[Televisionary]

I am sure that several of you, my readers, are just as excited as I am that ABC's quirky new drama Pushing Daisies , that eagerly anticipated "forensic fairy tale," launches tonight. While I've already seen the pilot (or "Pie-lette") for Pushing Daisies about eight times or so over the last five months or so, I can't wait to hear all of your reactions to what I deem to be one of the more groundbreaking and inventive (not to mention wholly imaginative) series to have come around in many, many years. (I believe I used the words "breathtaking, resplendent, and whimsical" at one point.) To that end, I've included below a round-up of all the important Pushing Daisies content that has run on Televisionary over the past few months to whet your appetite for tonight's series premiere. So sit back, snuggle up with your favorite monkey statuette, and prepare to fall in love with Pushing Daisies . Pilot Inspektor: Pushing Daisies : The first publ

Pushing Daisies has been on a roll these past few months. Besides for being the most eagerly anticipated new series this fall, the drama has had two of the highest-profile guest star casting announcements so far. In addition to the previously announced Paul Reubens (who'll play homeopathic anti-depressant salesman Alfredo Aldarisio), TV Guide 's Michael Ausiello has revealed that Pushing Daisies has secured former SNL cast member Molly Shannon for a multiple-episode arc this fall. Shannon, who guest starred on 30 Rock last season and starred in NBC's pilot for The Mastersons of Manhattan , will play Dilly Balsam, the proprietor of a saltwater taffy shop across the street from our hero Ned's Pie Hole. (The restaurant, I mean, not his, er, actual pie hole.) Shannon's first appearance is scheduled for November sweeps and she'll appear in an as-yet-undetermined amount of episodes of Pushing Daisies ' first season. Teehee. I'm laughing out loud already. P

With Pee-Wee Herman making another rare TV guest appearance can former comrade-in-arms Chairy be far behind? (God, let's hope not.) Paul Reubens, who memorably guest starred on 30 Rock last season (and had a multiple episode arc on FX's Dirt ) is set to guest star on ABC's new fall drama (and Televisionary favorite) Pushing Daisies in a role that could potentially become recurring. Reubens is a lock to play "Alfredo Aldarisio, a traveling homeopathic antidepressant representative/salesman," according to TV Guide 's Michael Ausiello . Hmmm, given what Pushing Daisies creator Bryan Fuller told me in my exclusive interview last month at Comic-Con , look for Reubens to appear in Episode Three in which (SPOILER ALERT) Fuller says, "the aunts [played by Swoosie Kurtz and Ellen Greene] will be folded back into the story. Chuck holds true to the threat she made in the pilot by baking anti-depressants into her aunt's food--in the form of Ned's pies. Ol

Still haven't seen the highly anticipated fall series Pushing Daisies ? If you haven't and live in LA (or are conveniently situated to drive to said locale), ABC is hosting a sneak preview screening of the pilot for forensic fairy tale Pushing Daisies next week. Fittingly, the Pushing Daisies event will take place at Hollywood Forever cemetery , which--if you've never been there--is the perfect place for a late night summer film. Select members of the cast and crew will be hand to introduce the event, which promises to be highly entertaining. Details below for the Pushing Daisies screening. What: Pushing Daisies Sneak Peek When: Thursday, August 16th at 8 pm Where: Hollywood Forever Cemetery 6000 Santa Monica Blvd. Hollywood, CA 90038 Trust me, this is one event you don't want to miss. And, if that weren't enough incentive, ABC promises "special treats" for some attendees. Hmmm, pie perhaps?

Can I just say how huge a fan I am of writer/producer Bryan Fuller? After all, he's the creative genius behind such groundbreaking and original series as Dead Like Me and Wonderfalls. Next season, he's giving the American public a chance to fall in love with the breathtaking, resplendent, and whimsical drama series Pushing Daisies , which ABC describes as a "forensic fairy tale." Following my Q&A sessions with Pushing Daisies ' adorable and talented cast, I rendezvoused with creator Bryan Fuller in an extremely rickety private room, perched high atop the Warner Bros. Television booth, minutes after the mass hysteria that was the cast signing. I was armed with a few questions and intended to catch up with Fuller, a quick witted writer whom I consider to be the next Joss Whedon. (Yes, there, I've just said it.) High praise indeed, but if you've seen the gorgeous and touching pilot for Pushing Daisies , you know exactly what I mean. Q: How is Pushing Da

Day Two of Comic-Con is finally at a close and, while I am ready to collapse from the sheer breakneck pace of today's events, there's so much to recount, not the least of which was the face time I got with the cast of ABC's new fall series Pushing Daisies . It was with great excitement that I sat down with the gorgeous cast of Pushing Daisies , which longtime readers of this site will recall I pegged as my favorite new fall series back in May when I first reviewed the pilot . Like the whimsical nature of the series, from the fertile mind of Bryan Fuller ( Heroes , Wonderfalls , Dead Like Me ), the cast proved to be absolutely charming. Joining me for a series of one-on-one interviews, following the pilot screening and panel, were series regulars Lee Pace, Anna Friel, Chi McBride, and Kristin Chenoweth. First up: series lead Lee Pace ( Won derfalls ). Pace plays the pie maker Ned, gifted (or cursed) with the ability to bring people back from the dead who re-discovers his chi

Pie and a comic book? Only a few more days to go to Comic-Con and, while I've already seen the pilot for ABC's Pushing Daisies about a zillion times (check out a new promo here ), I cannot wait to attend the Q&A panel after the pilot screening with the cast and crew of Warner Bros. Television's new drama. Along with giving out pie to the first 300 attendees (the pie is an in-joke that those of you familiar with the series will already get), Warner Bros. has unveiled the cover (shown left, thanks to the good folks at Warner Bros. Television) for the comic book companion to Bryan Fuller's super-saturated supernatural drama Pushing Daisies . It's a Comic-Con exclusive, which means you can only get the Pushing Daisies comic book next week in San Diego at the Warner Bros.' booth. Supplies, as they say, will be extremely limited so be sure to drop by and get your Pushing Daisies comic before they're gone!

Yes, I've already seen the pilot for Pushing Daisies a zillion times. (Come on, where were you when I published my advanced review of the pilot --the first one on the Internet, mind you--way back when in May?) All joking aside, the fact that I've seen the pilot hasn't stopped my eagerness to catch the cast and crew of Pushing Daisies at Comic-Con San Diego at the end of the month for a sneak peek and Q&A panel on Saturday, July 28th at 9:15 am. So, if you're going to be in SD for the con, I strongly urge you to drop by the screening and try to figure out which gushing fanboy I am. If that's not enough incentive, how about this brand-spanking-new promo for Pushing Daisies , courtesy of the wonderful folks at Warner Bros. Television? Come on, aren't you just dying to see the series right now?

Looking at this year's slate of ordered series, there are definitely a few trends that emerge, like an emphasis on dramedies ( Dirty Sexy Money , Big Shots , Reaper ) or a pre-occupation with just what the geek half of the beauty and the geek paradigm gets up to (shown in no less than The Big Bang Theory , Chuck , Aliens in America , The IT Crowd ). But one of the strangest trends has got to be next season's series creators' absolute obsession with the name Chuck, which pops up in no less than three fall series, including Chuck (duh), Pushing Daisies , and Gossip Girl . So, how to keep each of these Chucks straight? Below is a handy guide to doing just that. Name: Chuck ( Chuck ) Actor: Zachary Levi Occupation: Nerd Herd/Buy More employee; living intelligence database; Zork memoralist Likes: Video games, hot blondes, hiding in his bedroom with best friend Morgan. Dislikes: Being forced to talk to women about things other than his college girlfriend; shifty and aggressive

Every once in a while a pilot comes along that completely shocks and surprises you with its dazzling beauty, pitch perfect cast, and its casual ability to create a whole world that you never want to leave. I'm talking, gentle readers, about Pushing Daisies , which ABC recently ordered to series for the fall season. From the fertile mind of Bryan Fuller ( Wonderfalls , Heroes ), it's unlike anything you've ever seen on television, a Burtonesque vision of mortality, morality, and, er, pies that sucks you in from the very opening scene and never lets go. Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld ( The Addams Family ), Pushing Daisies has a super-saturated color palette that jars sharply (and intentionally) with its life-and-death theme: Lee Pace ( Wonderfalls ) plays Ned, a lonely pie maker who, as a child, discovers that he has the ability to bring dead things back to life, a gift he uses to full effect, when his beloved dog Dibney is hit by a truck in the pilot's beautiful and bruta