However, this doesn’t mean the ABC sitcom is averse to introducing new characters from time to time. Mike O’Malley shone in season 3 as Melissa’s on-again, off-again love interest, Captain Robinson, while Josh Segarra earned a lot of laughs as the unctuous district employee Manny.
Similarly, season 5, episode 2, “Cheating,” introduced a new character into the eponymous school’s faculty. Although “Cheating” was mostly focused on Melissa’s attempts to outsmart her class of savvy middle school kids, Abbott Elementary also found room to bring in the new guidance counselor, Ms. Elimar.
Abbott Elementary Season 5’s New Guidance Counselor Already Split the Staff
Ms. Elimar Couldn’t Contain Jacob and Barbara’s Feud
Image courtesy of Everett Collections
At first, this new guidance counselor seemed like a promising addition to the school. Firm and no-nonsense, but professional and friendly, Ms. Elimar seemed like a rare educational professional who would be able to weather the constant storms of chaos that the Abbott staff consistently produces. Sadly, this was not meant to be.
The trouble started when Jacob passive-aggressively lectured Barbara about running the dishwasher in the staff room more often than necessary, thus wasting water. This only resulted in Barbara wasting more water solely to annoy Jacob, but it was Ms. Elimar who was the real victim of the feud in “Cheating.”
The guidance counselor refused to comment on Jacob and Barbara’s behavior beyond some well-meaning platitudes like “Shared spaces are a challenge” and “Everyone should stand up for themselves.” Of course, both Barbara and Jacob read these anodyne passing comments as support for their side, and this led them to escalate their battle.
In fact, by trying not to intervene, Ms. Elimar accidentally gave the two more fuel for their fight. While Abbott Elementary season 5 episode 1 focused on the staff working together during an unconventional team-building exercise, “Cheating” saw them pitted against each other and determined to drag this placid new faculty member into the mess.
Abbott Elementary Season 5’s Guidance Counselor Will Become The School’s Agony Aunt
Her Alliance With Principal Ava Makes Further Involvement With Teachers More Likely
Ava smiles sexily at a man on Abbott ElementaryABC via MovieStillsDB
Thanks to the events of “Cheating,” I can say with some certainty that Ms. Elimar will soon become Abbott’s unofficial agony aunt. As a result, I doubt she will remain in the school until the end of season 5, and she may even end up leaving sooner than that. The evidence is all laid out in “Cheating.”
The guidance counselor’s eventual exit is set up as early as her first line of dialogue, when she mentions that she currently works in 19 other schools as well as Abbott. Clearly, she is already overstretched, and the added stress of working with Abbott’s staff will not help.
While Janine and Gregory’s big season 5 conflict is likely to happen outside of school, Ms. Elimar is likely to be dragged into every conflict between the teachers since Jacob and Barbara decided she was a perfect impartial intermediary. The guidance counselor seemingly improved things by for herself speaking to Ava, but this alliance could make matters worse.
Ms. Elimas confided in Ava, and Ava was flattered by her compliments. However, because Ava doesn’t want to hear the teachers talk about their problems, but does want an inside line on any intra-staff gossip, she will almost certainly make Ms. Elimar her perfect in for the staff room tea.
This is likely to cause the guidance counselor even more stress, as she will be both an informant for Ava and an unofficial conflict negotiator for the teachers. It remains to be seen whether Elimar will grasp how corrupt and amoral Ava can be but, for now, this alliance is unlikely to end well for her.
Abbott Elementary’s New Character Won’t Last Beyond Season 5
The Guidance Counselor Won’t Be Able To Handle The School’s Chaotic Staff
Custom image by Milica Djordjevic
Although Abbott Elementary season 5’s live episode proves that the sitcom is far from predictable, I’m still fairly certain I know how Ms. Elimar’s storyline will pan out over the next twenty or so episodes. As the guidance counselor becomes more enmeshed with the school’s staff, she is likely to get tired of their petty interpersonal drama.
Meanwhile, the staff are likely to make matters worse by treating her like an outsider. Already, Jacob and Barbara couldn’t work out why the guidance counselor was avoiding them, since they had resolved their conflict without her knowledge and were back to being best buddies. Similarly, Mr. Johnson called Ms. Elimar an “Odd duck.”
This was because she attempted to wash a mug in the staff room dishwasher while he was busy using the appliance to bake salmon in it. This tells me that Ms. Elimar’s arc will repeat this week’s storyline in macro, with the staff driving her up the wall, but Abbott Elementary’s heroes then uniting to agree that she’s the weird one.
Enjoy ScreenRant’s primetime coverage? Click below to sign up for our weekly Network TV newsletter (make sure to check “Network TV” in your preferences) and get the inside scoop from actors and showrunners on your favorite series.
0 Comments