Rating: 4/5 stars

In the 1980s, sitcoms ruled TV. Established shows like “The Cosby Show,” “Cheers” and countless others saturated viewers’ screens every week. It was immensely rare and surprising when in 1988, “Roseanne” premiered and managed to sneak its way into the hearts of Americans everywhere.

Part of this might have been Roseanne Barr’s now iconic, boisterous, naggy style of humor. However, a major factor to the show’s success was that it was a sitcom revolving around a working-class family in Illinois. The premise seemed simple enough, yet for the time and even today, it sticks out and stands apart from the lineup of other famous sitcoms, and no other show has managed to capture the same magic that the Conner family had.

Now, after two decades off the air, the famous ABC sitcom has returned to TV with a bang. This time around, the show is tackling politics, and Barr’s title character has been turned into a President Donald Trump supporter as well.

The new revival brings back the original cast, from John Goodman (“Kong: Skull Island”) (even though his character of Dan supposedly died in the series finale), all the way to Laurie Metcalf, fresh off her Oscar-nominated role in Greta Gerwig’s “Lady Bird.” They even managed to find a unique way to bring both actresses who played the role of Becky along for the ride as well. Yet, with the whole cast returning, all eyes on the show are being directed toward one thing: Trump.

Barr herself has been a vocal supporter of Trump, and now, so is her character on the show. However, Roseanne Conner is still the same lovable mother from the original series; she just has certain political viewpoints. This is the aspect of the show that has everyone talking, as there are few characters in either film or TV that lean more conservative, least of which that support Trump. However, Barr does not use this plot point to push any sort of agenda or alienate viewers. Instead, she uses it to showcase how politics can affect a family, shatter preconceived notions and disrupt relationships.

This is where the revival hits its stride because while it is great to see the original cast back in the roles that made them famous, with their signature deadpan delivery and reactionary outbursts, the show needed something to freshen it up for today’s audiences. So, by putting a finger on the pulse of the country, as well as portraying a Trump supporter as a rational, decent person instead of a moron, “Roseanne” has managed to become one of the most successful sitcoms, ratings-wise, in years. Obtaining approximately 18.1 million viewers and becoming the highest-rated sitcom broadcast in around three years, the program shows there is a large audience for this type of content.

The two premiere episodes tackled such issues as the past election, surrogacies and grandsons dressing like girls, plus a few gags about guns and deplorables thrown in for good measure. Beneath the publicity-stirring topics, there was that classic sitcom story of a family just trying to get through each day, despite their disagreements and quirks, which makes “Roseanne” so inviting.

The Conner family is blunt, yet loving, protective, yet free-willed, unorthodox, yet grounded in reality. In other words, they are the average American family. “Roseanne” shows that what divides us, like politics, pales in comparison to what unites us, which is family.

Image from ABC Television Network via YouTube.com