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With “Stranger Things” getting renewed for its fifth season and shows like “Grey’s Anatomy” continuing for 21 seasons and counting, TV can feel repetitive. But with its fourth season, Abbott Elementary doesn’t fit into the category of burnt-out franchises.

The three-time Emmy award-winning mockumentary premiered in 2021, and fans received it well. Continuing for three more seasons, the show announced the season 4 finale, which aired on April 16, on Instagram. Fans in the comments did not want the season to end.

Throughout the fourth season, the show keeps things familiar. Same staff, same school and same broken copier. But the show continues to grow. Characters shift, stumble and figure things out while maintaining the show’s laugh-out-loud appeal.

After working at the district office last season, Janine (Quinta Brunson) returns to Abbott Elementary a little different. She’s still motivated and passionate, but more vigilant. Janine learned last season that she can’t change the lack of resources and funding the school receives from the district. By going behind the district and getting the supplies via blackmail, she understands fixing a broken system isn’t just about having energy or good intentions.

She’s also finally dating Gregory (Tyler James Williams). Their romance was drawn out and highly anticipated over the course of earlier seasons. The show doesn’t make their relationship the focus; it stays in the background through moments like their first “I love you” and Janine earning Gregory’s dad’s approval.

There are awkward pauses, subtle disagreements and quiet moments of understanding where the connection between the two feels genuine. They’re two people trying to balance their own growth while staying connected, and the writing does a good job of letting that play out naturally.

The principal, Ava (Janelle James), has the biggest surprise storyline of the season. After covering for her teachers during a bribery scandal, she takes the blame for everyone and is fired. It’s one of the few times viewers see her character get knocked off balance from her typical strong and foundational position.

This showed some major character development for Ava. Even though she typically has a lighthearted demeanor, she will do what she can to help the people she cares about when it comes down to it. She reappears later on in the show as a motivational speaker — mimicking the format of TED Talks — for three episodes. Ava has a new sense of purpose, and a few dramatic monologues, before she later gets her job back.

It sounds ridiculous, and it kind of is, but it works. Her unconventional personality and unorthodox approach to problems make the monologues engaging and natural for the character. Ava is still blunt and self-absorbed, but a genuine care for her peers and students starts to break through. When she eventually returns to Abbott, it doesn’t feel like a full redemption, instead it’s what the show does best: letting people be human and make mistakes, but come back anyway. This is partly what makes the show funny and relatable.

The season also addresses more serious topics, like gentrification, with realism and timeliness without being too heavy. A golf course is being built near the school, pushing out families , forcing small businesses to close and changing the community.

Teachers at the school try to intervene. Melissa (Lisa Ann Walter), Barbara (Sheryl Lee Ralph) and Jacob (Chris Perfetti) team up to save a neighborhood deli being forced out by gentrification. In another episode, a simple open house becomes “Ava Fest,” a full-blown block party to raise money for the school.

These efforts don’t fix anything, but they do show how the staff tries to push back, even when they know they probably can’t stop what’s happening. The show doesn’t need to tie it up with a solution — it lets the situation speak for itself.

The supporting cast remains one of the show’s strengths. Barbara questions her place in the classroom, but leading a threatened music program rekindles her purpose. She learns to meet students where they are, shifting focus from how to teach to why it matters.

Jacob tries to teach RJ, a withdrawn student, and finds a breakthrough on the golf course. As he helps RJ discover his spark, Jacob begins confronting his own questions about purpose beyond teaching. He also secures a school counselor for Abbott, showing growth as both a teacher and person.

The season finale doesn’t rely on a dramatic twist or cliffhanger. It takes place at the Please Touch Museum, a field trip the eighth graders write off as childish. But what starts as a boring day turns out to be more meaningful than expected. The students end up writing and producing a play about their teachers, casting the teachers to play each other onstage. The performance lets the staff see themselves through the eyes of their students, and in doing so, highlights just how much they’ve all grown together.

The final moments bring the teachers together, reflecting on how much the students have grown, and how they’ve grown alongside them. It’s a calm, thoughtful ending that ties together the season’s larger themes of growth, connection and community.

“Abbott Elementary” doesn’t need drama to leave an impact. The finale quietly reinforces what the show has always done best: grounding itself in everyday moments. Season 4 proves “Abbott Elementary” doesn’t need to reinvent itself to stay great — it just needs to stay real.

Published on April 22, 2025 at 10:05 pm
Contact Kymani: kkhughes@syr.edu