It was the question on fans' lips when US network ABC announced they'd be reviving the hit '90s sitcom Roseanne with its original cast: "Cool! But isn't Dan, uh, dead?"

Now there's an odd answer. Yes, but it doesn't matter.

"They're just going to pretend like it never even happened," a source told website TVLine.

Out of the recent spate of TV reboots, Roseanne – the blue-collar family sitcom which ran from 1988 to 1997, and was shown locally on Network Ten – perhaps faces the most logistical hiccups, thanks to its incredibly meta original finale.