*“Abbott Elementary” co-stars Sheryl Lee Ralph and Janelle James have always been almost taking all the awards for the “Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series” categories between themselves in each award season. The co-stars are both great at what they are doing, and it can be difficult deciding who is better than the other.
However, Ralph has bagged most awards for her portrayal of earnest and determined Barbara Howard. The most recent episode of Abbott Elementary, “The Fundraiser,” has the two throwing down over chocolate bars. It is uncommon to have them share an episode plot.
Sheryl Lee Ralph and Janelle James are undoubtedly the show’s comedic force, and there are several reasons for that. Barbara (Ralph) is on the lookout for any odd activity in the school while Ava (James) makes it her business to create such odd acts. Barbara has always never hidden the fact that she disrespects Principal Coleman and never recognizes her authority. However, the latest episode shows something hitherto unobserved in their relationship.
To raise enough money to take them all on a big science field trip, the Abbott students — with Barbara’s help — are doing a fundraiser. It is a tough fundraiser — they sell $1 candy bars in the street. Things are not working as envisioned, even under the caring guidance of Barbara Howard.
“Do you have a minute to spare?” they ask passers-by, then go ahead to bore them down to sleep before a sale is realized. Finally, the students lose hope of ever going on the trip after they fail to sell more than a couple thousand dollars worth of chocolate.
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But then Ava comes to the rescue. She steps in with a quick fix. Thanks to her entrepreneurial skills (as demonstrated on her Instagram Live vintage sales), Ava has what it takes to train others how they can sell candy bars to raise money for the trip to the science museum.
Barbara, who usually distrusts Ava, is reluctant to buy into the idea. When she gets the opportunity to train the kids how to go about selling candies, Ava also teaches them some questionable business practices. This validated Barbara’s fears had had when Ava came forward to lead this operation.
Ava’s business rules are indeed weird. The first rule of business: Ask how many candy bars the buyer will be purchasing, not if they want to purchase. They somehow have to buy because they have to. The second rule: Don’t give any change. The third rule is: Overcharge.
Consequently, kids start selling $2 bars instead of $1. If that is not bad enough, they pocket the difference for themselves. The ground is thus prepared for an Ava vs. Barbara showdown.
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