Way Back Wednesday: Full(er) House
Hair scrunchies, portable phones with antennas as long as your arm, shoulder pads and mullets— scenes familiar to families who watched the popular show “Full House” on ABC’s weekly Friday night program that aired through the 80’s and 90’s.
The family oriented comedy depicted the lives of the Tanner family as father Danny Tanner, played by Bob Saget, enlisted the help of his childhood friend Joey, played by Dave Coulier, and brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis, played by John Stamos, to raise Danny’s three young daughters.
As the show progressed, the audience watched the daughters D.J., played by Candace Cameron Bure, Stephanie, played by Josie Sweetin, and Michelle, played by the Olsen twins, grow and learn.
Though the last season of “Full House” aired in 1995, Netflix recently released the continuation of the show, entitled “Fuller House” for which fans had been waiting nearly two decades.
Just how does this highly anticipated continuation compare to the original though? Known for its cheesy humor and Aesop’s style moral lessons, “Full House” presented a distinctly family oriented style that became iconic. Any deviation from that well-known plot would have fans saying, “How rude.”
The first episode of Fuller House makes it quite clear that the cheesy jokes are still alive and well within the adult actors—all of whom are original to Full House. As the fans scan the screen for familiar faces, one absence becomes glaringly clear: Where is Michelle?
Though the Olsen twins are not present in the Netflix series, their absence does not go un-mentioned by the cast who make a hilarious, fourth-wall-breaking reference to Michelle’s “fashion career.”
Keeping in sync with the original, the Netflix rendition includes several young children who constantly make cheesy jokes while smiling innocently at the adults. However, this time the joke-cracking youngsters are the children of the recently widowed D.J. and almost divorced family friend Kimmy, played by Andrea Barber.
Unfortunately for Kimmy, I feel that the role of a divorcee makes a wonderful fit for the family friend. After all, the original show depicted Kimmy dating a boy who only knew how to say “whatever.”
I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Netflix series takes place in the same home in which the Tanner children grew up. I will admit that I was sad to see the iconic 80’s décor replaced by things that were oddly modern. Somehow I imagined Danny Tanner as the father who resented the changing times.
Perhaps the thing I was most surprised by, though, was the increased amount of foul language and sexual innuendos. When the first curse word came out of Uncle Jesse’s mouth in the pilot episode, I began to rack my brain. I did not remember Uncle Jesse cursing when I watched the show as a ten-year-old!
Though the adult humor seems out of character for Full House, this new addition is present mostly in fourth-wall-breaking jokes meant for the audience. Bringing back the family-friendly vibe, D.J. later does scold Stephanie for handing D.J’s children flash-drives containing “adult” music.
In what I found to be the funniest line from the series so far, the show makes a jab at contemporary politics as D.J.’s young son claims his knowledge of “bad words” extends as far as “darn, booger, and Donald Trump.”
Overall I feel that the Netflix rendition did very well in keeping the iconic “Full House” atmosphere while gearing the show more towards fans of the original rather than the general public.