Ok, so last night I put Pushing Daisies on my list of three things that are awesome. I just watched the second episode and am a little unsure of my prior pronouncement.
Problem 1: Chi McBride. He played the tough as nails principle on Boston Common (and on an episode of Boston Legal). He played the tough as nails millionaire benefactor on the first season of House. And he's playing the tough as nails private investigator on Pushing Daisies. Anyway, it doesn't really matter who he is playing, I don't really like him. I know I'm being a little hard on him, as I've only seen him in two episodes, but I don't really see him being much different from the characters I have seen him play historically. I don't really see him doing anything interesting with the character.
Problem 2: The show appears to be a murder mystery show. But the mysteries so far have been of Monk-like caliber where you more or less have them figured out by the time they introduce the first suspect. Again, I've only seen two episodes, but I kind of have a feeling that this is going to be representative for the rest of the series because I'm kind of a genius.
I'm going to watch the third episode before I go on. Wait a second.
Ok I watched the third episode, and it's not that the mysteries themselves are dumb (the one in the second episode was though) it's that they wrap them up in sort of lame flashbacks.
Problem 3: Everything and everyone in the show is a little too adorable.
The show is like Murder She Wrote if it was directed by Tim Burton, but not Sleepy Hollow Tim Burton, Big Fish Tim Burton (which isn't really a good comparison, because Big Fish Tim Burton has only made one movie, Big Fish, whereas Sleepy Hollow Tim Burton is responsible for every other movie in Tim Burton's career). The point is I can't really figure this show out. It's quirky, but without rules to it's quirkyness. Wonderfalls was quirky, but it had rules. Pushing Daisies doesn't have a lot of hard and fast rules, except for the three that have been stated at the beginning of every episode so far (one touch brings them back, a second touch kills them again, and if something is brought back for more than a minute something else has to die). Other than that... not so much. It's a world where a body that bad been dead in the ocean for a while, suffered little to no sign of decomposition, then it goes to a mortuary and isn't preserved in any way noticeable, because when the love interest is brought back from the dead, she shows no signs of being worse for wear, she doesn't complain of having all of her organs sucked out. I mean, I understand that would sort of make it a bit more disgusting for her and the main character to have a physical relationship, but they never even address these points in the show.
All the dialogue on the show is quick and witty, but the stories for the murder mystery parts of the show seem kind of forced and dumb. Aesthetically the show seems to be geared toward women, but then every female character wears extremely low cut shirts (which, I assume, is for the male viewers). I guess it's a case of trying to be everything for everyone. Overall I like the show, but it perplexes me.
I just read that the girl who plays Chuck on the show is David Thewlis's (Professer RJ Lupin) ladyfriend. Way to go Mr. Thewlis. Anyway, I'm going to bed because I'm tired and it's past my bed time.
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