Dyin’ ain’t much of a livin’…or is it?

Whereas previously I wrote about a movie where a man dies, this time I’m writing about a show where a girl dies. While he moves on, she doesn’t get the chance. After re-watching this show recently, I have been reminded of just how great it is and why I love it, and I want to share it with you.

Television: Dead Like Me

I have never had satellite or digital cable, so I haven’t gotten into as many HBO or Showtime shows as I wished I could have. But when I was only 17, I knew I wanted to see this show. I had to wait forever for it on DVD, and it took a long time for it to go down in price enough for me to afford on the pay I got from my old low paying job. I had to download a few episodes before I could get the set, but I knew I would love this show before I ever saw it. I had always pondered about death and the afterlife. To know that there was a show about grim reapers, and their lives, well, afterlives, I knew it was something that had my interest right there. Then the day came where I finally found the first season on DVD within my price range. I snapped it up and rushed home to watch it.

I became entranced. Everything was done so well. The cast was amazing. Rebecca Gayheart as Betty, Callum Blue as Mason, Jasmine Guy as Roxie. They are the veteran reapers. Mandy Patinkin plays Rube, the boss of all of the reapers. These reapers are joined by 18 year old Georgia Lass, played amazingly by Ellen Muth. Georgia dies in a tragic accident, and rather than pass on to the next life, she finds out she is stuck. Not something she is used to. She used to live at home, and had just dropped out of college and died on her first day at her new job. She is stuck being a grim reaper. Her new job is to take people’s souls from their bodies before they die. She is in charge of deaths caused by accidents, much like how she died.

It’s neat to have a show where someone gets a second chance at life, even if they had to be dead to do so. She has to get a real job, find somewhere to live. She grows up and enters the real world, but at the same time it’s like starting all over for her because she has no ties to her old life. It’s a show about growing up, but also about death. I love the combination.

I was only 17 myself when I started watching this show, so it really made me appreciate my life a lot more. You never know when it could be taken away from you. I even planned how to handle my own funeral after watching this show, which worried my mom, until I explained why. It was quite the misunderstanding.

For any person at any place in their life, this show is just great. It has some hilarious moments, but also can really touch your heart and make you think about a lot of deep things. I highly recommend everyone who reads this to check out the pilot episode if you haven’t already. I guarantee you won’t be dissapointed

Sadly, this show is now cancelled, but this summer there will be a follow up movie that takes place after the series finale! So stay tuned!