Ghosts Season 2 Episode 16 Review: Isaac’s Book

Ghosts Season 2 Episode 16, “Isaac’s Book,” does not know the sting of rejection, just the sweet taste of victory as Sam and Isaac secure a book deal — and learn a valuable lesson.

Ghosts‘ latest chapter is a study in seeking internal validation and understanding what flaws we should not strive to change in others.

But it wouldn’t be a valuable learning curve without a few below-the-belt comments from beyond the grave.

You cannot speak of Ghosts‘ success without speaking of its pettiness, and there is plenty to go around during this episode.

The main culprit? Thorfinn allows himself to be roasted after decades of treating Alberta and Sas poorly. Sas finally gets his revenge on Thorfinn for spoiling their favorite show, It’s Getting Hot In Here, and he savors every moment of that win.

This lore is so expansive we can revisit old squabbles with renewed pettiness.

But it is Alberta, having endured one too many hat jokes, who has Thor’s number. She is prepared to mop the floor with his tears. Even Isaac takes time out of his busy schedule to lay into Jay with searing retorts.

It’s cute how the ghosts mill about the front desk, waiting for Jay to fumble so they can squeal to Sam. It’s even better when they add unnecessary counter-commentary to his brags about the B&B.

Partners in Lies

We see the return of Sam’s uglier side, and that’s always a treat because it means more emphasis on Rose McIver’s stellar range.

But we have explored her darker tendencies before, and it’s valuable to shake up the scenario by forcing Jay along for the ride.

Watching as he grows more concerned about the lengths his wife will go to preserve a fake accomplishment is arguably the best part of this outing.

It’s disappointing Sam and Jay haven’t developed a signal for “ghosts are present,” but driving outside Woodstone’s boundaries to have their shady talks is hilarious.

As is Sam’s reluctance to tell Jay his favorite Starbucks is crawling with ghosts from a hospital for the criminally insane. The devil is in the details, and I would not hate if Ghosts gave us more of Jay and Sam’s interactions outside Woodstone.

Matters of the Heart

“Isaac’s Book” marks Florfinn’s first outing as a couple, and as feared, these two don’t become less entertaining in a conventional relationship.

But the deepening heart at the center of their interactions is newly noteworthy.

At first glance, Flower asking Thorfinn to control his anger seems reasonable. He does threaten to unalive people constantly. But as the Viking points out, “anger large part of Thorfinn’s personality,” and asking him to suppress his nature is unfair.

Ghosts does a stellar job paralleling Thorfinn and Flower’s relationship with Hetty and Trevor’s fling.

Hetty sabotages Trevor’s growth. But Flower realizes Thorfinn’s passion is part of his charm and apologizes for the ultimatum. Besides, it’s not like Thor can behead anyone in the afterlife — let him have his fun.

These romantic storylines play well together, with this series never losing sight of which one is worth investing authentic growth in and which is here to create conflict.

Isaac’s Book & Beyond

Isaac takes somewhat of a backseat to his big episode, given he is more preoccupied with celebrating his inevitable book deal than being involved in said deal.

That said, his final scene with Sam puts this noteworthy chapter into sharp focus.

The full-circle comparison between Isabel and Hamilton amplifies the meaning behind Sam’s actions. Isaac’s growth is lovely to see displayed in a neat package as he embraces his friend’s well-intended mistake and takes a step towards internally validating his life’s work.

Also, Sam boasting about Isaac creating the sniper rifle, only to date the soldier he killed with it, is so hilarious out-of-context.

This comedy often opts for a happy ending.

It should feel cheap and anti-climatic the way children’s fairytales do. Yet, Ghosts‘ elevation of this simplistic storytelling never grows tiresome.

There’s much to benefit from a real book deal as Sam explores her writing career and Isaac micromanages her into an early grave.

Throw in a gasp-worthy twist and uncomfortable neck nuzzling from Tretty (they get a ship name for chaos purposes), and Ghosts is in fine form heading into the final episodes.

—

What did you think of this episode of Ghosts? Share your thoughts in the comments below! Watch Ghosts online, now streaming on Paramount+. Try it for FREE!

Critic Rating:

User Rating:

 

Ghosts airs Thursdays at 8:30/7:30c on CBS.

 Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram!

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!

Brandon Scott Jones on Captaining the Haunting Hit-Comedy ‘Ghosts’ [Interview]