Summary
- Maddie's death was actually a possession: Janet, who never crossed over, possessed Maddie's body after an argument with Mr. Martin.
- Maddie is alive: Her body is still living and being controlled by Janet's spirit, allowing her to communicate with her friend Simon.
- Mr. Martin's guilt: He reveals that he died in a fire he believes he caused, but suspicions arise when reports suggest he may have been responsible for Janet's death too.
The School Spirits season finale left little for fans to theorize about as it tied up most of its loose ends, and the School Spirits ending finally explained a number of mysteries. Before episode 8, Maddie (Peyton List) was convinced her mother had killed her. She even struggled throughout the finale with coping with the idea that her own mother could have been behind her death. Earlier in School Spirits, Maddie's ex-best friend Claire (Rainbow Wedell) seemed suspicious, as did Mr. Anderson (Patrick Gilmoe). However, both were proven innocent, and Maddie and her friends continued their search for her killer. What made things so difficult was Maddie couldn't remember how she died and didn't know how to jog her memory.
This was a crucial detail that hinted at the truth about Maddie's death, which came out in the finale. Another crucial piece of the puzzle was the last episode when Dawn (RaeAnne Boon) crossed over, causing some strange technological effects on the school's lights. Wally (Milo Manheim), Charley (Nick Pugliese), and Rhonda (Sarah Yarkin) realized that didn't happen when Janet crossed over, leading them to wonder if Janet actually did cross over. Mr. Martin (Josh Zuckerman) brushes the events off when they bring it up, but by the end of the episode, it's obvious why Janet didn't trigger flickering lights, and many other mysteries are also solved.
5 Maddie Is Alive: Here's What Happened To Her
Maddie Is Revealed To Be Alive In The Season Finale
The biggest mystery in School Spirits has been solved, and after how hard everyone worked to find out the truth about Maddie's death, it turns out Maddie never died in the first place. The School Spirits ending explains what happened to her. There were several hints throughout the season that suggested she might still be alive. One of them was when she was warned against using hypnosis to try and remember her death because it would allow a spirit to enter her body. This is seemingly what happened to her while she was still alive.
After getting into an argument with her mother, Maddie hid in the boiler room. She overheard an argument and followed the voices to a door. When she opened it, Janet, who clearly did not cross over, jumped out and possessed her body. Mr. Martin was the one arguing with Janet proving he knows a lot more than he claimed. Another hint was when Maddie showed up for support group and sat in Janet's chair, suggesting there was a connection between the two.
4 Maddie Can Speak To Simon Because She's Not Dead
Maddie First Talks To Simon In Episode 1
Another major mystery revolved around Maddie being able to speak to her friend Simon. The other spirits can only speak to each other, and anyone alive is not able to see them or talk to them. No one understood why Maddie was able to talk to Simon, but Charley theorized that maybe Simon was having a hard time moving on from Maddie's disappearance, so it triggered his ability to see and hear her.
It turns out the real reason was that Maddie wasn't dead. Her spirit was able to communicate with him because even though she was outside of her body, her body was still living and being controlled by a different spirit.
School Spirits Season 1 is also available to stream on Netflix.
3 What Happened To Janet Explained
Janet Is Teased In Episode 1
Episode 7 created a lot of confusion around whether Janet actually crossed over. The School Spirits finale cleared things up. Janet never actually did cross over. Instead, she possessed Maddie's body. This is why when she left, she didn't trigger any electrical issues like Dawn did. The other spirits had never seen anyone else cross over before Dawn, so they wouldn't have been able to tell that Mr. Martin was lying about Janet crossing over.
The teacher was connected to her taking over Maddie's body and also connected to Janet's death. According to documents the spirits found, Janet died in a fire in Mr. Martin's class, and her parents believe the teacher was responsible for starting the fire, though he tells a different story.
2 Maddie's Mom Had Her Necklace, But Didn't Kill Her
Maddie Realizes Her Necklace Is Missing In Episode 1
When Simon found the necklace Maddie was wearing the day she died in her mother's draw, they were positive her mother had something to do with her death. However, while interrogating her, Maddie had a flashback of what actually happened. Maddie's mother deals with alcoholism, and the day Maddie disappeared, she went to the school to find her daughter.
She told her she was better and had just bought a cabin for them to live in using the money Maddie's father left behind. Maddie had planned on using the saved-up money toward college and was furious her mom took it and used it for herself. Maddie accused her mother of taking away everything her father gave her and took off the necklace from her father and gave it to her mother as one last thing to take.
When Maddie returned to the present moment, she realized her mother didn't kill her and only had her necklace because of the argument they got into. Maddie was relieved to find out her mother wasn't a murderer but still upset from the incident and all the pain she deals with because of her mother's addiction.
1 How Mr. Martin Died
Mr. Martin's Death Is Revealed In Episode 8
Mr. Martin seemed suspicious throughout School Spirits and was set on helping the other spirits move on from what happened to them instead of revisiting their trauma. During the finale, Mr. Martin revealed the reason he pushes for everyone to move on is that he finds it too painful to look back. The teacher revealed he died in a fire that he believes was his fault because he wasn't paying attention to his class, and because of his irresponsibility, a fire started. He says he was able to save everyone except himself, and he feels guilty that the living students have to live with the memory of experiencing the fire and watching their teacher die.
However, there are some holes in Mr. Martin's story that come out when the spirits find the reports of Janet's death and that her parents believe that Mr. Martin caused the fire. Mr. Martin's real reason for not wanting to look back on the past could be because he feels guilty about starting a fire that cost Janet her life. He also might be afraid that someone will find out the truth about what really happened on the day of the fire. Unfortunately, none of this is resolved in the School Spirits season finale. The good news is this leaves an intriguing storyline open that could be answered in the second season.
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School Spirits
- Cast:
- Kristian Flores, Milo Manheim, Spencer Macpherson, Kiara Pichardo, Sarah Yarkin, Nick Pugliese, Rainbow Wedell, Josh Zuckerman
- Release Date:
- 2023-03-09
- Seasons:
- 1
- Main Genre:
- Mystery
- Genres:
- Drama, Mystery, Supernatural
- Summary:
- Based on the graphic novel, School Spirits is a supernatural mystery-drama series set in a high-school setting focusing on the afterlife. When teenage Maddie finds herself in the afterlife, she spends her idle time trying to investigate why she went missing. However, her high-school sleuthing leads her down a path that only yields more questions and uncovers a more sinister plot underneath her own demise.
- Website:
- https://www.paramountplus.com/shows/school-spirits/
- Studio:
- Awesomeness Studio, Paramount+
- Creator:
- Nate Trinrud, Megan Trinrud
- Distributor:
- Paramount+
- Rating:
- TV-MA
- Writers:
- Nate Trinrud, Megan Trinrud, Oliver Goldstick
- Season List:
- School Spirits - Season 1, School Spirits - Season 2
