Full House: Things Only Adults Notice In The TV Show

Full House is one of those TV series that have stood the test of time and have remained totally beloved by fans even after it went off the air. Shows like Friends, The Office, and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air have all had people talking years after they wrapped up, but Full House might just be more iconic than the rest. The series ended in 1995, but the show was so popular that a reboot, Fuller House, ran for five whole seasons on Netflix beginning in 2016.

Full House was known for its endearing cast, heartwarming family moments, and slapstick comedy, but, for many viewers of the show, a lot of details slipped past them when they watched when they were kids. Now, if you were to watch Full House as an adult, there would be more than a few things that would make you shake your head and roll your eyes.

As fans of Full House know, the entire premise of the show was that newly-widowed dad Danny Tanner, one of several '90s sitcom dads who are nearly unrecognizable today, needed some help raising his three daughters. And while the show is very careful not to wade too deeply into the darkness of Danny's widowhood, as an adult, you can't help but notice just how depressing the initial plot of the show is.

The fact that this entire family was upended by the death of their matriarch and that the show is somehow a sitcom is kind of unbelievable as an adult. When you're a kid or even a teenager who watches Full House, it can be easy to forget that the show is all about a family who lost their mother because of all the goofy humor going on. But really, Full House is pretty depressing, especially considering the fact that the youngest Tanner wasn't even a year old when she lost her mom.

For most kids who watch Full House, the men's mishaps in trying to raise three young girls are hilarious. And watching Danny, Uncle Jesse, and Uncle Joey attempt to wrangle the kids is certainly entertaining, but there's one thing that's kind of impossible to grasp and it's that Danny isn't even 30 years old when the series premieres. Yes, in the 11th episode of Season 1, Danny turns 30. That means Danny must have gotten married very young.

In fact, before Danny even turns 30, his oldest daughter, DJ, is starting fifth grade, which means she would be about 10 years old. So, with a little math, Danny must have had his first child at just 20 years old. While that's not entirely unbelievable, it is pretty unbelievable that Danny got married, had three kids, somehow started a successful career, bought a house, and became a widower all before turning 30. Sure, the '80s and '90s were different times, but still — that's a lot of living to do in a short amount of time.

It's clear from the start of Full House that the show was centered on Danny, Jesse, and Joey learning how to relate to and care for three young girls. Of course, there would be love interests along the way, but no one love interest stood out more than Rebecca Donaldson, played by Lori Loughlin, who eventually become known as Aunt Becky after she and Jesse tied the knot.

Loughlin first entered the series at the beginning of Season 2 when Danny started a new job co-hosting the fictional show Wake Up San Francisco alongside Rebecca. As the first significant adult female character on Full House, Rebecca was career-oriented, sharp, and intelligent. Really, Rebecca's character was a powerful and impressive woman, which just showed how progressive Full House was for its time. As Aunt Becky got closer to Full House's main characters, it was clear that she was a force to be reckoned with. Only an adult would notice just how empowering Aunt Becky was on Full House.

For a show that premiered in 1987, Full House was actually quite a bit ahead of its time in terms of gender stereotypes. The entire premise of the show is that Danny is a single father raising his children, but it's still notable that Danny had to handle all the traditionally female roles around the house. In fact, while kids who watch Full House might find Danny's obsessive need to clean everything just funny, it's actually kind of refreshing. The fact that the father is the one cooking and cleaning is kind of a big deal, especially considering its time.

Really, as an adult watching Full House, you'll probably notice just how feminist some elements of the show were. When Aunt Becky entered the scene, she stayed focused on her career and didn't let Uncle Jesse control her. With three men taking care of things on the home front, Full House really showed that women alone don't have to be caretakers.

Full House was definitely ahead of the curve in terms of avoiding gender stereotypes and embracing feminism, but that doesn't mean there weren't a few moments that make you cringe when you watch it as an adult. Specifically, Uncle Jesse definitely had some sexist tendencies, especially when it came to the behavior of his twin sons, Nicky and Alex.

In one episode, Jesse gets seriously frustrated when his sons want to play with a doll — something he deems to be "wrong" — instead of a more traditionally masculine toy. In fact, Jesse even goes so far as to buy the boys new toys like a monster truck and a football to sway them from playing with the doll. It's a seriously outdated mode of thinking, and Aunt Becky has no time for it. "Do you know what a little boy who plays with baby dolls could grow up to be?" Becky asks Jesse in the episode. She then gives him the wisest answer: "A terrific father." Clearly, Uncle Jesse was in the wrong, and his sexist way of thinking is frustrating for adults to see while watching Full House.

One of the things that Full House is most well-known for — even years after it went off the air — is those heartwarming moments between characters that should honestly be trademarked. If you watch Full House as an adult, you'll immediately start to recognize the music that begins to swell and the endearing looks in the characters' eyes as they go in for a hug. Then, of course, a very important life lesson is explained that just so happens to perfectly coordinate with the plot of the episode. Yes, Full House has perfected the art of the heartwarming moment, as noted by HelloGiggles.

From sweet and tender father-daughter moments to tricky situations the girls go through with their friends, Full House actually had a lot to teach viewers. As a kid, you might have just brushed off all those lessons in favor of noticing the humor more, but, as an adult, you can't help but notice that the show's messages were super powerful.

With three daughters, it's not exactly surprising that Danny and the uncles would eventually have to deal with body image issues. As a kid who watches Full House, you might not really notice when DJ was struggling with her weight and how her body looked. But as an adult, on the other hand, the way that the show portrayed DJ's struggles really stands out.

In one episode, titled "Shape Up," DJ's best friend, Kimmy, invites her over to a pool party, and DJ starts to panic about wearing a swimsuit in public, which is all too relatable for a lot of teenage girls and adult women. DJ starts to exhibit some seriously worrisome behavior, such as skipping meals and working out too hard, which all leads up to her collapsing at the gym. It's a tough lesson, but Full House actually nailed how hard it is for women to deal with societal expectations for what they should look like, and that's important.

Since Full House premiered in the late '80s and continued throughout the '90s, it makes sense that the show featured a lot more cigarette smoking than modern shows do. After all, at that time, some people considered it to be cool to smoke, and, in the Full House episode "Fast Friends," where Stephanie makes new friends, that's exactly what Stephanie is pressured into doing. Of course, Full House handled the peer pressure issue with all the grace and maturity it's known for, but one question remains for adults who rewatch the show: just how did all those girls get away with smoking at school?

Seriously, not only were they smoking in school, but they were smoking indoors. How was it even possible for them to not get caught because of the smell? It truly makes zero sense, and, as an adult, you can't help but wonder why they would even want to smoke in the bathroom anyway. Couldn't they have gone outside?

For a kid who watches Full House, the fact that so many people live under one roof is likely just entertaining. And it certainly is to adults, as well, but for an entirely different reason. Only adults would notice just how outlandishly huge the house is in Full House. Seriously, it almost doesn't even make sense for a house to be that big in a city like San Francisco.

Nevertheless, the show continued on with the pretense. The house apparently had four bedrooms with an attic and a basement that were both fully livable spaces. The home in Full House was certainly full, but there's a reason why it never really felt all that crowded watching it on TV — because the show actually filmed the interior shots of the house on a soundstage, as noted by Deadline. Basically, the Full House home doesn't exist as you know it.

Full House is definitely a family-oriented show, and, for the most part, it's pretty family-friendly. Of course, there are moments of adult humor that no child would ever notice but that parents watching along with their kids would appreciate. Still that doesn't mean the show was ever inappropriate. However, there was one episode that was seriously disturbing for more than one reason. 

In the episode "Arrest Ye Merry Gentlemen" from Season 8, Michelle and Uncle Jesse go out on an adventure to return the gift Michelle bought for Danny because she was upset her dad wouldn't like what she got him. It could have been a super sweet episode, but instead the owner of the shop refuses to exchange the gift and literally locks them in the store to wait for the police to arrive when Jesse demands he accept the returm. In what world is holding a little girl against her will okay? Especially when she was just trying to get a nice gift for her father! Only an adult would notice just how insane this is while watching Full House.

Fans of Full House know that, much like the actor who portrayed him, Uncle Jesse was Greek. In a few key episodes of Season 4 of the series, Jesse's Greek family came to San Francisco to visit him. Of course, that meant the house got fuller, and that there were plenty of shenanigans to get into. However, one plot point was seriously twisted, and only an adult would notice it. During the "Greek Week" episode, DJ gets totally charmed by a boy from Greece, Sylvio. (Don't worry — they aren't related.)

It's cute and totally fine for DJ and Sylvio to flirt, but, when Sylvio asks DJ to go for a walk around the kitchen table, it turns out they were actually marrying in a Greek wedding. So, with that scene, there was a literal child bride in Full House, which just seriously isn't cool. Fortunately, the wedding is nullified by the couple walking backwards around the table, and no, that's not a joke. As cute as Full House was, the show also had some seriously twisted moments.

Obviously, the Full House home was big. Like, really big. But aside from that fact, there's just one little plot hole that makes zero sense in the show. Much like fans wonder how the friends in Friends were able to afford their spacious apartments in New York City, adults who watch Full House have to wonder how the heck Danny could afford such a huge home before the age of 30.

It's honestly ridiculous. In fact, according to the real estate listing for the house that was used for Full House's exterior shots that went up for sale in 2019, the home is worth around $5.75 million. If that number seems high, it obviously is, as San Francisco is one of the most expensive cities in the United States. But still, even back in the '80s and '90s when Full House took place, that home would have cost a lot more than a local reporter would have made, especially one with three kids. It doesn't make sense how Danny was able to afford such a huge house — period.

Few things on Full House were as charming or adorable as the bond between Michelle and Uncle Jesse. From their tender moments to their hilarious jokes, the two had a connection like no other. However, when Uncle Jesse's grandfather comes back to San Francisco in the episode "The Last Dance," Michelle instantly connects with his grandfather, Papouli.

Sadly, Papouli dies in his sleep while visiting San Francisco, and poor Jesse, who is already grieving the loss of his grandfather, has to inform little Michelle that Papouli is no longer alive. It's heartbreaking to see Michelle, who was so young at the time, have to grieve yet another loss in her life. At that point, Full House had seriously taken things way too far and had veered way off track from the funny yet heartwarming show it was supposed to be. As a kid watching Full House, Papouli's death might not have even registered much, but, as an adult, it's clear that it was way too intense for a family show.

As Full House was such a successful series, with the Olsen twins making $80,000 per episode during the final season, according to The Washington Post, it's interesting to look back at the series finale as an adult. The series actually ended over a two-part episode centering on Michelle getting amnesia after falling off her horse. The entire family has to help her put the pieces of her life back into place, and things are kind of dark for a while. Of course, it ends as happy as ever, but it didn't really feel like much of an ending for a series.

MTV News reported of the show's ending, "Both DJ and Stephanie are lucky in love. Kimmy is, too, with Duane ('whatever') as her boyfriend and prom date. Everyone makes peace with Michelle after she recovers from her amnesia. It's a bit of a crucible for the Tanner family, but one they're able to survive with each other's help." 

Full House had a such a great run, but the show's final episode just didn't feel like it lived up to the rest of the series, which is really only something an adult would notice.