Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Abbott Elementary season 4, episode 4, “Dad Fight”
AlthoughAbbott Elementaryrarely draws attention to its mockumentary setup, the sitcom did mock this framing device and use it to facilitate a plot point in season 4. Only a few years ago, mockumentary sitcoms were commonplace on network television. After forerunners likeArrested Developmentand30 Rockexperimented with handheld cameras and fourth-wall breaking, the US version ofThe Office,Parks and Recreation, andModern Familymade mockumentary sitcoms some of the most commercially and critically acclaimed comedy shows on television. Recently,Abbott Elementary’s hilarious cast of charactersreignited interest in this dormant sitcom sub-genre.
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By the mid-2010s, a string of high-profile flops likethe muppets.,The Comedians, andZach Stone Is Gonna Be Famoushad dampened audience interest in mockumentary sitcoms. However,Abbott Elementaryreversed this trend when the show debuted to rave reviews and ratings success in 2021. Admittedly,Abbott Elementary’s cute Gregory and Janine romancewas a big factor in its success, but bringing back the nostalgic style familiar from ‘00s comedy shows also helped the workplace sitcom.Abbott Elementaryis now one of the only mockumentary sitcoms left, and this works in part because the show often mocks its own setup.
Darnell Made Fun Of Gregory Addressing The Camera In Abbott Elementary Season 4, Episode 5
Gregory’s Comment Earned Him A Comparison To Deadpool
In season 4, episode 5, “Dad Fight,” Gregory got into an unexpected altercation with a student’s father. The student, Jabari, looked up to Gregory as a father figure and his mother thanked Gregory for providing Jabari with a stable, mature male role model in his life. Jabari’s confrontational father, Darnell, took this as an insult and visited Gregory in school, telling him not to give his son any spare penclls going forward. Gregory muttered that he would need to switch to pens in the future as an aside to the camera, but Darnell didn’t miss the sly comment.
Ingeniously, the fight was caused by Gregory’s in-universe fourth wall breaking.
This prompted a hilariously self-aware jibe asDarnell broke the fourth wall by pointing out that Gregory was whispering to the camera crew and hoping he wouldn’t hear. Darnell sarcastically said Gregory thought he was Marvel’s famously snarky superhero Deadpool, leading to an unexpected escalation in the conflict. WhileAbbott Elementary’s Gregory and Janine romancehas been central to most of the character’s subplots so far in season 4, this episode saw Gregory unexpectedly finding himself facing down a fistfight with a fellow grown man. Ingeniously, the fight was caused by Gregory’s in-universe fourth wall breaking.
Gregory Talking To The Camera Led Darnell To Start A Fight
Gregory denied that he said anything to the camera, resulting in Darnell getting even angrier and swiftly setting up a fight between them after school the next day. Thus, however, indirectly,the presence ofAbbott Elementary’s in-universe camera crew contributed to the episode’s main conflict. This was just the latest of several episodes that incorporated the show’s camera crew into its reality, a subtle but vital distinction that separates the series fromThe OfficeorModern Family. In both of those earlier hits, the camera crew were rarely acknowledged, and they had absurdly liberal access to their subjects.
In contrast,Abbott Elementaryconstantly points out how weird and unnatural it would be for ordinary teachers to constantly be followed by a camera crew. WhenAbbott Elementary’s Jacob got ringwormearlier in season 4, the camera didn’t follow him into a room full of infected students. When season 3 began,Abbott Elementary’s characters explained the release date delays caused by real-life entertainment industry strikes by revealing that the in-universe documentary crew’s cameras and equipment were stolen. In season 3, episode 8, “Panel,” Ava even won an argument with her old sorority sister by noting she had her own personal camera crew.
How Abbott Elementary’s Mockumentary Self-Awareness Can Make It Better
The Office’s Fourth-Wall Breaks Was Infamously Messy
What makes these gags so effective is that they meanAbbott Elementarycan incorporate its camera crew without their presence defining the story. This seems like it would be an easy task for any mockumentary, but it has historically proven difficult throughout the sub-genre. The deservedly infamous “Brian the cameraman” storyline from The Office’s final season was way too dramatic, veering into maudlin melodrama in its attempts to break the fourth wall.
Chris Perfetti
Jacob Hill
In contrast,Abbott Elementaryseason 4’s plotacknowledged the camera crew and how strange their presence is without this point completely taking over the entire episode. “Dad Fight” would most likely have featured Darnell challenging Gregory to a fight even if there was no camera crew present, but his acknowledgment of the show’s mockumentary setup allowed the sitcom to poke fun at itself. Thus, this episode ofAbbott Elementaryhighlighted how the series has been able to utilize the mockumentary setup without turning this element into the show’s defining characteristic.
