On this week’s Abbott Elementary, Janine and her class take part in an egg drop activity that doesn’t go quite as she hoped. Barbara also faces her own challenge as she struggles with the appearance of a parent.
An Eggciting Venture
The episode opens with Barbara working in the garden when she discovers a bone. She, Melissa, and Jacob run out of there, and Mr. Johnson reveals it was him. Except he’s not sure it’s the same bone he buried. The real culprit was Gregory.
During the teachers’ midterm development meeting, one teacher, Mr. Morton, brings up his plans to do an egg drop with his eighth graders. Janine loves the idea and wants to join in the fun, eventually getting Mr. Morton to agree. When the others bring him eggs, Melissa is annoyed because her kids got wind of it, too, and now she has to do the egg drop. Gregory isn’t sure it’s a good idea, but Janine will not be swayed.
Egg Splat
It’s egg drop time, and Mr. Morton and Melissa’s classes are a success. Janine’s not so much, as she first struggles with the height of the ladder, and then every single egg breaks. Her kids are distraught. Later, she asks Melissa how she did it. Melissa reveals that she cheated by hard-boiling the eggs. Janine is upset that her kids failed, and Gregory tells her that’s part of the scientific method. This somehow causes the conversation to spiral horribly before Gregory finds control again and says that if Janine wants her kids to understand the science behind it, she needs to as well and offers to help.
After school, Janine and Gregory work. Janine is, per usual, optimistic, but Gregory tries to tell her that won’t help. He even does a small test to prove it which further frustrates Janine. She eventually accepts what Gregory is saying and they keep at it.
Not Like the Other Moms
A parent of one of Barbara’s students, Krystal, turns in her child’s homework, sporting a massive clavicle tattoo that reads “Bitch.” Barbara is horrified but doesn’t say anything, instead telling the cameras that her preferred “B” words are Barbara, bible, blessing, and blueberries. The next time she sees Krystal, she asks if she can cover up. Krystal happily obliges only to reveal that her zip-up reads “slut” in large, bright letters. Barbara manages to make up the name of a fake school when a student asks her about it.
Barbara tells Melissa, Ava, and Jacob about Krystal, but they turn out to not be much help. So, Barbara does something herself by offering her a pamphlet for a single mom support group (Krystal is married) and then tells her about a clothes swap. Barbara does not win that battle. She goes further down the rabbit hole when she finds Krystal’s website. Ava doesn’t see the problem so long as Krystal’s daughter, Tamika, is doing well (which she is), and Barbara doesn’t need to understand. So, the next time Krystal arrives, Barbara apologizes for misjudging Krystal, who says it happens and that’s the point, but she promises to dress PG when she picks up Tamika.
Egg Drop Remix
Janine tries again with the egg drop. While her class works, Mr. Morton arrives for an unrelated reason. He tells her another egg drop isn’t happening, and then shades her Velcro shoes. Janine vents to Gregory and plans to teach her kids to approach it with enthusiasm. Gregory tries to gently tell her that sometimes her positivity is toxic positivity and that her kids just won’t understand the science. She knows but is still frustrated. But Janine being Janine, she comes up with a new activity. Instead of an egg drop, the class does an egg lift using a bunch of balloons. Mr. Morton shows up for his helium machine, which is when disaster strikes. The balloons hit a fan, pop, and send the eggs crashing down. This time, Janine salvages the situation.
As the episode ends, Jacob and Gregory are walking out. Mr. Morton offers to help Jacob with his books. He declines and when Mr. Morton is out of earshot, he swears up and down to Gregory that Mr. Morton is the worst. Gregory doesn’t believe it, but Mr. Morton confirms it.
Abbott Elementary airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC. Keep up with our recaps and other coverage on the show here.
