So what America might have known about the new “Roseanne” before tuning in was that it was going to be the very rarest of birds at this cultural moment — a Hollywood product that wasn’t going to use Trump as a punchline or use a Trump supporter as a comic punching bag.

Perhaps more important, her appearance signaled that the new “Roseanne” was going to be true to the spirit of the old. The original show was properly hailed as a detailed depiction of the lives of the American working class — and if any fictional characters of the past 30 years were going to vote for Trump, it was going to be the Conners.

Indeed, it was precisely people like Dan and Roseanne Conner whose votes for Trump made the difference in the election (although the Conners live in Illinois, which voted for Hillary).