"Pushing Daisies" (2007) TV series 2007-2009

User Rating:

8.5/10   

Creator:

Bryan Fuller

Seasons:

1 | 2

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Mystery | Romance

Tagline:

life. death. and life again.

Plot:

A man has the power to bring dead people back to life.

Plot Keywords:

Minute | Murder | Pie | Death | Restaurant

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Golden Globes. Another 14 wins & 31 nominations

Cast

Lee Pace	...	Ned (22 episodes, 2007-2009)
Anna Friel	...	Charlotte 'Chuck' Charles (22 episodes, 2007-2009)
Chi McBride	...	Emerson Cod (22 episodes, 2007-2009)
Jim Dale	...	Narrator (22 episodes, 2007-2009)
Ellen Greene	...	Vivian Charles (22 episodes, 2007-2009)
Swoosie Kurtz	...	Lily Charles (22 episodes, 2007-2009)
Kristin Chenoweth	...	Olive Snook (22 episodes, 2007-2009)
Field Cate	...	Young Ned (22 episodes, 2007-2009)
Kelly Ebsary	...	Mrs. Biggs (13 episodes, 2008-2009)
Jesse Heiman	...	Master Biggs (13 episodes, 2008-2009)
James McMann	...	Mr. Biggs (13 episodes, 2008-2009)
Sy Richardson	...	Coroner (12 episodes, 2007-2009)

Runtime:

60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

South Korea:12 | Singapore:PG (season 1) (season 2) | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Jinks/Cohen Company

Trivia:

Based on a rejected plotline for "Dead Like Me" (2003) where Ellen Muth's character couldn't collect any souls because somebody was resurrecting them with a touch.

Quotes:

Emerson Cod: You can't die of evilness.
Charlotte 'Chuck' Charles: Happens all the time; you do something mean or hurtful to someone like tell a secret... Bang! You're dead.
Olive Snook: Or bang! You're not really dead, you're just pretending to be dead while other people who think you're dead are heartbroken.
Emerson Cod: Or bang! You talk too much and you both go wait in the car.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The 61st Primetime Emmy Awards (2009) (TV)

Quirky... in a good way

When I first saw this advertised on television I thought it might be a fun little show, I didn't think it would be something I'd want to own on DVD though... I soon realised that this was something special; the colours are all brighter than normal, the dialogue is more wordy than people really use and the plot is surreal to say the least. All these things could have lead to a disaster but it worked perfectly for me. The cast did a great job bringing their surreal world to life.

Ned isn't like ordinary people; he can bring the dead back to life with a single touch, there are two major catches though, if he touches that person a second time they will die forever and if he leaves a person alive for more than a minute somebody else nearby must die. Using this skill he is able to help private detective Emerson Cod by questioning murder victims. Things change for Ned when one of the victims he revives is his childhood sweetheart Charlotte "Chuck" Charles. He can't bring himself to touch her again which apart from causing somebody else's death leads to a very difficult relationship between them. When Ned isn't dealing with dead people he cooks in The Pie Hole, the pie-restaurant he owns.

Most of the episodes are of the murder-of-the-week variety although there are some continuing threads to the story. The murders are never anything normal; their strangeness reminded me of the 1960s series "The Avengers". As well as having two great leading characters the supporting cast does a great job, I especially liked Kristin Chenoweth's portrayal of the diminutive Olive Snook a Pie Hole employee with a soft spot for Ned but who does not know his strange secret.

It is a shame that the series was cut short but I'm glad that it was given a proper ending even if there were a few loose ends left untied the main story had nice conclusion. This series won't be for everybody but if you want to watch something a bit different I'd recommend giving this show a chance.