ABC Pays Off Gregory’s Oldest Abbott Elementary Promise Right On Time

Published Nov 5, 2026, 9:15 AM EST

Cathal Gunning has been writing about movies, television, culture, and politics online and in print since 2017. He worked as a Senior Editor in Adbusters Media Foundation from 2018-2019 and wrote for WhatCulture in early 2020. He has been a Senior Features Writer for ScreenRant since 2020.

While it might have been over five years since Abbott Elementary first introduced Gregory and Jacob to each other, the ABC sitcom still paid off the pair’s relationship promise at the perfect time in season 6, episode 4, “Halloween Party.” Abbott Elementary’s entire cast of characters are iconic, even if the inimitable custodian Mr. Johnson remains the sitcom’s standout for this writer’s money.

Even if Mr. Johnson’s best Abbott Elementary moments are highlights of the iconic workplace sitcom, the show works as a whole because its cast has such strong chemistry with each other. Of course, Janine and Gregory’s Abbott Elementary love story provides a core for the narrative evolution of the show, but like Jim and Pam in The Office or Amy and Jake in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, the pair's romance is only part of the larger appeal of the ensemble series.

The complicated, ever-changing relationship between Janine and Principal Ava, or the heroine’s nuanced relationship with her professional mentor and surrogate mother Barb, are just as important to Quinta Brunson’s cheery schoolteacher as her romance with Gregory. Similarly, Gregory’s own relationships with his co-workers have led him to grow and change over the years, too. In season 6, episode 4, “Halloween Party,” the delayed payoff to one Abbott Elementary gag proved just how much the character has transformed.

Gregory & Jacob's Halloween Costume Pays Off Their Original Meeting Promise

ABC Press

Ever since Janine and Gregory got together at the end of season 3, Abbott Elementary’s iconic couple have pulled out all the stops when it comes to their couple’s costumes for Halloween. Whether they went as Jurassic Park’s Mr. DNA and a DNA strand in season 4, episode 4, “Costume Contest,” or Sinners director Ryan Coogler and an IMAX screen in season 5, episode 5, “Camping,” the duo always had a plan that, at the very least, seemed to make sense to them.

Thus, it was a shock when “Halloween Party” saw Gregory dress as Hey Arnold’s supporting star Gerald Johanssen, while Janine dressed as Rugrats supporting character Susie Carmichael. Of course, Abbott Elementary season 6’s Halloween costumes soon made sense when Jacob explained to the show’s in-universe camera crew that he asked Gregory to do a couple’s Halloween costume with him the first day they met.

Assuming he would only be working as a substitute teacher at the eponymous school for a few weeks or months while he waited for a principal role to open up elsewhere, Gregory blithely replied that he would gladly be the Gerald to Jacob’s Arnold, ‘in five years.’ Five years later, “Halloween Party” paid off this setup as, while he might have rolled his eyes about it, Gregory not only went through with the costume, but even admitted that he liked the fit.

Why Gregory & Jacob Is Abbott Elementary's Most Overlooked Duo

ABC

This isn't the first time that a sitcom has set up a punchline a long time in advance, as evidenced by The Simpsons paying off a gag about Moe over a year after another unrelated episode set up the joke. However, the costume joke does draw some welcome attention to Abbott Elementary’s most overlooked pairing, Jacob and Gregory. As far back as season 1, episode 5, “Student Transfer,” Jacob has always been eager to ingratiate himself with his co-worker.

However, in typical Abbott Elementary fashion, the acclaimed sitcom isn’t content to keep this dynamic static over the years lest it run the risk of feeling tired. By season 2, episode 11, “Read-A-Thon,” Jacob and Gregory were already on more equal terms when the duo ran a podcast club together with the school’s older students.

By season 2, episode 14, “Valentine’s Day,” Jacob had gotten so close with Gregory that he was among the first to notice his crush on Janine. In season 3, episode 11, “Double Date,” the pair’s original dynamic was flipped completely as Abbott Elementary’s Gregory was the one to embarrass Jacob with his ridiculous spying on Janine during the titular double date.

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  Quinta Brunson

  Janine Teagues

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  Tyler James Williams

  Gregory Eddie