In a full second season, Abbott Elementary continued with it’s strong winning, comedic streak.
I might not be as passionate a fan as other people out there, but I can at least recognize this workplace sitcom is funny. Truly. Everyone in the cast shines in their own way, bringing strong performances. Even their guest stars are rock solid! Taraji P. Henson as Janine’s mom?! Genius. Also, hot off the success of The Bear’s first season, Ayo Edebiri shows up as Janine’s sister and helps us see the not so nice side of Janine. Those were two of my favorite guest appearances this season, but honestly the show would do just as well without anyone coming in from the outside. But that would eventually make boring storytelling, and Quinta Brunson and co. have learned to utilize their guests without cramming them down our throats.
I’m sure most teachers could appreciate a lot of the episodes this season. Early on they covered “Development Day,” and then later on they touched on parent-teacher conferences and teacher’s appreciation week. The season finale touched on something that I definitely did not give my fourth grade teacher enough credit for: a sleepover field trip. Even with parental chaperones, just watching all of those kids made me nervous for the not enough adults in tow. And I’m sure there are also plenty of schools out there who could relate to the financial troubles Abbott has to endure on a constant basis.
Perhaps my favorite episodes of the season we’re “Holiday Hookah,” not just because we got to see some actual action between Janine and Gregory, but because Mr. Johnson and Jacob was not a pairing I knew I was missing in my life! Their scenes had me cackling. Mr. Johnson remains my favorite character on the show, but I also dearly love Gregory. I imagine I would react to things the exact same way he does. With that, “Fight” was another one of my favorite episodes. It was really fun to see him interact with his father. In general, I liked how throughout the season, each of the main cast members went through high and low points, but what I liked most was how much they are there for each other. Even if they try to come across like they aren’t.
Fans of the first season will certainly enjoy the second, and once this writer’s strike is over they are already picked up for a third!