Warning: This article contains MAJOR spoilers for Dead Boy Detectives.
The ending of Netflix’s Dead Boy Detectives season 1 opens up many questions like what really happened to Niko. Existing within the Sandman universe, Dead Boy Detectives starts with teen ghosts Edwin Paine and Charles Rowland running a detective agency to help supernatural beings move on after their deaths. At the same time, they are on the run from the Lost and Found Department, run by the Night Nurse, who wants them to move on to the afterlife. The pair take a job helping a living medium named Crystal, ridding her of her demon ex’s possession.
Edwin and Charles agree to work with Crystal, at least until she gets all her memories back. Rather than returning to their agency, Charles and Edwin get stuck in the area after the Cat King puts a curse on Edwin. As such, the three get an apartment living above a butcher shop and Crystal befriends the butcher Jenny and her neighbor Niko. Charles, Edwin, and Crystal start helping more souls and have a run-in with a witch named Esther. The Night Nurse catches up with the ghost teens while Esther seeks revenge, culminating in a fast-paced and compelling ending.
Throughout Dead Boy Detectives, the Night Nurse tries to capture Charles and Edwin so she can send them to their afterlife. She is so dead set on following the rules that she completely disregards the good work that the dead boy detectives are doing. Because of this holier-than-thou attitude, the Night Nurse’s superior assigns her to work as the supervisor of the detective agency. This job should teach the Night Nurse that the afterlife isn’t as black and white as she imagined. She needs humility to do her job properly.
Additionally, the Night Nurse’s new position is meant to teach her more empathy for the lost souls that she’s trying to help move into the afterlife. Unlike the lost and found department in Dead Boy Detective, which is detached, Edwin and Charles have a hands-on role with the people they’re helping. As such, the pair approach their cases with more care and compassion for the supernatural beings. The Night Nurse needs to adopt this approach.
At the start of Dead Boy Detectives, Edwin already shows a special affection and protectiveness toward Charles; however, many events in the series need to occur in order for him to realize his romantic feelings. First, the Cat King propositions him, allowing him to recognize his inexperience in the love department. Then, Charles and Crystal express an interest in hooking up, causing him to become jealous. Only one episode later, Edwin tells Monty that he’s having feelings for someone else. This slow process of discovery is one of the reasons why it takes Edwin so long to profess his love.
The second reason why it takes Edwin so long to tell Charles about his feelings in Dead Boy Detectives is the immense amount that he has to lose. As shown in the flashbacks, the pair evaded Death and opened their detective business together. They are the only people consistently there for each other prior to meeting Crystal. This means there’s a lot to lose if Charles reacts poorly to Edwin’s feelings. However, the fear of losing Charles to hell provides Edwin receives the push he needs to admit that he is in love with his best friend.
In Dead Boy Detectives episode 8, “The Case of the Hungry Snake,” Niko and Crystal go to Esther’s house in order to save Edwin and Charles. Esther puts up a fight and one of her attacks hits Niko in the chest. At first glance, she appears to be dead. Then, in the last scene, three people sit in an igloo wearing parkas with their hoods up. However, one of the people opens their hand to show the lucky charm that Mick gave to Niko prior to her death.
Since the afterlife is catered to each individual, it’s possible Niko is dead. However, it’s also possible that Niko survived in another realm or changed into a supernatural being upon her death. Either of these options would be preferable over completely dying, meaning that the lucky charm Mick gave Niko worked in Dead Boy Detectives.
When Crystal tries to block out David the demon with the Light of Heart, she loses her abilities as a medium. Though she can still see ghosts and paranormal creatures, she’s unable to read objects or people. Luckily, she gets her powers back after she meets her ancestors. Crystal discovers that her magic runs through her matriarchal lineage. This discovery grants her all her previous psychic powers as well as new ones. This includes the ability to jump into other people’s minds, call upon Lilith, and overpower demons.
Additionally, this plotline serves an important narrative purpose in the supernatural show. At the start of Dead Boy Detectives, Crystal feels isolated and alone. Her role in the detective agency fills this void to a degree; however, something still seems to be missing. Her magical connection with her ancestors means that Crystal will never be alone again.
Throughout Dead Boy Detectives, Crystal spends the series trying to escape her abusive demon ex, David. She initially escapes him by using the Light of Heart; however, she must go to him for help, allowing him to have control over her again. To hurt Crystal, David possesses Jenny, saying he’ll help Crystal get to hell if she kills her friend. This puts Crystal in a difficult position, since she either hurts Jenny to save Edwin or saves Jenny but leaves Edwin in Hell.
Luckily, her newfound powers allow Crystal to find a third option. She jumps into Jenny’s mind as well, where she drags David out of Jenny’s mind into her own ancestral plane. With the help of her matriarchs, she buries David under the ground by the root of her magic tree. This solution gets him out of the way. However, her ancestors make it extremely clear that he can’t stay there forever, or it will hurt the tree. This foreshadows his return in Dead Boy Detectives season 2.
The premise of Dead Boy Detectives focuses on the fact that it is possible to heal from trauma with help. Some spirits have unfinished business and mysteries that cause them to get stuck as ghosts instead of moving on to the afterlife. With the help of the Dead Boy Detective Agency, they can move forward from their traumas. The theme of healing is reaffirmed at the season’s ending when Edwin comes across his classmate in Hell who is being punished. Edwin offers his classmate forgiveness and understanding, which allows the classmate to stop being tortured by his past mistakes.
The ending of Dead Boy Detectives also points to the fact that the younger generations are pushing for better ways of healing. The Night Nurse has the same goal as the Dead Boys Detective Agency, to help souls move on from Earth to their designated afterlife. However, Edwin and Charles take a hands-on and empathetic approach that the Night Nurse doesn’t. In the end, the Night Nurse’s superior sees the merit in the teens’ approach.
If Dead Boy Detectives is even half as successful as Sandman, it will undoubtedly get a second season. Luckily, the series leaves multiple character arcs and storylines open-ended. Charles, Edwin, and Crystal are leaving for England, and Jenny is considering joining them. As such, the group will likely open up the Dead Boy Detective Agency in the new country.
Crystal will have to face her demon ex, David, again when she removes him from the roots of her tree. Additionally, she will likely gain new powers as her ancestral magic grows. Lastly, Dead Boy Detectives will need to answer what really happened to Niko and bring the entire group together again. It would be a shame if Jenny, Crystal, Edwin, and Charles never saw their friend again.