Abbott Elementary Is Reviving The TV Mockumentary (By Improving It)

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ABC's Abbott Elementary has brought the popular TV mockumentary back to primetime television and is reviving the genre by improving it. The sitcom follows a group of teachers at a Philadelphia public school who strive to help their students succeed despite a lack of resources and funding. Ava Coleman (Janelle James), the incompetent principal, brings in a film crew whose purpose is to observe underfunded schools. However, her concerns are more aligned with her own best interests at any given time rather than helping the school. Her opposite is Abbott Elementary's young second-grade teacher Janine Teagues (Quinta Brunson), whose determined optimism leads to clashes with senior teachers and, at times, works against her efforts. The collective cast of the show, one of 2021's best TV sitcoms, showcases different aspects of the unique culture and obstacles teachers encounter when working with Abbott Elementary's children.

Starting with the workplace mockumentary, the TV mockumentary was prominent in the mid-2000s and quickly grew in both popularity and audience size. In the age of binging, these shows became a phenomenon in pop culture, particularly with millennials. At the peak of the genre, shows like The Office, Parks and Recreation, Reno 911!, and Arrested Development were all wildly popular. Slightly different takes like Modern Family brought networks critical acclaim. Over time, however, the genre slowly fell out of vogue as its popularity faded. By the mid-2010s, the TV mockumentary was in full decline, as illustrated by ABC's 2015 attempt to create a TV mockumentary of the beloved franchise, The Muppets. But it garnered low ratings, forcing a change in showrunners, and The Muppets was canceled by ABC. After the