“Fuller House” Makes its Debut on Netflix

“Fuller House,” aka the present day version of “Full House,” was released on Netflix Feb. 26, and unless you have binge-watched like I have, you may want to stop reading. This article may or may not contain spoilers. You have been warned, but I will try to remain as general as possible.

To summarize, DJ Tanner, now DJ Fuller, recently lost her husband due to an accident, similar in the way that her father, Danny Tanner, lost his wife in the original series. DJ now has three kids to raise on her own just like her father did, though instead of daughters, she is raising her three sons.

Due to the fact that she is also trying to balance a job, and find some free time to take it easy, her best friend, Kimmy Gibbler, and one younger sister, Stephanie, move in to help her raise her sons. Gibbler, going through a divorce, has a daughter of her own while Stephanie is enjoying the single life and does not have any children.

This plot line diverges a bit from the original “Full House.” The original series started with Danny’s brother-in-law, Jesse, and best friend, Joey, moving in with neither having kids of their own or any specific love prospects. However, it is still fairly similar, which was pretty much the point of this whole reboot.

The first few episodes are filled with puns galore relating back to the original series, which admittedly, gets a bit cringe-worthy with how much it is over done. As a lover of nostalgic moments, this was even a little too much for me. However, as the episodes continue, the puns lessen and the series finally starts to make its own route in tv-show history, or at least, as much on its own as it can get.

Compared to the original, the reboot is definitely different when it comes to more risque language. It was nothing too offensive, but on one of the episodes specifically, DJ says the word “knockers,” and that is definitely not something we would have heard on the original. As well as risque actions such as *SPOILER* Steve, DJ’s old boyfriend from the original series, and her new love interest, Matt, accidentally kissing on an episode as well as Kimmy and Stephanie intentionally kissing on another episode. It is interesting to see how this series has changed in dynamic compared to the original.

While there is still something missing from the new series (perhaps the fact that Michelle Tanner still has yet to make an appearance), it actually does live up to the hype it has gotten. While the writing is questionable in quality, a lot of TV shows are that way these days. In retrospect, it is honestly how the old show would probably sound present day, except without the dramatic violin playing. “Fuller House” is definitely a show to put on the must-watch list.