The Golden Girls’ Forgotten Spinoff Is Great, You Can Watch It Right Now
Most don't even known The Golden Girls spinoff, The Golden Palace, exists; much less that it's streaming on Hulu.
Golden Girls fans, get ready to rejoice: there is a Golden Girls spinoff that you can watch on Hulu right now. While the original Golden Girls series has been on Hulu for a while, the Golden Girls spinoff, The Golden Palace, was just added last year, according to Collider. Released in late 2021 to honor Betty White around what would have been the last remaining Golden Girl’s 100th birthday, the series has been a great comfort to fans after her death last year.
The Golden Girls spinoff starts right where the original series ended. Bea Arthur’s character, Dorothy, has just married Lucas (Leslie Nielsen) and moved away to Atlanta, and her absence is a bit tough on her pals Blanche (Rue McClanahan) and Rose (Betty White) and her mom, Sophia (Estelle Getty). So, Blanche comes up with the big idea that the three of them should go into business together.
With the help of a chef played by Cheech Marin and a manager played by Don Cheadle, they start running a hotel that has seen better days in the hopes that they can get it back on its feet.
Fans of the original will appreciate that this Golden Girls spinoff has the same surprisingly dirty jokes as the home series (and maybe even kicked up a notch), as well as much of the same scenery. Rose’s frequent reminiscences about her childhood in St. Olaf are even the same, as is the cheesecake that always helps to get the gal pals through a crisis.
Like people in real life, the characters in the Golden Girls spinoff have grown and changed somewhat since we knew them in the original series, however. Blanche, for instance, is less spoiled and more business-minded, as well as more accepting of others. Delightfully ditsy Rose has grown more intelligent and more able to stand on her own as well, even if she is still the sweetest character in the cast.
The Golden Girls laid the groundwork for a lot of ideas that are explored more profoundly in the Golden Girls spinoff such as racism, gender inequality, homosexuality, and AIDS. Its exploration of these themes make it a show that is still timely, as well as a show that is much more than just a simple half-hour comedy.
Although it may be a bit more serious than its predecessor, The Golden Girls spinoff still has the same snappy one-liners fans know and love from the original, as well as a heaping helping of pop-culture references (usually made by the elderly Sophia) and heartwarming plots. It also reaffirms the original series’ message that just because you’re a woman of a certain age, it doesn’t mean all the fun and adventure has gone out of life.
So, as 2022 nears its end and the first anniversary of the day we lost Betty White approaches (December 31), there is no better time to curl up with a blanket and revisit old friends with this Golden Girls spinoff. Unlike many sequel series, this one is actually a good companion to the original, and definitely worth checking out on Hulu.
