Spoilers ahead for the Season 4 finale of Bob Hearts Abishola, called “Uncharted Waters of Mediocrity.”
The Season 4 finale of Bob Hearts Abishola was guaranteed to be a game-changer, as Abishola waited on the news of whether she’d be accepted into Johns Hopkins for medical school, which would mean her and Bob relocating to Baltimore. Bob wasn’t enthusiastic about the idea about leaving his job just when work was going so well… which makes it more than a little complicated that Abishola ultimately got her acceptance email despite believing she’d been rejected. The finale ended on a “To Be Continued” and no further details, but after the show’s huge casting news back in April, I see two clear options for how the cliffhanger can be resolved.
How The Cast Is Changing For Season 5
Bob Hearts Abishola had a pretty massive cast in Season 4, with a total count of 13 actors with series regular status. That will change for Season 5, as Deadline reported back in April that only Billy Gardell and Folake Olowofoyeku would retain series regular roles moving forward. The rest of the cast members were offered recurring roles with a guarantee to appear in five of the fifth season’s 13 episodes.
As part of the change, the studio is waiving exclusivity to enable the former series regulars to accept other TV jobs while also keeping producers and writers apprised of their availability.
Bob Hearts Abishola (which is available streaming via Paramount+ subscription) isn’t the only CBS show to make big changes to secure a renewal for the 2023-2024 TV season, as Blue Bloods also experienced budget cuts for Season 14. The comedy is certain to look quite different in Season 5, and I have a couple of ideas for how it could happen after “Uncharted Waters of Mediocrity.” Let’s look at the first!
Abishola Goes To Johns Hopkins Without Bob
Abishola was overjoyed to be accepted into the prestigious med school, but neither she nor Bob will be happy if they do something to make the other one unhappy, and despite being thrilled for her, he doesn’t want to go to Baltimore. While the upside is that they were being honest with each other, there’s no clear answer as to what they’ll do. Bob insisted that they're “gonna be fine” no matter what happens, and I can see one compromise that could work for both of them and accommodate the show’s need to feature much less of the other stars: a long distance relationship.
Bob could stay behind in Detroit while Abishola goes to Baltimore to attend med school, which could give both characters what they want while also reducing how much the supporting characters are actually needed. Abishola in Baltimore would presumably need a new set of characters, but not ones receiving a series regular paycheck.
Whether or not long distance would work for Bob and Abishola as a couple is another question; I find myself flashing back to Jim and Pam’s relationship on The Office and what happened when they tried long distance after she went to school in another state. If this sitcom tries the same thing with Billy Gardell and Folake Olowofoyeku’s characters, hopefully there’s a way for their relationship to remain strong without costing Abishola her dreams of graduation.
Bob And Abishola Both Go To Baltimore
Bob didn’t want to go to Baltimore at the end of the Season 4 finale, but can we rule out him changing his tune over summer hiatus in light of the rest of the cast being bumped down from series regular status? Taking the lead characters out of their lives in Detroit would be a very simple way of cutting screentime from the other actors, and Bob would presumably still have his business in Detroit to warrant some trips back (or at least video calls) to give the recurring cast members their five episodes.
That said, Bob doesn’t really have anything to do in Baltimore other than be there for Abishola, and she’ll presumably be extremely busy with med school. I’m not sure that I can see the show cutting so many ties in one fell swoop by moving both title characters to Baltimore, but I can’t deny that it would be an effective way to reduce appearances from former series regulars.
My big question at this point is whether or not the Bob Hearts Abishola writers knew that so many stars would be featured less in Season 5 when this episode was written. It’s entirely possible that neither of my scenarios ultimately proves correct.
Whatever happens, fans may be waiting a while to see how Bob and Abishola move forward. The 2023 WGA writers strike could mean that the normal fall TV season won’t get to start on time, and ABC already announced a fall lineup of almost entirely unscripted series, including The Golden Bachelor as the latest Bachelor Nation installment. CBS is also increasing its unscripted offerings for the fall, albeit in a different way; both Survivor and The Amazing Race are making a big change to air 90-minute episodes in their next season.
For now, we can only wait and see what the future holds for Bob Hearts Abishola. Updates may be a ways off, but you can always revisit older episodes streaming via Paramount+ and find some new viewing options on our 2023 TV premiere schedule.
