A Noteworthy Binge: Drop Dead Diva

Have you ever feared the after life? If so, stop right there. According to “Drop Dead Diva” there is no need to fear because once death reaches you, there is a way back as long as you soul continues to fight for life.

After a 24-year-old model named Deb dies in an unexpected car accident and is crushed under the weight of thousands of grapefruits, she is sent to “purgatory.” There, she meets an intake officer named Fred, whose job is to look over the deceased’s life and weigh the good and bad behavior to determine whether they are to reside in Heaven or Hell. Deb is a straight zero. Her life of shallow and self-entitled behavior never proved her worth as a person.

On the other side of town, Jane an elite lawyer comes out her office to find her entire law firm being held at gun point by her enraged husband. The reasoning: Parker (her boss) and Jane were sleeping together.  After taking one step and tripping on someone’s purse she startles the man and he shoots her.

Deb, still in purgatory, proceeds to press the “return” button and because of Jane’s death, her soul is placed into Jane’s plus size body.

The show continues to follow the life of Deb living as Jane. “Drop Dead Diva” is about the struggle of lost love and soulmates, what it takes to move on and struggling with one’s self image.

Throughout the duration of the show, Deb becomes a persistent and strong-willed lawyer who will defend someone until she gets them out of their trouble. She always wins, and though her work life is perfect, no one but her best friend Stacey and guardian angel Fred knows who she really is. Everyday she must go into work and see her true love Grayson. The whole story is about her endless pining toward a man who can’t see her for anything but Jane.

If you love stories of empowerment and long-lost loves, this could be for you. Each character may find their life thrown into disarray after unforeseen circumstances, but don’t let the idea of dying throw this tale out of your queue. “Drop Dead Diva” is basically a modern day fairytale.

If you enjoy “Drop Dead Diva” some other shows of interest could be “Gossip Girl,” “Sex in the City,” “Desperate Housewives” and “Ugly Betty.”

Starring: Brooke Elliot, April Bowlby, Jackson Hurst, Kate Levering, Margaret Cho, Josh Stamberg, Lex Medlin and Ben Feldman.