Editor’s note: The below contains spoilers for Ghosts Season 2.
Ghostson CBS — a reimagining of the UK version of the same name — promises laughs, fun, and endearing relationships with the packed (and wonderful) cast. Following Sam (Rose McIver) and Jay (Utkarsh Ambudkar) as they pack up their New York lives and move to the Woodstone manor that Sam has just inherited from a family member she didn’t realize was still alive, they arrive with plans to restore the home and turn it into a beautiful bed and breakfast. Unfortunately, a fall down the stairs (and subsequent two-week coma) leads to Sam developing a new ability: Seeing and hearing ghosts. Upon arriving back at Woodstone, she’s greeted by the many ghosts that have haunted the manor for decades/centuries: Hetty (Rebecca Wisocky), Trevor (Asher Grodman), Flower (Sheila Carrasco), Thorfinn (Devan Long), Pete (Richie Moriarty), Sasappis (Román Zaragoza), Isaac (Brandon Scott Jones), and Alberta (Danielle Pinnock).
In addition to Sam and Jay’s current journey at the Woodstone, we slowly learn more about each of the ghosts as the series, which recently premiered with its second season, goes on. And, while each of the ghosts has their own interesting and enlightening journey of their lives and deaths (though some of which we have yet to see), none has proven quite as intriguing and enrapturing as Alberta’s.
Alberta, a jazz singer who died in the 1920s, has claimed she was murdered for decades to the other ghosts at Woodstone, but nobody believed her because of her lovingly theatric personality. However, when her endearingly unstable superfan Todd (Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll) arrives at the Woodstone as the B&B’s first guest in the first season, he sets out to learn more about her and discovers a case of her old items hidden away in the attic. Todd, completely and utterly obsessed with Alberta with a tattoo of her face on his body, drinks from her old moonshine bottle and winds up in the hospital, which allows the truth to finally come out: Alberta was murdered with poison. Therefore, Alberta’s claims are finally confirmed, and the hunt is on to figure out who killed her and what their motive could’ve been.
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In the second episode of Season 2, we pick up from where we left off regarding Alberta’s past. Now that everyone knows for sure that Alberta was poisoned, Sam and Alberta concoct the idea to do a true-crime podcast based on Alberta’s life and murder. But, Sam’s editor requires that Todd, the only Alberta expert in the world, be her co-host on the podcast. When Todd arrives back at the Woodstone, he has Alberta’s old night table in tow. Meanwhile, Jay, completely unaware, stumbles upon a hidden compartment in the table, causing Alberta’s diary to fall out. Thus, the dark story of Alberta’s life finally comes to light.
The night that Alberta broke free from the background on stage and commanded the audience’s attention, she had broken her vow to never be a rat. Alberta ratted out the lead singer Clara (Mercedes Morris), so she could finally show people what she was made of after so much hard work and determination. It worked, leading to Alberta performing that night (after a near-miss moment of faux humbleness), finally given the opportunity to prove herself in front of an audience. At first, Alberta worries this may cause her fans to turn against her as one of her strongest beliefs is to never be a rat. When Todd discovers this while reading her diary, he struggles with the truth and Alberta’s worries begin to ring true. But, when Alberta reveals her reasons for doing so, everything quickly makes sense and, as Sam and the other ghosts tell her, only makes everyone love her more. She’srelatable. What better story to tell on the podcast? Ratting out Clara may have been Alberta’s break into the spotlight, but it’s also a memory that causes her shame.
The story of Alberta’s life and death being shown through the lens of her murder investigation is an incredibly brilliant move from theGhostswriters. Even in a comedy, a murder investigation can be enjoyable and keep viewers hooked. But, the most fantastic aspect of this is how the many layers of Alberta are being peeled and explored through this murder investigation. For instance, the outcome of revealing Alberta’s struggle with Clara shows how moral, thoughtful, and motivated Alberta is. She fought hard for where she got in her life, overcoming quite a lot of obstacles but never letting those dim her light (or take a hit at her ego), but this one action has haunted her for decades, despite the success that followed.
Creating this captivating mystery around Alberta helps to keep viewers interested in her, the show, and the drawn-out investigation (alongside her enchanting and charismatic personality). Already, the two episodes surrounding Alberta’s life and death stand out among the others for their heart, humor, and character analysis. Plus, the episode ends with the ghosts stumbling upon a photo of Clara, who they recognize as being at the Woodstone on the night Alberta died. While we may not solve Alberta’s murder for quite some time, we now have a believable suspect, but these quick dives into her history are also just fascinating on their own.
Every ghost has their own exciting stories from their lives and deaths to follow, but there’s something so exciting about Alberta’s. Though there are no real stakes as the murder happened nearly a century prior, the promise of discovering what Alberta could have done to cause someone to murder her (as nobody believes it to be accidental because of the poison) is more intriguing than the identity of the killer. Alberta is such a complex character that it’s truly impossible to predict anything about her, making the journey of peeling back the layers all the more alluring.
There’s already a lot to love aboutGhosts, rife with unbelievably lovable characters and content, but Alberta and this murder mystery are worth tuning in for on their own.
GhostsSeason 2 premieres new episodes on CBS every Thursday. The first season is streaming on Paramount+.
