Pushing Daisies: The Legend of Merle McQuoddy

On this episode of Pushing Daisies, Charles Charles is still alive and well-ish thanks to Ned's powers and Chuck's reckless decisions — but let's just say gratitude isn't exactly the first emotion he's showing. Meanwhile, Shane Botwin turns up as the son of a lighthouse operator who's been fried to death on her own spotlight. It may have been one of my favorite Daisies episodes of all time.

Chuck thinks that watching Ned and Charles fight is kind of cute — like she's any other girl whose boyfriend and dad don't get along. She says they can pretend to be the teenagers they never were, the star quarterback and the head cheerleader deep in puppy love, fighting against a dad who's protective and overbearing. But Ned? Ned's not so interested in going toe-to-toe with Charles Charles. Looming over their whole relationship is one uncomfortable little fact: Ned killed Charles (albeit inadvertently). And Charles doesn't seem at all interested in forgiving Ned's adolescent mistakes, dropping little reminders into every interaction (like putting "the last 20 years of my life back" on the grocery list).

This could be bad for Ned, very bad: Word could get out about what he does, and he figures it's not a big leap from there to angry mobs with pitchforks. But Charles has no interest whatsoever in obeying Ned's guide to the "alive-again lifestyle" (which involves things like announcing when you're moving around and, you know, not driving around in public with mummy bandages on your face — or, worse in the case of Charles, without mummy bandages on your face). He can't believe Chuck would choose such a small and restricted life and instead asks her to run away with him, to "choose cake over pie" and go on grand adventures like he promised her as a child. Ultimately, Chuck chooses Ned, but when they head upstairs for the apology they believe is coming from Charles, there's just an ominous note on his empty chair: "I chose, too."

Meanwhile, Olive and Emerson take on the lighthouse case together, which is quirky even by Daisies standards, involving a singing barbershop quartet of raincoat-clad sailors, a castaway rescued by a gay family cruise, and a murderer whose idea of a good time is making dioramas of her dead "notable husband" with glitter everywhere. Frankly, I didn't even bother to follow all its twists and turns — I was just in it for the spectacle. And, ultimately, there's a sweet ending: Olive cracks the case (!) by admitting her still-burning love for Ned, and Emerson tells her that if the Pie Hole ever gets too unpleasant as her crush cavorts with someone else, he has a PI job waiting for her.

Some other thoughts:

Olive's coordinated crime-fighting raincoats are genius! Olives for Olive, cod for Emerson, pies for Ned.

"Sometimes I just think to myself: Life. You can't make this crap up." — Annabelle

Also, "Such a depressing word, diorama." And "'Tis better to have loved and lost than to be you."

And "Shut the a-capel up." What a great episode for one-liners.

So many adorable Ned/Chuck plastic wrap kisses in this episode! I think my favorite, though, is the giant bear hug with the tarp after Ned tells Chuck he understands why she kept Charles alive.

I love Ned's aghast reaction to Charles saying he's not one for chocolate: "Everyone at least tolerates it!"

Will Charles Charles spill Ned's secrets? Are Chuck and Ned (especially Chuck) being too naive in believing that somehow, maybe they'll all be a big, happy family? And why am I not at all surprised that Lily hates clowns?

Pushing Daisies: Comfort Food

On this episode of Pushing Daisies, Chuck stirs up all kinds of trouble in the graveyard, doing the one thing that Ned probably wishes she wouldn't. But Ned doesn't know about it till the very end, because he spends most of the time baking pies and fighting crime with Olive at the annual comfort food cook-off, complete with silly hats. This episode has intrigue, romance, jealousy, and singing.

So, Charles Charles is alive and well-ish, about as well as you can be if you've been buried underground for 20 years. Chuck had her 30 seconds with her dad all planned out, but when push comes to shove, she can't let him go again and devises a devious plan on the spot: If Charles wears a glove, Ned's touch won't work, and he can just play dead until Chuck comes back to dig him out. Great, except: 1) Now there's a dead man who actually looks dead wandering around because of Ned's powers, 2) Someone else had to die to keep Charles alive, and 3) Ned doesn't know about any of this.

Point No. 2 ends up not being such a big deal, though, because the victim of the "alive-againing" is Dwight Dixon, who was waiting in the graveyard to shoot Chuck. He could have killed the whole gang had his surprise not lasted 61 seconds, so to see him go down isn't exactly a shame — but he does give voice to Chuck's guilty conscience, saying that even if she did the right thing, she should have told Ned by now. Add that to Lily once again turning up dangerously close to Chuck's whereabouts, and that was definitely the plot holding my attention for most of the night.

With all of that going on, it was a bit hard to focus on Ned and Olive's plot at the comfort food cookoff — though it was fun to watch the two of them try to solve a case alone. Ned manages to wake up the victim without Olive finding out about his powers, follows clues to nab the murderer, and even wins a blue ribbon at the end, thanks to Olive's plan B of stashing a pie in the fridge. Through it all, Olive's realizing just what a big crush she still has on Ned, so when he reaches for her hand at the end, it's bittersweet — and it's enough to drive Olive back to the Pie Hole kitchen to sing a little "Eternal Flame" while Ned breaks her heart (again) by leaving her with cleanup duties while he searches for Chuck.

Some other thoughts:

The best part of the comfort food cookoff: the crazy costumes! Ned and Olive's pie hats were great, but my favorite was the ice cream cones. Close second may be the Waffle Nazi: "I do not speak a word of German. I speak English with a German accent. Pageantry!"

The Pie Hole's blue ribbon is nearly Olive-sized.

Did anyone else get confused when Dwight started talking to Chuck? In a show with so many dead people talking, it might be nice if the ones who were staying dead could stay quiet too!

Ha, Emerson: "'Less alive'? Nice euphemism, killer."

So, Ned's discovered the still-living Charles Charles, who's set up in the house across from the aunts. How much longer will Chuck's alive-ness remain a secret? And can we get a love interest for Olive so she pines for Ned less (and maybe sings more)?

Pushing Daisies: Robbing Hood

Dwight Dixon is getting dangerously close to the truth about Chuck, tempting Vivian into giving up more details than she should about her niece's tragic death. Meanwhile, the gang investigates a murder that involves do-gooders doing more wrong than good. (Is that a lesson for Ned?)

Wow, the ending of this episode has me feeling anxious. Dwight knows the truth about Chuck being alive (though not "alive again" — I'm guessing he just thinks she faked her own death, but more on that in a second), and with his motives still unclear, Ned finally gives in and offers to wake up Chuck's dad so they can find out what Dwight's after. But as the two of them stand in that graveyard, shoveling dirt, Chuck appears to realize for the very first time what a bad idea this could be. After all, she'll only have a minute for all her questions, and after that, she'll have to watch him die again. Ned says if he'd known what his powers could do, he'd never have woken up his mother; will Chuck just regret this? And will Ned's presence be enough to make it OK? He's done things he knows are wrong out of loyalty before (reanimating his classmate's python and rabbit) — but this episode's mystery shows that doing wrong to make things right isn't always the best call.

Besides, what if Chuck's dad can't tell them anything about Dwight? That man is creepier every day — and the hotel room with all the semi-automatic weapons just takes the cake. Plus, he's already got Vivian's heart, and he knows someone is after him now because of the missing pocket watch. And it's not like he doesn't know where to find Chuck. I'm starting to think Ned's suggestion of skipping town might actually be the best idea.

Meanwhile, the case was good for a bunch of gags, especially Olive dressed as a Zsa Zsa-style princess with Pigby on a leash, sashaying into the Ring for Rights office to set up the aunts for a robbery. Also: setting up the aunts? They really must have been pretty convinced that the robbers weren't actually going to be large, angry men, because I'm pretty sure Ned, Emerson, Lily, Vivian, and Olive couldn't look fearsome if they tried. I loved Chuck's tin-can eavesdropping machine hooked up to the victrola in the living room and the fact that the aunts have turned Chuck's old room into a cheese locker; it also figures that it's Chuck's good heart that lets Rob Wright (heh) get away the first time. There were also a bunch of lovely little moments, including:

Ned's a stress-baker! Perfect, then, that Olive's a stress eater.

Olive: "Counterintelligence via pie delivery — like gossiping with a purpose! My speciality."

Ned doesn't know what a key party is! "It's a kind of raffle." "Of the porno variety." And then, later, "Ohh — I was still really wrong about what I thought that was."

Love Gustav for some reason calling Ned, Emerson, and Chuck "Roger, Elmer, and Sassafras."

The entire idea of Ned in a room full of taxidermied things? Hilarious.

Lily: "An imposition is ordering clams at a kosher deli!"

Pushing Daisies: Oh, Oh, Oh . . . It's Magic

A few weeks back, it was the circus that got a melancholy treatment on Pushing Daisies, and now, it's magic. No cute bunny rabbits and white handkerchiefs here — just a whopping dose of death, daddy issues, and the dastardly Dwight Dixon.

So Ned's half-brothers are magicians ("illuuuuuusionists!"), which has Ned hitting the Tums pretty hard. It's understandable: If my magician dad ditched me, only to go find some other family to love instead, I'd probably have some intestinal distress when forced to watch said loving family perform magic tricks, too. Ned tries to get himself up for the Two for the Show show ("I love magic. As much as I love other forms of popular entertainment."), but despite the "sequins and drama and the promise of bloodshed," the fact remains that magic just makes Ned think of the father he lost. And he realizes Maurice and Ralston can go about their magic business so easily because they don't know the truth about their father leaving; the Great Herrmann protected them, letting them believe their dad was attending to "manly man business."

Of course, the Great Herrmann ("Call me Great." "No.") meets his demise when a trick called Cementia goes horribly wrong. While the first suspect is Herrmann's assistant, it soon becomes clear that the real evildoer is the Geek, a magician who desperately wanted Herrmann's attention and possibly to be his successor on the Conjurer's Castle stage but never managed to be anything more than an opening act. And I gotta say, I'm with Herrmann on this one; all that glass-chomping and animal-regurgitating just made me feel queasy. Anyway, Ned and co. unravel the plot (removed shoe magnets, switched blocks of cement, etc.) and send the Geek off to the slammer.

Meanwhile, now that Ned can reconnect with the family he never knew he had, he wants Chuck to do the same. With the help of a little bug microphone pinned to Olive's sweater, Chuck can ask Lily all the questions she has about being a mother. After that hilarious but sad sequence of Chuck desperately trying to get Lily to admit to being a mother (as a telemarketer, cheese saleswoman, and life insurance peddler), it was touching to see her get some answers.

And just in time, too, because that rascally Dwight Dixon is poking around again. He already knows too much about Chuck's family, he's cozying up to Vivian, and now he's exhuming Chuck's coffin only to find it empty — making Chuck's "no body, no murder. Makes for a great urban legend, though" seem awfully prescient.

Some other thoughts:

I had to pause my DVR because I was laughing so hard at Olive accidentally calling Maurice and Ralston "magically delicious little devils" to Emerson.

Lily's bird drinks martinis!

What on earth was that black feather getup of Chuck's?

Some of the special effects in this episode (the red velvet curtain, the random sperm interlude) seemed a little odd to me.

So wonderful that Alexandria is getting a copy of the Magic Book of Magic, too. Unlike the Geek, her loyalty deserves a reward.

I cracked up at Chuck's suggestion that they play "ding-dong, ditch" at the aunts' door.

I am wondering what Dwight is up to now that he's found the empty coffin.

Pushing Daisies: Dim Sum Lose Sum

Poor Emerson Cod. This mystery brought real tragedy to the world of my favorite gruff P.I. The master chef behind his favorite dish at the Chinese restaurant downstairs from his office has passed away. Understandably, Emerson was distraught, but still trying to snatch tidbits to eat while interviewing interested parties. Once again, the mystery took a backseat to the character arcs.

The focuse was on Ned in this episode. It’s kind of funny, but in all this time the focus has been on Chuck and Emerson and even a bit on Olive, but almost never have they explored Ned’s backstory, aside from the narrative flashbacks. But Ned himself almost never talks about it nor has to confront it in any significant way. Dwight Dixon turned all that on his head by showing up and claiming to have known Ned’s parents.

I love Stephen Root, and while I was disappointed in his lack of screen time this episode, the future looks bright. It looks like this arc with Ned’s half-brothers and Dwight Dixon (Root) is going to go at least a few episodes. What I did get this time was more fun at the hands of Emerson, Olive and Chuck. Cod was awesome all pimped out, and the girls are always a hoot when they get dressed up and involved in the cases. In fact, what I noticed while watching all of this is that the least impressive character on the show is poor Ned himself.

That’s not to say that Lee Pace doesn’t play the role well, because I really think he does, but it’s an oddly written character. He’s so standoffish and yet so vulnerably needy. He was downright rude to Dixon, and even Olive when he told her she was family “to a lesser extent.” But he’s damaged goods, as I’ve seen on countless occasions, so I guess that gives him a pass? He just doesn’t come across nearly as likable as the others for some reason.

The twins are a fun addition, and I loved the addition of Ned’s eyebrows on them, and I am incredibly intrigued by what’s going on with Dixon and the gun. I have to say, though, it was odd how quickly they dumped the Chuck and her aunts storyline.

Cod’s quest for his daughter is ongoing and can fall to the background, but Chuck just found out that her aunt is her mother and yet not only did the aunts not appear, but there was no mention of them or any of it. I’ll admit it, I’m a continuity buff and like the slightest nods to it to help me feel rewarded for being a loyal fan. Even a passing mention would have sufficed.

Pushing Daisies: Frescorts

Ah, friendship. As all of the Pushing Daisies characters learn one way or another, it's a necessary component to a full life. Then again, when you get trapped in a locker or gifted a creepy taxidermied dog, friends don't look so good, do they? This episode is one quirky meditation on friendship.

Starting with my favorite thing about this episode: Emerson! Through meeting Young Emerson, I learn he's been a spy since babyhood and grew up super-close with his P.I. mother. The appearance of Calista Cod is all-around fantastic, as she turns out to be investigating Emerson himself after she came across a rejection letter for Lil' Gumshoe. I loved the way Emerson breaks out this sad puppy-dog face around his mama, and the scene with the two of them simultaneously interrogating their clients is outstanding. And in the end, Mama Cod gives Emerson some wise advice: If he wants to bring his daughter home, he should stop talking about what a cool kid he was and start focusing on what a great dad he'll be.

While all of that is going on, the case leads the team to My Best Friend Inc., a rent-a-friend company where the murder victim was working as a "frescort." Suspicion initially falls on Randy Mann (guest star David Arquette), considering he likes taxidermy and meat pies and obviously needs some friends. He and Ned start to form a bond, since Ned gets the whole loneliness thing, but when Randy gives Ned a taxidermied golden retriever with a guitar, well, all bets are off. Another suspect, Barb, was dating Joe, and she starts to look guilty after she shoves Chuck and Olive in a locker, but she turns up dead in a hug machine. Finally, the team hits on its culprit: Buddy Amicus (ha), the nerdy founder of My Best Friend Inc. who invented the lie that he was a former star quarterback just trying to pass on his abundant social skills to others. This is all revealed in a particularly quirky sequence involving Spartan costumes and jock straps.

Meanwhile:

Oh, Ned is so, so lonely. I loved his reactions to the hug machine — first horror, then a resigned, schmoopy-happy face as the arms close around him.

It's nice that he recognizes that this loneliness is something he can work on, though. Yes, Chuck can know all his secrets, but that's not an excuse to avoid dealing with the regular world.

Chuck and Olive trapped in a locker together is one of my favorite scenes of the season. Obviously their issues were big enough that all that water wasn't going to stay under the bridge.

The "Our universe is forever expanding" "Like your neediness" exchange was harsh, and Chuck's "I feel like a sachet in the panty drawer of a shut-in who was shut in her closet by her cats so they wouldn't have to smell the scent of freesia" was just . . . wow.

Actually, this episode has a few great Chuck and Olive moments, including the one where they imitate different emotions to get hired at My Best Friend. "Consternation!"

"I want to duvet you right this second" is my new favorite expression. But I am surprised that a buck-naked Chuck is a comfort to Ned, considering the whole no-touching thing.

Pushing Daisies: Bad Habits

Pushing Daisies started this season by piling secrets on top of secrets, and this episode many of them come tumbling out. A suspicious death at the nunnery forces Ned, Olive, and Chuck together again, which means Olive's faced with everything she'd "taken the veil" to avoid. The episode involves Night Ranger references, glitter paint family trees, and gourmet truffles.

It all starts with a family tree — Chuck's, from elementary school, mostly blank. Even the investigator she hires to look into her past comes up empty-handed. The explanation for that, of course, is that Lily is her mother and not her aunt (well, step-aunt; I'm glad we've got that sorted out). It's a big enough secret to drive Olive to a nunnery, where she's been living in seclusion — until the possible murder of Sister LaRue leads her to seek Emerson's help. It's sweet that Olive thinks he's just a great private eye; I wonder if she'd think less of him if she knew about the whole waking-the-dead bit.

So Ned and Chuck arrive in the place where Olive's gone to keep secrets, which of course means secrets can't be kept for too long. And boy, do they come out: Olive admits her crush on Ned (who brushes it off like "OK, good to know," much to Olive's dismay); Ned finds out about Lily through a guessing game (that ends when Olive finally covers up one eye in a photo of Lily); and I learn how deep Ned's issues with his father truly run. I was glad to see Ned tell Chuck the truth about her mother — and even happier to see Chuck take the news with a smile. She's been feeling trapped all season somewhere between life and death. Maybe this news will "un-stick" her — and maybe it will prompt Ned to start working through issues of his own.

All of this happens against the backdrop of the murder of a foul-mouthed nun, whose awakening would have been much funnier on cable — it just didn't quite work with all the dirty words removed. This might have been my favorite case of the season overall, though, involving contraband feminine hygiene products, specially engineered truffles, bat poo, and a murderous pig. In such a heavy episode, it was nice to have some comic relief (er, as comic as dying nuns can ever be).

Some other thoughts:

Hooray for the introduction to Young Olive, who brims with optimism and digs for buried treasure/secrets.

Emerson's reaction to Sister Olive is priceless: He delivers a booming belly laugh, makes a little finger frame around her face to block his view of her teal habit, and inquires, "What got thee to a nunnery?"

Apparently there's a new waitress at the Pie Hole: "Brandy, Candy, somebody named after booze or food."

Some scenes had so many bleeps and bloops I could barely focus on the dialogue.

The "by-proxy high five" is amazing, and by Emerson's reaction, I assume this is something Ned and Chuck have done before.

Ned simply salivates over the truffles. How perfect that the piemaker is a foodie!

Possibly my very favorite bit of dialogue from this show ever:
"Sister Christian is nothing but a heavy-petting power ballad.""We're motorin'."

I glad (most of) the secrets are out and am happy to be getting Olive back at the Pie Hole. Plus I have a craving for Georgia peach pie with cinnamon ice cream.

Pushing Daisies: Circus, Circus

Pushing Daisies usually manages to make morbid things seem sweet, so it's interesting to see the show take happy things and make them sad. This episode, Ned and Emerson investigate a crime at the world's biggest bummer of a circus and Ned faces the idea that Chuck's independent new beginning means the end of something wonderful.

This episode starts on a bummer of a note, with little Ned (and his little hobo sack) trying to do a good deed but killing a whole class project in the meantime. No wonder Ned hates new beginnings; thanks to his power, "starting fresh means that something else is ending stale."

Present-day Ned isn't having an easy go of things either, not with Chuck living next door — so close, yet so far. I love the scene in the Pie Hole with Ned constantly checking over his shoulder. Is Olive back? Are the aunts? Either of those things would be bad, but they'd also mean Chuck has to retreat to living with him.

Emerson, meanwhile, finds special meaning in the case of a teenage girl who's run away. I love Rachael Harris, and she's deadpan-perfect here, talking flatly about wearing her emotions like a shiny brooch.

Speaking of which, it's so wonderful to see Chuck contribute to an investigation. She really is good at getting people to say things they shouldn't be saying, and that interrogation scene is a great parallel to the one between Olive and Lily later on.

So, A Circus of Fun is pretty much the worst circus ever, no? It's got jugglers and one occasionally murderous human cannonball, but it's also got labor disputes and smells like "sawdust and underarms."

I wonder how many times it took Anna Friel to perfect the dive over the Pie Hole counter. It was pretty obvious that as soon as she was left alone, Vivian would show up, but their scene together was so sweet, with Chuck hiding but still managing to produce a tear-seasoned triple-berry pie.

Anytime I get sad from now on, I'm just going to think about the clown with the looooooooooooooong legs. (Second-best sight gag of the night: Ned getting cut off mid-vulgar tirade by a fire blower.)

Thank you, Emerson: "It's a traveling circus, not a 'wait around for the two of you to work all your junk out' circus."

Also, Ned to Emerson: "Generally speaking, you don't even have a glass. You have a wet ring on the coffee table where the glass used to be."

I couldn't stop laughing at all of the scenes with the newly found Nikki wearing that stuffed animal costume: "You won me a prize!"

Emerson has a good message for us all: "Love what's there. Love it."

Line of the night: a close call between "Pigby enjoyed the warbling sounds that the nice-smelling thing that fed him made" and "I could throw up in my mouth a little and not even know the difference."

So, Ned and Chuck are starting fresh by pretending they just met cute in the hall, Lily's stashing liquor at the nunnery, and Chuck's family tree is still way confusing.

Pushing Disiies: Buzzzzzz

Oh, joy! Pushing Daisies is back! And it seems to have returned perfectly in form, too, with a premiere that finds Chuck putting her love of bees to use, Olive letting secrets get the best of her, and the introduction of a pig named Pigby. I wish I could just scoop this show up into a big bear hug.

But the good stuff starts with Chuck's dead bees. Chuck bringing her bees back to life by dumping them over Ned's bare back might be one of the best visual effects this show has done. I love how Chuck decided it would only be fair to strip down to her silky unmentionables to balance things out.

Speaking of which, Chuck and Ned appear to have a relatively normal romance — as long as they both wear bells on their slippers and only touch with the help of Ned's Digby scratcher.

The victim is Kentucky Fitz, who had just been tapped as the face of Betty's Bees, a honey-based business that recently sold out to a big conglomerate that wanted to strip the products of their honey ("even the honey!") I'm already a little bee-phobic, so that shot of Kentucky in the morgue with bees spewing out of her mouth made me shiver.

I guess I'm not worried about Chuck being recognized in public anymore, because she poses as Kitty Pims to get in with the bee people. So many great visual gags in those scenes, including the beehive dome, the honeycomb-tiled floors, and Chuck's pin-turned-microphone that's a direct line to an eavesdropping Emerson.

Maybe my favorite line of the night, after Chuck protests that Betty was too young to be replaced at just 38: "Which rounds up to 40, which rounds up to 50, which rounds up to old!"

The aunts are out of the house, fulfilling Chuck's goal from when she started sneaking happy drops into their pies but creating drama for everyone else. Their appearance at the Pie Hole sends Olive into a fit, since she's become the dumping ground for everyone's secrets and now feels like a gun stuffed with "truth buckshot." I know Kristin Chenoweth can sing, but man, that lady can also scream.

It seems appropriate that Chuck's having a (re)existential crisis: "I haven't gone anywhere with my life, and this is my second one!" Once Olive's off to the nunnery, Chuck takes over her apartment, thus beginning Chuck and Ned's "Parisian lifestyle."

Love Olive's mixup between "the porter" and "the poor."

Chuck's dad was Vivian's fiance? I'm going to need a genealogist to document this family tree.

The crew figures out the murder, but not before Chuck finds herself dressed head to toe in bees. Ned quickly reminds her she can get dead again: "There's a reason I don't let Digby play in traffic."

OK, scratch everything I said before. My actual favorite line: "You want a drink? Lily, hand me your purse." Runner-up: "But it's also sweet, like a taxidermied pet, or stuffing someone's ashes in a teddy bear."

So, Olive's living simply at the place where Lily sneaked off to have Chuck, Ned has (somehow?) rescued Chuck's special pillow, and Emerson's adorable Lil' Gumshoe has been put into the world to help his daughter find her way back. There's nothing left to say but "Aww!"

Pushing Daisies: Corpsicle

When I first heard that Pushing Daisies would be ending the first part of this strike-addled season on a major cliffhanger, I assumed it would be Ned telling Chuck he killed her father. But then that happened, and I was left wondering: What could be more major than that? Well, I'm not sure if the cliffhanger that closed "Corpsicle" was bigger, necessarily — but it certainly wasn't something I saw coming.

The good news: If that's our last Pushing Daisies for quite some time, it left on a high note, with a great balance between drama and chuckle-out-loud cleverness.

It's a little embarrassing, but I wanted to cry from the second Young Ned took us back to Play-Doh world. That scene of Chuck stomping around in her dino costume was the moment in the "Pie-lette" that I knew this show was a keeper. And it set the tone perfectly for the episode, which was oh-so-cute and yet oh-so-heartstring-tugging — from the aunts comforting Ned and Chuck on the day they both lost their parents to Lily's drug-induced revelation at the end.

About that: Lily is Chuck's mom? Wha-huh? I'm glad there's something tying the aunts (er, mom-and-aunt duo) tighter into the series, but I wasn't expecting this. Lily's so caustic — "motherly" wouldn't come to mind — but I wonder how much of that is due to losing her only daughter. Plus: Does Vivian know? It seems like Chuck certainly doesn't. That twist also answers my question about what the show would do when the secret about Chuck's father was revealed: Why, they'll introduce a new secret!

But as for that first secret: Poor Chuck. Usually so chipper, she was really down in this episode — and no surprise, given that she'd just learned her soulmate killed her dad. She came so close to letting Oscar know her secret, to let it escape and "warm its toes in the sun." But she pulled back, for some reason, so now the only person who knows is Olive — and Olive thinks the whole "I was dead" thing was just a way for Chuck to stop talking. (Olive at her literal-minded best: "Is this an insurance scam?")

It would be easy to skip over the Corpse of the Week, but the case offered some comic relief in a heavy episode. It must have been fun for the writers, who usually work with such cheery material, to create the character of miserable little Abner ("I said lap dance, not tap dance!"). And the Wishy Wish lady being the "killa killa" was perfect, down to the jaunty tune that played as she claimed her victims and the benobo named Bobo who took care of her in the end.

Some other thoughts:

Oh hey, Emerson has a daughter! Yet another new secret.

Sight Gag O' The Week: I've gotta give it to the shotgun through the mail slot and straight into Ned's crotch.

Much as I loved Emerson and Ned's exchange with the coroner in his holiday sweater, Emerson's word vomit line was my favorite: "And you slipped in word vomit and fell on your ass and now you're covered in word vomit."

Oscar calling a bludgeoning "a unique sensory experience" was super creepy. I hope he's back when the show returns.

Pushing Daisies: Smell of Success

This episode of Pushing Daisies gave me my first whiff of something new for the show: a plot thread not involving our core characters that could continue for more than one episode. Paul "Pee Wee Herman" Reubens, who was initially supposed to appear on the show earlier this season, finally turned up as a scent expert who sniffed something peculiar on Chuck, and I'm not sure I've seen the last of him. Elsewhere, Olive and Chuck's cheer-up mission with the aunts reached a new level, and I learned how Ned found himself making pies in the first place.

Overall, this wasn't my favorite Daisies episode; all the usual elements were there, but it just didn't feel quite sharp enough to me. They're solidly into another phase with the aunts' story, and the rest of the show seems to need an injection of something new as well. It could be Molly Shannon's upcoming appearances, but it could also be Reubens; the end certainly made it seem like Oscar Vibenius isn't done with the girl who smells like honey and death.

The case this time around focused on a "nose" who had written a book on making odors work for you (title: Smell of Success) and who turned out to be staging near-death experiences for himself in order to get more publicity. That led to some particularly vivid descriptions of scents ("pungent like fried chicken grilled on a bed of hair"), and it also provided the chance for Olive to coax the aunts back into the pool, thanks to the rejuvenating scent of chlorine. Since Pushing Daisies has established itself as a show where people just might burst into song, I'm curious to know what everyone thought of Aunt Vivian's "Morning Has Broken." I loved the way that scene was put together, from the shadow of the rain hitting Aunt Lily's face to the moment they dove into the pool together.

Meanwhile, in one of the sweetest Young Ned segments yet, I learned that Ned became The Piemaker to stay close to his mother after her death. Not a groundbreaking revelation, but it explained why Ned would reject Chuck's cup-pie idea; he wants to stay true to his mom's memory. But he's also madly in love with Chuck, and so in the end, the cup-pies won their spot on the Pie Hole's menu. He and Chuck were so cute hugging each other by hugging themselves; that may be as "together" as they ever get, but in a moment like that, it's enough.

Some other thoughts:

Emerson usually rules the one-liners, but this episode belonged to Olive. From the "is that a rolling pin in your apron" crack to her take on the stages of grief — "something, something, something, acceptance!" — she presided over many of the funniest moments. In between, she had a sweet scene with Chuck when she handed over her mom's sweater and asked her not to cry because they didn't have that kind of relationship yet.

Though it was an off week for Emerson, his "your book was a bomb" bit was great.

Until that opening scene with Young Ned, it hadn't ever occurred to me that Ned can't even eat his own pies. Poor guy!

Sight Gag O' The Night: Chuck wearing a "Jews for Cheeses" T-shirt. Runner-up: Olive sniffing her own wrist after being told she smelled like dog.

Pushing Daisies: B*tches

Dear Pushing Daisies:

I already spend most Wednesdays in sugar shock over your preciousness, so did you really need to amp it up this week by bringing in puppies? If there's such a thing as a cuteness heart attack (a cute-attack?), I was definitely having one.

But the Coll-A-Dor-Russell-A-Poo wasn't the only thing making me swoon during this episode. There were also some truly adorable moments between Ned and Chuck, a whole new side to Emerson Cod, Claymation dreams, and a potentially fatal dose of "almond-flavored coffee cream creamer." It's really saying something when the closest thing your show has to a villain is a wisp of a woman named Olive Snook.

If there's one image from this episode that will be irrevocably burned into my brain, it's the moment in Ned's dream when Olive stripped off her Chuck suit. Wow. I knew the whole being-apart-together situation was wearing on Ned and Chuck (as evidenced by Ned's Halloween kiss of Olive) but that was a pretty vivid representation of where the two of them are right now.

Emerson's description of polygamy — one woman to have, one to hold — certainly hit home for Ned, despite his protests that he'd make a terrible polygamist ("I'm easily distracted; I wouldn't know where to focus"). Trouble is, Ned doesn't even want to hold the woman he can hold. His schmoopy "You're the only one for me" certainly prompted a chorus of "awwwww"s in my living room.

As compelling as their romance is, though, I got more of a kick out of Emerson's love-goggles when it came to Harry's stern ex-wife, Simone. Clearly, there was no love lost between Simone and Harry, who had themselves quite the business arrangement. Emerson, though, somehow got charmed by Simone despite her freakishly sterile dog-training room and her tendency to chloroform others to get her way. Hey, love knows no logic.

The case itself was a typical knot of twists and turns and satisfying resolutions, albeit one with more fabulous fashions (and more Joel McHale) than normal. This show will never be about the cases for me; instead, it's about the perfect dialogue and the visual confections. So on that note, here were some of the other things that stood out to me this time:

Olive on Ned and Chuck not touching: "That's the most tragic story I've ever heard, notwithstanding the big-ticket items like genocide and famine."

The alive-again part of things got a new dimension this week, as Ned and co. brought Snuppy back to life during the funeral to see which of the wives would freak out.

Loved the shot of the re-dead Snuppy crumpling to the ground, then Ned asking Emerson to "take care of that."

Best moment of Jim Dale narration, possibly of the whole series: "Harold Hundin was, indeed, a damn polygamist."

My favorite Emerson quip: "I suppose I could pay my bills with blind kids' smiles, but taking their money seems a lot easier." Speaking of the blind kids, nice throwback to the aunts with Chuck's story of how she became blind from kitty litter in the eye.

How perfect that Simone had apparently taught Bubblegum the command "go hide!"

Sight Gag O'The Week: Digby covering his eyes during Ned's sexy dream, with the pew of mourning dogs and Emerson's drug-induced dream close runners-up.

Pushing Daisies: Girth

My first thought when I learned Pushing Daisies was doing a Halloween episode: "Aren't they all?" But it turns out that Daisies lends itself perfectly to even spookier stories of hauntings and ghosts. "Girth" was definitely a Halloween treat.

This was a good time to get an Olive-centric episode. She's learned Chuck's secret, and she's already refrained from telling the aunts, but now she's desperate to tell Ned (not knowing, of course, that Ned is well aware Chuck is, er, "alive again"). So it was perfect that this episode involved a secret that Olive had sworn long ago to keep.

The case itself was a great callback to the Headless Horseman and other storybook fables, with trampled jockeys, ghost horses and a villain in (brightly colored) disguise. As usual, the little touches were my favorites: the distinct horseshoe print on the face of every trampling victim; the very large trophies for very small jockeys; the bar where people over 60 inches tall couldn't drink.

Ned, meanwhile, had some past hauntings of his own to tend to. It amazes me that Daisies can show heartbreaking moments — say, the revelation that Ned's father had left him and had another family on the side — and still make them sweet. Ned had spent every Halloween sleeping where his old bed used to be, trying to deal with his dad's desertion — but it took Chuck's aunts telling him what a good man he'd become despite his jackass father before he could truly move on.

Some other thoughts:

Emerson's one-liners are always a highlight, but he was really on in this episode. A few favorites: "Don't try to think that's a word that anybody knows.""Think of it as an escrow between my thighs.""Different like purple and mauve."The whole "conversation" with the money.

Speaking of one-liners, my favorite from the episode might actually be Olive's "I scream, you scream, no one screams when you fake your death!"

It's good that Olive and Chuck are getting some more screen time together as they battle for Ned's affections. The scene with Olive bouncing up and down on her bed cracked me up — but not as much as Olive finally getting swept off her feet by Ned, only to be dropped as soon as he realized Chuck was around.

JJJ's mother's barbs about Olive dressing demurely, huh?

I love that I'm starting to get more glimpses of the aunts' personalities — Lily saying she'd get a shotgun when the doorbell rang, Vivian grabbing the candy bowl.

There were so many fantastic sight gags that picking the Sight Gag O' The Episode is pretty darn tough. The aunts' heads exploding (and being filled with confetti) is a contender as is the jack o' lantern turning into a frowny face when Young Ned got the postcard from his father. But if forced to pick a favorite, I'd say it's Young Ned and Digby trick-or-treating in their matching ghost outfits.

I wonder how long the actor who played JJJ practiced his horsey gait. That was a nice touch.

Pushing Daisies: Dummy

If I thought Pushing Daisies couldn't get any cuter than the last episode "Pie-lette", think again Pam. This episode brought out a singing Kristin Chenoweth, knitted gun cozies, and a car that runs on dandelions. I thought it was perfect.


I think this second episode of "Daisies" gave me a pretty good sense of what the format is going to be. Ned, Emerson and Chuck head out to solve a case, suffering through many twists and turns but ultimately coming out victorious in their search for justice. Meanwhile, Chuck and Ned do some adorable things. Hey, I can live with that.

The case itself wasn't too hard to crack: Either Janine or the dandelion car salesguy was going to be the killer, and when the crew got Janine talking (thanks to pie), it became pretty clear that it wasn't her. But it still led to an amusing enough hour, with funny twists ("No. There are skeletons in the closet.") and creative camerawork. I'm hoping they can find a way to create perfectly staged moments like the scene with Emerson, Chuck and Ned in body bags in the dandelion car without spending a fortune.

Ned and Chuck still aren't being completely honest with each other. Chuck keeps hinting there's more to her sheltered life with her aunts; Ned keeps avoiding the fact that he killed Chuck's father. Chuck wants to know everything about Ned, and I don't think it's going to be long before she figures out that he's keeping something big from her. I can't imagine the show will keep them angry with each other for long, though — how cute was the body bag kiss? They're meant to be.

A few other thoughts:

• The flashbacks with Young Ned are quickly becoming one of my favorite parts of the show. The scene with all the dissection frogs coming back to life was hilarious. Plus, Young Ned's haircut makes me giggle.


• If there was a moment in the episode that went too far, Olive's singing was it. But I liked it — and not just because Kristin Chenoweth has an amazing voice. I loved the choreography with Digby and the floor cleaner, and I chuckled every time she had to interrupt her flow to turn more customers away. On the other hand, I don't want it to become a regular thing.


• Best narrator fun fact of the evening: "Young Chuck did not refer to a refrigerator as anything but a cheesebox until she was 17."


• I loved pretty much everything about the dandelion car factory, from the salesman who talked too fast, to the reveal that Chuck spoke Japanese, to the flashback with the dandelion girls in their Dr. Seuss-y dresses being taught to present and shimmy. Could have done without the Titanic-referencing makeout scene, but I can forgive it.


• The entire idea of Chi McBride knitting is hysterical.


• Also, favorite Emerson quip of the night: "Do they touch much?" "Wish they would." (Runner-up: "It's a dead end. And not the kind of dead end that you can un-dead and re-dead again like you're supposed to.")


• Best sight gag: Janine wrapped in bandages with lipstick over the gauze. Runner-up: dandelion high-five!

Pushing Daisies: Pie-Lette

I finally watched Pushing Daisies! The result? Most of my friends either loved it or hated it. What seems to make people love it or hate it is the same thing: the format. If you enjoyed movies like Big Fish or Amélie, you should be inclined to liking Daisies. I fall in that category. Actually, I'm entertained thanks to the colorful scenery, the chemistry between Ned and Charlotte, the narration style, the cutesy storylines, the procedural aspect, etc.

Not even 25 seconds in the episode, I knew that Pushing Daisies would not be like any other show on TV. The scene is highly colorful (yellow flowers and a bright blue sky), the soundtrack is reminiscent of fairy tales, and the narration is quite precise (not a minute older) and entertaining (at least to me). The action takes place in the little town of Couer d'Couers (the way narrator Jim Dale pronounces it, I think they meant "Coeur d'Coeurs," which is the proper French spelling for "heart").

I meet young Ned who is happily running with his dog, Digby. But there is a black cloud coming in this picture perfect scenery: a van hits Digby. It is at this time, and not a second later, that our lead character discovers that he has the power to revive the dead by touching them. But he doesn't know that this gift comes with a price since there was no instruction manual coming with it, and he learns it the hard way. After his mother suddenly passes away, Ned revives her. Soon, Charlotte's father dies. (Charlotte is nicknamed Chuck... yes I know, another character named Chuck this season!) This tragic event highlights the fact that if Ned revives someone and doesn't touch the person again under a minute, someone else will die.

Later that day, Ned learns more about his powers when his mother kisses him as she puts him to bed. When he touches for a second time someone he revived, the person dies... for good. That's a lot to take in for a kid.

The episode jumps to about 20 years later. Ned owns The Pie Hole, a restaurant specialized in pies (could this be as an homage to his deceased mother?). As a side job, Ned works with Private Investigator Emerson to solve murders and collect the rewards. Emerson chooses the cases; Ned revives the deceased and asks them who killed them before touching them again. The gig works pretty well until Chuck, whom Ned hasn't seen in 20 years, is murdered. After reviving her, Ned can't come to terms that he has to send her back to the dead especially since she was his first kiss (probably the only one too) and because he still has a huge crush on her. Since he let Chuck live, someone else had to die, Ned can never touch Chuck again (unless they find a loophole down the road), and she has to hide because everyone around town knows she died.

The rest of the episode has Chuck, Emerson and Ned work together to find who killed Chuck and collect the reward. Their investigation leads them the Chuck's aunt's home where the killer eventually turns up. Since Daisies has a fairy-tale side, the ending is a happy, of course, one.

Even though I already know a lot about Ned's powers, I don't know everything. For example, his dog died/was revived about 20 years ago yet he still looks like he did back then. Does it mean that people he revives but doesn't touch again stop aging? Or at least, age at a much slower pace?It'll be interesting to see how Chuck and Ned work and live together yet never touch one another. They already showed some creativity in the pilot (Emerson hugging Chuck, the kiss using the monkeys, the holding hands) but they can't do that forever.

I wonder if it'll drive them crazy to a point Chuck will try to get a place of her own. Or maybe they'll allow one another to see other people even if technically they are not dating one another? Ned will also have to tell Chuck about her father's death. Will she forgive him especially since he also lost his mother due to his powers? (Okay, technically, she didn't die because of him but her second death was because of his powers.)

I thought that the characters were well-defined (at least enough for a pilot episode) thanks to the narration and flashbacks. It allowed me to relate to them and care about what happened to each. I enjoy the character of Ned a lot. He has a lot of insecurities and views life in a different way due to his powers and his upbringing. Olive, even if a tad annoying, will be a good comic relief. I didn't care much for the aunts though and I wonder how they will include them in every episode since they are regular characters. Maybe they'll open a shop near The Pie Hole? Or they'll learn of Chuck's "live again" status, thus be present in her life?

I really enjoyed the format and feel of the pilot. The camera work, the narration, the claymation/live action scene, the flashbacks, etc., all helped suck me in the storylines. The possibilities for storylines are endless since the series has a procedural element. Oh and for those wondering yes, it is a song from Amélie that plays when we first meet the aunts.