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I'm laughing SO hard right now that picture paired with the caption really makes it look like the show is 100% about Jack and Durbin falling in love instead of that being a freeze frame from an in-canon crack ship fanfic 💀

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Actual A.P. Bio Season Four Thoughts

(I posted this on reddit first because the A.P. Bio fandom is less dead there, but I may as well throw it out to tumblr too, why not?)

As you know if you're reading this, there was a love-hate response to season four of A.P. Bio. Here's what I think was lacking in this season.

In my opinion seasons two and three are the best, and this is largely because Jack has a clear conflict, which is he's writing and trying to publish a book while also trying to decide if he just wants to stay in Toledo with Lynette. This conflict pushes his character arc forward and is what gave the show direction. In season four, obviously Lynette's actor had to leave, but they also totally abandoned his book for no reason? Like the book he was working on for two seasons? This felt like it threw off his arc a little and made the season feel a bit directionless.

Because even in season one Jack has an overarching goal to take down Miles. In season four he doesn't have anything like that. He doesn't have a book to write or a rival to takedown or any short term goal at all. In seasons two and three he was being forced to making a choice between his book and Lynette, between Harvard and Toledo, and it felt like it symbolized his whole character arc and the conflict was so clear and laid out a good path for the story.

But all of that is gone in season four without a new overarching goal, plan, or conflict to replace it.

Not to mention Shayla was inserted too quickly into the story in order to replace Lynette. Jack isn't even given time to get over Lynette, even less so be given even close to the time to start liking Shayla. Given he and Lynette had an entire season together before they were official, shuffling Shayla into Lynette's role mid-season out of nowhere felt pretty cheap. I know the writers were trying to do what they could, but Lynette played a pivotal role in Jack's character arc that no other love interest could simply fill, and I don't even want to begin to analyze it too deeply or this post will be an ungodly length.

I will say, even though season four did disappoint me in that way, I did like it on an episodic level. We had some great moments such as the A.P. kids starting a cult, Jack having a tantrum and screaming into a pillow, Jack's father appearing and of course the scene where Jack gets attacks by roughhouses with his step brother, Jack and Marcus finally bonding a bit over a boardgame, and of course Jack delivering a baby and then walking into his classroom covered in blood and blabbering about the miracle of life. Some people don't like the wackier and more chaotic comedy introduced in seasons three and four but I love it.

Also do want to add seasons two and three aren't only my favorites because of Jack having a clear goal, I think those are the seasons that had the best comedy and character chemistry, and also season two and three have most of my favorite episodes, such as Nuns and the Katie Holmes Day one.

Anyway, this post is just to clarify the specific reason why season four didn't quite land for me, without spreading hate for it, and of course I really wish we got a season five. I know it's not likely given the fact that it's been some time since the show ended, rights would have to be sorted, and they'd have to start balancing Glenn Howerton's schedule again despite him acting long term in Sunny, but if this new Netflix deal could end in just one more season to wrap up character arcs, that would be like, really really great, and I do feel like most the cast would be down for it saying a lot of them are still passionate about the show.