Ghost Who's Coming to Dinner
Simon, Nicole, Xavier and Claire head to dinner with Janet/Maddie. Meanwhile, Nicole and Xavier keep trying things they’ve heard to try to draw Janet out. And Mr. Martin is free in someone else’s body.
Spiritual Meeting
After Janet/Maddie tells her mother she would like to have dinner with her friends, the living crew meets up with the spiritual crew to work on a plan. It’s an odd scenario since the spirits can see and hear everything the living people say, but the only one of the livings able to communicate with any of the spirits is Simon through Maddie. Everything is awkward as the spirits tell Maddie what they think, and the livings, especially Xavier, stare intently despite having no way to communicate.
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In the end, they decide Maddie’s friends will go to the dinner and try to make her feel comfortable while trying to persuade her to return to the school, so Maddie can try to get her body back. Meanwhile, Nicole suggests meeting one of the few classmates Janet had who is still living to discuss what happened. Simon, Claire and Xavier shrug her off, but she still goes and learns from talking to him (his name is Eugene) that both Janet and Mr. Martin were both too meticulous for the fire that killed them to be an accident.
Dinner with Janet
Before heading to Maddie’s house, Simon calls a landline, so the spirits can listen in on what happens. After Sandra informs them that Maddie plans to finish her senior year online, the four friends try to persuade Maddie to come back to school with scientific improvements to appeal to Janet’s interests and reminders about educational struggles during pandemic lockdowns. Meanwhile, Xavier keeps trying a salt trick he read about online about how it’s supposed to work against spirits, but nothing happens.
Ed Araquel/Paramount+
In the end, they aren’t getting through to her, so Nicole tries a hail mary. She mentions Eugene to Janet which causes her to get up and leave, saying she needed to reheat her meal. Sandra goes to talk to her and Maddie/Janet says they should give them pie to go, because she’s getting overwhelmed. Simon tries to speak one-on-one with Janet and explain that he wants to help. However, the school janitor starts vacuuming the library and Janet hears it through Simon’s phone. She now doesn’t trust him and destroys his phone.
The friends leave noting there’s no way Janet will return to the school now. Meanwhile, Xavier tells his online friend about his salt trick and Nicole quickly figures out she and Xavier have been using the same online support group and talking to each other.
Spiritual Gathering
While Maddie’s friends are trying to persuade Janet, the others are finding their own bonding. Maddie runs off and sits in the pool area. Wally goes to see her and the two continue growing as a potential relationship if Maddie can’t get her body back. They share intimate moments before and after falling into the pool. Meanwhile, Charlie and Yuri start bonding as well. Yuri leaves the pottery room to help Charlie and Wally research Janet’s possession and where Mr. Martin might have gone. When left alone, Charlie asks Yuri to attend the upcoming reunion for Wally’s graduating class, saying it doesn’t have to be a date, but Yuri asks why can’t it be?
Ed Araquel/Paramount+
And Rhonda and Quinn have a blow-up and reconciliation over Rhonda’s best friend in life. Rhonda used to spend a lot of time in the band room because her best friend, Marjory, loved music. After Rhonda was murdered, Marjory had a minor hit with a song that Rhonda thought blamed her for her own murder. She noted how she never made it through the second verse. In contrast, Quinn, who loved music and band in life, loves the room and looks up to Marjory. Eventually she plays just the final verse of the song for Rhonda which explains that Marjory blamed herself for Rhonda’s murder rather than blaming Rhonda. It’s not a victim-blaming song; it’s a survivor’s guilt song.
Mr. Martin’s Escape
After their tryst in the pool, Maddie and Wally walk into Maddie’s old English classroom where Mr. Anderson has been filling a box with his belongings after losing his job. When Maddie says his name, Mr. Anderson responds with relief she’s alive and comes over hugging her and then Wally before asking who he is. Maddie and Wally realize that Mr. Anderson’s spirit is not in his body, so that’s who Mr. Martin has inhabited.
Ed Araquel/Paramount+
Mr. Anderson arrives at Maddie’s house to tell her mother that he heard she had returned and wanted to give her a novel they had discussed. Sandra takes it and tells him Maddie may be up to seeing him tomorrow. Later, Maddie takes out the trash that includes the gift from Mr. Anderson, a copy of Fahrenheit 451, and Simon’s phone. While disposing of both, a bag is placed over her head and she’s taken away.
Rating
The intrigue heightens with each episode. Janet and Mr. Martin had been trying to get free from the school for decades and now both are out. But are they out for the same reasons? And what happens with Mr. Martin now? Maddie’s friends now have to get two bodies to the school to help free both Maddie and Mr. Anderson. This series keeps getting better and better.
Check out School Spirits streaming exclusively on Paramount Plus.
Article Written By: Jeremy Brown for Stelmach Brown Media 2025
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