Standard network television is no place to showcase brilliance, not these days anyway. There are a handful of television shows that could be described as pure genius captured on video - Pushing Daisies is one of those shows. While it ran only about 2 and a half seasons on ABC from 2007 to 2009, it is still a joy to go back and watch. One can only imagine the heights it might have soared to if the network had allowed the plot to mature over several more seasons.
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Another short-lived yet brilliant piece of television
Pushing Daisies is a modern American fairy tale, complete with mythical characters and a surreal vision of the world splashed with brilliant colors. Mythical they may be, but all this show's characters are real on a level that is both intimate and sublime. The premise of the show is unusual, but then again most fairy tales are - there is a man named Ned or the "Pie-maker." He has the ability to bring back things from the dead by touch but only for 60 seconds or else something else similar will die to take its place. Also, if he allows the dead thing he touched to remain alive he cannot ever touch it again else it will fall dead instantly.
Needless to say Ned falls in love with a girl he's revived from the dead, so he can never touch her again. Their relationship presents a number of challenges, but their love endures nonetheless. In the meantime he uses his unique talents to salvage rotten fruit for making pies at his bakery (called the Pie Hole) and for solving crimes by reviving the dead for 60 seconds or less to ask them how they expired.
Pushing Daisies was like the Wizard of Oz of contemporary television
The entire cast of Pushing Daisies is nothing short of phenomenal. Lee Pace and Anna Friel bring the Fairy Tale to life and a host of other fascinating characters pile on many layers of depth and surprises to the already mesmerizing presentation. Of particular note is Kristin Chenoweth as the tiny, love struck third wheel at the Pie Hole whose voice belies her petite frame (we've included two of her songs on the post). Then there's The Darling Mermaid Darlings, a distraught pair of former synchronized swimmers who are now afraid to leave the house. Swoosie Kurtz and Ellen Green are the dynamic duo who represent what's left of Dead Girl's (Friel) family. They may be two of the most enduring and charismatic characters in modern television.
Perhaps the greatest joy of this movie is the mastery and pure joy of the English language that is infused into every episode. Clever or intelligent writing is so rare these days - so much of what comes out our end of the the flat-screen is formula-driven drivel. Not so here. Then again, Bryan Fuller is not your ordinary producer / director. He was involved with Star Trek Deep Space Nine and also created Dead Like Me, and Wonderfalls. So far he's batting a 1000. He's got two new series coming out soon so we'll see if he can maintain this streak of brilliance. In the meantime, it seems as though there is at least a glimmer of a chance that Pushing Daisies may end up on Starz as a new mini-series - hopefully someday soon.
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