We're only a day away from School Spirits season 2's release, and the excitement is steadily building. The first three episodes of the second installment will be available to stream on Paramount+ on Jan. 30, and based on the thrilling official trailer, it looks like fans are in for an intense ride.
It's been over a year since the first season premiered, so you might not remember how everything wrapped up. Don't worry, though. You know you can always count on us at Show Snob to help you out. In this article, we shared three key events from School Spirits season 1 to refresh your memory. That way, you'll be all caught up before diving into the new episodes.
Spoilers ahead from School Spirits season 1!
Maddie is revealed to be alive
The entire first season follows Maddie as she investigates her own mysterious death while stuck in the afterlife at her high school. She also had the help of her living friend Simon and the teen ghosts Rhonda, Wally, and Charley. After several bad leads that take her in the wrong direction, Maddie finally pieces together the truth in the season 1 finale and learns what really happened to her.
What she discovers is that she’s not dead after all. She's actually still alive, just not in her physical body. A teen ghost named Janet, who was thought to have moved on, took over her body, causing Maddie to be pushed out. While Maddie is stuck in the afterlife, Janet is living her life in Maddie’s body. The last time we see Janet in School Spirits season 1, she's shown boarding a bus and leaving town.
As seen from the School Spirits season 2 trailer, Maddie is on a mission to reclaim her body and return to the real world. However, it'll be interesting to see how she goes about doing this, especially now that she no longer has the support of her best friend Simon. If you recall from the season 1 finale, Simon decides to distance himself from Maddie after seeing video footage that suggests she hit someone with a car. He believes the Maddie he’s been communicating with at school is just a figment of his imagination, a way to cope with her loss, and that the real Maddie is out there somewhere in the real world. But viewers know the person in the video is actually Janet.
Xavier is struck by a truck and left in bad shape
Remember when we mentioned that Janet hit someone with a car? Well, that person she hit is Xavier. Along with Nicole and Claire, Xavier decides to stake out a house where a break-in occurred, hoping to run into Maddie. While searching through the house, he's bumped by a hooded figure and chases after them. He follows the mysterious person all the way back to his truck. Just as he's about to jump into the back, the person behind the wheel puts the vehicle in reverse and strikes him.
Nicole and Claire rush to his side, and although things initially appear fine, Xavier suddenly loses consciousness after touching his bleeding head. He is later taken away by ambulance to the hospital. After filming the entire incident, Nicole checks her phone and realizes Maddie is behind the wheel. But once again, it's not really Maddie. It's Janet in her body. Is Xavier going to be okay?
Mr. Martin is not the person he appears to be
Mr. Martin was the chemistry teacher at Split River High School before his death in 1958. Now, he's a ghost roaming the halls of the school. He's also the leader of the Split River High Afterlife Support Group. It's a support group for the spirits trapped at Split River High. The purpose of the group is to help the spirits process their deaths and find closure so that they can finally "cross over." While Mr. Martin initially seemed like a kind and helpful figure to the other ghosts at the school, Rhonda, Wally, and Charley eventually discover that his true intentions are not as noble as they seem.
First, they find out he lied about the circumstances of his death. Mr. Martin claimed that when the fire broke out in the chemistry lab at Split River High in 1958, he was the only person who died. However, after looking more into the incident, they discover that a student was killed in the fire as well. That student was Janet Hamilton, aka the ghost who took over Maddie's body. What’s even stranger is that Mr. Martin has been keeping detailed notebooks documenting information about each of the spirits. Additionally, he has been holding onto the personal items they had with them at the time of their deaths.
He was also there when Janet took possession of Maddie's body. In a flashback to that day, Mr. Martin is seen shouting at Janet to stop as she charges toward Maddie and takes over her body. Could they have been working together? In short, Mr. Martin has been keeping secrets, and it appears that his connection to Janet runs deeper than he has admitted.
School Spirits season 2 is set to premiere on Paramount+ on Jan. 30.