The biggest comedy of CBS’s 2023-2024 season, Ghosts wrapped its third season. The series opened up a whole host of opportunities, answers… and a lot more questions about the ghosts, the estate, and all who pass through it. If the series continues with its whip sharp writing, we’re in for a long life cycle for this comedy. While we anticipate season four, let’s break down the many adventures of all the characters this season!
Sam and Jay
It’s only right to start off this ensemble comedy talking about the character responsible for us seeing all of the ghosts, Sam. Not only is she the beating heart of the show, but she’s played by the talented and charming Rose McIver, alongside the equally delightful Utkarsh Ambudkar as Jay. The couple had plenty of uproariously funny conflicts this season, both personal and professional.
On the personal front, Jay’s sister, Bela (Punam Patel) and her boyfriend, Eric (Andrew Leeds) returned for a visit, this time with an attempt by Eric to bamboozle everyone into thinking his NDE (near-death experience) over Christmas caused him to see ghosts as well. Nothing gets past Sam, even with the couple showing up when Eric believed she wouldn’t be around. This was a perfect reminder that this is Sam’s world and nothing phony is going to threaten that.
On the business front, Halloween brought a treat for the ghosts and a tricky situation for Sam and Jay in the form of death. With another dead body on the property, the main investor for the B&B pulled out, leaving Sam & Jay scrambling for $10k to pay the construction crew building their estate’s restaurant for B&B guests. They turned to Isaac’s (Brandon Scott Jones) book advance. Hilarity ensued. While funny, this whole subplot of a ghost being given money is a little too wacky to take seriously—not even mentioning this economy. The show pokes fun at itself, but undermining Sam’s logic does not elevate the comedy.
Now one of the best moments of the season goes to the ghosts Face Timing Sam and them realizing that she can’t see them through aids such as technological devices. It’s always a thrill when the show gives us details on the human to ghost rules, specifically when it comes to Sam, the only one who can regularly see and hear them. We’re given these rules on an as needed basis, which is understandable. Still, we all want more of the rules laid out so that we can explore those lines more. Looking forward to plenty more worldbuilding rules to unfold as future seasons air.
Isaac and Nigel
Throughout the season, Isaac and Nigel (John Hartman) planned their wedding, had two separate bachelor parties during which they were introduced to the concept of lap dances—oh, and they didn’t end up getting married in the end. Audiences were in for a shock when Isaac called off the wedding at the altar, after realizing that he didn’t want to settle. Good for Isaac for coming into this truth sooner rather than later although the timing was still wildly unfortunate. Nigel took the situation gracefully. But let’s be real, Isaac. You cannot leave the estate so who is your best option aside from Nigel?
Alberta
Most of the quirky romances this season completely fell apart. Enter Alberta (Danielle Pinnock) who hit it off with a poltergeist, Saul Henry (Lamorne Morris), who was attached to a newly arrived B&B guest, Gene (Geoffrey Owens). Way to go on the fabulous guest stars this season! They sure know how to pick ‘em! Falling in love with Alberta, Saul decided to jerk his soul off of Gene and onto Jay as his host so that he could stay on the estate. Aww, that was so cute! For all of two seconds.
Alarm bells rang loudly since a romance such as this was simply not at all sustainable. After all, Sam was present for essentially every intimate moment between the two since she’s usually with Jay… and definitely always with Jay at night time, asleep in their bed. It doesn’t take long for Alberta to come to her senses, with the nudge of the realization that she may have fallen for a clinger. This was such a savvy way to bring a new ghost onto the premises of the estate. I don’t know what I’m more excited for next, all of the new ways the writers come up with to introduce new ghosts or Alberta’s love life.
Pete
A sour treat came in the form of Pete’s widow, Carol (Caroline Aaron). After dying while eating a donut hole at Sam & Jay’s Halloween party, she became a permanent guest on the property. Pete and Carol had a lot to learn about their boundaries as ghosts living together again, seeing as how Carol cheated on Pete when they were both alive and this estate is Pete’s domain, not hers. Pete’s scheme of pretending that he was dating Alberta and side-piecing Nancy in order to impress Carol wasn’t strong enough considering it is the only conflict that we see between them.
Carol may have become a ghost on the estate but she also becomes a ghost of the show, as she is nonexistent just two episodes after her introduction and doesn’t return until the finale when she announces that she’s going to marry some random ghost, Baxter. After opening the door for exploring the dynamic between a former husband and widow who are now both ghosts, the Carol subplot was completely dropped. Perhaps the show should have chosen the widow or Pete’s power to focus on this season rather than both. My vote goes for Pete’s power.
Pete’s realization that his ghost power is being able to move past the estate’s ghost boundary is hands down the most exciting development of the series to date. They wasted no time tapping into this adventure, from Pete tagging along with Jay to a big box retail store, to Pete using his scouting skills to make his way back to the estate after the ghosts out in the wild were a little too rowdy for his taste. Yes! Putting that character backstory to work, we love to see it! Would Carol have anything to say about her in-laws? When was the last time she communicated with them? Who knows. Instead, we found out while on the vacation that the longer he is away, the more his physical being disappears. Brilliant. With this knowledge, we know that there is plenty of time to explore Pete off the estate, with or without Sam and Jay.
Thor & Flower
When it comes to loyal ghosts, Thor (Devan Chandler Long) comes to mind. It’s not everyday you’ll find a ghost willing to conduct a seance to get you back. That’s exactly what he did for Flower (Sheila Carrasco) who was presumed to have moved on. Flower didn’t actually move on but Sam, Jay, and the ghosts don’t find that out until later. Instead of Flower being completely written out of the show, the writers worked around Carrasco’s maternity schedule. Real life aside, I actually was a bit disappointed in the return of Flower.
The audience was introduced to the idea of the ghosts moving on, which gives us so much to think about. What is keeping each and everyone of these characters here? How, if at all, are they able to get the closure that they need after all of this time? The layers of moving on gives us something to look forward to and anticipate. But the door to this subplot is slammed shut and for who knows how long when we find out that Flower is still on the estate. Was there no other way to have Flower noticeably absent for most of the season?
It also would have also been more interesting to see Thor’s romance life post-Flower, as well as get the audience used to a routine of recurring ghosts getting “sucked off” sooner rather than later. They may have still achieved the latter, even if it was a false start.
Sasappis
Sasappis’s (Román Zaragoza) ghost power storyline was top tier until Pete’s power bulldozed right over it. Sasappis can subtly influence living human beings by going into their dreams. The rules are, he has to gain the person’s trust, repeatedly show up in their dreams, and they have to be susceptible. Great rules. They give a lot for the writers to play with as far as showing Sasappis in people’s dreams in the future and so much more.
Pete had ethical issues with the power. One of the show’s strengths is watching the house deliberate on the ethics of each other’s powers and decisions, as the results often directly or indirectly affect everyone around them in some form or another. Leaning into this open communication is such a breath of fresh air because even when communicating, misunderstandings and disagreements arise. Ultimately, Jay connects the dots in his dreams that Sasappis is pulling the strings, due to Sasappis’s lazy dialogue in the dream. Ha!
Trevor
Not quite an ace of a human being, there’s Trevor (Asher Grodman). He takes a backseat this season, only really coming to the forefront when his brother checks into the Woodstone after discovering a loophole in the rewards system. This story is more about exploring what it means when small businesses are taken advantage of than it is about Trevor. Which is fine. Past seasons have given us enough Trevor, so his lack of screen time this season is not a complaint here.
Hetty
It’s not until the end of the season that we get to learn more about Hetty (Rebecca Wisocky). The story was that an accidental overdose while celebrating her cheating husband’s disappearance brought upon her demise. In truth, as the law closed in on her, Hetty committed suicide in order to secure assets for her son’s future. This was definitely the heaviest episode of the series so far. What’s wonderful about Ghosts is that this comedy doesn’t shy away from the many different journeys that lead to death. It takes time to acknowledge the most difficult moments in our lives while also reminding us that those moments are not the end of the story or our legacy. Bravo to the writers who handled this with such care.
Patience
The season also introduced a new ghost that we won’t officially meet until season four. Sasappis, Thor, Isaac, know who the mysterious Puritan ghost, Patience, is and having been stuck in a hole for a year in addition to occasionally meeting Flower while Flower was stuck in the well gives us so much to look forward to next season. We are left yearning for an unpacking of character dynamics and relationship history then and now, excited to see how this all unfolds. Madness will ensue.
Final Thoughts
With ghosts being able to move on, allowing for a rotating recurring cast, as well as exploring new ways for the living to be able to see and communicate with the ghosts (and vice versa), this show has more than enough potential to run for a very long time, whether or not the seasons are truncated. There are plenty more holidays to be a fly on the wall for. Plenty of characters in Sam and Jay’s life to bring back to them on their estate, whether B&B related or not. Plenty more ghosts to be introduced to via B&B guests, Pete, and more. The series and this season has set the show up remarkably for continued success. What did you think of the third season of Ghosts? What do you hope to see for the future of the series?
