The Conners: 15 Best Episodes, Ranked

There are many great episodes of The Conners, but the Roseanne spinoff’s best outings combine relatable family comedy and working-class drama perfectly. The Conners has a large cast of characters, but this didn’t make the show’s job any easier when the series debuted in 2018. After Roseanne’s original lead actor Roseanne Barr was fired from the show’s 2017 revival due to racist remarks, The Conners was tasked with continuing the story of Roseanne without the show’s title character. This seemed impossible, since Barr’s heroine was central to both the sitcom’s original run and its revival.

However, the existence of 2025’s upcoming The Conners season 7 proves that the series managed to pull off this unenviable job. The Conners continued without Roseanne and held on to the show’s unique working-class roots, refusing to sugar-coat the lives of its titular middle-American family. The spinoff’s pilot signaled that Roseanne’s exit would not soften the show when The Conners revealed she died of an opioid overdose offscreen. Subsequent episodes continued to tackle hot-button issues like income inequality, miscarriage, deportation, unemployment, and poverty. Despite this, The Conners always found room for some laughs amid the drama, as the bery best episodes show.

15

Season 2, Episode 7, “Slappy Holidays”

Getting The Whole Family Together For Thanksgiving Comes With Consequences

Thanksgiving episodes can be a hit or a miss for long-running sitcoms, but The Conners season 2’s “Slappy Holiday” proved the Roseanne spinoff could handle the holiday and spin it into a story that’s both emotional and hilarious. Episode 7 of The Conners season 2 saw Dan finally bringing the entire extended family together for Thanksgiving though, in typical fashion, things don’t pan out as he planned. Getting the entire family around the table is tough, especially with snags like Jackie and Becky refusing to attend if Darlene is there.

There were plenty of dramatic moments in “Slappy Holiday” and it’s these, combined with the holiday hilarity, that ensures it’s considered one of the best episodes of The Conners. There’s relatable plot notes throughout the entire season 2 installment, with almost every viewer finding some aspect of Dan’s struggles to have a happy Thanksgiving resonating with their own experiences.

14

Season 5, Episode 22, “The Grad Finale”

Mark’s Graduation Ceremony Makes For An Emotional Episode

Much of Mark’s character arc in The Conners season 5 revolved around his attempts to find a place at university and his high school graduation, and this came to a head in episode 22, “The Grad Finale”. The final episode of The Conners season 5 remains a high point of the show overall, especially due to how masterfully it wound up various narrative arcs from the prior 21 installments.

While Mark was, of course, central to “The Grad Finale”, he wasn’t the only character focused on, and there were plenty of pivotal moments for the entire roster at the end of The Conners season 5. Of particular note in “The Grad Finale” was the episode finally reconciling with the absence of Johnny Galecki’s Roseanne character, David. “The Grade Finale” used this to solidify Ben’s position as a father figure for Mark, which was one of the most emotional moments of character development in the entirety of The Conners.

13

Season 3, Episode 18, “Cheating, Revelations, And A Box Of Doll Heads”

Darlene’s Attempts To Help Mark Backfire Spectacularly

The Conners has never been afraid to shy away from dramatic or emotionally intense plot threads, and few episodes display this strenght of the show quite like season 3, episode 18, “Cheating, Revelations, And A Box Of Doll Heads”. Both of the two central narratives of the episode were incredibly emotive, and in many ways defied the show being identified as a sitcom.

The first dealt with Darlene’s attempts to find Mark a tutor, which drove Darlene to the point of emotional exhaustion. It was one of several moments that The Conners explored what it means to be a good parent, though few episodes of the show that delve into this theme did so quite as deftly. The secondary arc in “Cheating, Revelations, And A Box Of Doll Heads” sees Becky finally confronting the source of her alcohol problems – and it was this incredibly heavy subject-matter that truly cements the episode as one of the best The Conners installments so far.

12

Season 2, Episode 13, “Brothers, Babies And Breakdowns”

A Heartfelt Exploration Of Grief

There were many incredibly strong episodes in The Conners season 2, though few can compare to “Brothers, Babies, And Breakdowns” when it comes to skillfully mixing hilarious moments with emotionally poignant ones. The 13th episode of season 2 of The Conners sees Dan having to emotionally process not only the death of his father, but also the wounds said father’s death opened up regarding the loss of Roseanne (who, in the show, was killed off between Roseanne and The Conners).

John Goodman’s performance as Dan in this episode of The Conners is some of the finest acting of his career so far. Goodman portrays Dan as a man desperate to avoid his own emotions with an unbelievable level of authenticity, and it’s one of the plot threads that cemented the reputation of The Conners as one of the most relatable shows currently on air. “Brothers, Babies, And Breakdowns” was also notable due to the re-introduction of Ed Junior, Dan’s half-brother, who was last seen as a baby in season 3 of Roseanne.

11

Season 3, Episode 16, “A Fast Car, A Sudden Loss, And A Slow Decline”

Helping An Old Friend Needs The Entire Family

Like many of the best episodes of The Conners, season 3’s “A Fast Car, A Sudden Loss, And A Slow Decline” stands out due to its mix of humor and exploration of some incredibly emotional subjects. Much like season 2’s “Cheating, Revelations, And A Box Of Doll Heads”, season 3’s “A Fast Car, A Sudden Loss, And A Slow Decline” places Becky’s struggles with alcohol in the spotlight, leading to some of the strongest scenes from Levy Goranson in The Conners so far.

However, the truly heartbreaking narrative arc in “A Fast Car, A Sudden Loss, And A Slow Decline” comes from the revelation that Molly Tilden, who was Darlene’s nemesis and a neighbor of the family in Roseanne, had passed away from brain cancer. The entire family struggles to come to terms with the news, especially Darlene. It’s an episode with as many heartwarming scenes as there are heartbreaking ones, and easily represents The Conners at its emotive best.

10

Season 5, Episode 6, “Book Bans and Guillotine Hands”

The Conners Made Halloween A Contentious Family Holiday

In season 5, episode 6, “Book Bans and Guillotine Hands,” Darlene discovered just how much she influenced her daughter Harris. Harris protesting the censorship in local school libraries upset Darlene’s neighbors, dividing Darlene’s allegiance between her daughter and her snooty, rich new neighborhood. Harris’s The Conners character arc has been uneven over the years, so it was rewarding to see this episode underline the many similarities between Darlene’s daughter and her sardonic, rebellious mother.

Ultimately, Darlene ended up siding with Harris and proudly displayed banned books in her lending library. She also put up a typically gaudy Halloween display in her new home, signaling that she would remain the same old Darlene even if she was now living in a fancy new neighborhood. Harris putting pressure on her mother to stay true to her principles proved that the pair are closer than they seem. This dynamic gives this underrated outing echoes of Darlene and Roseanne’s troubled, but ultimately supportive, relationship.

9

Season 6, Episode 1, “The Publisher Cops Show Pilot”

The Season 6 Premiere Revitalized Two Character Arcs

The Conners season 6 is a mixed bag, but the premiere is nearly note-perfect. Nick Offerman is hilarious as the stern TV chef Morris Chestnut, and his deadpan dismissal of The Lunchbox prompts some hilariously delusional defenses from Jackie. However, Jackie handing The Lunchbox over to Harris is what makes this episode shine. The Conners season 7 needs to pick up where this forgotten storyline left off, but its combined promise of the perpetually high-strung Jackie enjoying a well-earned retirement and Harris finally finding her purpose was ingenious.

8

Season 5, Episode 8, ”Of Missing Minds and Missing Fries”

Bev’s Dementia Led To One Of The Roseanne Spinoff’s Best Scenes

Bev’s troubled relationship with Roseanne and Jackie was one of the saddest parts of Roseanne, and it was a plot that didn’t get any more palatable when Estelle Parsons’ bitter grandmother returned in The Conners. However, when this episode revealed her advanced dementia, Jackie finally got a chance to forgive her abusive mother for years of mistreatment. The result was one of the most moving moments in recent sitcom history, a powerhouse of dramatic acting from Laurie Metcalf and Parsons that elevated the entire season.

Bev’s dementia storyline continued into season 6, but it was Jackie’s initial attempt to confront her mother that was the show’s best use of this plot. Metcalf’s righteous fury melting into confusion, horror, and eventually dawning understanding of her mother’s condition was an emotional journey that made their shared scenes funny, tragic, cathartic, and moving. Jackie’s confronation with Bev remains one of the best scenes in The Conners or Roseanne, and this alone earns it a place in this ranking.

7

Season 2, Episode 16, “Tats and Tias”

Harris’s Sad Storyline Saw The Conners Highlights Relatable Issues

In season 2, episode 16, “Tats and Tias,” Harris is forced to return home when her job is automated while Becky struggles with ingratiating herself among Emilio’s family. What makes this such a great episode of The Conners is its focus on the mundane, often infuriating trials of blue-collar life. The Conners isn’t glamorous but the central family’s love for each other makes their struggles easier to face, and this is perfectly encapsulated when Darlene cheers up her unemployed daughter by pointlessly prank-calling Jackie.

6

Season 4, Episode 20, “A Judge and a Priest Walk into a Living Room…”

Aldo’s Exit Facilitated A Perfect Season Finale

Although Tony Cavalero’s Aldo was hilarious, he was never the right love interest for Harris. The dimwitted slacker was too old for Darlene’s daughter, and he was too committed to the idea of having more children. This issue should have rung alarm bells for the willful, independent Harris. Harris breaking up with Aldo and Ben using their planned wedding to marry Darlene gave The Conners season 4 a perfect finale, a chaotic celebration of love that felt as believably rushed, imperfect, and silly as the rest of the family’s misadventures.

5

Season 3, Episode 13, “Walden Pond, a Staycation and the Axis Powers”

The Conners Covered COVID-19 Better Than Many Sitcoms

In season 3, episode 13, “Walden Pond, a Staycation and the Axis Powers,” Dan’s new love interest, Louise, contracted COVID-19 and prompted a flurry of accusations among the eponymous clan. Although Ben and Darlene’s The Conners plot also featured heavily in this outing, the COVID-19 storyline is what earns it a place on this list. It was tough for any comedy to make the pandemic funny, and a show focused on working-class life had an even tougher job on its hands. However, The Conners managed to make this pandemic plot relatable, relevant, and, somehow, genuinely funny.

4

Season 1, Episode 1, “Keep On Truckin”

The Roseanne Spinoff Started Strong And Surprisingly Sad

It should come as no surprise that the spinoff managed to make tough topics palatable when The Conners began with its saddest episode ever. Instead of cutting to months after the event, the spinoff’s pilot began with the heroes learning about Roseanne’s overdose in real-time. The ensuing episode was raw, tragic, and cut through with surprisingly sharp jabs of humor. Immediately, The Conners marked itself out as a show that was unafraid of handling heavy themes and tackling tough topics, and the show has rarely outdone this startling opening salvo since.

3

Season 2, Episode 4, “Lanford… Lanford”

David Healy’s Roseanne Exit Was Unexpectedly Poignant

Since The Conners season 7 is shorter than most of its predecessors, according to TheHollywoodReporter, it is no surprise that the show is unlikely to bring back all of its Roseanne alumni. However, some of these characters already received fitting sendoffs earlier. Early in season 2, Darlene and her longtime Roseanne love interest, Johnny Galecki’s David Healy, went to couples therapy and hashed out their differences. What followed was a brutally funny dissection of their relationship that ended with David finally leaving Darlene for good.

For viewers familiar with the original series, this had seemed like an impossibility. Darlene and David were both flawed people, but it seemed self-evident that they were always destined to end up together. However, as Darlene and David continued to argue, it became clear that their Roseanne love story had reached an end, and the bitter conclusion of the episode marked the spinoff’s transition into a new era. It was a bold, daring decision to cut David out of The Conners, but this further established the show’s healthy distance from its predecessor.

2

Season 5, Episode 12, “Stuck in the Middle and Stuck in the Past”

This Underrated Outing Highlighted Jackie And Dan’s Crucial Dynamic

Although Roseanne season 9 barely featured John Goodman’s Dan, he was still a crucial part of the series. After Roseanne’s death, The Conners made it clear that Jackie and Dan’s friendship was more important than ever to the show’s appeal. Jackie’s neurotic tendencies and admirable self-confidence melded well with Dan’s sturdy reliability and his laidback attitude. As such, it is no surprise that one of the spinoff’s best episodes centers on a disagreement between them. When Jackie and Dan can’t decide who misplaced precious home videos, this soon devolves into an outlet for their shared fears about aging.

In another masterclass from the sitcom star, Metcalf’s Jackie opts not to get the last word in the episode’s ending. Upon realizing that the missing videos were in Dan’s house all along, Jackie decides to take the heat and pretends she found them in her own home. It was a moving moment that underlined their friendship and Jackie’s awareness that someday, Dan and her could start slipping away the way her mother began to earlier in the season. Equal parts poignant and funny, “Stuck in the Middle and Stuck in the Past” proves how pivotal Jackie and Dan are to The Conners.

1

Season 6, Episode 7, “Smash and Grab and Happy Death Day”

Roseanne’s Spinoff Handled Its Greatest Tragedy With Grace And Humor

“Smash and Grab and Happy Death Day” follows two storylines as Dan and Jackie apprehend a young burglar and Becky struggles with telling her young daughter Beverly-Rose about her past. Neither of these plots boasts flashy guest stars or particularly ambitious, dramatic twists, but the episode remains the strongest example of the Roseanne spinoff’s character writing. The Conners season 6 addressed the death of Mark Healy’s real-life actor, Glen Quinn, with tact and typical good humor when Becky tearfully explained that she lost a “Special friend” before her daughter was born.

It is hard for comedy shows to address tragedies, and immeasurably harder when these tragedies overlap with real-life circumstances. The Conners handled Mark Healy’s memory perfectly in its best episode, deftly paying tribute to the late character and his actor without feeling saccharine or downbeat. This tonal tightrope walk proves just how much The Conners managed to replicate Roseanne’s balance of comedy and drama despite the sitcom spinoff’s occasional struggles.

Source: TheHollywoodReporter