julie and the phantoms my beloved

is a Netflix young adult musical TV show that i love more than anything on god's green earth.

Julie and the Phantoms is about Julie, a modern day teen whose mom, a musician, recently passed away, leading Julie to lose all passion for music. Also, there's a trio of boys, Luke, Reggie, and Alex, from a 90s rock band called Sunset Curve who all died in 1995 right before the big concert that was going to make them famous. Julie accidentally summons the ghosts of the boys and is the only one who can see them. The boys help Julie rediscover her love of music, and the group finds out that the ghosts become visible to the living whenever they perform with her. It's a really fun cute silly show about music and I've watched it 7 times.

it is created by kenny ortega the GOAT (director of high school musical, hocus pocus, descendants, etc) so you know it HITS. it is based on a Brazilian Nickelodeon show called Julie e os Fantasmas, which released in 2011! In the original, the Phantoms are a more punk/goth rock band called Apolo 81 and died in the '80s, not the '90s. their names are Daniel, Felix, and Martim and stylistically they look freaking insane they're like comically emo.

the show was cancelled after only one season, i think probably because of its unfortunate release in september 2020 - allegedly there were high ambitions of promoting the show and the cast via live music events that were totally destroyed because of the pandemic :(. it really is a tragedy because this show had so much potential and so much love and care was put into it by kenny ortega, the cast, and the entire crew & production team. it ended on a cliffhanger too and allegedly a season 2 was written, so this show was really killed unjustly before its time. rest in peace, julie and the phantoms. i will always remember you <3 ~~let me read the season 2 script i promise i will sign an nda please~~

meet the characters!

JULIE: our main character, lead vocalist and pianist for julie and the phantoms. grieving the recent loss of her mom, is the only person who can see the phantoms. played by Madison Reyes - this was her first acting role EVER can you believe it, what a star.

LUKE: the phantoms' guitarist and lead vocalist. died in 1995, main love interest for julie. like if a puppy became a human - stubborn but sweet and energetic and too cute for his own good. played by Charlie Gillespie.

REGGIE: the phantoms' bassist. died in 1995, pure of heart, dumb of ass. played by Jeremy Shada, who, fun fact, is also the voice of finn the human in adventure time!!

ALEX: the phantoms' drummer. died in 1995, gay icon and chronic overthinker. simultaneously "the sensitive one" and the most sarcastic of the group. played by Owen Patrick Joyner.

FLYNN: julie's bff. style ICON, "the crazy glue of best friends". learns about the phantoms in episode 3 and becomes their marketing team. played by Jadah Marie.

WILLIE: alex's love interest, a fellow ghost. skater boi. works for caleb and betrays the boys, but against his will and works to help them in the end. played by Booboo Stewart.

CARRIE: julie's rival & former friend. high school mean girl & leader of the girl group Dirty Candi. dating julie's crush, nick, but isn't a very good girlfriend. played by Savannah May.

CALEB: evil evil villain ghost. owns the Hollywood Ghost Club. died in the 1920s and wants the boys to be in his house band. played by Cheyenne Jackson.

i love this show for really fostering such an amazing friendship between them. the band has so much chemistry and the most cutie patootie friendship off-set and it just makes me smile :) peace and love on planet earth

music!

this is a tv show about music so obviously the music is like one of the most important parts. every inch of this show is so full of love for music and i adore it because of that. every song is so energetic and filled with purpose and i listen to it whenever i feel sad, this soundtrack is my mental illness album and my spotify wrapped is fucked.

the show is a musical but all but 3 of the songs are diegetic (meaning they are performances actually taking place in the world and not musical interpretations of inner thoughts/feelings). since all of the characters are musicians, we get a bunch of different musical flavors from all of the different performers.

click on the song name to see the music number and read my thoughts! --->

Now or Never - sung by Sunset Curve (the 1995 band consisting of Luke, Reggie, Alex, and 4th member Bobby), performed during their sound check for their big break concert, which the main trio never makes it to because they die RIP. total banger, if they hadn't died they could have been the next green day or something idk

Wake Up - sung by Julie. In universe, this song was written by her mom before she passed, and this moment is the first time Julie is able to play it. A very pretty song!! I saw an interview where Charlie said that the Phantoms' music in the rest of the show is a musical unification of Now or Never and Wake Up. Both songs are represent their reflective characters' musical language so well and you can really hear these influences for the rest of the show!

This Band is Back - sung by the Phantoms. Since they're ghosts, the people on the beach can hear them, but not see them. My favorite part is the guy who really confidently and incorrectly mansplains bluetooth.

Wow - sung by Dirty Candi. Dirty Candi is inspired by Kpop and Y2K girl groups, and I think its really fun!! I also need these costumes so bad!!

Bright - sung by Julie and the Phantoms. Their first song as a group, and also, fun fact, the first song these actors performed together, since it was their final callback song!! the Netflix youtube has a really adorable video of their final callback and annoucement of their casting, it's so wholesome and makes this song so much better imo. You can tell that they have a special bond surrounding this song specifically.

Flying Solo - sung by Julie and the Phantoms, written about and for Flynn. One of my favorites, i enjoy a good reveal and i think it's such a sweet moment.

I Got the Music - fantasy sequence by Julie (with a feature from Flynn). representation of julie's newfound confidence and artistic passion, with the sickest costumes in the show. Flynn's rap section and the dance break crack me up a little. this is the song where you can see kenny ortega's direction style the most clearly imo.

The Other Side of Hollywood - sung by Caleb, the 1920s villain ghost and his band at the Hollywood Ghost Club. the most theater-kid song in the show. my controversial opinion is that i think this is the most mid song in the show, and i lowkey don't fully buy that luke, alex, and reggie with their rocker sensibilities would be super into this.

All Eyes on Me - sung by Dirty Candi. Cutest silliest physical comedy bit in the show, I heart Alex and the bts photos of him and Savannah (Carrie) for this episode are really adorable. Not featured in this video, but after the song Julie and Flynn compliment Carrie's musical talents, which I think is nice. Just because they're rivals and has a very different musical style doesn't mean that Carrie's music is bad, and I like that the show doesn't disparage her genre.

Finally Free - sung by Julie and the Phantoms, and my favorite song on the soundtrack. idk what it is, but this one just tickles my brain in a extra special way. very cute rock and roll vibes and also i love julie's outfit in this one.

Perfect Harmony - a fantasy sequence between Luke and Julie while julie is daydreaming about her crush on luke. fun fact - this song was written by Madison Reyes and Charlie Gillespie, the actors who play julie and luke! They were inspired by high school musical, which yeah. i love that kenny ortega and the creative team fostered such a supportive, collaborative musical environment and welcomed the actor's artistic contributions into the show <3

Edge of Great - sung by Julie and the Phantoms. I love the setting and outfits in this scene!! also the running bit throughout the song that julie is trying to avoid eye contact with luke through the entire thing lol. the studio recording cuts the call and response bit with Julie and Lukes's guitar and i think that's a crime because it's the BEST.

Unsaid Emily - fantasy sequence sung by Luke of a song he wrote for his mom before he died. SAD SAD SAD, but a really sweet and beautiful song.

Nothing to Lose - sung by Caleb, with instrumental performances by the Phantoms as Caleb posesses them and forces them to join his band. I like the gradual introduction of the boys as Caleb forces them a lot.

Stand Tall - sung by Julie and the Phantoms. AAAAAA!!! their final performance at the orpheum!! at the top of the number, julie thinks the ghosts have been zapped out of existence, and the emotions at seeing them gradually appear and regain their strength to play with her makes my brain go brrrr. big smile happy song, it's such a good finale.

*note about the soundtrack: for some reason they overproduced some of the songs on the album so they sound way different than they do on the show, including really stripping down the original electric guitar, bass, and drums in favor of electronic additions (looking mostly at Bright, Flying Solo, Finally Free, & Edge of Great), whereas the show is actually pretty loyal in mostly only including the instruments that are being played during the performance scenes (mostly). i don't know why they did this and because of this, i think the album is vastly inferior to the actual musical scenes in the show.

little moments & details i love

here is a transcription of the article about sunset curve julie googles in the first episode because it is so comical to me:

Sunset Curve: A Hollywood Tragedy.

July 29, 1995

Last week the music industry lost an up and coming band that would have taken the world by story and topped the charts. Sunset Curve was a local band out of Hollywood having sold out its showcase on Saturday. Unfortunately, the band never made it to the stage.

Three of its members, Luke, Alex, and Reggie tragically died when they ate bad street hot dogs. It was supposed to be their biggest night, opening live at The Orpheum Theatre on Sunset Strip. They were only 17. There was a surviving band member, Bobby, but no one has been able to track him down and talk to him about his friends dying that fateful night. The band had a demo with four songs: Now or Never, Late Last Night, Lakeside Reflection, and In Your Starlight. They were a young and talented group that would have left their mark on the music scene. Rest in peace, Sunset Curve.

July 29th was a Saturday, so according to this the boys died on July 22nd, 1995.

luke is addicted to sharing the mic when performing and it's so cute how he tries to gesture for julie to come share his mic during "edge of great" and gets sad when she blatantly ignores him

what is happening here. why do they hold hands all weird when they get startled by julie's dad (who, may i add, CAN'T SEE THEM) and then never address it ever again. literally what the hell is going on

i love how in episode 9 the music promoter says that their youtube video has "half a million hits in just 2 days" and then it immediately cuts to a shot where you can clearly see that the video has 211k views. not quite girl

fun fact! there is an incredibly random julie and the phantoms novella (which of course I have read because I am insane) that is pretty much just dual flashbacks to a memory of julie's mom & the day the boys died. and in the novella it is implied that alex's homophobic parents think that alex and luke are fucking. what!!!

these two. crazy behavior.

willie's helmet has a crack in it because he died from being hit by a car. dark but fun detail!

incredibly cute julie and reggie air-fistbump

there's a missing person poster for luke behind the guys right before they die in the intro to episode 1! also, a band called "unfinished business" playing at the orpheum... cute foreshadowing!!

💖💜💙

also - i am a professional theater electrician and i want everybody to know that during the performances in episde 6 "finally free", the smaller round top lights are Martin MAC Aura smart fixtures and the big moving lights in the center and on the floor are Martin MAC Encores. i'm embarrassed that this is the kind of thing i notice

costume design corner!

The costumes in Julie and the Phantoms were designed by Soyon An, who is incredibly talented. She put so much care and artistry into the outfits for this show so i want to highlight my appreciation for some of my favorite looks!!

julie

episode 1

EXCELLENT fit & julie's first look of the show that gets a criminally short screen time. the customized jeans and the car print top are just *MWAH* chef's kiss. perfect primary color coordination.

episode 6

this ADORABLE blue dress look is my favorite julie outfit in the show. i love the little blue bandana headband and herpoofy down hair

episode 6

julie's finally free outfit, which is so cute!! i love the turquoise! also fun fact, the vest she wears is the same one her mom rose wears in the first episode, with paint deco added!!

episode 1

i'm obsessed with this yellow sweater and the random embroidery all over it. what the hell is that font?? why are there only red stripes on one sleeve?? did julie embroider that 1 and star herself?? holes in the elbows?? i want it so bad.

also i love this hairstyle with the dutch braids into low ponytails and her cutie patootie glasses. 10/10 fit i might try and diy this sweater some day

episode 7

also another iconic fit from "edge of great". i love the cargo pants and the butterfly motif, its symbolic of julie's personal character growth and also looks cool so win/win.

particular shout-out to the the "i got the music" sequence, it is soooo fun style-wise. all julie does is change her jacket and hair/hat throughout the song while keeping the same base of the blue top and white torn jeans. it's just so visually yummy to see how adaptable this one look can be. i love the cape with the embroidered virgin mary and the silver half-kilt thingy tied around her waist especially.

^ soyon's concept art for "i got the music"! ^

episode 9

and of course, the big final costume: julie's stand tall dress!! this costume is absolutely iconic for good reason. the dress is a legit vintage dress from the 80s, though the leather jacket is from forever 21 lmao. it has been bedazzled to be thuroughly julie-ified. i don't know what i can say that it worthy of this outfit: just look at it. look at it!!

episode 4

episode 9

fun fact! Julie's hairstyle in her daydream musical sequence in episode 4 is the same hairstyle she wears for the Orpheum concert in episode 9! symbolic of baby girl making her dreams into reality i love her sm. also! the ribbons in her hair are pink, blue, and red, which are alex, luke, and reggie's signature colors respectively

also check out the doodled-on shoes! very full of personality!!

i am enthralled by julie and flynn's bracelets in this show. sometimes on rewatches i will just pause on close-ups of julie's hands and look at them. maybe it's because they're such a distinctive and expressive touch to their costume design that feels so unique to me. i also love that julie, the piano player, expresses so much of herself through her hands.

the boys

i think that the boys' costumes are the biggest display of soyon an's skills as a costume designer. the phantoms' clothing was crafted to look very clearly 90s but in a subtle way, so they looked like the time period they're from without being over-the-top caricatures. their outfits demonstrate real knowledge of 90s trends without looking dated!

in interviews (1,2), soyon an said that each boy's style was based on a different facet of 90s rock culture.

each boy gets a signature color that their outfits call back to: alex is pink, reggie is red, and luke is blue. and, most importantly, the phantoms are a unit, so they all always wear black pants so they match!

episode 1

episode 2

episode 2

episode 6

episode 7

episode 5

episode 9

episode 7

luke

luke's style is the most effortlessly "cool rock star" of the trio. he dresses a little vintage with his band tees and trenchcoat, of which the blue tie-die one was custom made to look diy!

after julie, luke is my secondmost kindred spirit style-wise. i am a CONNOISSEUR of the sleeveless muscle tee (someone needs to take away my scissors). luke is a little fashionista with an unreasonably massive graphic tee collection and i relate to that on a deep and personal level.

luke's episode 1 Rush shirt is everything i need in life. as you might know, most tv shows & movies will use generic graphic tees since they need permission/rights to use a trademarked design, but they got Rush's permission to use their logo! kind of a similar thing happened with alex's Whitney Houston shirt, but they were only allowed to use her name and no imagery of her face.

i am also enamored with luke's belt chain with his little dinosaur wallet and blue lucky rabbit's foot that he wears in every single episode. the dino wallet says "retro gamer" on the back which is simply hilarious. and fun fact, the blue rabbit foot is actually modeled after charlie gillespie's personal lucky rabbit's foot!

fidget fidget

reggie

reggie's look is very directly inspired by that traditional james dean, marlon brando classic rock look, with the ripped jeans and leather jacket and the leather boots. i like that reggie has the look with clearly the most effort put into it, like he really cares about his persona as a rock star. he's the most impressionable so his look is the most influenced and the least "original". BUT! he also has his red flannel, which is very 90s and very him

alex

alex's style is meant to focus of the more "athleisure" trends of the 90s, with his looks being the most on-trend for the time. cargo pants, the fanny pack across the chest, the stupid little tall socks (god i LOVE alex's tall socks OVER the pant cuffs). alex is the most 90s stylish and honestly good for him.

i am a big fan of alex's recurring outerwear, especially the black ripped denim jacket and the pink hoodie. they are both so quintisentially him and i like that he and reggie both wear their same few jackets all the time like normal people.

i <3 alex's whitney houston shirt

i loove that the boys outfit-repeat a little. luke has the most costume changes because, as a runaway, he was literally living in the garage in the 90s so all of his belongings were there. alex repeats outfits a little more, and reggie is the biggest outfit repeater, probably because he had the most reliable home life and likely didn't keep many belongings in the garage. a subtle storytelling note that i might be reading waaay too deeply into but isn't that what an obsessive shrine is for?

episode 9

the finale outfits also eat down. they are forced into these clothes by caleb, and i like how they shed the constricting layers of the fits and make them their own during the finale (of course luke loses the jacket and is sleeveless. this man has a sleeve allergy). fun fact, reggie's black shirt is vintage gucci and alex's lacy shirt is vintage versace! also reggie's red vest has ladybug buttons!!!

flynn

episode 1

big fan of flynn's holo purple jacket. also, as shall be further demonstrated, flynn is the QUEEN of the visible bike shorts and i am fascinated by this choice of bike shorts under regular denim cutoffs. also her belt says "BELT" on it which is iconic.

episode 6

episode 7

2 more fav looks. i need the episode 6 camo fuzzy sweater in my life. also shoutout to her puppy purse, which she carries in almost every episode and is really cute and quirky. i also love the episode 7 top.

episode 2

more iconic biker shorts from flynn! she wears this same pair with the rainbow stripes in both episodes 2 and 6! i love an outfit repeat detail, it just adds that extra bit of realism that i eat right up

episode 6

carrie

episode 2

i looove the dirty candi fits from episode 2 (and yes, it is candi with an i - and the i is a lollipop!). sick transparent custom jacket + sparkly pants combo supreme. the waistbands of their pants says the name of their high school isn't that just the MOST. also these girls are so freaking cutie. if i were in dirty candi i'd wanna be the orange one.

this is some of the concept art of carrie's looks in the show. i'm really interested in how her 1st dirty candi look used to be more multicolored before it was split into monochrome. i also love her 2nd dirty candi look from episode 6, it's so frothy and cute!

episode 6

if anybody who worked on Julie and the Phantoms, expecially in the costume department, ever reads this, please email me olliveeny@gmail.com i want to talk so bad (and also if the bracelets still exist out there somewhere you should send me one ok byeee)

julie and the phantoms and me

so, why am i so rabidly obsessed with this teen show that came out years ago and was subsequentially cancelled? well, aside from the fact that it's a show about music and fashion, 2 of my favorite things, this show really resonates with me as a story about the loss and rediscovery of passion. i know what it's like to lose that artistic spark, to find yourself struggling to create when it used to be second nature, and i find so much comfort in this story about characters coming together and supporting each other through loss and hardship and making art as a found family together as a result. this is a show about giving yourself a second chance. also i have this whole morbid fascination with ghosts thing going on, so there's that too.

this show is something special and i hope that, even though we will never get season 2, it will live on in the hearts of mentally unstable people like me forever <3

table of contents!

moments & details i love

costume design corner

julie & the phantoms & me