Pushing Daisies

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.

"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).

After 10 plus years I still miss this show. Lee Pace was born for this role and Chuck was adorable, but my favorite was Chi McBride. One of the best casts that has been on TV for long time. If it came out now it would be bing heaven. So many characters driven into one storyline, just a joy to watch.

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.

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!