by Larry Clark
Deb was a high fashion model with everything going for her. Perfect home, perfect boyfriend, great family and friends, but this all gets flipped upside down when tragedy strikes.
Deb ends up in a car crash and dies, going straight to heaven where she ends up at the desk of an angel whose name we learn to be Fred. Fred tells Deb that she’s a unique case, in that she’s neither good nor a bad — a decent person, just selfish.
Deb in a fit of hysterics hits the “return” key, sending her not only back to earth, but back to earth in the body of Jane Bingum, a plus-sized attorney at law and all-in-all the opposite of Deb. Now the personality of Deb has to figure out how to navigate the scholastic world of law, while somehow balancing Jane and being true to herself.
The story moves on from here to follow the life of Jane Bingum and her new life as a lawyer. Jane quickly regains a friend in Stacey, Deb’s best friend who is also a model and now roommate, and our friend Fred who is now Jane’s guardian angel. With her friends, Jane now has the footing to go on and handle her life as a lawyer at a high profile law firm.
The show follows a fairly consistent format that adds to an over arching story line. Jane will cover a case whether pro-bono or for her law firm, and then another case will be taken up by another lawyer within the firm as well. These cases follow a story of Jane, her fellow lawyers and their clients; however, all the stories tie into the lives of these lawyers and teach them valuable lessons about life and themselves.
“Drop Dead Diva” is not only a funny and witty lifetime show, but also a heartwarming and wrenching drama/comedy. The show began its run in the summer of 2009 and just ended its final season in 2014 and was recently added to Netflix with all five seasons.
“Drop Dead Diva” aims to leave viewers feeling warm-hearted, but a bit teary eyed with every episode, and certainly achieves that aim — the comedy of a ditzy blonde trying to learn her way through the legal world mixed with the sadness of Deb having to leave her old life behind.
Fortunately, the show leaves each episode as individualized from the previous episode, only with a few over arching story lines. This show is perfect for someone who only has time to watch one or two episodes, and then come back to the show.