Pushing Daisies

"Pushing Daisies" was a marvelously original show--so much so that it had to fail. After all, good television is like the sentiment 'no good deed goes unpunished'! And, like a wonderful show, it manages to start off with a real bang--with an episode that keeps you wanting more.

Apparently, the idea for "Pushing Daisies" was originally a plot idea for "Dead Like Me"--another show so good that it quickly failed. In the show, they had planned to have the reapers learn that some of their victims had mysteriously returned to life--the result of a guy with magical life-giving powers. Well, the idea was re-tooled for this ABC series and was done independently of "Dead Like Me". However, unlike "Dead Like Me" the atmosphere, costumes and set design had a much more other-worldly appearance--like it was filmed in a magical fictional land--full of LOTS of primary and secondary colors! I could try to explain the series, but frankly it defies explanations. Plus, IMDb has a summary. Instead, lets' focus specifically on what they got right...other than everything (which is true but a bit vague). The characters are exquisitely written and easy to love...very easy to love. The dialog is even better--very, very snappy, intelligently written and clever. And the plots generally very good--specifically so in this pilot. In this case the entire lore of Ned's magical powers is explained as well as the set-up for the series--his partner Emerson (my favorite character), how he accidentally brought Chuck (a girl) back to life as well as his strange but lovable employee (Olive).

Flawless acting, unique stories, and visual eye candy.

This has to be one of the best examples of what TV should (and essentially) could be if you put it in the hands of real talent. Everyone behind and front of the scenes is working grade A performances. Lee Pace and gang have never fit so perfectly in an ensemble using each of their unique talents to deliver some of the best dialog and storytelling.

The visuals are an obvious standout but leave it to Creator Bryan Fuller to not focus entirely on special effects and set design. Instead, he shows the value of great characters and character development through intriguing stories. And that, my fellow Daisy fans, is why this series works so well.

The biggest frustration, of course, is the cancellation. Why would a show this flawless get canceled? What does ABC have to replace it with anyway? It's just a shame.

I highly recommend you buy the series (BluRay is a must for those with HDTVs) and enjoy what you may never see again on TV. Come for the pie - stay for the characters!

This show is addictively wonderful. The writing and acting are fantastic. Funny, touching, and also intrigue all wrapped into one. Be sure to get this into your DVD player and enjoy it from the beginning to the unexpectedly short end. Watch it, watch it, watch it! There are some great characters and great guest appearances that only help add to the endearing aspect of the show. Kudos to the writers for developing a great storyline that only gets better over time. I just don't understand why this wasn't interesting for the American TV public. Bad time? Too quirky? Not enough studio support? I suspect that the production costs were very high, but all parts of the show (directly, special effects, costumes, sets) are great. Thank goodness it's on DVD, and I can only hope that it somehow comes back in one way, shape, or form.

Pushing Daisies is just a lovely fairy tale, with shades of "Amelie"'s aesthetic and romance. It's got a beautiful palette, its shots well thought out and detailed, its names and dialogue whimsical and too cutesy to be real, its imagination great, and its romance deep.

Watch the blue in the sky pop out at you, as blue can't be found in the rest of the sets or shots (with few exceptions).

Watch a weirdly natural and totally satisfying song break out of a scene.

Its score is gorgeous, its cast is supremely likable, there's great music, and the two leading romantic stars can't touch each other or she'll die. How much more sexual tension do you need? (Actually, I had wished they found a way around this one, but c'est la vie).

It is simply a show that it is a pleasure to spend an hour with, and I recommend it highly. There hasn't been other television quite like it, and I would like to see more. It got me through a flu one crappy week, as it makes for good company.

Bring it back!

After having read two or three negative reviews on the main page of IMDb for "Pushing Daisies", and having literally minutes ago finished watching the final episode, I thought it was about time I said what I thought of PD.

First off, to address what some of the issues that I have seen other people having with this show: something along the lines of "I expect the people who have been woken from the dead to have a more realistic reaction". Realistic, on this show ? Pushing Daisies is, truly, pure and utter escapism. It's colour palette, the dialogue used, the scenarios, situations, music: all of it, to me, is just an escape from everyday life. An escape from the mundane and boring. It is here where Pushing Daisies exceeds exceptionally well Pushing Daisies isn't for everyone: A large majority of the television audience don't "get" it, for some people it's just too out there and silly. But for people like me, even from the first episode I watched of it (Season 2's "Frescorts") and I was just blown away by the show. From then on, I bought both the box sets and they have barely been out of my DVD player. Other people I know can't stand it, it really seems to be like Marmite.

The show follows the adventures of Ned, the Piemaker, with a magic finger, who brings back childhood sweetheart Charlotte Charles, works in association with private investigator Emerson Cod, owns the Pie-hole and employs waitress Olive Snook. Completing the main cast members are aunts Lily and Vivian, whom Charlotte (Chuck) is never allowed to see. They live in a fantasy world where the dead are brought back to life, everything is shown with a wonderfully bright splash of colour, and narrated by Jim Dale.

Other than outlining the basics of the show, I really can't praise it much more without saying: Just watch it. Despite being screwed over by the Writer's Guild of America strike, with only 22 episodes ever to be made, it provides wonderful plot twists, story lines, characters and situations while providing (for me) a satisfying ending (yes, I could tell it had been tacked on the end and rushed, but I was still happy with the way it went out). Whether it is creative or just pretentious, for a lot of people (me included) it made the most addictive and wonderful viewing, and I hope for the future of television that more shows like this are created so I'm not left with just 22, 40 minute memories of what true entertainment can be.