Dead Boy Detectives ⁞⁞ Series Spotlight

The Netflix genre series, based on the DC comics by Neil Gaiman & Matt Wagner, Dead Boy Detectives tells the story of British teen ghosts Edwin (George Rexstrew) and Charles (Jayden Revri), who find themselves on a decades-long quest to help solve the mysteries of other lost souls so they can find peace, while they themselves evade Death. After a boarding school prank went wrong in 1916, leading to a demon being unleashed, Edwin was sent to hell, where he eventually made his escape after 70 years, only to cross paths with the dying Charles. Seeing that Charles could see him, Edwin kept Charles company until he passed away. Refusing to leave Edwin behind for the afterlife, Charles decided to stay, leading to an unbreakable friendship. In the present, the two get an unexpected human case in the form of Crystal (Kassius Nelson), a teen who cannot remember who she is after being possessed by a demon, which the boys free her from. Given Crystal's psychic ability, Charles sees her as an asset to their team, while Edwin is less enthusiastic, especially after realizing Charles' romantic interest in her. The trio travels to Washington to solve a mystery at Crystal's behest, leading to a confrontation with local witch Esther (Jenn Lyon), giving the trio a main antagonist, who is soon out for revenge. 

While on the case, Edwin uses magic to get help from a local cat, which causes him to be summoned by the Cat King (Lukas Gage), who wants to punish him. Cat King takes an instant sexual interest in Edwin, catching him off-guard, but when he rebuffs his advances, Cat King traps him in town via a magic bracelet that Edwin cannot remove without solving his riddle. When Edwin also crosses paths randomly with another local Monty (Joshua Colley) who can see ghosts as well, he notices him taking a romantic interest as well. The group's new friend Niko (Yuyu Kitamura) encourages Edwin to embrace the modern world where boys can be interested in other boys, something he never felt comfortable expressing. However, Monty, has his own mission, as a crow transformed into a human by Esther to target Edwin until he develops real feelings. Despite recurring romantic interest from multiple sources, though, Edwin secretly holds a torch for his best friend Charles. When Edwin is eventually dragged back to hell, he confronts Simon (Gabriel Drake), the boy behind the prank that killed him. He finds him in eternal torment where he reveals to Edwin that he was only upset with him in the past because he also held a crush on Edwin. He makes peace with Simon, while Charles risks everything to venture down to hell to rescue his best friend. As the duo escape, Edwin reveals his feelings to Charles, who assures him that he loves him too. Though he isn't in love with him, Charles says Edwin is the most important person in his life and the only one he would ever go to hell for. Esther enacts her revenge, targeting Edwin to capture power and youth. Monty returns to crow form, punished by Esther as well, and helps Charles free himself to rescue Edwin, though Niko is seemingly killed in the battle. In the end, Edwin makes peace with Cat King before heading back to London with Charles & Crystal, where boys get surprising news from the Afterlife Lost & Found, who approve of them remaining on the living plane, given their long list of solved cases, so they can continue to help young ghosts find peace and move on.