preemie in the NICU (and by himself...)?

[Pallas]

1 minute ago, ams1001 said:

Why is Darlene's boyfriend visiting her sister's preemie in the NICU (and by himself...)?

He can't find Darlene...

But I think that was Jackie's fantasy. I don't think Ben would have said that the baby had her eyes.

[Keywestclubkid]

Give Becky ONE win for the love of God please 

[mojoween]

The fact the writers didn’t have Austin’s grandmother somehow say “attiTUDE?” was a real fail on their part.

Also she had a son, Todd, not a daughter.  Hmpf.

[tvfanatic13]

21 minutes ago, mojoween said:

The fact the writers didn’t have Austin’s grandmother somehow say “attiTUDE?” was a real fail on their part.

Also she had a son, Todd, not a daughter.  Hmpf.

Why don’t I understand this? What did I miss?

[Chicken Wing]

The grandmother was played by Meagan Fay, who appeared in the original series as Roseanne's neighbor/nemesis Kathy Bowman.

It's not completely clear that she's supposed to be Kathy Bowman here -- they never said her name or referenced that she and Darlene knew each other prior -- but I would assume she is.

[BeachDays]

I still love this episode as much as when I saw it filmed- which is a lot.  

[UYI]

OMG! I recognized the name Meagan Fay in the credits but I couldn't figure out why--Kathy Bowman! I guess she never got that operation. 😄

[Snow Apple]

I thought grandma looked familiar but couldn't put my finger on it. Is she suppose to be Kathy? If not, why bring back the actress if she isn't playing Kathy? So many questions.

[Giuseppe]

I didn't realize that was Megan Fay! I need to go back and watch again. But I don't think she was supposed to be Kathy Bowman. Kathy and her husband moved back to Chicago on the original show. And no WAY would Kathy have come back to Lanford, as much as she hated it there.

[qtpye]

Watching old Roseanne reruns, Rosie, Jackie, and Dan are so young and vibrant compared to Becky, Darlene, and David. I just saw Zack Morris look ancient on another show...is  Gen X aging in dog years?

[ams1001]

3 minutes ago, qtpye said:

Watching old Roseanne reruns, Rosie, Jackie, and Dan are so young and vibrant compared to Becky, Darlene, and David. I just saw Zack Morris look ancient on another show...is  Gen X aging in dog years?

I hope not! I turned 44 today, it's 11pm and I feel like I should have gone to bed two hours ago. (Though to be fair I did get up at 5 this morning.)

[TomGirl]

Happy birthday, ams1001

[BeachDays]

30 minutes ago, qtpye said:

Watching old Roseanne reruns, Rosie, Jackie, and Dan are so young and vibrant compared to Becky, Darlene, and David. I just saw Zack Morris look ancient on another show...is  Gen X aging in dog years?

 It’s because the original adults were younger than the current group-  they started in their 30s and ended in their mid-40s.  The “kids” are staring in their mid-40s, so they look like what the cast would have looked like if the show had continued on.  

[Bastet]

Kathy Bowman!  Or I guess just Meagan Fay – initially because I thought Kathy and Jerry couldn’t have had a girl after going back to Chicago who would be old enough to be Austin's mom, and then realized they easily could have a daughter who’d now be in her mid-to-late-20s – because there’s no way Kathy would have stood for moving back to Lanford.  And they didn’t capitalize on any of the terrific allusions they could have used to show it was the same character, not just the same actor.  But that was still fun, like using Sarah Chalke in another role in the revival season of Roseanne.

This was better than the first episode; I laughed more in the teaser than the entire previous episode (which, mind you, I didn’t dislike):

- Dan’s “I get that” upon learning Mark and Austin kissed because they got so excited over personal pizzas, and “Austin says I don’t listen enough” being met by him with “Did he also say you drink too much, because that’s coming?”  Ha!  (But it’s also sweet that Dan has obviously been listening to Mark’s descriptions of people, and asks accordingly who Austin is.)

- Jackie’s version of helpfulness remains intact

- I love Dan’s description of all the kids as babies

- “My manager’s in a terrible mood, he tanked his SATs” is funny on its own, and for reminding me of when Roseanne worked for The Little Maggot (Brian, the high school kid who was her manager at a fast-food restaurant, him there to save up money for a classic car and her there to support her family)

I was moved by Mark’s hurt over Austin’s denial, and, despite my many issues with David, I like that he dressed in a suit for the school meeting – too little, too late, but it's a cute little hint to his mindset.  And I liked him and Darlene talking to Mark about what happens when you openly live as who you are when who you are is outside the small-minded dictates of your society, and how lonely it can be waiting for everyone else to catch up.

Of course he’d jump the gun and ask Darlene to go tell the kids they’re back together.  She’s hiding something major from him, yes, but even if that wasn’t the case, he’d be out of line.

Which brings me back to my weekly refrain of I can’t with this stupid love triangle.   Ditch them both, Darlene!  But Ben is written better this season (so far) than last, so if he wasn’t her boss in a two-person operation, I’d be rooting for him.

Becky and Dan are everything.  It’s so special given the trajectory of their relationship over the original series; I love that they've wound up where they are (not in terms of circumstances for each of them, but the closeness so long in coming).

[PradaKitty]

Hey... Needlebutt!!!

[Bastet]

25 minutes ago, RocknRollZombie said:

“My sister kissed a teacher she didn’t get detention, she got an A.”

Im going to see that line as Darlene being sarcastic.

Yeah, unfortunately, to make that line work as serious we have to go to the New Coke Becky years, when Darlene was such an ass she was damn near sociopathic and Becky was a moron.  Back when the characters made sense, Becky was mocked by her sister based on who she actually was/actually did, and then in later seasons we got this pod person whom Darlene skewered as an airheaded bimbo.  The revival season of Roseanne and then The Conners have embraced that false characterization for humor, favoring "Becky was a teenage skank" jokes over reality.

[Yeah No]

I know most people here probably watched this show the first time, as "Roseanne" but even though I was an adult and aware of the series back in the day I never really watched it until now except for reruns of the old series here and there.  I realize most people here have a history with these characters so this is nostalgic for them, but walking into the room like this I'm just not really loving this show.  I'm watching it because I love most of the cast from other places, but I'm just not feeling the love so far.  Darlene's relationship with both David and Ben is "meh" and so are the other situations on the show.  I think they're doing the best they can without the original star but it does suffer without her I hate to say.

[TigerLynx]

I thought in the first season it was established that along with the initial bail, David would show up promise to be around for the kids, and then bail again.  Wasn't that why Harris was so mad about her upcoming birthday?

Anyway, David left Darlene when she was pregnant and raising a toddler.  No way in hell should Darlene be considering getting back together with him.

I don't like the way Darlene is treating Ben either so when he finds out, and he will, I hope Ben leaves Darlene and doesn't put up with being cheated on.

Edited October 2, 2019 by TigerLynx

[Snow Apple]

8 hours ago, qtpye said:

Watching old Roseanne reruns, Rosie, Jackie, and Dan are so young and vibrant compared to Becky, Darlene, and David. I just saw Zack Morris look ancient on another show...is  Gen X aging in dog years?

I've seen all those actors look better out of character. Johnny looked years younger just last year on Big Bang. I was totally shocked by his appearance last night. I assume they made Lecy look like that last night because Becky just gave birth. I think Becky usually looks better.

[Keywestclubkid]

Becky was a straight a student who dated what 4 guys total in the old show I hate that they rewrote her has the dumb blonde slut it wasnt her at all 

[hoodooznoodooz]

I laughed at “entitled frat boy” and

”David has a beard.”

”But does he?” (paraphrasing)

and

just parented the heck out of

and babies in jars that are cuter (paraphrasing).

I feel like the Mark/not-out love-interest story has been done to death.

Edited October 2, 2019 by hoodooznoodooz

[Vixenstud]

2 hours ago, TigerLynx said:

I don't like the way Darlene is treating Ben either so when he finds out, and he will, I hope Ben leaves Darlene and doesn't put up with being cheated on.

I'm actually dreading this, 'cause while I know we're going to get grade A acting from Jay Ferguson won't this mean he won't be on the show anymore?

[Keywestclubkid]

1 hour ago, hoodooznoodooz said:

I feel like the Mark/not-out love-interest story has been done to death.

Being a gay adult i'm here for any representation I would have loved to have seen that there were others like me when i was younger and in the south ..... Its no more over done then the Str8 cheating or str8 crush it shows us as normal (which we are) 

Edited October 2, 2019 by Keywestclubkid

[TigerLynx]

1 hour ago, Vixenstud said:

I'm actually dreading this, 'cause while I know we're going to get grade A acting from Jay Ferguson won't this mean he won't be on the show anymore?

I would miss Ben and Jay Ferguson, but I don't like cheaters (men or women).

[SomeTameGazelle]

1 hour ago, Vixenstud said:

I'm actually dreading this, 'cause while I know we're going to get grade A acting from Jay Ferguson won't this mean he won't be on the show anymore?

Well, he could still be Darlene's boss even if they break up. Or he could marry Jackie. 🙂

Jay Ferguson is very charismatic to me so I would be delighted if Darlene found a way to stay with him, but the Conners don't normally get to have nice things so I assume that's not going to happen.

[DoubleUTeeEff]

Does kissing your teacher make you a slut or a victim of sexual assault? 

4 hours ago, TigerLynx said:

I don't like the way Darlene is treating Ben either so when he finds out, and he will, I hope Ben leaves Darlene and doesn't put up with being cheated on.

I kind of hope they both dump her but I don't see David having that much of a backbone. 

I also agree with Jackie that Ben is the healthier choice for Darlene. I thought David and Darlene had resolved their relationship last season when Darlene told him that she could do the on/off thing with him forever if it weren't for their kids. I thought that was a smart thing for Darlene to figure out so I'm annoyed that she's regressed. And that would be enough on it's own but she's still seeing Ben too. That's why I hope they both dump her and she learns a lesson.

Things I really laughed at.

Darlene: You can't say anything that would make me feel worse about myself than I already do.

Jackie: Can't I at least try?

____________________________

Becky: She probably won't even call me mom. She'll just say, Hey Becky. Hand me that rattle.

[iMonrey]

I don't think the show realizes how badly they are compromising Darlene with the stupid triangle storyline. She is unarguably the main character of this second reboot, and this storyline doesn't make her look good at all. You could say it was sort of cute when she walked all over David when they were teenagers (I wouldn't, but some might) but it's just awful when the characters are parents in their 40s. The way she's stringing both Ben and David along is not only tiresome but just makes her seem like a selfish, awful person.

I don't think that's what they're going for though. I bet they think this is a great idea to rev up the fans and divide them into Ben and David camps like this is Twilight or something.

[PradaKitty]

You’d think Harris might consider she looked just like Becky’s kid when she was born prematurely.  (But she is a snarky teenager...)

[BeachDays]

I agree the love triangle thing needs to end soon.   I’m not quite as hard on Darlene bc I know this is a tv show and I can make allowances that I wouldn’t in real life-  but she should just grow up about it and be honest with both guys.  Even the way she was explaining that she needs to figure out who she wants to spend the rest of her life with.... like that is a joint decision and also she doesn’t HAVE to spend the rest of her life with one or another.   

I’m still leaning towards David being endgame. Just the way the first scene was structured, you saw that nuclear family all together for the first time I believe.  Not that it means anything by itself but I guess I honestly don’t see how David will be around being a great dad and partner, he and Darlene still love each other, they apparently still have amazing sex (in their words, and this was brought up last season too), and she will have a successful relationship with someone else.  So yeah.  It’s either gonna be David or polyamory, as Jackie indicated lol.   

This episode is one of my absolute favorites.   I always love seeing Mark-  he is such a doll.   Also Ames was still 11 when this was filmed (he just had his 12th birthday a couple of days ago), and he is such a great actor already.  I think the story of the kiss was very important to show and also his reaction after.  We haven’t really seen him struggle bc he is such a ball of sunshine (I love this contrasted with Darlene’s depression wardrobe), my eyes got watery when he was taking off his nail polish.  I love how his parents supported him 1000%.  

After taping Johnny went over to Lecy to give her a hug and tell her how amazing she did, but she was too busy hugging Ames and telling him how amazing HE did.   It was adorable to watch.   You can tell this cast loves to be around each other.   (Another cute story-  Johnny brought Emma her water bottle at one point, which isn’t anything extraordinary but it was like he was really her dad haha).

Laurie cracked me UP this episode!!! Omg she is so funny!! I felt like every single line she said was a winner.   And her obsession with Ben lmao.  I don’t think the last scene was her fantasy, I think Ben was just being funny and a good spirit.  

Ok Dan and Mark is everything to me.   I LOVE how much he loves and supports his grandson.   And you can tell how fond John is of Ames.   You see a wee tad of Ames’s reaction when John said “you don’t have chickens, *I* have chickens”.   At the taping this was much longer and it just John having a great time with Ames and it was SO cute to watch.   

And Dan and Becky!!!! My heart!!! That was such a sweet and funny and CONNER story he told her-  it was perfect.   God I love this family so much.  

[Annber03]

8 minutes ago, BeachDays said:

After taping Johnny went over to Lecy to give her a hug and tell her how amazing she did, but she was too busy hugging Ames and telling him how amazing HE did.   It was adorable to watch.   You can tell this cast loves to be around each other.   (Another cute story-  Johnny brought Emma her water bottle at one point, which isn’t anything extraordinary but it was like he was really her dad haha).

Okay, this is super adorable ❤️ :). Thanks for sharing this. 

[SpiritSong]

I just needed to say that I HATE Darlene/Sara's hair. Buy a comb! Use a hairbrush! Nobody (well, certainly not me) wants to look at that rat's nest.

[BeachDays]

5 minutes ago, SpiritSong said:

I just needed to say that I HATE Darlene/Sara's hair. Buy a comb! Use a hairbrush! Nobody (well, certainly not me) wants to look at that rat's nest.

Lol-  I don’t think it’s that bad.  But she could use a change. It’s been exactly the same for 3 seasons.  

[Snow Apple]

I agree this triangle needs to go. I may be ok with it if everything was out in the open, but sleeping behind your boyfriend's back is skeevy and not like Darlene at all. What happened to her teenage moxy of telling you what's what right to your face?

[BeachDays]

15 minutes ago, Snow Apple said:

I agree this triangle needs to go. I may be ok with it if everything was out in the open, but sleeping behind your boyfriend's back is skeevy and not like Darlene at all. What happened to her teenage moxy of telling you what's what right to your face?

It should tell her something that even Jackie can see how screwed up this is.  

[hoodooznoodooz]

3 hours ago, Keywestclubkid said:

Being a gay adult i'm here for any representation I would have loved to have seen that there were others like me when i was younger and in the south ..... Its no more over done than the Str8 cheating or str8 crush it shows us as normal (which we are) 

Okay, good. I am sooo happy you shared this with us and that you feel this way.

I watch a lot of TV. A lot. However, off the top of my head, I cannot list where I have seen this before, several times. I will try to remember. I watched Boy Erased two months ago, which was heartbreaking. My sister’s son has been out since he was about 13? But he grew up in San Francisco, so maybe that is affecting my perception? My son campaigned for student council last week. He advocated for all minorities: Latinos, African Americans, Asian Americans, LGTBQ, physically disabled, autistic, etc. He specifically said he wants to eradicate the word gay as a slur (some of his classmates are guilty of this). 

The str8 crush/cheating is old to me, too. (I watch too much TV!)

[hoodooznoodooz]

3 hours ago, BeachDays said:

This episode is one of my absolute favorites.   I always love seeing Mark-  he is such a doll.   Also Ames was still 11 when this was filmed (he just had his 12th birthday a couple of days ago), and he is such a great actor already.  I think the story of the kiss was very important to show and also his reaction after.  We haven’t really seen him struggle bc he is such a ball of sunshine (I love this contrasted with Darlene’s depression wardrobe), my eyes got watery when he was taking off his nail polish.  I love how his parents supported him 1000%.  

After taping Johnny went over to Lecy to give her a hug and tell her how amazing she did, but she was too busy hugging Ames and telling him how amazing HE did.   It was adorable to watch.   You can tell this cast loves to be around each other.   (Another cute story-  Johnny brought Emma her water bottle at one point, which isn’t anything extraordinary but it was like he was really her dad haha).

Laurie cracked me UP this episode!!! Omg she is so funny!! I felt like every single line she said was a winner.   And her obsession with Ben lmao.  I don’t think the last scene was her fantasy, I think Ben was just being funny and a good spirit.  

Ok Dan and Mark is everything to me.   I LOVE how much he loves and supports his grandson.   And you can tell how fond John is of Ames.   You see a wee tad of Ames’s reaction when John said “you don’t have chickens, *I* have chickens”.   At the taping this was much longer and it just John having a great time with Ames and it was SO cute to watch.   

And Dan and Becky!!!! My heart!!! That was such a sweet and funny and CONNER story he told her-  it was perfect.   God I love this family so much.  

Just in case you don’t know, Ames and his entire family are incredibly warm and kind. We live in Hoboken, too, so we have known them since Ames was in pre-K. He is grounded, humble and very sweet. He said that he runs into Iain Armitage all the time at casting calls.

[ams1001]

18 hours ago, TomGirl said:

Happy birthday, ams1001

Thank you! 🥳

[SunnyBeBe]

I don't like this love triangle plot, but, I do enjoy this show.  It makes me laugh out loud. Not many shows do that. Just this one and Mom....that's about it.