Welcome to TV or Not TV where I will sincerely miss The Piemaker.
As a long time fan of Bryan Fuller‘s I suppose I was almost genetically pre-disposed to like Pushing Daisies. The characters were quirky, the dialogue snappy, and the show existed in a world so vibrant that you almost wished you could live in it.
Saturday on ABC at 10 PM, as noted below, marks the final new episode of Pushing Daisies that will air. (Insert narration by Jim Dale here) In the matter of the final episode of Pushing Daisies, the facts are these…
The original intent of this final episode was to end on a cliff-hanger, as this was not meant to be the final episode, and this cliff-hanger was a very well thought out and incredible cliff-hanger that would have every Pushing Daisies fan salivating for the next episode. Sadly the producers of the show found themselves with a cancellation and no funds available to re-shoot their ending, now a series finale, and they were left with a dilemma. How could they deliver a feeling of closure with little to no budget?
After you see the ending of this episode, however, you will know where the television and movie making term “I’ll fix it in post” comes from, for the creator of the show was a very ingenious man. In the face of cancellation and knowing his ending had to be one that did not hang cliffs but instead must warm hearts, he was able to cobble together an ending from footage already shot and he must have also thrown himself upon the good graces of one Jim Dale to provide the final narration that tied these images together into something that does in fact bring a happy ending to this amazing yet network rejected show. (end Jim Dale style narration)
I will sincerely miss Pushing Daisies. I don’t think I’ll really understand how the show, which was met with quite a lot of critical acclaim, fell by the way side so quickly. I have used the Writer’s Strike as an easy scape goat for quite a lot of things, but I really do think that Pushing Daisies was definitely a casualty of the war between the writers and the studios. The shows first series run definitely felt cut short, so much so that it was almost hard to remember what had transpired before when it finally did come back on. I also think that ABC wasn’t really behind the show once it came back and that’s why there wasn’t a lot of advertising around the shows return.
In the end the answer really doesn’t matter since it really is a numbers game, one that is dictated by the now outdated Neilsen Ratings system. A show I love is gone, it won’t be aired on broadcast television again, and the TV airwaves will be just a little emptier. I’m just glad Bryan Fuller was able to give us a happy ending instead of a frustrating and empty cliff-hanger that would never pay off.
Now that I’ve drolled on enough about the exit of TV’s forensic fantasy, let’s take a look at what is on deck for this week’s viewing.
MONDAY
TLC – 9:00 PM: Emiril Lagasse shows up on Jon & Kate Plus 8 to remind us he’s still around.
BrAVO – 10:00 PM: Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List is back for another season. I miss the imbezzling husband. Too bad this great show is premiering up against…
SHO – 10:00 PM: Weeds is back, but is it better than ever? I’ve seen the first three episodes, and sadly I don’t think so. Really hoping they round it out before the end because this used to be one of my favorite shows.
TUESDAY
HIST – 8:00 PM: Get your check list ready and see how many of The Seven Signs of the Apocalypse have happened around us.
FOX – 9:00 PM: Mental features David Carradine this week. Watching this now is going to be real awkward.
WEDNESDAY
ABC – 8:00 PM: Four words to ensure that you may not move from 8 to 10: four hours of Wipeout.
E! – 10:00 PM: The E! True Hollywood Story: Patrick Swayze will remind you exactly why you don’t put baby in a corner and why we thought he’d be bigger.
THURSDAY
USA – 9:00 PM: Wow, can’t beleive I missed last week’s season premiere of Burn Notice. I know where I’ll be tonight.
CARTOON NETWORK- 9:00 PM: If you were a fan of the animated Total Drama Island than you will want to check out the new show set in an abandoned movie-studio back lot on Total Drama Action.
MTV – 10:00 PM: Can’t muster up the strength to talk to your teen daughter about “safe sex”? DVR 16 and Pregnant and make it required viewing every week.
FRIDAY
VH-1 – 9:00 PM: Haven’t watched Kendra featuring the former Girl Next Door? Catch two episodes back-to-back.
ABC – 9:00 PM: Even though it’s been cancelled for next season I still enjoy Samantha Who? and will enjoy the back-to-back episodes tonight.
SATURDAY
NBC – 8:00 PM: Wait, Kings is still on? Who knew? (Not many according to the ratings.)
ABC – 8:00 PM: The Haunted Mansion proves that you can’t turn every Disney ride into a successful movie.
A&E – 8:00 PM: I remember seeing The Fugitive at the Chinese Theater in LA. It blew me away.
ABC – 10:00 PM: This is it, the series finale of Pushing Daisies. It wasn’t the strongest episode for the show to go out on but at least they were able to bring closure for us devoted fans.
SUNDAY
HBO – 9:00 PM: Really, do I have to recommend anything else other than True Blood‘s season premiere tonight?
NBC – 8:00 PM: Mentioning 10.5: Apocalypse as an alternative viewing choice to True Blood is like telling you to have a bowl of lint instead of ice cream. Hey, I can’t just recommend one thing tonight. It’s in my contract. Don’t hate.
– Will Wilkins is amazed how few choices there are right now.
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