Drop Dead Diva

The first season of the Lifetime Network (aka Vaginavision) show Drop Dead Diva hit Hulu this week. This is significant because Hulu and Netflix are my main sources of TV, since Jay and I decided a few months ago to ditch cable and build a TV computer. As a side note, this is a brilliant idea.

I was reluctant to try the show. I've seen a few other shows and movies that try to tackle a weight issue, and they all fall really flat. This one had one thing in common with those right off the bat: the fat girl is legit gorgeous. I was also worried it would fall into the trap of pushing a message that all fat girls are smart and good-hearted and all skinny girls are shallow and evil. Thin-shaming, I've called it before.

And while it does seem a little too trite when it tackles the weight issue, the good news is that most of the time, it doesn't really try. The plot of the show, a nice but vapid model (Deb) dies and comes back as a fat lawyer (Jane) with the lawyer's intellect and the model's memories, seems like it would immediately be full of unanswered questions. Some of them the writers tie up neatly in the first few episodes. For instance, why doesn't she just lose the weight? (Her body still has the same cravings and metabolism, plus a busy life as a working attorney, so effortlessly getting in shape is not an option.) Or, how does she explain the memory loss? (Amnesia due to the injury by which Jane briefly died.)

But, surprisingly, most of the show avoids the nuts and bolts of the switch and deals with the relationships between the characters, independent of the size issue. There's the mean rival lawyer at the firm, Deb's best friend who is privy to the body switch, and Deb's former boyfriend who works at the law firm with Jane. There's also Margaret Cho as Jane's assistant, and lots of fun guest stars including Tim Gunn in a dream sequence. While the size issue serves as a backdrop for the action, with Jane representing size discrimination clients and suing diet pill companies for inadequate labeling, it's rarely the center of the action.

The show also has a procedural quality, like a lot of lawyer shows, where the firm deals with a couple of cases from start to finish in each show. These make for fun subplots and let a viewer understand the action in the show even if she's missed a few episodes. These courtroom scenes are clever, and the best comparison I can draw so far is to the movie Legally Blonde. In court, the attorney with the lawyer brain and the model soul often combines hard legal knowledge with charming, relatable stories.

The most unrealistic aspect so far is that almost no men are attracted to Jane. Despite her glowing skin, huge boobs, and constant state of being totally put together in a cute skirt suit, the only guy to pay her any attention so far is a goofy-looking bailiff. While I think it would be equally unrealistic for Deb's hot former boyfriend to fall immediately into her arms, I think it's a stretch that this is a woman who would be lacking in male attention. But maybe in LA, I can buy it.

The show also has a lot of cringe humor, as Jane gets into embarrassing situations. She ends up handling them with grace, however, and using her charm and her wits to get out. It's not a constant barrage of awkward moments, the way some shows are.

As I said yesterday, the show does leave me with a really positive feeling about my own body. Maybe it's just the fact of seeing a fat girl looking so cute. I mean, check out her birthday dress below.

Um, yes please.

In sum, I'm not praising this as the best new thing. It's not even consistently high quality writing or acting. But as a diversion, it's definitely fun. More importantly, it strikes a good balance and it addresses a touchy issue without being offensive.