Following in the footsteps of the classic late 80s to 90s sitcom “Full House,” “Fuller House” first premiered as a Netflix original series in February 2016, over 20 years after the end of its predecessor.
Quite like the original, the sequel has the main character DJ Tanner, a widowed parent to three children, who are similar ages to herself and siblings in “Full House.”
The first episode of season one begins with DJ living in the same house she grew up in and having her sister, Stephanie, and best friend, Kimmy Gibbler, move in with her to help raise her three sons. This mirrors how her father had her brother-in-law, Jesse Katsopolis, and friend, Joey Gladstone, move in to help raise his daughters, with the other comparison being DJ having all sons, while her father had all daughters.
In the current season three, which was made available in two parts on Sept. 22 and Dec. 22, the show continued to address the love triangle between DJ, her high school sweetheart, Steve Hale, and her current boyfriend, Matt Harmon. The writers have managed to drag this plot on for the entirety of the show, thus far. They will continue into season four, much to the distress of the characters and fans, who just want to see DJ make up her mind.
As it takes place during the summer, viewers watch as DJ’s oldest son, Jackson, is forced to go to summer school and meets a girl named Rocki, who he later learns is the daughter of Stephanie’s rebellious childhood friend, Gia Mahan.
Stephanie also learns that, after being told she’s unable to have children in season one, she might have a few viable eggs that she could use in vitro with a surrogate, giving her hope for a future family. She starts to take hormone shots for in vitro and learns she has three viable eggs, meaning her chances of having children are slim. As season three progresses, her boyfriend Jimmy, who’s the brother of Kimmy, offers to be her sperm donor since they are in a relationship and he wants to help her have a family. Then, while searching for a surrogate, Kimmy offers to be their surrogate to help out both her brother and her friend in the hopes she will become pregnant.
At the center stage of her son’s budding relationship with Rocki and her sister’s fertility struggles is DJ’s continued romantic conflicts. She appears happy in her relationship with her co-worker, Matt. Still, as Steve prepares to marry his fiancée, CJ, who bears an ironic and strong resemblance to DJ, she struggles with her true feelings.
These feelings get increasingly complicated as DJ accidentally confesses her love for Steve to him, instead of Kimmy, who she thought was sitting beside her on the plane ride to Japan, but didn’t notice with the face mask over her eyes. While this was happening, Matt asks Stephanie if he should propose to DJ while on this trip. She encourages it, unknowing of DJ’s feelings.
When they arrive in Japan and learn her maid of honor is no longer able to make the trip, DJ becomes CJ’s maid of honor – further creating tension that already exists between the two. The ultimate blow up occurs, of course, at the wedding ceremony, where Steve realizes he cannot marry CJ. As CJ storms off humiliated, Matt suggests he and DJ get married instead, since he had proposed to her before the wedding ceremony began.
Forced to face the decision, DJ tells Matt she can’t marry him, and the two break up. Shortly after, the setting returns to their home in California, where they’re suffering from jet lag, and DJ’s decided that she’s going to be single for a while. Out of respect for her ex-boyfriend, she didn’t want to jump into a relationship with Steve, since she still had to work with him. However, she discovers that Matt no longer wants to work with her because it’s too difficult.
With this in mind, DJ and Steve wait a respective month before they begin to date. Not long after they do, Steve learns he has the opportunity to be a podiatrist for the Los Angeles Lakers. This causes a rift in their early relationship, as DJ encourages him to take the position. Steve doesn’t want to jeopardize what they have. Despite this, DJ calls the Lakers back after he declines and tells them he’s accepting in the finale, making viewers wonder what’s in store next for their relationship in season four.
