7 Reasons ‘Abbott Elementary’ Season 5 Is One of Its Best (PHOTOS)
For four seasons now, we’ve cherished and championed the elementary school–based comedy Abbott Elementary. The show, created by Quinta Brunson based on her own experiences, follows teachers and faculty at an underfunded school as they face two of the most difficult challenges: social issues and kids. From gentrification to students peeing on rugs, this show addresses it all in a lighthearted and fun way without taking away from the nuances of the more serious issues. And, of course, Abbott Elementary would be nothing without its charming lineup of characters.
This fall, the fifth season of the show premiered, only to reinforce why fans fell in love with the series in the first place, as it delivered some of its strongest character work right out of the gate. The growth of each ensemble member has really shone through in these early episodes.
Looking back at how our favorite characters stack up against their early-episode selves, it’s clear just how far they’ve come. Here’s a breakdown of how the series regulars have evolved across the seasons.
Abbott Elementary, Season 5 Returns, Wednesdays, December, 8:30/7:30c, ABC
1. Janine Teagues
Early season Janine Teagues (Quinta Brunson) had a lot to learn as a teacher. She constantly turned to Barbara Howard (Sheryl Lee Ralph) for advice, but her enthusiasm often wasn’t reciprocated by Barbara.
In Season 5 Episode 1, Janine sees new teacher Dominic (Luke Tennie) struggling to adjust to the job. He wants to ask Barbara questions, just as Janine did, but is worried about bothering her. Janine takes some time to speak to Dominic about his struggles and is actually able to answer his questions. She gives him reassurance and offers to answer any future questions he has. To see Janine be able to offer this kind of support to someone else when she was once in their very place is such a full circle moment and speaks to how much Janine has grown since the first season.
2. Gregory Eddie
Gregory Eddie (Tyler James Williams) started out in the first season of Abbott Elementary as the newest teacher addition. He kept to himself for the most part and took longer to come out of his shell.
In the fourth episode of the latest season, Gregory offers to host game night. This episode particularly showcases just how much Gregory has opened up since the first season. His home is very personal to him, and he has never let anyone at Abbott besides Janine visit before. This is a huge step toward Gregroy becoming more open. His excitement about sharing something as intimate as his home with his community is truly a testament to how wonderfully Gregory has been developed. And although game night isn’t what everyone else expected, Gregory seems to enjoy introducing his friends to his space.
3. Barbara Howard
Barbara Howard (Ralph) began in the pilot of Abbott Elementary as the cynical senior teacher who doesn’t believe real change can come to Abbott. When newbie Janine suggests that they get new rugs for their classrooms, Barbara is her biggest doubter, having been let down countless times by the school system. Even when Janine succeeds in acquiring new rugs, Barbara continues to hold her doubts about Abbott improving.
Season 5 Barbara is a completely different person by comparison. In Episode 5 of this latest season, Barbara notices that some of the older kids are having a difficult time integrating themselves in Halloween festivities, so she plans a camping trip for them. This is something we would’ve never seen Season 1 Barbara do. Barbara now truly believes that what she does can have an impact on the school and the students, and to see her take initiative like this is proof of that. Her embrace of positivity is refreshing and sweet, and something we’re so happy that we can celebrate.
4. Ava Coleman
Principal Ava Coleman (Janelle James) has always been a bit of a wild card. In the earlier seasons, it seemed like much of what she did as principal was for herself, like using Abbott’s budget to get a banner of herself put up instead of investing it into something more useful for the school.
This season, we’ve seen Ava gain emotional intelligence with the people around her. This has most prominently manifested in her relationship with district IT representative O’Shon (Matthew Law). In Season 5 Episode 3, the squad goes to a Phillies baseball game, and Ava is desperate to be on the kiss cam. However, when O’Shon misses the opportunity, Ava is less than happy about it. O’Shon points out that Ava has control issues, and for a moment, it seems like they might be launching into a bigger fight.
Instead of arguing with O’Shon, Ava opens up and explains why being on the kiss cam was so important to her. This allows for them to have an honest conversation that Season 1 Ava would’ve never been able to have. Her choice to communicate rather than being petty is exactly what will keep us rooting for her relationship with O’Shon.
5. Melissa Schemmenti
Melissa Schemmenti (Lisa Ann Walter) has been our classic tough, smart teacher from day one. We fear her but we love her, and that’s what makes her so great. Melissa’s tactics may be questionable, but her heart is always in the right place.
This season, we saw Melissa be outsmarted by her own students after being bumped up to teaching middle school. When her students cheat on a test, Melissa isn’t suspicious of them at all until Gregory overhears the students talking about cheating and tells Melissa about it. Season 1 Melissa tended to assume the worst, but the fact that she believed that all her students did well on their test this season shows that she is beginning to see the best in people. While this may be a challenge as she moves forward with her middle schoolers, it signifies that Melissa has grown as a result of her community.
6. Mr. Johnson
What would Abbott Elementary be without Mr. Johnson (William Stanford Davis)? Although a janitor at the school, Mr. Johnson alludes to his previous jobs, ranging from Olympic athlete to private investigator. Mr. Johnson seems to be able to do it all, and he’s always popping in at the right moment to offer his insight.
In this newest season of Abbott Elementary, we see something from Mr. Johnson that we would’ve never imagined: vulnerability. In Season 5 Episode 1, Mr. Johnson admits to Gregory that he doesn’t know how to ride a bike. That’s right, the man of a thousand lives can’t bike. It’s one of the first times, if not the first, that we’ve seen Mr. Johnson incapable of anything. Gregory encourages him to learn to ride a bike, and we see Mr. Johnson try, and fail, and eventually succeed at biking.
Mr. Johnson displays incredible vulnerability by first confessing that he can’t ride a bike, and then trying and being willing to fail at it. Seeing such a well-rounded man struggle with something so simple is incredibly moving, and we couldn’t be prouder of Mr. Johnson for overcoming his fears and learning how to bike.
7. Jacob Hill
Jacob Hill (Chris Perfetti) has been a not-so-silent but often overlooked ally throughout the seasons. He joined Abbott as a teacher the same year Janine did, and he has been a huge supporter of her the entire time. For every crazy idea Janine has had, Jacob has been there to back her up.
Jacob has changed in some ways over the seasons, like learning how to stand up for himself and embracing his quirkiness as a teacher, but one thing we’re glad has stayed static is his fierce loyalty toward Janine and his other friends. One of the most important things about developing a character is knowing how much to change them, and the Abbott Elementary writers do a wonderful job of balancing Jacob’s smaller pieces of growth with his already loveable features. There’s not much we’d change about our favorite history teacher.
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