‘Abbott Elementary’ Keeps the Laughs but Loses the Stakes

With three very successful seasons under its belt, the law of averages (used colloquially) says that Abbott Elementary was due for a little wobble. With the fourth season now having come to a close this past Wednesday, it’s safe to say this latest season falters a bit compared to previous seasons. Mind you, this doesn’t equate to “bad,” since in the wider sitcom world, season four is leagues ahead of the vast majority of its contemporaries; compare apples to apples, though, and it’s tough to deny that this latest outing has lost a bit of its spark. Call it a B average, if you will.

So what happened? The laughs are still plentiful, though some comedic retreading proved less than successful; a revamp of the much-adored “It’s pronounced ‘Zach,’” season one joke, only substituted with “Wyatt” this time, pulled a muted chuckle out of me. But by and large, Abbott is still quite funny. For any doubters out there, I would present Barbara Howard’s (Sheryl Lee Ralph) interpretation of proudly Italian Melissa Schemmenti (Lisa Ann Walter) as evidence (“Eagles! Firemen! I got a guy for this. I got a guy for that. Marinaraaa sauce!”).

As individual units, the episodes are still going strong, including those that leaned into more outlandish comedy, like the much anticipated It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia crossover episode. Even that half hour of collective goofy bits still presented a tie-in to the larger season arc, e.g. the bribes presented by the Girard Creek Golf Club. But it’s in the arcs that the issues with this season can be found, especially when it comes to the heart and soul of this series: its characters.

The biggest shake-up that happened over these twenty-two episodes was Ava Coleman’s (Janelle James) firing in the wake of the district uncovering the bribery, especially since Ava’s capability as a principal has been thoughtfully advanced over the show’s run. It truly felt like a loss. Unfortunately, it was one whose impact was cut short as she was rehired a mere three episodes later. So much potential could have been had, seeing what happens when a series regular, especially one as seemingly callous as Ava, is deprived of the school that operates as the heart of the series. It winds up being a mere blip instead, a momentary inconvenience undone within a couple of weeks. Abbott doesn’t traffic in hard drama, nor is it supposed to, but pulling its punches doesn’t do anyone any favors.

Another opportunity loss made itself known in the recent finale, with Orlando Jones reprising his guest role as Gregory Eddie’s (Tyler James Williams) father, Martin. Seeing Gregory be shocked and then saddened by Martin’s out-of-left-field playful side made for a wonderful bit of character development once the two began to talk out their feelings. It’s so good that it’s impossible not to think about how hard the moment would have landed had the seeds of this been laid out over the course of the season. It hadn’t even occurred to me that Janine (Quinta Brunson) had yet to formally meet Gregory’s father, but her charming masquerade as a hard nosed instructor rather than the sweet and imaginative school teacher we’ve all come to love still helped to make for a reasonably good finale; had the storyline, however, between Gregory and Martin been given more room to breathe, “Janine reminds me a lot of [Gregory’s deceased mother] her” would have hit so much harder.

Make no mistake, I liked this season, and I still consider myself a big fan of this show. But when it comes to personal stakes, character arcs were flattened by the show’s unwillingness to raise them. I’m hopeful that season five will work its way back to more hard-earned poignancy rather than the short dopamine bursts produced by most of this season’s conflicts. I trust that then I won’t have to grade on a curve.

Seasons one through four of Abbott Elementary is streaming on Hulu.

Kaleena Rivera is the TV Editor of Pajiba. She can be found on Bluesky here.