"A Stash from the Past" is the fourth episode of the sixth season of

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Roseanne ''Roseanne'' is an American sitcom television series created by Matt Williams and Roseanne Barr which aired on ABC from October 18, 1988, to May 20, 1997, and briefly revived from March 27, 2018, to May 22, 2018. The show stars Barr as Roseann ...

'', which aired October 5, 1993 on

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. Molly Eischel of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' described it as "the show’s screwed-up version of a

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". "A Stash from the Past" is a fan-favorite and is often considered one of the best episodes of the series. In 2012, star

Roseanne Barr Roseanne Cherrie Barr (born November 3, 1952) is an American actress, comedian, writer, producer, and former presidential candidate. Barr began her career in stand-up comedy before gaining acclaim in the television sitcom '' Roseanne'' (1988– ...

named it one of her twelve favorite episodes. The episode was ranked No. 21 on TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All-Time in 1997. In 2009, it moved to No. 33.

Plot

While cleaning David's room, Roseanne is furious to find a small bag of marijuana. Meanwhile, Dan is unable to bring himself to discipline an employee who takes advantage of his good nature. By way of example, Roseanne allows Dan to watch while she sternly chastises David for bringing drugs under their roof. It is not until David leaves that Dan informs Roseanne that the marijuana belongs to them, a stash they neglected to throw out twenty years ago when they gave up smoking due to Roseanne's pregnancy with Becky. Dan and Roseanne lament that they have grown up to be the authority figures against which they once rebelled. In a fit of nostalgia, they decide to smoke a joint while the kids are out of the house. Joined by Jackie, the three lock themselves in the bathroom and get high, but the experience is no fun as their sense of adult responsibility is too strong to allow them to relax. The following morning as Roseanne, Dan, and Jackie recover, David summons the courage to tell Roseanne that the pot wasn't his, but the three adults are too hungover to respond.

Critical reception

Phil Dyess-Nugent of ''The A.V. Club'' noted the episode's resonance in the context of the time period, an era in which those who grew up during the sexual revolution of the '60s now had to deal with the responsibilities of parenthood: 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 caricature. The site's Genevieve Koski noted "Pot seems a lot less fun the older you get and the more responsibilities you take on." InsidePulse wrote that the episode "is considered one of the best episodes of the series", while ''The Cannabist'' deemed it "one of the all-time great episodes of ''Roseanne''. Robert David Sullivan ranked it no. 81 in his "Top 100 Sitcom Episodes of All Time" list. ''Splitsider'' called it "one of television’s most honestly and hilariously handled pot-based family sitcom episodes". Marillow.com ranked it the third in their "Best Marijuana-Based Episodes in Television History."

listed it as one of her 12 favorite episodes of the show, calling it "hilarious and subversive".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stash from the Past 1993 American television episodes Roseanne episodes American television episodes about cannabis