The Conners Season 6 Episode 12 Review: Flying, Applying and Rassling Gators

For a penultimate episode, The Conners Season 6 Episode 12, “Flying, Applying and Rassling Gators,” doesn’t disappoint. In fact, it reminds us why we love this family so much and realize how much we will miss them when Season 7 ends next year.

The family is at the top of their game and getting us excited for the finale next week. After years of struggle, it seems that perhaps the family curse is finally over — at least for some members.

It’s great to see the show circle back around to a conflict that has been around since the beginning of Season 5 but was brought into focus on The Conners Season 5 Episode 20, “What’s So Funny About Peas, Love and Understanding?” — Mark’s college aspirations.

Mark Has Greatness In His Future

One thing we’ve always known about Mark is that he’s highly intelligent. That’s not to say none of his family members have ever possessed smarts—Darlene and Becky have their own academic success. 

However, Mark’s intelligence has always been above average, proof positive that he is destined for greatness. While attending community college is completely fine, he deserves a chance to pursue his dreams, which his current school can’t provide.

If there is one thing The Conners has always done right regarding Mark, it’s having him make decisions within his family’s means. He could’ve applied to the University of Chicago last year and then taken out loans to attend, but instead, he chose not to even bother.

This development is heartbreakingly good because Becky, as sweet and well-intentioned as she is, doesn’t understand living within one’s means and never really has. 

She believes that because you can do it, you should, whether or not it’s financially plausible. Unfortunately, this time, her actions have sent Mark into a spiral of what could’ve been that isn’t productive for his current academic ventures. 

Knowing he is smart enough to attend one of the Top 12 schools doesn’t motivate Mark. Instead, it tears him down and forces him to resent his family. 

As we gear up for the season finale, Mark’s future is at a crossroads he will have to contend with. Will he continue to be disappointed by his family’s position in the world, or will he fight back and push to find a solution to get him to the University of Chicago?

Dan Proves He Loves Jackie

The funniest part of this episode has to be everything involving Dan and Jackie. These two have always had a love/hate relationship, but now that the universe is finally working in Dan’s favor, it’s great to see them celebrating together.

Of course, that doesn’t come without Dan poking fun at Jackie, asking, ‘What about my face says this is an invitation?’ Only for him to easily agree a few moments later. Back on Roseanne it was always clear that Dan didn’t have much patience for Jackie, but now on The Conners, they’ve grown to truly appreciate one another with a compassion we never expected.

Now, Dan pays off the house and finds out he actually has almost 2k left over. He uses this money to take a trip to New Orleans because he’s always wanted to go. And while we don’t actually see the vacation on screen, it’s clear that the time away does him some good.

What we do get to see is Dan and Jackie on an airplane being harassed by a guy who’s just a complete jerk. We’ve always known Dan to be a kind gentleman when it comes to his own family, especially his daughters and how the world treats them.

However, seeing it confirmed in a foreign territory—having never seen him interact with strangers on a plane before—proves once and for all that Dan loves with his whole heart. You don’t ever want to mess with Dan Conner, or he will make sure it’s the last thing you think about. 

What comes out even more strongly during this whole altercation isn’t that Dan sticks up for a complete stranger but that he vehemently defends Jackie. Sure, it’s surprising to see him go to bat for a woman he doesn’t know. 

However, it says so much more that he actively allowed themselves to be kicked off the plane in the name of defending Jackie. He is willing to compromise the trip of a lifetime to show Jackie that he doesn’t see her as a “guard dog,” as this man stated.

If Roseanne could see them now, she’d be so happy to know her husband and sister were finally treating each other with the love and respect of family. 

Stray Thoughts

• The guy at the bank being truly baffled at why The Conner family hates him and doesn’t trust him, starts the episode on a high note
• Darlene stealing the calendar despite it being a personalized one is peak comedy
• It was nice to see Kirk Fox as a guest star on this episode. We can always count on him to cause trouble.

 

What did you think of this episode of The Conners? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Critic Rating:

User Rating:

 

The Conners Season 6 Finale airs Wednesday, May 22nd at 9:30/8:30c on ABC.

 Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram!

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!