While CBS’s Ghosts is a deservedly popular sitcom, one of the show’s most unfortunate narrative tropes needs to stop before season 4 wraps up. Ghosts is a remake of the British sitcom of the same name and began airing on CBS in 2021. As in the original, the various ghosts of Ghosts are arguably the real stars of the series, constantly getting into scrapes as Sam supervises. However, while this makes the show one of the most likeable on television, it doesn’t save it from repeating a mistake that can undermine sitcoms.
Although Ghosts season 4 will see the series bring Thorfinn, Hetty, and Pete back to screens soon, their fates aren’t the ones that have viewers worrying. The Continental Army officer Isaac, who has generally been a minor villain in the house’s undead milieu, was kidnapped by the creepy Patience during season 3, episode 10, “Isaac’s Wedding.” Shortly after Ghosts season 3’s missing character Flower returned, Isaac and Nigel broke up due to Isaac’s inability to stay faithful. Isaac was then dragged through a wall by Patience, a creepy specter who was obsessed with him. This resulted in an unusual ending, ill-suited to the sitcom format.
Although the breakup in “Isaac’s Wedding” was well handled, Ghosts season 3 didn’t need a cliffhanger ending after the event. Cliffhanger endings are designed to keep viewers coming back, but they’re unnecessary in a series that is usually an episodic sitcom rather than a serialized show. Ghosts does have longer character arcs, like Nigel and Isaac’s relationship, but it isn’t primarily concerned with dramatic events. Ghosts is usually a light-hearted comedy, so sudden dramatic stings can feel like a cheap ploy in this context. Moreover, the success of Ghosts proves these measures are wholly unnecessary.
Unlike a lot of sitcoms, Ghosts has grown progressively more popular since the show began. The pilot earned 5.52 million viewers back in 2021, whereas “Isaac’s Wedding” commanded an audience of 5.95 million. The first episode of Ghosts season 3 fared even better with 7 million viewers. It is clear that the series is popular, so Ghosts doesn’t need cheap cliffhanger endings to keep viewers coming back for more. What makes this frustrating is the fact that the show’s original inspiration, the BBC series, was less invested in this strategy. In its five seasons, BBC’s Ghosts only featured one cliffhanger.
In the penultimate outing of BBC’s original Ghosts, the country house’s adjacent Gatehouse catches fire and burns to the ground. Since the central couple were using the funds from renting the Gatehouse to refurbish the crumbling manor, they are left without a plan for their future. This cliffhanger ending felt a lot like CBS’ Ghosts season 2 finale, which revealed that one of the ghosts was being taken to the afterlife but didn’t show which one. Both endings promised to upend the status quo of the series, forcing viewers to return next season and find out the outcome.
The difference is that BBC’s Ghosts only pulled this trick once after building up four years of audience goodwill. Earlier seasons, like season 3, could have ended with tantalizing open questions like whether the couple fell for a scammer. However, the British version of the series resisted this temptation and wrapped up these storylines before ending the finale. In contrast, Ghosts seemed desperate to keep viewers invested even though the
