Pushing Daisies, the near consensus best new show of the Fall, is magic.  About a pie maker who has the ability to revive the dead (though there are some very important caveats to this ability), Pushing Daisies is almost unexplainable.  It's told like a fairy tale, but the material is dark as is the humor, but it's all treated in a sweet, matter of fact way.  Anyway, just watch the show. Please.  Something this good deserves at least a few seasons.  And, looking at its time slot competition, Pushing Daisies appears to have a legitimate chance at ratings success.  Airing on Wednesdays at 8PM (Lost's first time slot), the show won't be going up against anything remotely like it.  However, this is only because Pushing Daisies isn't like anything else on television.  Let's take a look at who exactly Pushing Daisies will be up against this Fall. 

CBS: Kid Nation
The CW: America's Next Top Model
FOX: Back to You, 'Til Death
NBC: Deal or No Deal

Kid Nation is a big wild card here.  With all the publicity (negative or not) the CBS reality show has some breakout potential.  My gut feeling, though, is that Kid Nation won't achieve anything more than mild success.  Granted, this is only a hunch.  America's Next Top Model will perform as well as it always has, which is nothing to sneeze at, but that show has a very specific demographic (girls, to sum it up briefly), so it shouldn't take too much away from Pushing Daisies potential success.  FOX's double shot of sitcom-y goodness will appeal to the Two and a Half Men crowd, those who prefer safe, broad humor to good, complex TV.  Not that there's anything wrong with that.  Back to You, Kelsey Grammar's new show, could conceivably turn into a hit, but FOX's track record with live-action comedies is not good.  Deal or No Deal is primed to lose ratings, as prime time game shows tend to have a very short, yet explosive, life span. 

The worry many critics have put forth is that Pushing Daisies may be too smart and quirky for mainstream audiences.  This scares the hell out of me, as well, but I want to be optimistic about the show's chances.  I can't help but believe that if Daisies can find any sort of significant initial audience, viewers will stay incredibly loyal.  That's how good Pushing Daisies is.  If you have any doubts, just watch the premiere.  You'll be hooked.


-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of ABC)