Follow the Son

"Follow the Son"
Season 7: Episode 7(154 / 231 episodes)
Network	ABC-TV
Air date	November 2, 1994
Written by	Dusty Kay
Directed by	Gail Mancuso
Episode Guide
Previous	Skeleton in the Closet
Next	Punch and Jimmy

Follow the Son was the seventh episode of Season 7 of Roseanne, also the 154th overall series episode. It was written by Dusty Kay, and was directed by Gail Mancuso. It originally aired on ABC-TV on November 2, 1994.

Synopsis

D.J. wants out of his busboy job at the Lunch Box and David wants to put the kibosh on Darlene's moving in with her new squeeze Jimmy--who misinterprets David's obsessive interest in him.

Plot summary

DJ tries to get out of his busboy job at the Lunchbox, Roseanne refuses to fire him until he starts to tell Leon a few of Roseanne's secret work habits. David starts getting attention from girls and he begins dating again but is upset when Mark reveals Darlene and Jimmy plan to move in together. David goes to Chicago and meets Jimmy, posing as Darlene's peer councellor Craig, He tells Jimmy about Darlene's serious mental health issues. Roseanne schemes to get DJ back to the Lunchbox and tells Dan that DJ needs to learn a work ethic, so Dan gives DJ a job at his work, forcing Roseanne to reveal that she really wants to spend more time with DJ. DJ reluctantly returns to the Lunchbox but is glad he did when he sees the new busgirl Staci. Jimmy tells David that he lied about being Darlene's peer counsellor. He comes to believe that David is gay and interested in him, while Darlene finds out about David's lies and is disgusted by his desperate behavior.

Cast

Starring

• Roseanne as Roseanne Conner
• John Goodman as Dan Conner
• Laurie Metcalf as Jackie Harris
• Sara Gilbert as Darlene Conner
• Sarah Chalke as Becky Conner (credit only)
• Michael Fishman as D.J. Conner

Also Starring

• Johnny Galecki as David Healy
• Glenn Quinn as Mark Healy

Guests

• Martin Mull as Leon Carp
• Joseph Gordon-Levitt as George
• Traci Lords as Stacy Flagler
• Danny Masterson as Jimmy Gartner
• Bob Nickman as Customer
• Diane Dorsey as Customer

Trivia

• Joseph Gordon-Levitt who plays George, makes his third appearance. He had previously appeared in the Season 5 episode "Daughters and Other Strangers" and the Season 6 episode "I Pray the Lord My Stove to Keep". He would make one final appearance later this season in "Single Married Female".
• Traci Lords makes her first appearance as Stacy Flagler. She'll later appear in "Lost Youth" and "Single Married Female" this season.
• Danny Masterson who plays Jimmy, will make his next and final appearance in the next episode "Punch and Jimmy ".
• The closing tag is a parody of a porn movie called "Lunch Box Girls", Roseanne, Staci and Jackie star as horny waitresses working at "The Box". When a male customer comes in they undress him with the promise of getting hot, sweaty, gooey and slippery and end up making him clean out the grease trap while they watch.
• Despite being credited, Sarah Chalke (Becky Conner) does not appear.