The Conners Season 4 Episode 19 Review: Three Ring Circus

Neville and Jackie got engaged on The Conners Season 4 Episode 19, and I’m almost as excited as Jackie!

No one deserves to find happiness more than Jackie. She’s been through so much over the years. Her father abused her and Roseanne, and their mother did nothing about it, leading to Jackie’s long string of bad romantic relationships.

Jackie and Neville make a wonderful couple, and I’m thrilled that Jackie finally found someone who loves and respects her the way she deserves.

And then there’s Harris and Aldo…

I was elated when Neville proposed to Jackie, and when she started screaming yes before he even got the words out, I laughed from the joy of it.

On the flip side, I groaned when Aldo proposed to Harris and silently begged the gods that she’d come to her senses and say no. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen. 

Aldo: Neville just made the biggest commitment a man can make. I want to make that commitment to you. Will you take me for better or worse, ’til death do us spark?
Harris: Do us spark? No, it’s do us part. It’s ’til death do us part.
Aldo: Holy crap! That is so extreme. I love that. Will you marry me ’til the grim reaper nails one of us?
Harris: Yes!

Harris and Aldo are a train wreck that everyone can see coming but them, and no one has the power to stop. It’s maddening because Harris is so smart and has so much potential. 

Remember when she was determined to get a job that offered tuition assistance so that she could pay her own way through school?

Now I wonder if taking on student loan debt would have been preferable to this. At least Harris would have been out of Lanford and getting an education. She’d have possibilities ahead of her instead of limiting her future by being tied to a loser like Aldo and his dysfunctional kids. 

But much like her mother, Harris is headstrong. Once she knows what she wants, she won’t let anyone talk her out of it. 

That said, I’m proud of Darlene…

Darlene: She’s way too young. He’s not the right guy, but I’ve tried to break them up twice, and it nearly destroyed my relationship with her.
Dan: Maybe you stop her from ruining her life and worry about the relationship later.
Darlene: This is what she wants, Dad, and she’s 20, so it’s going to happen. And besides, I’d rather have my daughter talking to me if she makes a mistake than not talking to me.

If Darlene tried to derail this marriage, she could lose Harris forever, and it would likely just have Harris hanging on to her relationship with Aldo just to spite her mother. 

The wisest move is to offer Harris her support, allow her to make her own mistakes, and hope that she’ll know that she can turn to Darlene when it all falls apart. That Darlene can see that and accept it shows a lot of growth on her part.  

Which leads us to Ben and Darlene’s engagement. 

I feel for Ben and Darlene. They couldn’t wait to share their news with her family, and then they got upstaged by Jackie and Neville and completely blindsided by Aldo and Harris. 

With Aldo and Jackie’s wacky wedding plans, this ceremony really does have the potential to be a circus. Ben and Darlene deserve better than that. 

As much as I enjoy the spectacle of a TV wedding, watching Ben and Darlene saying their vows in private could have been equally satisfying. 

But I can also understand Dan’s desire to be there when his daughter marries a man he actually likes and respects.

So here we go, headed toward a planned triple wedding that I’m fairly certain everyone hopes turns into a double. 

Last week I was most concerned about Ben and Darlene’s lack of conversation concerning their communication issues, but that seems almost trivial next to the problems facing Aldo and Harris.

Harris was caught entirely unaware that Aldo wanted to have more kids right away. Why is he in such a rush? Is it to make sure he ties Harris to him forever?

Somehow, I don’t see Aldo being devious or bright enough to come up with that plan. But Harris comprehends that having a child will inevitably change her life and limit her opportunities. She might be able to justify that taking care of Aldo’s boys doesn’t solely fall on her, but if she’s the child’s mother, that will change things.

Now, the question becomes, will Harris come to her senses and when? We can only hope that it’s before she and Aldo tie the knot. 

Then we have the shocking news that Neville is considering inviting Bev to the wedding. 

Neville: I know how Jackie feels, but I’m thinking of inviting her mother to the wedding. She’s never had a good relationship with her mom, and I think I can be the salve on that wound.
Dan: That’s not a wound. That’s a dead foot. You’ve got to cut it off.

I know Neville means well, but this is a disaster in the making. Jackie has suffered a lifetime of verbal abuse from her mother. If Jackie says she doesn’t want her mother at the wedding, then Neville needs to take Jackie at her word. 

Neville’s heart may be in the right place, but he’s being naive at best and invalidating Jackie’s feelings at worse. I know having Bev at the wedding will cause drama, and on a TV show, drama is always considered a good thing, but Jackie’s waited decades to get married. She deserves to be happy, and I’ll be disappointed if her day is ruined. 

So what do you think, TV Fanatics? 

Should Neville invite Bev? Can he actually heal those deep and festering wounds, or is this a recipe for disaster?

Will Harris finally figure out that Aldo is all wrong for her and call off this wedding before it’s too late?

And will Ben and Darlene really live happily ever after…or at least as happily as any Conner can? 

Hit that big, blue SHOW COMMENTS button down below to chime in, and don’t forget to check back for our The Conners Season 4 Episode 20 review. Until then, you can watch The Conners online here at TV Fanatic. 

Edit Delete