This year has seen a fair number of comedies ending their respective TV runs, as HBO's Insecure already said farewell with its surprising conclusion, with black-ish and Atlanta preparing to end this year as well. Fans have known for a while now that the ABC comedy is coming to an end, and even though viewers will continue to get new episodes until the finale's airing, Anthony Anderson wanted the show’s devoted fanbase to know the Johnson family is thinking about them.
The black-ish star took to Instagram to get viewers to prepare for the comedy’s impending finale. Of course, saying goodbye to the Johnsons will be hard to do, but Anderson wants everyone to be celebrating the final episodes, rather than reveling in sadness that they're almost gone. In keeping with the ish universe's positive mindset, Anthony Anderson put up an on-brand message to the show’s dedicated viewers.
It was the perfect way to keep the comedy’s branding alive even as the series winds down to its finale. Anthony Anderson wanted fans to know he feels the way they do. Playing one of television’s favorite dads for eight seasons is a hard thing to let go of, as his message implied. It appeared the TV dad isn’t quite ready to say farewell to his TV family.
The wording of “goodbye-ish” felt final, yet open at the same time. Of course, Season 8 will be the final time viewers see the Johnson family in their current capacity. On the other hand, that doesn’t mean the TV family won’t continue to live on in some form, as the spinoff grown-ish was renewed for a fifth season. Audiences will continue following the life of Yara Shahidi’s Zoey with black-ish alum Marcus Scribner joining the Freeform comedy after the original series ends, and who's to say there won't be more spinoffs in the future?
Despite the sadness associated with black-ish’s ending, Anthony Anderson has moved on to his next big gig quickly, as he boarded the Law and Order revival. After switching from comedy to drama, Anderson still wanted to keep the black-ish train going even there, though, as he’d like to see TV daughter Marsai Martin on the crime drama revival to answer for all the underhanded dealings of Diane Johnson. So, keeping the connection to his TV family is still important to him.
That was a far cry from the show’s beginning, as TV wife Tracee Ellis Ross has hilariously claimed she didn’t like the actor for years after a particularly embarrassing incident hosting the 2005 Vibe Awards. Luckily, the television husband-and-wife duo are on excellent terms now as they prepare to say goodbye to the long-running sitcom.
Fortunately, it will still be a minute before audiences will have to say ado to the Johnson family as black-ish will return on March 22 to start airing its final episodes. The ABC comedy has already cemented itself as one of the best Black sitcoms of the last 20 years. To see what other shows will be ending this year, check out our 2022 television schedule.
