Fuller House‘s DJ is noticeably different, and much worse, than she was in Full House. Danny Tanner’s (Bob Saget) eldest daughter was the focal point of Netflix’s spin-off sequel, which was exciting for those who were invested in the character since her debut in the original sitcom. It was noticeable, however, how much the character has changed between the time she was in the original show and the offshoot.

DJ moved back in her childhood family home with her three young sons following the unexpected death of her husband. Suddenly widowed at a young age, her sister Stephanie (Jodie Sweetin) and long-time best friend, Kimmy Gibbler (Andrea Barber) decided to stay with her in the iconic San Francisco house to help with household chores until she was back on her feet. Five seasons later, things worked out okay for DJ despite darker times. Her kids are growing up fine and her career is thriving with a successful veterinary clinic in the city. She also reconciled and married her high school sweetheart, Steve (Scott Weinger). As great and inspiring her arc was in Fuller House, however, not everyone is a fan of her depiction in the sequel series.

One of DJ’s best qualities from Full House is that while she’s almost always responsible — something that’s expected of her since she’s the eldest of three sisters — she also knew how to have fun. She hung out with her neighbor Kimmy Gibbler, who was mostly a (mildly) bad influence, and she dated boys — but she knew her priorities. DJ was also able to adapt to last-minute changes, and as she grew older, became more logical with her decisions and actions. This doesn’t mean, however, that she’s immune to committing mistakes; she still had some missteps, but at the end of the day, she always knew what was right for her. The combination of these qualities is what made her both relatable and aspirational, but for some reason, she was different in Fuller House. She was mostly corny and a drag. Grown-up DJ can also be controlling and patronizing, especially when it comes to Stephanie. So, what caused these significant character changes?

It goes back to Fuller House wanting to mirror Full House, not only in terms of its overall premise but also with its main characters to drum up its nostalgia factor. DJ was supposed to be the Danny of the spin-off, and while the father and daughter have some similar qualities, they are very different, which was more obvious in Full House. In the original show, Danny was the killjoy among the adults; he’s deemed boring and goody-two-shoes, which worked for him because that’s how his character was originally written. However, tweaking DJ’s traits to be like him was a bad move as viewers of Full House were quickly able to spot it. This ultimately made her small-screen return disappointing as it felt like she’s an entirely different person. The people behind Fuller House wanted to recreate what its predecessor did in the ’80s/’90s because it was a tried and tested formula, rather than doing something different that’s more appropriate for the primary characters of the modern show.

Now that Fuller House is finished, it’s worth pondering how the show might’ve been different if it didn’t heavily rely on what Full House established. It was only starting to establish itself from its parent show in its final seasons by being more creative in its storylines with the occasional references to its predecessor. Sadly, it didn’t have more time to explore what lies ahead after that.