Jackie went through quite a bit in Season 1 of The Conners. Aside from the devastating blow of losing her sister, Roseanne, to a drug overdose because of her addiction to opioid medication, Jackie also had to kick yet another worthless man to the curb after she realized he was using her and cheating on her. She also realized that she hadn't been truly happy since she and Roseanne owned the Lunch Box many years ago, and that she has always relied on her romantic relationships to try and add meaning to her life. Now, we know how Jackie is going to deal with those personal revelations.
CinemaBlend's own Jeff McCobb had the chance to speak with Laurie Metcalf, who plays Jackie, during a visit to The Conners set recently. When he asked how Jackie would deal with her messy life in Season 2, here's what Metcalf had to say:
She’s seems always to live in recovery mode. She’s always in her struggles to find a career and a guy, and fitting in with the family. Making herself useful is a struggle for her; what she imagines that she hasn’t accomplished yet. So, there’s more of that with Jackie, because she’s a work in progress. Even though she’s Lanford’s finest life coach she hasn’t figured out…anything, really!
Well, this does seem to be a hallmark of Jackie's life, doesn't it? She's always trying to find what really gives her life value and meaning, and so she's always looking for fulfillment through her job or the men in her life. Sure, Jackie has struggled a lot over the many years we've known her, but while that's not going to change any time soon, it's kinda one of the main reasons that we love her.
When Jackie set herself up as a life coach last season, the first official client we saw her with was actually Becky. The newly pregnant and soon-to-be single mom was in trouble for flirting with her co-workers (two of whom she ended up sleeping with, leading to some confusion at first over who the father of her child was), and she needed to complete a boundary awareness class and get a certificate signed off on so that her bosses at Casa Bonita would know that she fully understood the difficulties that could come up when you...fraternize with others at work.
Jackie helped Becky realize that she was leaning on her value with men to make her feel worthy (well, along with the girlfriend of a guy Becky had been exchanging naughty texts with...without knowing that he was already in a relationship), which is fitting, considering that Jackie has been known to do the same thing. The stuff we inherit from our families, amirite?
So, Laurie Metcalf acknowledges that Jackie will continue trying to find her way in Season 2, but says that along with that, she will also continue to be there for her family, especially nieces Darlene and Becky.
How Jackie makes herself useful in Season 2 is, so far, to help Darlene with her love triangle problems and Becky with her new baby.
Awww. Sometimes it's nice to have a someone give you advice who's been through it all and maybe also screwed it all up a few times. Who asks for help from someone who's never done anything? We all need a Jackie in our lives to tell us where we're going wrong; even if her life is still a bit of a mess, at least we know that she's been in similar sticky situations and has hard won experience to offer in order to help us get out of our own way.
Plus, there's no doubt that Becky will need (and definitely want) help with the baby, and Darlene was already having trouble making a decision between David (who we like having around, but, like, come on Darlene) and Ben (choose Ben, please) last season, so it seems like that will continue to be a problem that needs addressing. Who better than their trusty Aunt Jackie to help out?
We can all see how Jackie makes herself useful when The Conners begins Season 2 tonight (September 24) on ABC at 8 p.m. EST. Be sure to keep up with all the debuts and returning shows with our 2019 fall TV premiere guide!
