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For Thorin Engeseth, the hit comedy series 鈥淩oseanne鈥� always comes with a rush of memories.

The show takes him back to the family home in Grand Rapids, Mich., where his mother 鈥� 鈥渁n outspoken and opinionated woman鈥� 鈥� had kept a happy household despite working two jobs to clothe and feed him and his two sisters. 鈥淢oney was tight at home, but 鈥� we had presents under the tree every Christmas,鈥� Mr. Engeseth writes in an email from Germany, where he now lives with his wife. 鈥淲hen I watched 鈥楻oseanne,鈥� I saw that.鈥�

On March 27, ABC revived the series, which catches up 21 years later with the blue-collar Conner family in fictional Lanford, Ill. Engeseth asked a friend in the US to set up a computer facing the television so he could see the first episode via Skype. He loved what he saw: a show that spoke to a new age, but reintroduced beloved characters who still captured the wit and cheer of the middle America he treasures.

鈥淪itcoms these days focus on wealthy families on the coasts,鈥� he writes. 鈥淸The new] 鈥楻oseanne鈥� is a little reminder that the Midwest still has its own stories.鈥澛犅�

There are, it turns out, plenty of Thorin Engeseth鈥檚, at least here in the US. More than 18 million people tuned in to the revival premiere, with another 6.6 million catching the telecast over the next three days. By Monday 鈥� just two episodes in 鈥撀燗BC had renewed the show for a second (or 11th) season.

Nostalgia played no small part in the numbers, pundits say. Like Engeseth, fans of the original 鈥淩oseanne鈥� were drawn to the new show because they loved the old one. They were eager to stir up the memories it evoked and curious to see how the Conners had fared.

But what鈥檚 kept viewers and critics talking about the show more than a week after it aired is its bid to represent both modern politics and blue-collar America in a way no sitcom has done in years, much less post-2016. The first episode saw the Conners taking on health care, unemployment, gender fluidity, and surrogacy through characters whose politics and opinions often clashed. The titular Roseanne 鈥� played by real-life Donald Trump supporter Roseanne Barr 鈥� knocks heads with her Hillary Clinton-loving, pink hat-wearing sister, Jackie (Laurie Metcalf), in a series of exchanges familiar to any American who鈥檚 lived through the past two years.

The plethora of headlines that followed suggests that, like it or not 鈥� and many do not 鈥� there may be a real audience for a program that portrays white, working-class Trump supporters as other than objects of fear, hatred, or ridicule.

鈥淭here are very few TV shows anymore that deal with blue-collar families. In a sense we haven鈥檛 had that since 鈥楻oseanne鈥� went off the air,鈥� says Steven Ross, a history professor at the University of Southern California who specializes in Hollywood depictions of labor and politics.聽Less high-profile shows have staked out some ground for the heartland. There's "The Middle," about a middle-class family in Indiana, that's now in its ninth and final season. 鈥淭he Drew Carey Show,鈥� set in Cleveland, ran from 1995 to 2004. But the "Roseanne" revival, Professor Ross says, taps into affection for cherished shows to punctuate the return to the screen of the working-class American household 鈥� millions of whom, in 2018, live in Trump country and voted for the president. 鈥淚 think that鈥檚 a big deal, period,鈥� he says.

Cultural bellwether

鈥� 鈥楻oseanne鈥� is ringing cultural bells,鈥� not least for viewers who鈥檝e kept their conservative opinions in the closet, writes pollster and former Clinton adviser Mark Penn聽in an op-ed for The Hill. And it reminds citified, liberal Hollywood of audiences who live between the coasts and appreciate programming that speaks their truths. 鈥淭he message is: We鈥檙e conscious enough of our differences to shut you down when you set yourselves against us (the Oscars) but we are ready to provide enthusiastic support for your efforts if you treat us with respect,鈥� notes John Podhoretz in the New York Post.

But the revival touched a nerve for more than just conservative viewers and Trump supporters.

Engeseth, for instance, disagrees with Ms. Barr鈥檚 politics and disapproves of her tweeting conspiracy theories that put President Trump in a good light. Yet he hesitates to begrudge the actor her right to voice her opinions, both on and off the show. 鈥淚 think that, though I oppose every move made by President Trump, there is a place for conservative politics alongside my own liberal ideals,鈥� Engeseth writes. 鈥淭here is value in showing two sides of a very important political divide that many viewers face.鈥�

Stacy Carroll, who lives with her husband in Sandwich, Ill., is vehemently anti-Trump and says she will stop watching 鈥淩oseanne鈥� should it ever become a mouthpiece for the president. She has also spent the past six years unemployed. Once a medical technologist, she developed post-traumatic stress disorder, disqualifying her from working in most industries. 鈥淣o one will hire a 50+ year old with a college degree and no manual labor experience to do manual labor,鈥� she writes in an email. Her husband was recently hired as a maintenance worker for a pool company and sometimes does construction. Money was so tight the couple had to move in with her mother, who died in January.

In the original 鈥淩oseanne,鈥� Ms. Carroll saw a funny show set in a familiar locale, and a loving, if sometimes crude, family she wished was her own. In the revival, she sees her frustrations and anger beamed back at her, but in a way that still makes her laugh.

鈥淭he Conners do reflect my reality,鈥� Carroll writes. 鈥淒arlene has gotten higher education, failed miserably, has not done as well as her parents and had to move back in with them (just like me). They live paycheck to paycheck like us. It's really nice to see on TV, but done with humor.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 not that everybody wants to see every aspect of their lives on TV,鈥� says Patricia Phalen, associate professor of media and public affairs at George Washington University. 鈥淏ut 鈥楻oseanne鈥� in particular taps into the working-class person who laughs at those jokes because it鈥檚 something they would say.鈥�

Reserving judgment

Among the critiques, op-eds, and essays that have materialized about the revival are those that contend that it normalizes or sanitizes Mr. Trump鈥檚 divisive brand of politics (though some on the right have also grumbled that the show falsely recasts Trump voters as 鈥渟ocial leftists鈥�). They argue that the show misses crucial points about race and poverty, and supports the myth that blue-collar Americans are always white. That Trump himself called Barr to congratulate her on the success of the premiere was yet another turn-off.

Plenty of viewers say they are actively avoiding the program for all those reasons. Some who have tuned in 鈥� like retired high school English teacher Rhonda Powell 鈥� say they have mixed feelings, but will hold off deciding until more episodes have aired.

鈥淚t鈥檚 hard to see 鈥楻oseanne鈥� knowing what she鈥檚 said and done,鈥� says Ms. Powell, who lives in Atlanta. 鈥淏ut I never discuss anything I haven鈥檛 read or watched. That comes from being an English teacher: Don鈥檛 condemn a book if you haven鈥檛 read it.鈥�

For other viewers, a good show is a good show. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the characters, and the comedy aspect of it,鈥� says Andrea Smith, a registered nurse and native Midwesterner who lives in northwest Indiana with her partner and stepson. 鈥淚鈥檝e always loved 鈥楻oseanne.鈥� And I like that it shows that you can disagree and all of that, but we鈥檙e family, and we can sit down and have a meal.鈥�

鈥淓very show has the potential to present a message and to give yet one more community a voice,鈥� Engeseth points out. 鈥� 鈥楻oseanne鈥� happened to give a voice to my own part of the country, and I appreciated that.

鈥淎nd honestly, I鈥檒l watch anything that has John Goodman.鈥�