School Spirits season 3 is finally streaming on Paramount+, and it's time to find out what's next for Maddie Nears and her living and ghost friends at Split River High as they face darker mysteries and new dangers.
Now that the first three episodes are available to stream, we're breaking down the season 3 premiere, "It's a Wonderful Afterlife," first. You can follow along with our recap of episode 1 right below!
Spoilers are ahead from the School Spirits season 3 premiere!
Simon searches for a way out of the afterlife
The School Spirits season 3 premiere continues from the season 2 finale. Maddie finds herself falling through an unknown black void before returning to her physical body, which is currently being transported to the hospital in an ambulance. Meanwhile, Xavier, Nicole, and Claire search the fallout shelter room at Split River High for Simon but come up empty-handed, finding only his earphones. On the school’s football field, Wally is given the opportunity to cross over, yet he chooses to remain behind.
After the opening credits, we're taken to Mr. Martin's scar where Simon questions Janet and Mr. Martin about how he's in the afterlife. Mr. Martin and Janet are unable to provide answers, and Janet pulls Simon out of the scar. In the process, Simon accidentally cuts his hand on sharp glass. While standing in the middle of one of the hallways of Split River High, Janet tries to make sense of Simon's situation. This is when Wally walks up.
Wally questions what Simon is doing in the spirit world and whether he’s actually dead, but Janet shows him Simon’s injured hand, confirming that he’s still alive. The episode then shifts to Maddie at the hospital, where Xavier admits that he can see ghosts and even saw her deceased father. Their conversation is cut short, however, when Sheriff Baxter interrupts and pulls Xavier away.
In the hospital hallways, Xavier talks with his father while a mysterious man quietly listens in. Meanwhile, at Split River High, Simon gathers with the other ghosts in the library. Because all the ghosts remain at the school, they realize that no one has swapped bodies with Simon. Tensions rise, leading to an argument, but Janet steps in to calm everyone down.
Janet believes that when they were all inside her and Mr. Martin’s combined scar in the season 2 finale, they not only lifted the veil between the living and the dead but also created an entirely new passageway. That's how she thinks Simon is now in the afterlife. Simon then has an epiphany. Since he knows he's alive, he tells the others that he should be able to just walk off campus. However, he gets pulled right back into the school's fallout shelter when he tries.
After this failed attempt, Simon tells Janet he wants to return to Mr. Martin's scar and confront him about everything he knows. Janet is against the idea, though. She tells him that she has another plan. The episode then cuts to the hospital. As Maddie and Sandra leave, Maddie asks her mom if her father had died in the river or at the hospital. Sandra responds that he passed away at the hospital.
Back at Split River High, Janet shares her plan with the other ghosts to get Simon out of the afterlife. She thinks that if they all return to her and Mr. Martin’s scar, it might thin the veil once more and allow Simon to return to the living world. They all agree to meet up in the scar later that night.
Maddie learns about Simon's condition
On the drive home from the hospital, Maddie convinces Sheriff Baxter to stop at Split River High. She rushes into the school’s library, where the ghosts are gathered. But while they can see her, she can’t see them. Remember, Maddie can only see ghosts in locations where deaths occurred in the school. She finally catches sight of Wally and the others in the school’s auditorium.
Once Maddie reconnects with her ghost friends, they fill her in on Simon’s location. She rushes to a classroom and finds Simon sitting at a desk. He explains that he’s trapped in the afterlife, but he and the ghosts have devised a plan. Their conversation is cut short when Sandra enters and tells Maddie that it’s time to go home.
Back at home, Maddie tells Sandra that she’s going to bed early so she’ll be ready for school the next day. However, Sandra is confused. The last time she and Maddie discussed school, they agreed she would enroll in online classes. Remember, Janet was in her body at that time but Sandra doesn't know that. Maddie leaves her mom behind and heads to her room.
We're then taken back to Split River High. Charley and Yuri have a heart-to-heart conversation where they finally put a label on their relationship. Now, it's finally midnight. Wally and the rest of the ghosts go through with Janet's plan and enter her and Mr. Martin's scar. But nothing ends up happening. The next day comes, and Maddie sees Simon sitting on a school bench. The plan didn't work, and Simon is still stuck in the afterlife.
Dr. Hunter-Price is introduced
Now, it's time for the school assembly. All the students of Split River High enter the gym. Simon and the ghosts are also present. Janet tells the others that she's going to come up with another plan to get Simon out of the afterlife. As the chatter gets louder in the gym, Principal Hartman tries to get everyone quiet down. However, the student body doesn't get quiet until District Superintendent Dr. Hunter-Price steps up to the podium.
During the assembly, she announces her plan to restore order at the school following recent events. She also reveals that the district will be closing Split River High and constructing a new school across town, where the students will continue their education. Oh no! This can't be good. As Maddie and her friends leave the gym, someone passes her a welcome back note. Claire warns her that it's not a good note and that now she's been marked by Livia. It's obvious that Livia is a popular girl at the school.
The episode then shifts to the school's greenhouse. Maddie tells Simon that the local hospital is full of ghosts, just like Split River High. She even mentions how one of the ghosts is her dad. Their conversation then turns to how they can account for Simon’s absence to his parents. Together, they devise a plan. Maddie will retrieve Simon’s laptop from his car and come up with a cover story.
Later on, Janet and Simon meet somewhere on the Split River High campus. Janet tells him her new plan. She thinks there's a possibility that Simon might get sent back to the world of the living if she finally crosses over. Although Janet would've liked to stay longer, she doesn't want to be the reason Simon is stuck in the afterlife.
Elsewhere on the school’s football field, Maddie and Wally share a heartfelt conversation about their relationship. They both still want to make it work, despite her being in the living world and him in the spirit world. Unbeknownst to them, someone is secretly recording their conversation.
Janet crosses over
Janet and Simon enter Mr. Martin’s scar, and Janet asks him to let her access her own scar since he serves as her key. Though reluctant, Mr. Martin agrees. Janet finally crosses over, and the other ghosts notice when the lights start blinking throughout the school. That's the telltale sign that a ghost has crossed over. But Janet's plan doesn't work again. Simon remains in the afterlife.
Simon then gives Janet’s farewell note to Rhonda and the other ghosts, who take turns reading it as it’s passed around. When it reaches Yuri, he slips the note into his jeans pocket. That's strange. Back at the hospital, Xavier looks over at a volunteer poster on the wall. Could he be thinking about volunteering at the hospital? He then looks around and notices the same mysterious man from earlier in the episode staring at him from across the hall. However, Xavier doesn't think too much about it and gets on the hospital elevator.
The episode then moves to Maddie’s house, where she and Sandra share a heartfelt dinner conversation about the recent events and the loss of Maddie’s father. The talk starts off well, but Maddie soon realizes that Sandra has been drinking again. She finds this out after smelling her drink.
Elsewhere at Nicole's house, she and Claire have a sleepover. Nicole checks her social media page and comes across a video of Maddie on the football field speaking to herself. Remember, she was really talking to Wally. People are leaving mean comments on the video about Maddie. The episode then cuts to Livia sitting in the car, watching the video, when Dr. Hunter-Price gets in. Could Livia be the person behind the video? In this scene, we also learn that Dr. Hunter-Price is Livia's mother.
Elsewhere, Yuri attempts to enter his scar at the greenhouse but decides to step back at the last minute. At the hospital, Xavier walks through the hallways before entering a room. He encounters the mysterious man from earlier, who finally speaks to him. During their conversation, we discover that the man is a ghost and that he's hoping Xavier can help him find someone living.
Back in Mr. Martin's scar, Simon enters to confront him again. They get into a brief physical altercation before it starts snowing. That's weird! The episode then concludes with Maddie experiencing a nightmare. She finds herself in Split River High’s boiler room, the very place where she was injured. The episode then cuts to the credits.
School Spirits season 3 is now streaming on Paramount+.