“Abbott Elementary” - Season 2, Episode 16 Review
In what was perhaps the most exciting episode of the show thus far, the new “Abbott Elementary” finally gives the fans what they want: Janine and Gregory kiss.
When all of the teachers at Abbott have to go to a teachers’ conference for the weekend, they all seem to be excited for different reasons. Barbara and Melissa want to sit by the pool while Janine and Jacob want to attend every lecture and activity there is.
Gregory, who is not attending the conference, has a romantic weekend getaway planned with his girlfriend, Amber. But when she arrives at the school, the two seem to have very different definitions of what a relaxing vacation should be, and they actually break up.
Because of this, Gregory arrives at the teachers’ conference, where Janine finds him and gets him to tag along with her to see all of the activities.
Meanwhile, Jacob meets a new group of people who seem to appreciate his antics and his qualities that his coworkers dislike about him, and he spends the weekend hanging out with them. He later finds out that they all work at the charter school down the street, and decides he can’t be friends with them anymore after hearing some of their attitudes towards the futures of certain students.
Barbara and Melissa spend their day chilling by the pool and sipping cocktails until the party, where they start to talk up a woman who is a big school supply distributor. They are then interrupted by Melissa’s sister, and an argument breaks out.
In their usual fashion, the Schemmenti sisters argue with each other, but they eventually team up to argue with someone else, prompted by Barbara’s insistence that the two should stop fighting and make up.
Janine and Gregory start drinking and having fun and doing more activities, and Janine realizes that she missed the exhibit she was the most excited about, a living classroom made entirely of flowers.
Gregory proposes that they break in to the classroom and see the flowers, and they do. It is an absolutely beautiful room, and you can tell the prop department of the show was really working hard for this episode, which is highly appreciated.
While in the room, the pair finally give in to their very obvious chemistry and kiss, to the delight of fans of the couple. This does create some problems, however, because Janine is still dating Gregory’s friend, Maurice.
Janine and Gregory’s kiss was a big moment, but when the two arrived back at school, they decided to just act like it had never happened. This is a little disappointing, but definitely expected for a slow burn couple to still not be dating by season two.
Something notably missing from this episode is a big presence from Abbott’s principal, Ava. She has a smaller part in the episode, giving a speech at the conference, but there is a lack of Janelle James in the episode, which is upsetting, as she is often the person who has some of the funniest lines.
Because the episode takes place mostly away from the school, everyone’s favorite janitor, Mr. Johnson, is also missing from this episode. Besides these two big losses of on-screen personality, this episode of “Abbott Elementary” is almost perfect.
Rating: 4.5/5
Izzy Charboneau is a second-year majoring in digital and print journalism. To contact her, email ijc5186@psu.edu.
