by Brett Hardel

Created on: January 15, 2009

In the top-rated third season of "Roseanne", the working-class Conners are still trying to stay afloat while experiencing some growing pains with the kids. Roseanne (Roseanne Barr) gets a job at Rodbells Diner as a waitress and often locks horns with her new boss Leon Karp (Martin Mull), the first of several gay characters to be introduced in the series. Complications arise when a trip to Las Vegas coincides with her work schedule. Dan (John Goodman) has issues about his absentee father Ed (Ned Beatty) marrying their friend Crystal (Natalie West) and envisions another broken home in the making. Becky gets a jaundiced eye from Dan and Roseanne - especially Roseanne - over her dating Mark (Glenn Quinn), a "bad boy" with no future and a leather jacket. Things don't improve when Becky and Mark "borrow" Dan's prized motorcycle and Dan and Roseanne observe the underage Mark at the Lobo Lounge. Tomboy Darlene (Sara Gilbert) is starting to see boys in a new light prompting Roseanne to give her the "talk", and youngest sibling D.J. (Michael Fishman) settles into his "weird" persona, starting with peeping at his sisters getting dressed as well as keeping a box full of severed doll heads. Season three highlights include the Conners sweating Roseanne's pregnancy test and her bout with PMS, Becky flipping the bird in a class picture, Roseanne fearing Dan is having an affair, Darlene's first school dance and Jackie (Laurie Metcalf) losing fiancee Gary (Brian Kerwin) over her refusal to leave the police force. Roseanne's mother Bev (Estelle Parsons) is back on hand to upset things, and this season introduces new next door neighbors Kathy and Jerry Bowman (Meaghan Fay and Danton Stone); Dan and Jerry get along as well as Roseanne and the snooty Kathy do not, and D.J. finds a friend in their son. Familiar faces this season include Brad Garrett, Alyson Hannigan, Judy Gold, Tobey Maguire, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Shelly Winters first appearing as Roseanne's grandmother, the daffy and lovable Nana-Mary, whom the Conners want to move in with them.

The twenty episodes are the uncut versions and the picture and sound quality are good. The special features include a Laurie Metcalf Interview: "The Sister that Never Leaves", a Lecy Goranson Interview: "I Was a Teenage Becky", "The Best of Season Three" and a preview of "Rockin' with Roseanne", a children's DVD series for children.

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