The episode opens in 1995. A local band called Sunset Curve, consisting of four teenage boys: Luke, Alex, Reggie, and Bobby, have just finished rehearsing for their first live performance at the Orpheum in Los Angeles. When the former three are enjoying dinner, however, they succumb to food poisoning, breaking up the band before they could make their big break.
Fast forward to 2020, we cut to Julie, an aspiring young musician. Having struggled to move on from her mother's death a year ago, Julie is unable to play during an important test recital at school, despite her best friend, Flynn's urging. As she goes sulking at her house, she finds a copy of a Sunset Curve album at the garage, which used to be her mother's studio. To her surprise, the ghosts of Luke, Alex, and Reggie emerge from the album, all of them unaware that 25 years have passed since their deaths. Even more bizarre, Julie can see them, but not everyone else. Now she has to figure out her way forward, whether she will pick up music again or not, but with three ghosts nagging her, while they in turn plan a performance they were denied years ago.
Tropes
- Alpha Bitch: Carrie quickly establishes herself as this, sneering at Julie and Flynn whenever she has the chance.
- Establishing Character Moment: The 1995 sequence for all members of Sunset Curve.
- Luke is energetic and excited about their music connecting with people. He also immediately takes the lead on plans for the night.
- Alex is anxious about his own abilities, and is sweet and polite to Rose and the hotdog vendor.
- Reggie is supportive and encouraging of his band-mates, while also flirting with Rose and the Sunset Curve fans.
- Bobby lies to make himself look better in front of Rose, and is the only band member not bothered about spending time together before the show.
- Establishing Series Moment: The show starts off with a band performing at the rehearsal. Then they consume hot dogs that gave them food poisoning. Then forward to 25 years later, a teenage girl named Julie finds and plays a Sunset Curve CD and unintentionally summons the three deceased Sunset Curve members as ghosts. Despite her initial fear, Julie allows them to stay and is inspired by them to make music again, playing a song by her mother on the piano. This moment sets the tone for every episode in the series.
- The Food Poisoning Incident: Luke, Reggie, and Alex suffer this at the start, breaking up the band before they could even stage a first performance.
- Foreshadowing: A lot of Bobby's actions - his first concern being no one saw their great performance, lying to Rose about being a vegetarian, and trying to get rid of the other band members so he can flirt - foreshadows his focus on fame, willingness to lie to get what he wants, and lack of loyalty to his friends.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: When Luke, Reggie and Alex sit down to eat their hotdogs there's a Missing Person poster with Luke's picture on it on the wall behind them.
- I See Dead People: Julie is seemingly the only living person who can see Luke, Alex, and Reggie, although Alex bumps into a mysterious man while walking near the Orpheum.
- Jacob Marley Apparel: The Sunset Curve boys are still wearing the same clothes they did when they died.
- Purgatory and Limbo: The "black room" where Luke, Alex, and Reggie are sent after their deaths is implied to be a limbo of some sort.
- Sole Survivor: Bobby among the Sunset Curve, as he declines to eat hotdogs.
- Show, Don't Tell: Julie's mother is Rose, the waitress the Sunset Curve meet at the start whom they give a copy of their demo (it's the one Julie uses to summon them, in fact). This is never stated in the dialogue, however.
- Year Outside, Hour Inside: The Sunset Curve boys think that they spent an hour at the black room after they died, only to be informed by Julie that it's been 25 years since the band broke up.
