Abbott Elementary fills the whole in my heart that shows like Parks and Recreation left behind. Because it’s a mockumentary and the characters, while flawed, are so dedicated to the world they exist in that you can’t help but to root for them. And it has taken our hearts and ran with it and that’s all thanks to creator Quinta Brunson. She also plays the lead of the series, Janine, who is a young teacher who wants the best for her students despite not knowing what’s best for her in her own life and it delights me to know end that Brunson took home the Emmy for Writing for a Comedy Series at the 2022 Emmy Awards!
Brunson (who didn’t win Best Actress in a Comedy Series and I am mad about it) took to the stage thanking her writing team and also became the second Black woman to win the award (the first being Lena Waithe who won in 2017 with Aziz Ansari for Master of None). Pushing my own feelings on Brunson not winning for acting (Jean Smart took home the Emmy for Best Actress in a Comedy Series for Hacks and it is also deserved), I do think that Brunson’s speech shows everyone how much this meant to her.
The joy of Abbott Elementary
In the second season of the hit series, we’re going to get a longer season which does put it on par with some of my favorite shows (because I do love a mockumentary with a shorter first season) but it also shows the power that the network thinks the series has. And it deserves the recognition it is getting. The thing about Abbott Elementary is that we’re invested in these characters and the school as a whole because Brunson and company has made a team of teachers who love their jobs.
It’s so easy to write a show about a school where all the teachers hate it there. We’ve seen people asking her to touch on school shootings in the series and we’ve seen people push her to push this show into something it’s not but Brunson is sticking her ground and staying true to the vision she had for Abbott Elementary and it makes me so incredibly excited for season 2.
Now hopefully we’ll get Brunson her acting award for the next Emmys along with everyone else in the cast. Because they all deserve the credit for being one of the best shows on television right now.
(image: ABC)
