Why Are The Men In ‘Full House’ And ‘Fuller House’ Bullies?

The 80’s and 90’s were weird times for the zany best friend. From Family Matters‘ Steve Urkel to The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’s Jazz, AKA DJ Jazzy Jeff, it was a time where locked front doors didn’t seem to exist and the fridge was free game for any and everyone, much to the exasperation of parents everywhere. But there was one friend that received more hate than almost any other: Full House’s Kimmy Gibbler.

Kimmy Gibbler (Andrea Barber) was always a bit of an odd duck. She was loud, trouble-making, and said any and everything that was on her mind. More often than not, the things on her mind were more strange than inappropriate, but the free-spirited Gibbler was a welcome foil to the often too straight-laced Tanner family. More than any other characters on Full House, Kimmy was the one I liked best. Sure, judging by my meek temperament and my desire to make as many people happy as possible, I’m more of a DJ. However, I always liked Kimmy’s frank and unapologetic style. This was a girl who embodied the ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ mentality before that was even a thing. And she did all of that while rocking a side ponytail with the same confidence movie stars have walking down the red carpet. I think my appreciation for Kimmy Gibbler is a big reason why I never liked the series, and Barber’s portrayal of Gibbler is one of the highlights of the new Netflix reboot. Kimmy was the shining quirky light of a series and a family that relentlessly tried to break her down.

The big joke surrounding Kimmy is that the three main parental figures — Danny Tanner (Bob Saget), Jesse Katsopolis (John Stamos), and Joey Gladstone (Dave Coulier)— hated having her around. To be fair to Joey, it was mostly Danny and Jesse who had the Kimmy problem. One of perma-dad Danny Tanner’s actual catchphrases is a disgruntled “Gibbler.” I definitely understand their annoyance. Without Kimmy Gibbler around, the Tanner household resided in a permanent state of happy, familial bliss. In fact, most of the trouble DJ (Candace Cameron-Bure) ever got into can be accredited to Kimmy Gibbler. Maybe Kimmy wasn’t the best influence on DJ, but DJ loved her, and she was fun. Also, when we first met Kimmy, she was eight, so all of this Gibbler hatred was very much not warranted.

As Kimmy jokes about in Fuller House, she spent more time growing up at the Tanners’ house than at her own house. This means for most of her developing years, she was surrounded by a trio of adults who outwardly criticized who she was as a person. Ouch. Thank god Kimmy Gibbler seems to be a naturally strong person who can brush off criticism, but you can’t tell me that she didn’t cry after at least one of those “Go home, Kimmys.”

I’ve been a preteen and a teenage girl, and I remember how it feels when you think the whole world is judging you. From my experience, you aren’t born with an innate knowledge of which criticisms to brush off and which you need to take seriously. For a while, everything affects you, and you’re a victim to the world, or at least that’s how you feel. Yeah, there’s a reason why the dramatic teenage girl trope exists. Most of my best friends growing up were and are more Kimmy than DJ — loud-mouthed, opinionated, adventurous, trouble making, and funny. But at the end of the day, all of the Kimmys in my life have been just as uncomfortable with the world and their place in it as I am.

Though there’s a lot of canned studio audience laughter, Full House was a show about emotion. It’s a show about a family learning to survive after their mother passes. It’s a sad story that’s transformed into a sweet one through countless hugs and even more catchphrases. Fuller House embodies that same type of raw emotion under its surface as well. From the first episode, it’s clear that DJ is on the verge of an emotional breakdown. She’s lost and scared for her children’s future, and that is as painful as it is relatable. (SPOILER ALERT) You see another version of Stephanie’s (Jodie Sweetin) humanizing pain when she confides that she’s infertile. There are characters that are allowed to express the full range of human emotion. But Kimmy Gibbler isn’t on that list.

It doesn’t matter how young she is or how much DJ loves her, the men of Full House and Fuller House make it clear that Kimmy Gibbler isn’t accepted by them. At least not completely. Later in the series and a bit in the reboot, Kimmy achieves a sort of begrudging acceptance from the rest of the Tanner family, but it’s only a fraction of what she craves and deserves. Because I’ve had too many Kimmy Gibblers in my own life, I think I’m too close to be completely objective on this one. When the Tanners insult Gibbler for being annoying, I just see my best friend being insulted while I’m stuck on the couch, unable to defend her. Maybe this is at the core of why I never liked Full House, but regardless, the men of Fuller House need to lay off of Kimmy. Sure, she’s weird, but that’s why we love her.

[Where to stream Full House]

[Where to stream Fuller House]

Photos: Everett Collection