Ghosts Season 4’s Best Pete Story Hurt Another Character’s Most Exciting Moment

Although Ghosts season 4 did briefly give Jay the ability to see ghosts, this power was wasted thanks to the terrible timing of Pete’s best plot in the outing. The ghosts of CBS’s Ghosts present a pretty major issue for the show. Although they are all reliably amusing, there are too many undead residents of the Woodstone B&B for the show to regularly give them all a chance to shine. This issue was exaggerated by the arrival of Ghosts season 4’s new ghost Patience. Mary Holland’s humorless Puritan was a fun new character, but a problematic one.

Patience’s character arc took up the first three episodes of season 4, meaning viewers didn’t get to see more of the show’s most underrated players. Although Alberta, Trevor, and Sass got B-stories of their own early on in season 4, characters like Hetty and Flower got little in the way of meaningful screen time. These characters still provide plentiful one-liners but rarely play a major role in the show’s action. Ghosts season 4’s focus on Isaac hasn’t helped in this regard, as the show centering the character inevitably results in limited screen time for others.

Jay Barely Spoke To The Ghosts In Ghosts Season 4

Pete’s Possession Of Jay Overshadowed Jay’s Subplot

Although season 4, episodes 8 and 9, “A Very Arondekar Christmas Parts 1 and 2,” did give one underrated ghost a good role to play in the special’s two-part story, this came at the expense of a living character. Jay’s short-lived ability to see and speak to the ghosts was wasted in Ghosts season 4 since the series was busy focusing on Pete’s most substantial story since season 3. Pete accidentally possessed Jay’s body when his spirit left it, and he used this as an opportunity to visit his daughter and grandson before they moved to Australia.

This was a moving plot, and one that gave Pete’s actor Richie Moriarty more to do than earlier season 4 outings. Moriarty hinted at Patience’s powers during an interview with TVLine but didn’t mention this poignant special, meaning Pete’s possession of Jay came as a fun surprise. However, it also overshadowed Jay’s most anticipated story in a long time. Although Ghosts season 4’s Christmas special was a great showcase for Pete, the two-part outing didn’t get much out of Jay’s ability to speak to the ghosts. Most of his interactions were limited to brief conversations.

Jay’s Ability To See Ghosts Was Sadly Short-Lived

Jay Didn’t Even Talk To Flower Or Sass

Jay did realize that his father secretly believed in his cooking despite not approving of his risky restaurant plan when the ghosts encouraged him to eavesdrop on his parents. However, this subplot would have made just as much sense if Jay had simply overheard their conversation without his spirit being removed from his body. Jay’s interactions with the ghosts were minimal even though Ghosts has been building to this moment for years, mostly consisting of a brief hug with Thor and some group conversations with Alberta, Hetty, and Thor about how to get back into his body.

For all of Ghosts season 4’s problems with Sam, the sitcom still gives Rose McIver’s character plenty of screen time and opportunities to shine. In contrast, Utkarsh Ambudkar’s appealing Jay is often just used as a tool for whatever wacky plans the ghosts are getting involved in, and his inability to communicate with them merely makes this more convoluted. Jay was the one who dug to free Patience, only to find out he was searching in the wrong place. He was the one who forged Isaac’s diary, only for Sam to ruin their plan.

Ghosts Season 4’s Christmas Special Failed To Balance Jay’s Possession

Jay’s Emotional Storyline With His Father Felt Rushed

Jay’s wasted chance to talk to the ghosts was disappointing because he has played a pointedly supporting role in season 4 so far. Even Sass flirting with a girl in Jay’s dreams or Trevor getting Jay to pretend to be him at a work retreat were plot lines that used Sam’s husband as a prop and not a character in his own right. Sass’s Ghosts season 4 role also hasn’t been overly satisfying, but it is striking that he and Jay barely spoke in “A Very Arondekar Christmas Parts 1 and 2,” even though the pair met before in Jay’s dreams.

The twist ending of the Christmas special was sweet as Jay buried his beef with his father by revealing that he was naming his restaurant after Mahesh. However, this emotional catharsis felt unearned since Jay and Mahesh barely interacted before this scene. Despite the show’s best attempts to make Jay’s storyline feel significant, it was hard not to feel like “A Very Arondekar Christmas Parts 1 and 2” wasted his ability to see the ghosts. Unfortunately, Ghosts season 4 is unlikely to repeat this one-off storytelling trick.

Source: TVLine