Dead Like Me
Network: Showtime
Episodes: 29 (hour)
Seasons: Two
TV show dates: June 27, 2003 — October 31, 2004
Series status: Cancelled/ended
Performers include: Ellen Muth, Callum Blue, Jasmine Guy, Mandy Patinkin, Cynthia Stevenson, Britt, McKillip, Christine Willes, Laura Harris, Crystal Dahl, Greg Kean, Patricia Idlette, Talia Ranger, Laura Boddington, Rebecca Gayheart, Meghan Black, Patti Allan, Teryl Rothery, Spencer Achymichuk, Deanne Henry, Eric McCormack, Brett Kelly, and Julia Arkos.
TV show description:
Created by Bryan Fuller, this “dramedy” focuses on grim reapers that live and work in Seattle, Washington. It also follows the lives and grief of the newest reaper.
Georgia “George” Lass (Ellen Muth) shies away from everything in her life, including her family. She drops out of college and takes a temp job. On her first day on the job, she is hit and killed by a toilet seat. After she dies, she learns that she will become a reaper, with the responsibility of grabbing the souls of people who die in accidents.
George’s mother, Joy (Cynthia Stevenson), is depressed after her daughter’s death. She likes order, rules and control. George’s sister, Reggie (Britt McKillip), acts out, steals toilet seats, and undergoes therapy. She believes George’s ghost still comes home to visit them. Clancy (Greg Kean) is George’s father; an English Professor at the University of Washington. After his daughter’s death, his marriage deteriorates, and he begins an affair with one of his students.
The head of the reapers is Rube Sofer (Mandy Patinkin). He’s responsible for giving assignments to the Reapers which is done via post-it notes. He refers to George as “Peanut” and becomes a father figure to her, as she seems to remind him of his own daughter. Though the manner in which Rube died isn’t known, but his picture has been seen on an old Wanted poster.
The other Reapers include Mason (Callum Blue), Roxy Harvey (Jasmine Guy), Betty Rohmer (Rebecca Gayheart), and Daisy Adair (Laura Harris).
Mason is of British descent, and is a drug addict, alcoholic, and thief. He is a big brother figure to George and is attracted to Daisy. He died by drilling a hole in his head to get high.
Roxy is an independent woman and the second oldest Reaper. She invented leg warmers and was then strangled to death with them by a jealous roommate.
Betty keeps organized Polaroids of her reaped souls and died while cliff diving.
Daisy is a spoiled actress who talks of her sexual escapades. She died of asphyxiation/smoke inhalation and once claimed it was while filming
Gone With the Wind.
Dead Like Me (The movie). The actual movie was pretty bad, so assume it never happened and we pick up at the end of the television series. I'm assuming they would still not be able to use Mandy Patinkin to play Rube.
Dead like me is about a small group of "reapers" whose task is to help people to their final destination after death. Each reaper has an unspecified quota of souls to collect before they can retire (so to speak).
In the beginning of my story Rube has met his quota and Roxy (a traffic cop with serious attitude) is promoted to lead the reapers. Roxy has a hard time handling George, Mason and Daisy because they are all difficult in their own way. They each collect a few souls before they are given their major assignment. They have to collect the soul of a state senator before he is assassinated at a political rally. Roxy comes up with a strong arm plan that cannot succeed against the government security. Mason and George save the day by drugging the senator's security detail with some of Mason's drugs (whatever the drug of the week is) Daisy causes a distraction by creating a scene claiming that she has had the Senator's love child. George and Roxy get close enough to collect the senator's soul before he is shot. .