A Stash from the Past

A Stash from the Past is episode four from the sixth season of Roseanne, which aired on October 5, 1993. Molly Eischel of The A.V. Club described it as "the show’s screwed-up version of a Very special episode".^[1]

The episode was ranked #21 on TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All-Time in 1997.^[2] In 2009, it moved to #33.^[3]

Plot

The plot, which was considered daring for its time, concerned the discovery of marijuana in the Conner household, and how the family dealt with this.

The Daily Beast notes that this plot is an example of the "'found stash' formula", which sees a person in authority find pot which belongs to someone in a submissive role.^[4]

Critical reception

Phil Dyess-Nugent of The A.V. Club noted the episode's resonance in the context of the time period the show aired in - when those who grew up during the sexual revolution of the 60's now had to deal with the responsibilities of parenthood:

Roseanne was also one of the last of the TV shows and movies that came along in the Big Chill/thirtysomething ’80s that tried to define what it meant for the children of the ’60s to accept the responsibilities (and defeats) of adulthood. These are people for whom growing up sometimes feels like a defeat for reasons that go beyond selfish hedonism. They want to do what’s right for their kids, but does that have to mean surrendering the flag of Woodstock Nation?

— Phil Dyess-Nugent of The A.V. Club^[1]

Molly Eichel of The A.V. Club said one of the main appeals of the episode is that the drug-theme "feels so real...like a lived-in experience for these people", adding that "all of that humor is character-based" rather than caricaturish.^[1] The site's Genevieve Koski noted "Pot seems a lot less fun the older you get and the more responsibilities you take on."^[5] InsidePulse wrote that the episode " is considered one of the best episodes of the series",^[6] while The Cannabist deemed it "one of the all-time great episodes of Roseanne.^[7] Roseanne Barr deemed it one of her 12 favourite episodes of the show,^[8] and has called it ”hilarious and subversive”.^[9] Robert David Sullivan ranked it no. 81 in his Top 100 sitcom episodes of all time list.^[10] Splitsider called it "one of television’s most honestly and hilariously handled pot-based family sitcom episodes".^[11] Marrilow deemed it the third Best Marijuana-Based Episodes in Television History.^[12]

References