The Pie Hole

Dead Like Me was a show created by Bryan Fuller that aired on Showtime for a very short two seasons. It starred Ellen Muth as the newly dead 'George' who finds out death definitely isn't the end when she is recruited (more like involuntarily volunteered...) as a reaper of souls. The show also stars Mandy Patinkin (of Princess Bride fame [My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.]) as the lead reaper of the group, Rube. Jasmine Guy as Roxy the rough yet lovable and always gorgeous meter-maid/reaper. Callum Blue as Mason, the... British comic relief, and Laura Harris as Daisy [Daisy Adair], whose character is neither deep nor interesting.

In the show the characters take the souls of people who die, or more often than not and certainly more preffered before they die to lead them to their afterlife. Whilst doing so they often end up finding out new  things about themselves and each other in odd yet quirky ways. The deaths are always strange yet often hilarious. There isn't much of a story so the only thing that keeps you going episode to episode is your love for the characters, and some of these characters you will genuinely love.

My love of all things Bryan Fuller might make you think I'm biased, but it may interest you to know that Bryan dropped from the show just four episodes into season one. You can kind of tell, too, because the humor becomes a little more vapid and the show itself just a little less whimsical. Regardless, this is a good show to watch, especially if you're like me and enjoy life  even when it seems like you're doing nothing with it. The way death, and the life after, are approached in this show are strangely uplifting. When they take the souls from people who are about to die, they get to watch themselves meet their own demise, and the vast majority are fine with it. There's also something really comforting to the idea that someone will be there to help you cope before sending you on to the afterlife.

As I said earlier, there really isn't much of a story here sans a few short character sub-stories, so it's the love of the characters that push you through. George is easily the most relateable as everything she says has often crossed our minds at one point or another. Rube is more of a character you watch to see what's up with him.. what is he really thinking or what are the real reasons for his actions? The others; Roxy, Mason, and Daisy, are not as deep but you know the show wouldn't be the same without them and their effect on George. There was a character in the first four or five episodes, Betty (played by Rabecca Gayheart), that seemed like she was going to be a real interesting character but was cut short for some reason which still makes me sad.

Again, this show is really good for the most part, and definitely deserves a watch if you have the time but if not, there are better shows (COUGHPUSHINGDAISIESCOUGH). Since I've been drenched in the world of Bryan Fuller recently, I figured I would keep going with his work so you can look forward to a review on Pushing Daisies, Wonderfalls, or Heroes sometime in the near future. Until then, my friends, don't let something as trivial as death get you down.