Serie - Death Lives : Our review on the pilot of this new serie

By Mulder, San Diego, 07 september 2017

The new comedy series Death Lives has just announced its New York pilot premiere at the 2017 North Fork TV Festival, which runs September 7-9 in Greenport, New York. The pilot was written by Erick Hellwig and Chris Aurilio, stars Hellwig as Death and is directed by Aurilio. The series follows the Grim Reaper, Death, after he quits his job and decides to become a normal human living in New York City. The New York premiere of the series pilot is on Saturday, September 9 at 11:30am at Greenport Theater in Greenport, NY.

The Grim Reaper lives, and apparently he wants to improve.

In Death Lives we meet the Grim Reaper (Erick Hellwig), who, after having a come to Jesus moment, requests mortality from his father (God played by Justin Brown). The almighty, who aptly dwells amongst us in star athlete form, grants his son’s wish on the condition that he find and train his replacement. Death agrees and is granted life as a commoner, a gift he fully embraces in the only place on earth a skeletal figure can walk about and not raise an eyebrow, New York City.

From the basics of drinking water for the first time, to an enthusiastic encounter with a solicitor, The Grim Reaper revels in the mundane of humanity. Even the awkwardness of flirtation and the pangs of jealousy seem to play out dramatically for poor Death, as he rides the rollercoaster of human emotion for the first time. While his mother, (Mother Nature played by Victoria Vance), and Brother (Cupid played by Will Nunziata) root from the immortal sidelines, you can’t help but wonder if the Grim Reaper can survive life as a nobody.

Death’s deadpan (pardon the pun) drives the comedic moments of Death Lives. In true new to human form he takes the world around him at face value, a look of permanent shock resting on his face as he conducts interviews for his replacement with stereotypically written characters. Lack of dramatic response suits the character, making the awkwardness relatable and hilarious, so it’s almost frustrating when Death becomes emo upon the completion of his first full day.

Mortality envy is not a new concept, the idea of the divine stammering about as a human gives way to endless comedic jokes. Hellwig plays them well initially, Nunziata and Brown play them better. In the end the idea of an immortal being broken after his first 24 hours into life as a mortal gives little to look forward to.

Notation : 3/5

Synopsis:
After quitting as the Grim Reaper, Death dives into life head-first with dating, intramural soccer leagues, ball-room dancing classes, calligraphy... you name it. While leaning on his mom and brother (Mother Nature and Cupid), his bumbling grim reaper replacement Garrett, and even his spoken-for love interest Laura, his strained relationship with his father (God) sours. When he finally confronts the old man, a verbal spat turns physical, leaving all of humanity to face the aftermath.

Death Lives
Creators - Erick Hellwig, Chris Aurilio
Writers - Erick Hellwig, Chris Aurilio
Producers - Erick Hellwig, Chris Aurilio, Elizabeth Galalis, Emmanuel Vozos, Anik Sood
Director - Chris Aurilio
Cast - Erick Hellwig, David Carl, Elizabeth Galalis, Justin Brown, Victoria Vance, Will Nunziata