'Roseanne' Recap: Muslim Neighbors Make Series Topical Again

For the remaining episodes of its 10th season, Patch will give weekly recaps for "Roseanne," the revival of the popular sitcom. And we're posting these recaps on Elgin Patch because that's the nearest community to the Conner family's fictional Illinois home of Lanford.

The following recap talks about the episode of "Roseanne" that aired Tuesday, May 8. Be warned: There are potential spoilers below if you haven't already seen the show.

Before you read about the latest episode, check out Patch's previous "Roseanne" Recaps:

• Episode 3, "Roseanne Gets the Chair"
• Episode 4, "Eggs Over, Not Easy"
• Episode 5, "Darlene v. David"
• Episode 6, "No Country for Old Women"

Caught up? Good. Here's a breakdown of the highlights — and lowlights — from the latest episode.

"Roseanne" (Season 10, Episode 7): "Go Cubs"

What Worked: When "Roseanne" returned this spring, it gained a lot of attention for not only touching on the social and political issues bifurcating the country but doing so from a Red State-friendly point of view. (Roseanne Barr's unabashed support of President Donald Trump and his MAGA agenda didn't hurt either.) But after tackling the 2016 election and gender identity in the first two episodes, that promise of topicality had vanished for the most part, and the series settled into fairly conventional sitcom rhythms.

Thankfully, Tuesday's episode returned to the "ripped from your Facebook feed headlines" approach of those early shows, adding a splash of sriracha sauce relevancy to what was quickly becoming a weekly comfort food helping of bland TV mac and cheese. The main storyline in this week's show deals with Roseanne's baseless suspicion that the Conners' new Muslim neighbors from Yemen, Samir and Fatima (Alain Washnevsky and Anne Bedian, respectively), might be terrorists ("Did you see the crazy amount of fertilizer they have stacked up against their garage? That's how they make bombs!").

As the episode plays out, Roseanne must ask the couple late at night to use their wi-fi so her granddaughter, Mary, can Skype with her mom who is serving in Afghanistan. In doing so, Roseanne sees her own irrational fear concerning the potential danger the family represents reflected back in the legitimate anxiety Fatima feels concerning her son's well-being after "some people yelled some pretty terrible things at us the other day, and he started to have nightmares" (the boy clings to a bulletproof vest like it's a security blanket because it "helps him feel safer").

Following their late-night discussion, Roseanne and Fatima begin forging a tentative friendship. That leads to Roseanne verbally eviscerating a hateful grocery store cashier who insults Fatima when her EBT card shows insufficient funds while in the checkout line.

Although the scene follows a predictable through line, there is a certain vulgar satisfaction at seeing such a monstrous character being taken out at the knees, even if that character is a one-dimensional straw woman who's weakly propped up in order to be easily knocked down. What's particularly fascinating about the exchange, though, is that the cashier's comments aren't that far off from the rhetoric spouted by Trump's supporters, which makes Barr's criticism — even if it comes from her fictional proxy — sound downright traitorous in light of how much the current president values loyalty.

What Didn't: What works about the episode is also what makes it a troubling one to watch. In putting the grocery store cashier on blast, Roseanne gets to play the hero without rejecting her own casual intolerance. She gets off scott free despite copping to some rather reprehensible — if somewhat conflicted — views.

"We don't hate you. We're scared of you," Roseanne tells Samir and Fatima, echoing an explanation used for centuries to justify one group's dehumanization of another.

She remains blissfully ignorant of her own ignorance, and she's not alone in that. The show's viewers who see a bit of themselves in the character also get a pass. Barr's portrayal reassures them that there's nothing wrong about carrying around hurtful prejudices concerning a monolithic racial, ethnic or religious group. The big mistake is acting like the cashier and being a big jerk about it.

What's Missing: For an episode titled "Go Cubs," there was a shocking lack of content dealing with the North Siders. For a moment, it appeared that the episode might use a shared love of the Cubbies as the foundation to the bridge that brings neighbors from different cultures together. But alas, no. "Go Cubs" — SPOILER ALERT — refers to Samir and Fatima's wi-fi password.

That's So 2018: During a sleepover, Jackie (Laurie Metcalf) decides to frighten the younger family members by telling them"ghosted" stories, her horrific dating anecdotes that eventually end with the man breaking things off by avoiding her. On the surface, it's a bit of schtick that feels like older writers trying too hard to sound hip. But Metcalf is able to stick the landing and make the joke work, delivering a bit that coaxes fond chuckles and not painful groans.

Best Line: "Oh my God, you've figured it out. Terrorists are always neighbors, so all we have to do is arrest everybody" — Jackie's response to Roseanne when she explains that "anytime something bad happens, it's always somebody who lives next door to somebody."

"Roseanne" airs at 7 p.m. Tuesdays on ABC.

Laurie Metcalf (left), Rosenne Barr, Alain Washnevsky and Anne Bedian star in the seventh episode of the 10th season of "Roseanne" (Photo by Adam Rose | ABC)