Whenever the creator of an iconic show moves on to another project, he or she can't help, for better or for worse, but carry some of the more successful elements into the new show. iZombie, from Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas, draws from his previous series in some significant ways that are distracting at first but fade as the series goes on and comes into its own. And it's very, very good.
In the first five minutes we're introduced to our plucky zombie heroine, the cleverly named Liv Moore (Rose McIver), her ex-fiance Major (Robert Buckley), roommate Peyton (Aly Michalka), mom and brother. We're informed that it's been six months since Liv became a zombie, five months since she gave up her future as heart surgeon for a job at the morgue (easy access to brains, duh!), five months since she broke up with Major. Everyone thinks the formerly brunette Liv went blond and changed everything about her life because of a drunken massacre at a boat party and PTSD. They don't know that she's now... less than fully alive.
That's a ton of information to pack into five minutes (including flashbacks to the boat party, which was actually a zombie attack), but it's all delivered in the glib, funny style you'd expect from the creator of Veronica Mars. As a matter of fact, it's a little distracting how much Liv sounds like Veronica. But while Veronica uses her snark to get revenge on a world that's hurt her, Liv seems to be using her wit to help cope with the depression that comes from losing her life.
Throughout the show we learn the rules of being a zombie. First, Liv needs to eat brains (presumably human), or else she becomes sluggish and more, well, zombie-like. Second, when she eats the brains, she temporarily has access to the person's memories, which come in surprise visions when the plot needs some forward momentum. Third, Liv subconsciously picks up certain traits from the brain's previous owner. In this first episode, for example, Liv becomes a kleptomaniac, who also speaks Hungarian. And fourth, when threatened, she develops some sort of zombie-rage strength. I'm sure there will be more rules as the show goes on.
Liv's new job at the morgue, in addition to brains, provides her with her only ally, her boss Ravi (Rahul Kohli), formerly of the CDC. Ever since the victims of the boat party came through the morgue with significant brain loss he's suspected zombies, and he's more than thrilled to have a real (un)live one as an employee. He believes that he can find a cure to the zombie virus, though it could take years to find it. Ravi is a fantastic character, with Kohli stealing every scene. He and Liv take turns foiling the others' enthusiasm over the odd.
But wait, there's more! Lest you think that this is just another CW supernatural soap, iZombie is actually a crime procedural. Liv's most recent lunch was a murdered call girl, a Jane Doe who'd occasionally serviced the local weather man. The investigation is stalled until Liv has a vision, which she blurts out in front of homicide detective Clive Babineaux (Malcolm Goodwin). To save explaining how Liv is a zombie, Ravi offers the more plausible explanation that Liv is psychic. For whatever reason, Clive easily accepts this and takes Liv on as his investigative partner.
While the world building in this episode is superb, the murder mystery understandably falls flat. Hopefully later episodes can improve on this, because while there are too many crime shows going, I'd hate to see this kinda goofy show get too wrapped up in its own mythology. Zombie detective? Great. Zombie soap opera? Yawn.
At the end of the episode, Liv, having found some peace in her unlife, sleeps for the first time since her transformation. She has a freaky dream about someone being attacked and killed by a zombie. We'll probably get the season's Big Bad out of this, and it's interesting that the first episode ends pretty similarly to the way the first episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer opens.
To be honest, I didn't have any interest in this show until I saw the reviews. Now it's the show I most look forward to every week. Yeah, it very much feels like a first season, and most of the side characters are pretty bland. But Liv and Ravi bring life and warmth to a mostly dead formula.
Favorite Quotes:
- So "You are what you eat" isn't just a bitchy thing my mother says about fat people.
- Liv: How long have you suspected?
Ravi: Since Raul Cortes. The gang-banger gunshot victim? You finished the autopsy for me? Well, the detective on the case needed me to open him back up. Guess what he was missing.
Liv: A strong male role model? - Clive: Thought I had a psychic sidekick. I was working on bit. Cagney and Pasty.
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