Full House chronology

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The Full House chronology was begun after a discussion on various web pages, where it was agreed that Full House should have an official history, so certain bits of trivia could be explained, such as why a character said he graduated from high school when he didn't, and how he got away with dropping out of high school. In this way, it is similar to the Star Trek one in providing a history, but the reasoning behind it is somewhat different. Because Full House is a show about a family, unlike Star Trek's, the Chronology is written in biographical form, to show the thoughts of characters as they lived their lives.

The Chronology covers events from the television series, and from the Full House books, in such a way as to demonstrate that this family had lives between episodes, and indeed between scenes. By showing this, it attempts to make certain episodes and even books more plausible.

Because it covers both, a Point of Departure is given at one point in the narrative, referring to a time when Danny Tanner, then a sportscaster, received a bonus for covering the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. It is shown that his decision whether or not to use that bonus to place an office in the fourth bedroom of the home is what causes the Full House books to be different from the television series. The narrative continues as if Danny did not put the office in, so as to cover events in the television series. Then, it picks up at the point of departure, tells the story of the office being put in and peoples' reactions to it, and continues chronologically with events unfolding from that point.

[edit] Overview

Incidents in the Tanners' lives are shown in one of several ways.

Single paragraph: One paragraph devoted to explaining something in an episode, such as the boat that suddenly appears in the episode "The Last Dance," then disappears.

This is also used to explain a few things that are not explained on TV, but that happen in real life. For instance, it talks about how and when Stephanie Tanner learned to tell time. Usually, however, a multiple paragraph explanation is used to provide such information, however.

In the section based on the "Full House" books, these are more commonly used to state what happened instead of the events on TV - one such part is even labeled "instead of the donkey," because it discusses what would have happened in the episode "You Pet It, You Bought It" if Michelle Tanner hadn't bought a donkey - which it is presumed she wouldn't in the universe of the books.

Multiple paragraph explanation: A character tells a story or describes a situation of around a page in length. An example of this is when Jesse Katsopolis discusses his feelings immediately following the death of his sister.

These are also used to explain concepts - how guests were found for the show "Wake Up, San Francisco" - or show various events in the family's lives that would normally occur in real life, if they are of interest. For instance, several discussions with Michelle's pediatrician occur about her behavior and how her oldest sister, D.J. Tanner, has been disciplining her.

Some level of multiple paragraph explanation is used in the parts that don't cover the years that the TV series ran, and this style is used rather frequently in the Book Univese section, too, although in these parts the short story from multiple points of view is somewhat more prevalent. For instance, the story is told of D.J.'s imaginary friend, and of a visit from Jesse's grandfather Papouli that occurs earlier in books, thus allowing him to live longer because of some events that lead to his getting a pacemaker.

Short story - multiple points of view: At times, the characters describe an entire series of events in the Tanners' lives that centers around one theme. A good example of this is when D.J. and Stephanie tell of events that unfold in the universe of the Full House books, where the sisters are closer and there is no big fight in the episode "Divorce Court." Insead, they reconcile quickly, walk to a local pizza parlor the next day, and have different adventures than they had in that episode.

This is quite common in the parts that take place before and after the TV series, as well.

Footnotes: A narrator gives information that explains why things are described a certain way. This can be for several reasons: 1. Reference. The episode or episodes in question (or books) are named to show why a comment by a character is made. 2. Explanation: Something is explained to show why the Tanners describe it happening differently than in an episode. This is usually the case when the writers wanted to tell a joke. For instance, in the episode "Tanner Island," the writers have several things appearing out of the blue like the many changes of clothes several characters brought along in the TV show Gilligan's Island. So, a footnote gives the episode, and the explanation. 3. Realism: An explanation may be provided describing the way events unfold in real life. These are not common, but they serve to bolster comments in the body of the Chronology surrounding things like the birth of the puppies in the episode "And They call It Puppy Love," or why it is necessary for someone to have disciplined Michelle Tanner far more than is implied in the series. 4. Fan opinion. Several times, fan opinion is given, with a couple other alternatives provided, as well.

[edit] Development

While viewing the TV series and discussing alternatives provided much of the basis for the Chronology, fan input played a large part, as well.

Responses to various polls on several sites contributed to the Chronology, as fans were allowed to vote on what they believed was the reasoning behind a statement or action, or the result of it. This is especially true of the time before and after the series takes place. For instance, fans were asked whether they believed Jesse and his sister/Danny's wife Pam were full siblings or not, because it is possible that Pam could have had a different father. The fan-created nature of this venture is apparent here, as a footnote reveals another plausible explanation.

It was also done for things which would have happened had this been a realistic family. For instance, D.J. is shown to have provided consistent discipline for her youngest sister, Michelle. Fans were able to vote on how much discipline was needed, and the final tally was considered in several cases when her behavior is discussed..

In some places, because the calendar seemed to not be considered, several episodes are said to have occurred out of the order they aired in. One of these was because of an episode being pre-empted, and airing after an episode it was supposed to come before. However, other times, episodes are said to have occurred at different times than their airdates. For instance, an episode where Jesse is shown starting one of his twins on solid food is said to occur in April, not February when it aired, because the babies, born one month premature, could not successfully be started on solid food only three months after they were born.

[edit] Conclusion

Though it is not official show canon, neither has it been denied by Warner Bros. In fact, the contribution of numerous fans to it and their subsequent acceptance of it means that the Chronology can likely be considered to be fanon.

Full House
Episodes/Seasons
One | Two | Three | Four | Five | Six | Seven | Eight
Characters
Danny | Jesse | Joey | D.J. | Stephanie | Michelle | Becky Nicky and Alex | Kimmy | Comet | Steve
Other
Full House books | Full House chronology