Abbott Elementary Season 3 Episodes 1 and 2 Review: Career Day Part 1 / Career Day Part 2

Abbott Elementary Season 3 Episodes 1 and 2, “Career Day Part 1/Career Day Part 2,” provide a solid two-part season opener filled with laughs and immense heart.

Season 3 of the Quinta Brunson-created, Emmy-winning comedy shows no signs of diminishing in quality, that’s for sure. This episode, written by Brunson, Kate Peterman, and Justin Tan, is a prime example of why the show works so well. It’s filled with compelling, relatable characters and funny one-liners.

Because the Season 3 opener is twice as long as a typical episode, this provides plenty of great moments for the show’s beloved characters to flourish while introducing new personalities. 

If anyone forgot that this show is a mockumentary, the premiere opens with characters directly addressing the camera crew.

Brunson’s comedy knows how to use the mockumentary style to a unique effect, focusing on characters and their relationships with each other and the cameras. 

And, for probably the first time on Abbott Elementary, we see a flashback — a result of they show adjusting the timeline due to the WGA and SAG strikes. The flashbacks make up a good portion of the episode, giving us a backstory for Janine’s [seemingly] sudden career shift. 

This drastic change doesn’t make sense until we meet the enthusiastic new school district workers interested in Janine’s ideas. It makes sense, then, that she would be conflicted and seek advice from people like Jacob and Barbara. 

As always, Brunson and her co-writers stay true to the characters we’ve come to know so well. For example, we understand why receiving positive reinforcement and praise is difficult for Janine, who is often criticized for her enthusiasm.

Watching Janine attempt to curse — which she knows doesn’t feel right — is funny but short-lived. The swears are bleeped out, but it would be interesting to see this brought back later in the season, as it’s a new side to the character. 

Ava has changed, too, at least as evidenced in the flashback. It’s amusing to see Barbara, Jacob, and Melissa team up to get the “New Ava” — who is focused on work and has made changes they dislike — back to the “Old Ava” — who’s fun, carefree and less strict.

For Abbott Elementary fans, this shift hardly surprises, especially after Ava brags about the summer she spent at Harvard. Of course, this new persona doesn’t last long, and this is fortunate because Janelle James is at her best when she’s the “old” version of Ava. 

Chris Perfetti also shines as Jacob, both in moments where he’s encouraging Janine to pursue what she wants and when he’s essentially fangirling over Mr. Johnson when he talks to his class about his various jobs. 

Additionally, Lisa Ann Walter is given great lines and emotional moments, especially when her boyfriend hints at proposing, and eventually does so through a grand romantic gesture.

Her earnestness in being opposed to getting married again is apparent, as is her heartbreak when she makes the difficult decision to end things with Gary.

This is also a great example of how the writers stay true to the characters; Melissa is someone who always sticks to her beliefs, as evidenced here. 

Of course, we also get some reliably excellent line deliveries from Sheryl Lee Ralph, whose dated references to things like a Walkman and Napster are amusingly in character.

Even though we spend most of our time with the Abbott staff, we also get to meet new characters who work for the school district — namely, Josh Segarra’s Manny.

Segarra, who was hilarious on The Other Two, plays a similarly jovial, positive character. 

As the delightfully cheerful new employee of the school district whose mother was a teacher, he encourages Janine to apply for the district’s fellowship, and he’s even able to connect with the hard-nosed Barbara, which is practically a miracle. 

While it seems like, at times, Manny is meant to be a new romantic interest for Janine, the series makes it clear that this is not the case — at least, not right now.

It’s possible that Manny could end up being a villain if it turns out he’s too nice to be true. In that instance, that could make things even more complicated between Janine and Gregory.

“Career Day” gives us plenty of moments with the young teachers who clearly have feelings for one another.

Things are more awkward than ever between Gregory and Janine, which is not helped by Janine’s decision to accept the fellowship. 

One particular interaction between the two is uniquely presented as a flashback through the eyes of Ava, who’s watching it from a hidden camera recording. By this point, the “Old Ava” is back, and watching her watch Janine and Gregory deal with their complicated feelings is a joy.

Stray Observations:

• Janine’s comment about a $2 pay raise being like a “million dollars” for her is funny but also sad, considering how low the pay would be for a teacher like her. 
• One of the funniest moments is when Jacob, who’s gunning for the fellowship, asks Manny if it’s “about diversity” and mentions that he’s “queer.” 
• Ava’s jab at Gregory flexing while trying to bribe her — when she calls him “Jeremy Allen Black” — hilariously calls back to the star of The Bear.
• It’s a delight to see how Janine tailored the Career Day visitors to each teacher’s preferences, such as a cosmetologist for Barbara and a botanist for Gregory. And, by this point, we know the characters as well as Janine does, so these choices make sense. 
• Having Philadelphia Eagles’ Jalen Hurts cameo as himself is so fun, especially when we see how excited it makes the students and teachers (most notably, Melissa).

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Abbott Elementary airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on ABC.

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