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Reviews
Ghosts: I Love Lucy (2021)
One of Captain's best episodes
This is one of the lowest rated episodes, but I think it's actually great.
I'm a sucker for any episode with lots of Captain, and this has one of his funniest plot lines, as he tries to spy on Lucy. His "pillow talk", Cock Soc, miscommunication with Alison and of course "I know Fanny better than any of you" are all classic Cap moments.
Julian and Robin messing with Mike's emails is hilarious, and Fanny and Humphrey's affair might be a bit off putting to some but I thought it was funny. It had a brilliant punchline - literally - and it gave Mary one of her rare moments of wisdom - "likes it or not, it be that bit which hath the heart."
Every character gets a moment to shine in this episode. I think it's underrated.
Ghosts (2019)
The loveliest, most heart-warming sitcom
Ghosts is one of my favourite TV shows of all time, and certainly the show that I've rewatched the most. Yet when I recommend it to people whose taste in films and TV I trust, they watch a few episodes, and say they enjoyed it, in the same way they might enjoy any other BBC sitcom, but they clearly aren't feeling it in the same way that I do. Therefore I've been trying to pinpoint what it is exactly that I love so much about Ghosts, and why it speaks to me so much.
Firstly, I'm biased, in that I am obsessed with this group of actors (officially called Them There, but to their fans, the Six Idiots) and I have been ever since Horrible Histories. (Yonderland and Bill need to be seen by more people, by the way, and if you like Ghosts and haven't watched those yet, please do so immediately.) They seem like such lovely people in real life, with such a strong and genuine friendship that comes through in all their projects. That chemistry which they bring to the show is crucial to the feeling of these bickering ghosts becoming, first, friends and eventually family.
Secondly, their humour just seems to align with mine, and obviously a lot of other people's, since Ghosts has been one of the BBC's biggest sitcoms of the past five years. I'd say it's a very British kind of humour; very silly, a little bit cheeky and innuendo-laden but essentially good-hearted. It reminds me most of a pantomime, which may be why the show doesn't work for everybody. After all, pantomimes are often looked down on as broad and silly, but they work for me in the same way Monty Python does. If you embrace its daftness and wordplay, there's a lot of fun to be had.
There's also camp value in a pantomime, and this group's projects have always had a certain queer energy, which explains why, judging by their fandom online, they have a large LGBTQ fanbase. I think it's the style of humour, but also the fact that their characters are all slightly weird in their own ways. The ghosts are a bunch of misfits who didn't find the love they deserved in life, but found it in each other after death. Despite their differences, they've become a surrogate family who care deeply for each other. Who wouldn't want to have a dad as kind and upbeat as Pat, or a little sister as joyful as Kitty?
Their shows (and film) have all had LGBTQ characters, and in the Captain, I believe they've created one of the best, most rounded gay characters ever on TV. What I like about the character is that he's not "the gay one". He's the Captain, who is bossy, ridiculous, a military geek, and, in the nicest possible way, a thoroughly boring old man, who also happens to be gay. Him being blissfully unaware of his own innuendos makes him incredibly endearing. His back story was as tragic as any serious drama, and was also an incredibly economic bit of storytelling, considering it was all told in only about ten minutes of total screen time over the course of two episodes.
Of course, while the Captain seems to be many fans' favourite, an ensemble comedy like this needs all the characters to be equally strong, and they are all memorable, even if not always likable (Julian, I'm looking at you)! The fact that the show is cowritten by all six actors surely helps to ensure they get an even spread of the best jokes and moments. The ghosts' clashing personalities provide a lot of humour, of course, but thanks to Alison's influence on them, there's also been some excellent character development over the five seasons. Dipping into the show and watching a few episodes won't have the same impact as watching it from the beginning and going on the same journey as the characters. Fanny has softened considerably, Julian's found his humanity, and the Captain and Kitty's growing father-daughter bond has been adorable.
The last time I felt so attached to a group of sitcom characters, and so sad to see them go, was watching Spaced twenty years ago. I can't pretend that I agree with the final Christmas special and its ending, but that doesn't detract from what has been a warm comfort blanket of a show for the last five seasons.
Ghosts: A Christmas Gift (2023)
Give it a couple of watches
As a massive fan of Ghosts, I was pleased with the season 5 finale, as I was perfectly content to keep the status quo and imagine the Coopers and their ghostly family living in Button House happily ever after.
Well, this Christmas special has other ideas. Upon first viewing, I was too confused by what I was watching to enjoy it - Why were 20 precious minutes of the final ever episode wasted on Mike's mum rather than the characters we love? Why did they do a complete 180 since the previous ep? And why was the final goodbye so rushed and unemotional?
However, after allowing the shock to die down, and coming to accept the bittersweet ending they chose, I gave it a second viewing and enjoyed it a whole lot more. It's still not the ending I would have chosen, but it sort of makes sense because of the baby. And although I feel they could have mined the goodbye scene for more emotion, the second time around it did still move me to tears (particularly Kitty's facial expressions). Besides, it's not really goodbye for Alison and the ghosts. They still see each other often, which lessens the blow.
It's impossible to please everyone with an ending. I can accept the one we've been given - I just wish it was funnier and/or more emotional, and perhaps 15 minutes longer so it didn't feel so abrupt.
EDIT: Watched it a third time, and no, sorry, I hate it. Unfunny, depressing, and just ill-conceived.
Ghosts: Last Resort (2023)
A suitable ending
It must be said that this episode did not have the finality that a lot of people had hoped for or expected. No ghosts get sucked off, the basic premise hasn't fundamentally changed, and the show could conceivably continue exactly as before.
However, that view misses a lot of smaller shifts that have taken place, and this episode does a really good job at bringing things full circle, with lots of references back to the very first episode of season 1, but showing how much has changed. In the beginning, the ghosts teamed up to scare Alison out of the house. Now they're working on Operation Be Really Nice to make her stay.
I love the fact that Alison finds out about Julian pushing her out of the window. That had been just hanging there unsaid throughout the whole show, and the scene when she finds out is incredibly dramatic. But it also shows how strong this found family has become, that despite learning that Julian literally tried to murder her, she still can't leave them.
I'm also still pinching myself that they ended the entire show with such a breezy little joke about the Captain being openly gay. His journey to accepting himself has been handled so sensitively over the five seasons, and although part of me wanted to see more of an overt reaction from the other ghosts to his coming out, it's in keeping with the show to do it in such an understated way. Seeing him finally comfortable, not needing to correct himself or worry about getting funny looks from the others, was very gratifying.
There's one more Christmas special remaining and they may still decide to go out with a bang and kill off/suck off some characters. Personally though, I'm sure they won't, as the show has always been a comedy suffused with warmth and friendship, and the writers have never lost sight of that.
Ghosts: Carpe Diem (2023)
Perfect episode
Here we are, Carpe Diem, the highest rated Ghosts episode, and one that people are already saying might be the best ever. Does it live up to the hype?
It's a resounding yes from me. It's got that perfect mix of laugh out loud humour, character growth, quotable lines, deep emotion and the underlying feeling of warmth that Ghosts has become so adored for.
This episode of course gives us the Captain's long awaited death. Some may grumble that it only devotes around five minutes to it, rather than a whole episode, but that scene really answers all the outstanding questions about the character so succinctly and effectively, and the emotion hits so deep, that not a moment longer is required.
The last ten minutes of the episode are just wave after wave of emotional moments, including Thomas coming to terms with his non existent legacy, and Mike supplying a surprisingly wise insight about growing older, before we get the sweet, joyous release of all the characters breaking out in a dance.
If I have a minor quibble it's that perhaps this episode should have been switched with episode 6, as it would have been a perfect way for the show to go out.
Ghosts: En Francais (2023)
Funny yet sad - classic Ghosts
This episode was co written by Ben Willbond so naturally it contained some deeply sad musing on the loneliness of being trapped in one place for eternity. It drove home the boredom Robin must have felt spending thousands of years on his own, the attachment he felt when new people arrived, only to be left alone again when they inevitably moved on. As he says in the episode, "I've missed a lot of people." We also get more of the tragic marriage between Humphrey and Sophie, which could have been happier if they'd only listened a bit more.
On the flip side this episode also had some hilarious moments as all the other ghosts recreated British TV game shows but failed to understand the rules, leading to Pat getting frustrated.
It feels like this season is giving fans exactly what they want in terms of back stories for beloved characters who hadn't been fully explored. It was nice to see Robin and Humphrey sharing a storyline, which, for practical reasons, doesn't happen that often.
It's also dishing out surprising revelations in every episode. Robin can speak French and Russian?!
Ghosts: Pineapple Day (2023)
The Kitty backstory we were waiting for
After the disappointing second episode, this is a return to form. We finally get Kitty's death, and it really plays with some of the fan theories that had been suggested online - poisoning by her sister, food poisoning from a pineapple, or dying during a game of hide and seek are all hinted at in this episode. But it turns out to be an accidental death, and one which allows her sister Eleanor a touching moment of redemption.
I really enjoyed the ghosts acting as detectives and trying to piece together the events of Kitty's death. It had shades of the Thomas Thorne Affair, in that different ghosts' memories are crucial to unlocking the mystery.
The other plot strands are satisfying too, and the episode has plenty of laugh out loud moments, notably Mike singing to himself (a la "Daddy's gonna drill a hole in the wall"), Thomas displaying an appreciation of gangsta rap, and a game show they like to watch called "Is it cake?".
A classic episode.
Ghosts: Home (2023)
Weakest ever Ghosts episode?
Alison and Mike are struggling financially and Mike is particularly anxious about the cost of having a child. Thomas tries to write a poem in one day for a poetry competition, and finds unexpected inspiration from Fanny. After hearing Alison's pregnancy symptoms, Kitty decides that she, too, must be pregnant. Finally, Pat and Julian engage in an argument about which is better - North or South.
This was a disappointment for me after the hilarious opener of season 5. It felt like this was a filler episode before we start to get to the eagerly awaited back story episodes which will come later in the season.
Pat and Julian's storyline just wasn't very funny, except on a meta level due to Jim being from the South and Simon being from the North in real life. It just turned into them listing off things without any real jokes. Kitty and Thomas did raise a few laughs- especially the revelation that Thomas is Scottish(!) How could the ghosts not be aware of something so basic despite knowing him for so many years?!
It felt like this was more of a poignant episode on the theme of Home, so it went for a touching payoff rather than a comic one, but it didn't have the same emotional impact as some of the previous Ghosts episodes.
Ghosts: Fools (2023)
A funny episode
So great to have Ghosts back, but also sad knowing that this is the final season!
This episode is set on April fools day and sees Alison trying to play a trick on each of the ghosts. Cue lots of ingenious pranks that target each of the ghosts' weak spots. Part of the fun is trying to guess which ghosts will be the easiest to fool, and how.
You get the sense that this must have been a really fun episode to write and perform. Each ghost gets a hilarious scene when faced with Alison's pranks, although I think Pat's reactions are the highlight of the episode. Humphrey also plays a larger role than usual, which is nice for a change.
There's also a side plot involving Mike dealing with the insurance claim after what happened at the end of season 4, and as usual the show finds a humorous way to make the two plots come together at the end.
Not quite a top tier episode for me, but season 5 is off to a good start.