It’s been an intense couple of weeks for Abbott Elementary, as the last few episodes to air on the 2025 TV schedule have dealt with the firing of Ava and the fallout from it. Now, an exclusive clip from Season 4, Episode 21 – “Rally” – showed us that Janine, Melissa, Barbara and Jacob are headed to the district to help Ava get her job back. Before they do that, though, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Lisa Ann Walter’s characters had to poke fun at Janine’s outfit. However, Quinta Brunson’s teacher had an A+ Dirty Dancing comeback that still has me laughing.
In the clip above, you can see the teachers doing one of the things they do best: roast Janine. She showed up to the school in a very professional suit, and Barbara quipped that her fit looked like something she bought for her “future glam-child.” Then, Melissa focused in on the baby jokes, saying:
You look like you’re about to take me to court for stealing your binky.
Luckily, Janine takes these silly ribs in stride. Right after Barbara and Melissa claimed that she looked like a dapper child, she fired right back with a fantastic Dirty Dancing joke, saying:
I feel the need to kindly remind you to never put Baby in a corner.
Then, as you can see above, she looked right into the camera, tilted her head, and gave some side-eye. Talk about a remarkable mockumentary moment! Get this on the list of Abbott Elementary’s best quotes immediately.
Anyway, the clip also showed me that Janine was ready to face the district folks who are sure to try and shake her up during the hearing to try and save Ava’s job.
To that point, in the next scene of the clip, Janine explained that they did manage to help Ava by getting her a meeting with the district. The teachers have also been preparing for this, too, obviously, as Quinta Brunson’s character explained in the next talking head. While Jacob watched four seasons of Law and Order, she watched Shōgun. So, they’re ready for court and …war.
Well, I, for one, can’t wait to see how Shōgun comes back into the equation. However, after that other A+ Dirty Dancing comeback, what I’m really excited to see is Janine defend Ava. And if they could really make all my dreams come true, Janine would be lifted Dirty Dancing style at some point, maybe by Janelle James’ character if they succeed, but that’s wishful thinking.
So, going back to reality, Melissa and Barbara ultimately got the final word in by saying they didn’t want to ride with Janine and Jacob to the hearing. However, overall, I’m proud of Ms. Teagues for having a funny clapback in the first place because it was both hilarious and uplifting.
Now, I can’t wait to see how Janine and co. plead Ava’s case. I’m also curious to see how Gregory fairs as principal without his teachers there. While I would love to see these four get Ava’s job back, I also can’t help but wonder how Gregory will feel if she does become principal again.
Thankfully, we don’t have to wait long to see Ava’s hearing and hopefully some more Dirty Dancing jokes because Abbott Elementary airs tonight on ABC at 8:30 p.m. ET, or you can stream it the next day with a Hulu subscription.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
