Television
Television
Blu-ray
Television
Television
Television
Television
Television
Movies
Television
DVDs
Television
Music
DVD
Television
© 2009 ABC
PUSHING DAISIES series finale
Television:
TV Review: PUSHING DAISIES -- SEASON TWO -- 'Kerplunk'
The charming fantasy series has a final episode that contains revelations, some closure and synchronized swimming
Grade: B+Stars: Lee Pace, Anna Friel, Kristen Chenoweth, Chi McBride, Swoosie Kurtz, Ellen Greene
Writer(s): Gretchen J. Berg & Aaron Harberts
Director: Lawrence Trilling
Release Date: June 13th, 2009
Rating: N/A
By T.K. DEHN, Contributing Writer
Published 6/17/2009
Bryan Fuller’s highly original PUSHING DAISIES comes to the untimely end of its too-brief, two-season run with “Kerplunk,” an episode that not only wraps up some big plot threads but provides the long-promised sight of Lily (Swoosie Kurtz) and Vivian (Ellen Greene) finally engaging a long-discussed revival of their synchronized swimming sister act.
Lily and Vivian decide to celebrate the half-birthday of their beloved (and presumed dead by them) daughter/niece Chuck (Anna Friel) by taking in a show at the local aquarium. When one of the headliners, who also happens to be Lily’s lifetime rival, is killed in a spectacularly odd way during the performance, Emerson (Chi McBride) is pressed into finding the killer, while the resurgence of Lily and Vivian’s dormant careers has a surprising effect on the romance between leads Chuck and Ned (Lee Pace).
This episode would work as a pivot point were PUSHING DAISIES to continue, with Ned making a long-delayed confession (since much of the audience will have realized this point ages ago, it’s good to have the show acknowledge it). As this sets the stage for a new arrangement, there’s a particular pang in having the series end right here, as it would have been lovely to see how this particular story trajectory plays out. However, it also works as a finale, with creator Fuller letting us know what’s in store for some characters while letting us use our imaginations (or letting him prepare for a rumored comic book continuation) about what may occur with others.
It is a lot of fun to see Wendie Malick verbally crossing swords with Kurtz, and the aquacade costumes are a total kick, even by DAISIES standards. The idea of a Great White on display at an aquarium, much less trained to accommodate a rider, is of course considerably far more fantastical than the notion of a pie-maker whose touch can bring the dead back to life, and the related gags seem a bit tame compared to the suspension of disbelief required, but it’s easy to let this slide for the fun that’s on hand.
It is absolutely delightful to see Kurtz and Greene at last get in the water, and the actresses (as well as their characters) look delighted to be there. The episode also gives Greene the opportunity to show a seldom-glimpsed severe, adult aspect, while Kurtz moves out of Lily’s gruffness into something less self-protective and more plaintive. Pace and Friel are utterly winning as a couple, though (spoiler of a non-spoilerish nature) there is no discussion whatever of any possible solutions to the central predicament of their relationship.
“Kerplunk” provides a last serving of the crazy sweetness that is PUSHING DAISIES, and if everything isn’t wrapped up tidily with a bow, Fuller and Co. at least beautifully segue out of this story and into another (to paraphrase Peter S. Beagle’s ending to THE LAST UNICORN). A job well and too-soon done by all concerned.
Reader Comments
