Review: Abbott Elementary, "Teacher Conference" | Season 2, Episode 16
A conference weekend and a lot of booze lead to a turning point
In the comment section for last week’s Abbott Elementary episode, “Fire,” our fearless leader Myles McNutt pointed out how the season’s original episode order would have been “Fire,” followed by “Valentine’s Day,” and then this week’s “Teacher Conference.” (Instead, it was “Valentine’s Day,” “Fire,” and then “Teacher Conference.”) That realization made some things about this episode track even more, like the mention of the “Lego Valentine’s Debacle” and the general momentum that would have come with going straight from “Valentine’s Day” to “Teacher Conference.” Plus, “Valentine’s Day” made some great strides in terms of the theoretical and logistical components of the “will-they-won’t-they” situation, while “Teacher Conference” managed to take a more active approach after that set-up.
“Fire” still worked as a buffer episode between these two, though, as it served as a reminder of how Janine and Gregory can just bury their heads in the sand about their feelings for each o…