15 Gut-Busting Comedies Like The Conners You Need To Check Out Next

Despite its success on ABC, "The Conners" was never really supposed to happen. The TV show came out in 2018 as a spin-off to the long-running American sitcom "Roseanne," which was revived in 2018. However, the revival was short-lived, as star Roseanne Barr was fired just months after the premiere following a series of racist tweets. ABC canceled "Roseanne" almost immediately, and "The Conners" was conceived as the show's replacement — a spin-off of the original series with Roseanne written out, but still starring regulars John Goodman, Laurie Metcalf, Sara Gilbert, Lecy Goranson, and Michael Fishman in their original roles.

"The Conners" follows the same format and premise as "Roseanne," centering around a salt-of-the-earth working-class family struggling to make ends meet. The show quickly earned great reviews and became a staple of ABC's comedy catalog. The series is deeply human with great characters and whip-smart writing, but it's also gut-bustingly hilarious. So in case you've watched every episode and are aching for more knee-slapping comedy, we've got you covered. Here are some of the funniest shows that were inspired by, paved the way for, or are just as hilarious as "The Conners."

Fans of all the family-based hijinx that "The Conners" has to offer will undoubtedly be equally enthralled by "Parenthood." From "Friday Night Lights" creator Jason Katims, the show follows the completely chaotic Braverman family, helmed by grandparents Zeek (Craig T. Nelson) and Camille (Bonnie Bedelia). Their adult children Adam (Peter Krause), Sarah (Lauren Graham), Crosby (Dax Shepard), and Julia (Erika Christensen) all have anarchic lives of their own, which largely consist of taking care of their children and navigating their relationships with their parents and siblings.

"Parenthood" ran for a total of six seasons, premiering in 2010 and coming to an end in 2015. It was met with largely positive reviews, which praised it for its valuable insight into the craziness of family –- and how worth it that craziness is. Of course, the show also earned high marks for its consistently clever humor. If you're looking for a new show like "The Conners" but are seeking out humor that's a little less on-the-nose, "Parenthood" is without a doubt the series for you.

Based on chef Eddie Huang's autobiography of the same name, "Fresh Off the Boat" follows the Huangs, a Taiwanese American family living in Florida in the 1990s. The show was created by Nahnatchka Khan for ABC and garnered attention and praise not only for being a hilarious depiction of a middle-class American family, but also for being one of the only American sitcoms to focus on an Asian American family (via Shondaland).

"Fresh Off the Boat" balances family comedy and thoughtful reflections on the Asian American experience, bringing a similar kind of hilarious and heartfelt blend as "The Conners" delivers. The Huang family is a delightfully odd bunch, with characters including the cowboy-themed steakhouse owner and family patriarch Louis (Randall Park), his traditional wife Jessica (Constance Wu), and their children, rap enthusiast Eddie (Hudson Young), old soul Emery (Forrest Wheeler), and straight-A student Ian (Evan Huang). If you couldn't tell from the character descriptions, "Fresh Off the Boat" delivers a whole lot of idiosyncratic moments and, of course, more than enough laughs to go around.

You didn't think we were going to sing the praises of "Full House" without giving "Fuller House" its own shoutout, did you? The sequel series was helmed by original show creator Jeff Franklin, and you can certainly tell, as it has a similar sense of sentimentality and humor as the original show.

"Fuller House" stars a grown-up D.J. (Candace Cameron), who, like her father before her, is tragically widowed and left all alone to raise her three sons (maybe you can see where this is going). Luckily, her best friend Kimmy (Andrea Barber), Kimmy's daughter Ramona (Soni Nicole Bringas), and D.J.'s little sister come to the rescue and move in to help the widowed mom out around the house.

"Full House" is a tough show to live up to, and "Fuller House" didn't quite find the same success as its predecessor. Some have criticized "Fuller House" for leaning too hard into crude humor –- something that its predecessor didn't do often. Still, the show garnered sizable viewership numbers early on in its run, averaging 14.4 million adult viewers during its first 35 days on Netflix (per IndieWire).

Created by Kenya Barris, "Black-ish" premiered on ABC in 2014 and ran for eight seasons, coming to an end in 2022. It made a huge impact on the world of scripted TV, boldly tackling and shedding light on issues that many Black Americans face through the story of the Johnson family (per NPR). Okla Jones theorized in Essence that "shows like 'Insecure,' 'Atlanta,' and 'Abbott Elementary' –- all helmed by people of color –- were able to succeed and grow in the TV space due to the foundation that Barris set with his award-winning sitcom."

Undoubtedly, one of the reasons that "Black-ish" was able to prosper in the way that it did is because it approached these tough issues with a mix of earnestness and laugh-out-loud humor, all the while constantly highlighting the importance of family. Anthony Anderson, Tracee Ellis Ross, Yara Shahidi, Marcus Scribner, and the rest of the ensemble cast that plays the Johnsons and their friends have phenomenal chemistry, and the show's writing is equally strong in moments of poignancy and silliness. After watching a few episodes, you'll see why the show has earned such high praise, and why it's spawned a number of spin-offs.

Created by Dan Berendsen for ABC, the underrated "Baby Daddy" is yet another delightful, warm-hearted family sitcom in the style of "Full House" and "The Conners." The show follows free-spirited twenty-something bachelor Ben (Jean-Luc Bilodeau), who gets a baby dropped on his doorstep after a one-night stand.

When Ben decides to take on his fatherly duties, his older brother Danny (Derek Theler), roommate Tucker (Tahj Mowry), and best friend Riley (Chelsea Kane) swoop in to save the day. What follows is a hilarious romp that highlights the inevitable mishaps inherent in raising a kid in an unconventional family, and of having a baby that you're totally unprepared for.

The show received mixed reviews, but its balance of sweet and funny is sure to appeal to fans of "The Conners." In 2012, Diane Werts of Newsday wrote that the series "knows when to drop a punch line, when to work the awww factor, and when to get all Sentimental Message Time about characters learning to believe in themselves." If that sounds like the combo you're looking for in your next comedy, then definitely give "Baby Daddy" a try.

Created by Chuck Lorre, Eddie Gorodetsky, and Gemma Bake, "Mom" premiered in September 2013 and ran for eight seasons in total, focusing on mother and daughter duo Christy (Anna Faris) and Bonnie Plunkett (Allison Janney). Over the course of the show, the two struggle to repair their relationship while also attempting to stay sober after both struggling with addiction.

The show is at the same time funny and inspiring, and it's been lauded for not shying away from tough issues like teen pregnancy, grief, and financial stress (via USA Today). During its run, "Mom" proved that a show that largely exists for laughs can still have important things to say, which should resonate with fans of "The Conners." After all, the "Roseanne" spin-off is also a show that doesn't shy away from dealing with complicated issues.

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"The Middle" deserves a special shoutout on this list, not only because it has all the laughs and family values that a fan of "The Conners" could possibly ask for, but also because it was actually created by "Roseanne" writers Eileen Heisler and DeAnn Heline. Premiering in 2009, the show ran for a whopping nine seasons. Similar to "The Conners," "The Middle" takes place in Indiana and follows the trials and tribulations of a lower middle class family just trying to make ends meet. 

The series was pretty popular with critics and audiences alike, even earning a spot on Metacritic's list of the best-reviewed new network shows of the 2009-2010 season. It was so popular, in fact, that a spin-off series focused on Eden Sher's character, Sue Heck, was in the works, gearing up to be released in 2019. However, ABC ended up passing on the show, and no other network picked it up (per The Hollywood Reporter). Still, "The Middle" is definitely filled with characters worthy of their own shows. It's never a bad time to revisit everyone's favorite salt-of-the-earth Indiana family.