A house doesn’t have to be haunted in order for lingering spirits to be attached to the property. I believe in guardian angels, as well as mischievous souls stuck in Purgatory. Growing up in a very old farmhouse (which is now almost 200 years old), I’ve seen some perplexing phenomena that remains unexplained to this day.

It just feels right to say that there’s a residual presence within, especially when a few gravestones can be found nearby. And what about all the unmarked graves scattered about? Surely quite a few people died there throughout the centuries. If they’re still hanging around, the more the merrier. That sort of scenario seems to be unfolding on CBS’ Ghosts.

The series premiere unearthed spirits of Beetlejuice. Jay and Sam have inherited a decrepit country estate and each episode of Season 1 depicts the remodeling process into a bed and breakfast. As it turns out, Woodstone Mansion is already fully occupied.

After suffering from a slight concussion, Sam (played by Rose McIver) can see and speak to the spirits stuck there. And there’s more than a few. Dwelling within the house is eight of the primary specters who have passed away in a variety of ways. Then there’s the Cholera crew in the basement, the shed soldiers outside and an attic ’80s girl who awakens once a year, then sleeps it off. That doesn’t include the vault victim who was sent to Hell (that one requires further explanation for another time).

This property sure was a popular destination for dying people throughout the years! How many more will be introduced next season before this house party becomes way too claustrophobic?

It’s one thing to write characters into the script as needed for specific episodes. But it’s another thing to have them all standing around, twiddling their thumbs until wanted (I’m looking in your direction, The Walking Dead!). As a supernatural comedy with horror elements, I’m hoping Ghosts doesn’t merge into that final destination.

As Above, So Below: The Cholera Crew hangs out in the basement of Ghosts‘ Woodside Mansion.

Among the “livings,” Sam may seem like a spiritual superhero, but the audience has arrived for the afterlife. Some of the spirits definitely suffer from storytelling tropes, but context is everything… which leads to humor. Some of the gasp-worthy spirits have been trapped within the property for more than 100 years, so their pop-culture references need immediate updates, just don’t ask about their fascination with being “sucked off.”

Frankly, I was shocked — SHOCKED!!! — to enjoy watching the program from the get-go. You see, I despise sitcoms. More specifically, I hate laugh tracks, and before watching one second of the show, I felt like this one would have the main actors hamming it up to the camera for the specific reactions of a studio audience. I’m very glad to be so wrong at first glance.

This one is different. With its dry humor spanning from its European roots, Ghosts is an adaptation of the U.K. comedy of the same name, created in part by the Lionsgate and BBC Studios partnership. That seems to have been a very smart move by both parties, as Ghosts is tied as the top-rated comedy on all of broadcast TV for the soon-ending traditional September to May 2021-2022 broadcast TV season alongside fellow CBS comedy, Young Sheldon.

Maybe an undead presence could have seen that one coming, but this viewer couldn’t have predicted it.

The season finale revealed the Arondekars’ bad luck may originate from Thorfinn’s Norse curse and the meddling neighbors, The Farnsbys, have at least one ghost on their property. How will our heroes deal with these ongoing problems and how long will they tolerate Alberta talking to Alexa?

Somehow, they’re all survivors, even in Purgatory. Hopefully, this show won’t fall off a cliff, much like LOST, but will stick around for a while. Now that the season has been put to rest, it’s a great time to catch up with Ghosts!