School Spirits (TV Series 2023– ) Poster

(2023– )

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9/10
Three episodes in, I love it
katiekat-8082110 March 2023
I really expected this to be a teen angst show that was a distraction, but by the end of the first episode I was invested. Character development is quick and engaging for the main character and her living friends. The other "school spirits" start to follow quickly in other episodes, as well as other living characters.

Someone mentioned in another review about how the dead characters were able to intersect with things in the world, but that's actually explained in the first episode. There aren't many plot holes I've really found, or at least not many I can't overlook so far.

At this point, the show is a great mystery with an interesting twist that in looking forward to watching each week.
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8/10
A real nice surprise!
rjduke-935-42773617 March 2023
So far this has been the freshest and most pleasant surprise among the several new series I decided to give a day in court to this season. It was also the one I heard no buzz or hype about when it first popped up on Paramount+. I gave it a shot because I saw Peyton List was starring in it and was also a producer. I thought she was very impressive in the Cobra Kai series.

I'm hanging in there with a couple of the other freshmen series and hoping they will improve but this one is up and running just fine. I'm only 4 episodes in as I write this but so far each new episode has been as good or better than the one that came before. What more could you ask for from a new show? Keep up the great work!
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9/10
The finale was shocking
lja-9994414 April 2023
Warning: Spoilers
After seeing the trailer time after time, ad after ad, I took the bait and boy am I glad I did! The friendship between Maddie and Simon is what all of us wanted or needed at some time in our lives. And Wally is just the perfect representation of the 80s with his personality.

Can I say I now despise Mr. Martin though?

The producers and casting management couldn't have picked a better group of young people to cast in this series.

To the people in charge of financing season 2, please do it! We all need to see Mr. Martin get what he deserves and those kiddos, both living and dead, need to be redeemed.
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10/10
Bingeworthy!
This show is about ghosts who haunt a high school, and all of the ghosts are from different eras, so you have a 50s ghost, a 70s ghost, a 90s ghost etc, and then you have the lead character who has just recently died and is trying to figure out how. All the ghosts have a support group for each other that meets in the high school, and they all take care of each other. I binged all six episodes (so far) of this yesterday, and I could honestly watch it again today. It's very charming and emotional and cute, but also has lots of suspense and a murder mystery going on that will keep you guessing. All of the actors are so lovely in their roles, I've been moved to tears several times in six episodes, and I don't cry easy. Great for all ages, and I hope it gets a second season!
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10/10
Lovely, fingers crossed for season two
foxtrotmarie3 April 2023
First something I noticed in a pervious review. The ghosts can interact with things in the living world but the thing in the living world isn't affected. They explained it in the very beginning so think of it as the ghost makes a ghost copy of the item. Hence why they can steal donuts from the teachers lounge but no living person notices. The living world donuts were not affected by the ghost but there is a 'copy' of the donuts now in the ghost world. Now if you think this concept is dumb or not is completely on you to decide. Likewise they explained slightly why Maddie can speak to one living person. Overall the show is really good, they did a great job I think of making it seem like a number of people could have been the 'bad guy.' The overall idea I suppose has been seen before but I can't recall another time seeing this general plot idea that I enjoyed as much as this show. Super hoping they green light season two.
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9/10
So far so good
sagemorton28 March 2023
As someone else mentioned, there are moments where you stop and go, "wait...why is no one living seeing this inanimate object moving before their eyes with noone moving it?".

But, it's a show about teen ghosts in a high school. I am just sitting back and enjoying the emotional rollercoaster ride.

This show is sweet, funny, cringe, sad and intriguing.

And the acting is actually way better than I anticipated. Big plus.

It is delivering exactly what it claims to on a high level. I'm hooked.

I just finished episode 3 and am already bummed that I won't be able to binge the whole season in a week.
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10/10
So far so good...then amazing. Edited review.
cscott23319 March 2023
I'm enjoying several aspects of this show. I'm just so confused on several things. Okay, they're dead and we know that. They can't be seen or heard. They eat and sleep all of which I understand. But when they steal donuts from the lounge, ummm no one sees the box floating down the hallway?? When they open doors to a rooms full of students no one sees the door open on its own?? When they drive a golf cart around the school no one thinks, holy crap how is that cart driving itself?? I know I'm writing this review after only 3 episodes so maybe these will be answered? I'll just have to wait and see. Now on the other hand I'm liking the characters I've always loved a good whodunnit and of course will stick with it to get my answers.

I swear I got the answers the episode after the first part of thisreview haha! The more I've seen the more I've enjoyed it. Got to the end and I wasn't disappointed! I knew this one would have a a few suspects throughout and off course they're all compelling and the story doesn't drag as you move through the storylines. Ended with a bang, glad I was here for it! Can't wait for second season! I'll for sure be tuning in.
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7/10
Worth watching
ceojonathanmontgomery31 July 2023
Warning: Spoilers
Hello Fellow Humans,

This show is about a girl who is murdered in a high school. She finds out their are many ghosts living in the high school. What makes no sense is they can grab things from reality and then use them but it makes a copy of the item apparently. Yet they can't go past a certain point. Why is their a boundary at all? Does this mean your stuck based on a set amount of space or based on the location of the space or based on the land the spot takes up. So if you died at a national park you can run around the entire park? Or if you die in a tiny house your are forever in that house? Because seriously why and that really sucks.

However if they didn't have this space restriction for whatever reason. Being dead seems awesome. You can take anything and go anywhere without consequences. I would totally go around the world eating amazing food all the time. Also don't understand if they can snag anything why do they only watch the same videos over and over. Snag a laptop and projector and speakers and setup a streaming service to watch anything out in the Internet. If course without the restrictions I would go to theaters all the time to watch movies all the time and stream everything on a giant screen. Seems pretty fun being a ghost, much better than the life I currently have. Since I am permanently disabled and do nothing but sit around and watch TV. If only this was known because if it was known I would become a ghost because then I finally be pain free and not stuck in this broken body.

It's a good series just with odd restrictions.
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10/10
Omg I didn't expect to love this
ebonibarnett14 April 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I honestly wasn't expecting that twist at the end of the season 1 finale and I hope this does get a second season so I can know what will Maddie do or even how she'll get justice after what she has been through with Mr Martin, I dislike him for what he did to Maddie but I need more answers after that cliffhanger at the end of episode 8 . Give this show a chance to capture your attention and then be hooked on it , addicted to it while falling in love with the characters because it did that to me and I was so amazed by this show , hopefully Paramount Plus and Awesomeness Tv will give them a bigger budget once this show gets renewed and I cannot live with the fact that there are some unwanted questions and answers about this , I kinda wished that there will be 10 episodes if it gets renewed, I love everything that there is about this show, I hope everyone gives it a chance.
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7/10
Intriguing plot
Rdemeran14 September 2023
The plot is incredibly intriguing. It alone keeps you engrossed in the story. Good thing, too, because the actors are as terrible at line delivery as the people hired to dub dialogue from foreign movies. My wife had this on while I was working so I only listened to the first episode. I was into the story of the girl trying to figure out her own death, but I honestly thought this was one of the myriad foreign language shows that are popping up all over streaming services. I asked why she didn't just turn on the subtitles like normal and she told me it was an English show. Then I looked up and recognized the girl from Cobra Kai.
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9/10
cast is amazing
ellaronci21 April 2023
No real complaints, just gave it a 9 because it is really short. SO in love with this cast, they all seem great, did very well in these roles and had great chemistry. All were perfect choices. This show is 100% worth a watch if you have been thinking about it. Loved it right from the beginning. It has its funny moments, but also some serious topics, I really like the concept in general too. Peyton List is amazing, I need to see her in more!! Will definitely be watching again in a few months! Overall a really really good show to binge! Really hoping for a season two!! Hopefully a few episodes longer??
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6/10
GHOUL DAYS
stusviews20 May 2023
Most high schools have debate societies, drama clubs, chess clubs. Split River High School, however, has what can only be described as a "ghost club", a kind of support group for teens who have met their demises on school grounds (both recently and, in some cases, not so recently). Into this odd little group steps Maddie, a troubled kid who is missing- and-presumed-dead (her body hasn't been discovered yet), and is determined to find out what happened to her. With the help of a couple of pals who are still among the living, she uncovers clues that lead to more questions than answers. Was it her cheating boyfriend? The creepy, overly-attentive English teacher? Or someone we haven't even met yet? (I've seen three episodes so far.) Yet another take on the old teen angst dram-com, it will probably be watchable only so long as its most diehard fans remain committed to finding out whodunit. The inclusive casting and LGBTQ vibe help, the frequent flashbacks offer insight into what MIGHT have gone down, and the Y/A target audience--and their parents--might get a kick out of watching it together. Not great, but compelling enough, and certainly worth checking out.
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1/10
Ending was not satisfying at all
ferdos-595391 January 2024
Warning: Spoilers
This show was good until the ending. It's one of those scenarios where they just made up some type of ghostly magic that for all we know didn't exist, and use that to explain her death in a way that sets it up for a Season 2.

That style of writing is very lazy in my opinion, and I feel like I wasted my time watching this show, just for them to make up some ghost magic in the last 15 minutes to explain what happened.

I think if they are going to use a room that the living world could mysteriously see people in as well as using possession in the explanation of Maddie's death, then they should've have shown some type of foreshadowing in the film or something to indicate that those are possible before the last 15 minutes.
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8/10
Peyton List, is surprisingly likable.
sbertk20 July 2023
I'll start by saying I'm not much of a connoisseur of teenage drama shows. I started watching on a boredom whim, and binged the entire show in less than two days! The story line, is surprisingly complex. The character development is slow, methodical and interesting. I was most surprised by Peyton List in this. I squirmed at her character in Kobra Kai, however clearly now that be determined it was a bad script, and nothing to do with her acting. She is likeable, relatable and a generally lovely person in this. Which makes the plot twists all the more compelling. She makes for a fantastic leading lady. The character Simon, to me is both the most opaque. I can understand his motives, yet he is a total mystery of the best kind. I know nothing of his back story. But I find myself wondering about his home life, what atmosphere would allow him to thrive. Great show, I will go 8/10 as I like it.
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8/10
Loved it, and can't wait for a season 2
ItsOn199513 April 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I went into this show with none, to very little expectations, but I was very much pleased. It does have it's high school drama, but at the end of the day, the show definitely makes you want to come back for more. Be warned!! It does end in a cliffhanger, and throughout the entire show you keep wondering what is going on, who did what, and then you get to the last episode, and you start to piece it altogether. Definitely hope that there is a season 2.

If you like shows that keep you on your toes, and you like to wonder who done it? Then this show is for you! I really do hope there is a second season.
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8/10
4 episodes in and YOU should be watching it!
tgcme19 March 2023
I found this last night and hardcore binged all 4 episodes. This show is crazy good.

Supernatural happenings- check Nuanced characters- check tongue-in-cheek humor - double check perfect balance of light and dark subject matter- yup Good use of effects- yes but I would like to see an expansion. The show's playing it cheap when it comes to needing any effects at all.

Suspense and a good whodunnit- Absolutely Lack of typical teen drama melodramatics- surprisingly

It's fresh. It's sweet. It's funny. It's dark.

My only real complaint is that absolutely ZERO of these "teens" look like they have any business near a high school. Yes, they are good actors except when it comes to acting like they're still teenagers. Or even in their twenties. I mean how old are these actors?!

But I just pretend it's set in college. And it makes more sense.

Actually, a lot of this could have been worked around a community college setting and it would have been as good.
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7/10
School Spirits.
danielleshaffi24 January 2024
I actually liked this one and I binged all 8 episodes in one day. It definitely kept me wondering what happened to her but it felt like it was missing something. It didn't give me that feeling were I wouldn't rest if I did not find out what happened at the end. I didn't like how they portrayed some of the characters to be guilty when it had already showed parts that was evidence to them being innocent. Yes in some ways they was guilty of something but it felt like it was pushed too hard in the direction of the murder. I did rather like the story line of the mother though. I was buying whatever they was trying to sell me with that one and it came as a shock as well.

Some of the acting did irraite me a little bit like how Kristian Ventura (Simon) was always one not. As someone who has seen a lot of loss people go through different emotions. He just stayed angry the entire show.. but I suppose he is just a teenager who doesn't know what to do with his pain.

All in all I can't wait for season 2 and for the story to continue on.
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8/10
pretty enjoyable so far
markband10 March 2023
This has been an interesting show. I enjoy the school setting and the afterlife aspect. There are plenty of questions i have. Like why do the kids have to stay at the school? Is there a heaven or god? And i hope we will get answers for them. The show reminds me a lot of the video game life is strange. While it's not exactly the same they both have similarities. They are both set in school. They both involve a missing girl. And both involve their best friends trying to find out what happened. And they both have supernatural elements. The actors seem to be doing a good job. I'm looking forward to seeing where this will go.
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7/10
Jungian comic book as a series
aarpcats16 December 2023
High school is indeed hell on earth. Most of us only have to spent four years there. Imagine the horror of the four years becoming eternity!

On the surface, this series is one more supernatural teen drama churned out by Netflix for the TikTok generation. The impossibly attractive cast of twenty to thirty year olds don't look like teenagers, the script is redundant and predictable, and every character is a trope that has wandered in from another supernatural teen drama.

What sets this series apart is the writing. The writers stubbornly resist the urge to have any character be all good or all bad. They rely instead on the Jungian idea that characters (and people) are motivated by "shadows."

The shadow is the part of personality that is repressed by our conscious selves. We hide it from ourselves, but the people around us see it come out in our self defeating actions.

In this case, our heroine, Maddie, has a boyfriend who loves her, a bright future at Northwestern, and two ride or die friends who adore her. However, in the dark basement of her high school, Maddie loses everything,

The mystery here is an actual mystery. The characters are likable and interesting. The story is sadly familiar to everyone who has lived with an alcoholic, and the ending is intriguing.

Watch it. You'll like it.
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10/10
High School IS Purgatory
ccalletta15 March 2023
Nancy Drew Meets Stephen King

I love everything about this show, everything. It is funny in a quietly ironic sort of way.... but it grabbed me. A whodunit where the victim is also a detective...why didn't we think of that before... I can't wait to see where the narrative is going. I can also see plot trajectories for a good many future seasons.

Will Simon also die and be with Maddie in the afterlife? Will the other deceased students try to communicate with the living once they realize that Maddie can talk to Simon? Will Simon and Maddie get together as a disembodied/embodied team? Will they solve other crimes once Maddie's is resolved? I love the two of them together. And WHY can Maddie speak to Simon? Are they 'twin souls'? What does the future hold for them?
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7/10
A bit redundant, but great overall.
martinkauger31 March 2024
Warning: Spoilers
Great story, well performed. I really liked the storyline, the acting was great. The individual characters' back stories were well played. The only issue (in my opinion) was that it was a bit repetitive in the way that it moved from one suspect to the next. Each one suddenly beginning to act suspiciously, just as they were figuring out that the previous wasn't guilty (or just before). Aside from that, it was definitely worth watching. Personally, I liked the twist at the end of the season. Left just enough of a loose end to keep me wondering where it will go from there. I look forward to season 2.
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1/10
Ruined by Season Finale
Philosopanther29 May 2023
Warning: Spoilers
I'm afraid I am going to spoil the twist at the end, because that twist renders the show unwatchable in my opinion.

First, I loved this show up until the last 30 minutes of the finale. There was intrigue and plot twists, and everyone seemed to be working toward solving Maddie's murder. The acting was excellent and the plot held my attention. Even the minor characters were well written and well-acted.

Then, about half an hour before the season ended, it became clear that there was a plot twist coming which was so out of left field and illogical that it would make the season something of a train wreck. It finally came about 15 minutes before the end of the episode when it was revealed that Maddie wasn't actually dead, but that her spirit had been displaced from her body by the oft-mentioned Janet.

The problem with this is that it renders the entire season nonsensical and irrelevant. The entire season investigated the physical evidence of the murder. The blood spatter, the murder weapon, even Maddie's destroyed cell phone. Where did all of that evidence come from if there was no murder?

I was emotionally invested in finding out who had murdered Maddie and what their motivation may have been. This twist took me completely out of the world of the show.
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9/10
MUST WATCH!!!
radrobo14 December 2023
Warning: Spoilers
At first I thought this would be a teenager ghost good time show...So happy to say I was so fooled in almost each episode when trying to guess who did what. Loved the seamless transition between before death and after with unique characters shown throughout the series. Just when you think you know someone, just wait. Really felt like each episode had Twists, Turns and head scratching moments in each episode. Had to watch the last episode twice as it blew me away. Being able to binge watch such a quality show makes me so excited for another season.

Need season 2 please and hopefully soon as I want to keep going.
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9/10
I totally binge watched it!
carolhendry-2512623 April 2023
Luckily I came across this show when all of the episodes were out because I appreciated the ability to go through all of the episodes in a couple of days. I found the premise interesting, the characters fun and well-acted and the dialogue tight. I particularly enjoyed watching the characters and their relationships develop. The show does have some different variations on the usual ghost "rules" (for example, the ghosts can't walk through walls and the ghosts can interact with physical objects, but only in their own world). The final episode was fun with a twist that I definitely did not expect. I'm looking forward to season 2!
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10/10
need a season 2
thekitts-8240029 May 2023
Turned it on and binged watched until 3am, saving the last episode for the next day.

The characters were well developed, with plot twists I could not have predicted. Nothing really graphic which suits me well since I don't like gore.

Absolutely a great show, but without a season 2 it will be another of those shows with a very dissatisfying ending. Those endings are the kind that make me want to wait until a show has been out for a few years so I don't get disappointed. But I decided to take a chance and was very pleased to have done so, but then I watch the last show and I was like "HUH?" Need a season 2, Please!
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