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Ned (Pushing Daisies)
Encyclopedia
Ned is the protagonist
from the 2007-9 ABC
television series Pushing Daisies
. He is portrayed by Lee Pace
.
Ned works as a pie maker at his restaurant The Pie Hole. He also has the ability to resurrect the dead with a single touch. When private investigator
Emerson Cod (Chi McBride
) accidentally discovers Ned's ability, the two enter in a partnership: in exchange for Ned using his ability to revive those who have died under suspicious circumstances, Emerson will split any reward money that he receives when the information discovered with the help of Ned's gift allows them to solve the crime.
Revival may suspend the aging process: Ned's dog Digby, having been resurrected by Ned when Ned was nine and Digby was three (season 1 episode 1), remains with him to this day and appears to be in healthy physical condition despite his great chronological age in terms of dog years.
, but soon discovered that his gift had consequences when Chuck's father died next door in exchange. Ned discovered the other effect of his gift later that night, when his mother kissed him goodnight and died a second time. During their respective parents' funerals, Ned and Chuck kissed—the first time for both of them. After the funeral, Ned's father dropped him off at the Longborough School for Boys, and never returned or contacted him again except to say that he had moved.
Ned continued to test his gift, learning its limitations and rules by such experiments as reviving a jarful of fireflies. After finishing school, Ned opened his own restaurant, The Pie Hole, a restaurant specializing in pies. Ned lives above the restaurant in an apartment, next door to his employee, Olive Snook, who is not aware of his ability. Olive is jealous of Chuck's romance with Ned, but despite her many attempts to attract him, he doesn't reciprocate, though a couple of near-death experiences have prompted suspicions that he may have stronger feelings for her than he initially thought.
Ned and Emerson hear of a woman being murdered on a cruise ship, with a $50,000 reward for solving the crime. Ned learns that the woman is Chuck, whom he had not seen for almost 20 years. He revives her to ask her who killed her, but discovers that she doesn't know. He is about to touch her but cannot bring himself to do it, allowing her to live instead and inadvertently causing the larcenous
funeral director to die. Chuck and Ned soon develop strong feelings for each other and begin a relationship; however, they cannot touch at all, as doing so would cause Chuck to die. However, Ned and Chuck find other ways to express affection: they kiss each other while encased in body bags and while holding a sheet of plastic wrap between their lips. Ned installed a glass window with a rubber glove in his car so she could sit next to him and hold his hand without touching it, and at another point, Chuck holds a prosthetic hand, pretending it's Ned's. With Chuck's presence encouraging him to take a greater role in life, Ned begins to become more involved in Emerson's cases, occasionally going undercover with Emerson and Chuck while searching for further information about the case; on one occasion {Season 2, Episode 8} he has even solved a murder aided only by Olive, Emerson and Chuck being otherwise occupied.
, who won a Costume Designers Guild Award and an Emmy for his work on the show, in order to keep Ned at the center of the viewer's attention in a show that features a "dizzying backdrop of hyper-saturated colors and storybook locations", Blackman limited Ned's wardrobe to "solid blacks, grays and whites."
, the actor who portrays Ned, has received mostly positive reviews from critics, who have described him as "an immensely likable lead, full of childlike vulnerability and almost palpable longing" and "endearing but not too cute", though he was also described as "overly slow-witted". Pace has been praised for his acting with Anna Friel
, who portrays Chuck; critics have said that "[they] are so darn adorable together" and that "the chemistry between [them] is undeniable".
. He was going to contrast with the grim reapers by bringing people back to life. However, Ned never made it into the show so the creator kept the idea until he developed Pushing Daisies
.
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
from the 2007-9 ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
television series Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies is an American comedy-drama television series created by Bryan Fuller that aired on ABC from October 3, 2007 to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace as Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with his touch, an ability that comes with stipulations...
. He is portrayed by Lee Pace
Lee Pace
Lee Grinner Pace is an American actor. Pace has been featured in film, stage and television. He is known best for his starring role as Ned in the ABC series Pushing Daisies for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2008.-...
.
Ned works as a pie maker at his restaurant The Pie Hole. He also has the ability to resurrect the dead with a single touch. When private investigator
Private investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
Emerson Cod (Chi McBride
Chi McBride
Kenneth "Chi" McBride is an American actor. He starred as Steven Harper on the series Boston Public, as Emerson Cod on Pushing Daisies, and recently appeared in Fox's drama Human Target.-Early life:...
) accidentally discovers Ned's ability, the two enter in a partnership: in exchange for Ned using his ability to revive those who have died under suspicious circumstances, Emerson will split any reward money that he receives when the information discovered with the help of Ned's gift allows them to solve the crime.
Ability
Ned brings the dead back to life with a single touch, but there are two conditions. First, if he touches a revived person, plant or animal for a second time, it will die forever; and second, if the revived remains alive for more than sixty seconds, something or someone else in close proximity will die in its place. Generally, whatever dies is a rough equivalent to what has been revived: a person for a person, an animal for an animal, or a plant for a plant.Revival may suspend the aging process: Ned's dog Digby, having been resurrected by Ned when Ned was nine and Digby was three (season 1 episode 1), remains with him to this day and appears to be in healthy physical condition despite his great chronological age in terms of dog years.
Character biography
Ned discovered his gift by reviving his dog, Digby, who was run over by a truck. Later that day, Ned also revived his mother after she suddenly died of a brain aneurysmAneurysm
An aneurysm or aneurism is a localized, blood-filled balloon-like bulge in the wall of a blood vessel. Aneurysms can commonly occur in arteries at the base of the brain and an aortic aneurysm occurs in the main artery carrying blood from the left ventricle of the heart...
, but soon discovered that his gift had consequences when Chuck's father died next door in exchange. Ned discovered the other effect of his gift later that night, when his mother kissed him goodnight and died a second time. During their respective parents' funerals, Ned and Chuck kissed—the first time for both of them. After the funeral, Ned's father dropped him off at the Longborough School for Boys, and never returned or contacted him again except to say that he had moved.
Ned continued to test his gift, learning its limitations and rules by such experiments as reviving a jarful of fireflies. After finishing school, Ned opened his own restaurant, The Pie Hole, a restaurant specializing in pies. Ned lives above the restaurant in an apartment, next door to his employee, Olive Snook, who is not aware of his ability. Olive is jealous of Chuck's romance with Ned, but despite her many attempts to attract him, he doesn't reciprocate, though a couple of near-death experiences have prompted suspicions that he may have stronger feelings for her than he initially thought.
Relationship with Chuck
Ned grew up in the village of Coeur d'Coeurs, next door to a girl named Charlotte Charles, nicknamed "Chuck", on whom he had a childhood crush. During the pilot episodePie-lette
"Pie-lette" is the series premiere of the American comedy-drama television series Pushing Daisies. The episode aired a day earlier in Canada than the United States.-Plot:...
Ned and Emerson hear of a woman being murdered on a cruise ship, with a $50,000 reward for solving the crime. Ned learns that the woman is Chuck, whom he had not seen for almost 20 years. He revives her to ask her who killed her, but discovers that she doesn't know. He is about to touch her but cannot bring himself to do it, allowing her to live instead and inadvertently causing the larcenous
Larceny
Larceny is a crime involving the wrongful acquisition of the personal property of another person. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of England into their own law. It has been abolished in England and Wales,...
funeral director to die. Chuck and Ned soon develop strong feelings for each other and begin a relationship; however, they cannot touch at all, as doing so would cause Chuck to die. However, Ned and Chuck find other ways to express affection: they kiss each other while encased in body bags and while holding a sheet of plastic wrap between their lips. Ned installed a glass window with a rubber glove in his car so she could sit next to him and hold his hand without touching it, and at another point, Chuck holds a prosthetic hand, pretending it's Ned's. With Chuck's presence encouraging him to take a greater role in life, Ned begins to become more involved in Emerson's cases, occasionally going undercover with Emerson and Chuck while searching for further information about the case; on one occasion {Season 2, Episode 8} he has even solved a murder aided only by Olive, Emerson and Chuck being otherwise occupied.
Personality
Due to Ned's power, he rarely touches people and dislikes physical contact. He also seems to fear any sort of change, at one point saying (Season 1, Episode 7 - Smell of Success) that he prefers to be "tightly wound" instead of a "shapeless mass with room for surprises" though Chuck points out that she was a surprise and he made room for her.Wardrobe
According to costume designer Robert BlackmanRobert Blackman
Robert John Blackman , better known as Bob Blackman, is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom who has been the Member of Parliament for Harrow East since 2010...
, who won a Costume Designers Guild Award and an Emmy for his work on the show, in order to keep Ned at the center of the viewer's attention in a show that features a "dizzying backdrop of hyper-saturated colors and storybook locations", Blackman limited Ned's wardrobe to "solid blacks, grays and whites."
Critical reception
Lee PaceLee Pace
Lee Grinner Pace is an American actor. Pace has been featured in film, stage and television. He is known best for his starring role as Ned in the ABC series Pushing Daisies for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe award and an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series in 2008.-...
, the actor who portrays Ned, has received mostly positive reviews from critics, who have described him as "an immensely likable lead, full of childlike vulnerability and almost palpable longing" and "endearing but not too cute", though he was also described as "overly slow-witted". Pace has been praised for his acting with Anna Friel
Anna Friel
Anna Louise Friel is an English actress. She rose to fame in the UK as Beth Jordache on the Channel 4 soap Brookside.-Early life:...
, who portrays Chuck; critics have said that "[they] are so darn adorable together" and that "the chemistry between [them] is undeniable".
Origin
The character of Ned was originally was going to be a character on the show Dead Like MeDead Like Me
Dead Like Me was an American-Canadian comedy-drama television series starring Ellen Muth and Mandy Patinkin as grim reapers who reside and work in Seattle, Washington. Filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, the show was created by Bryan Fuller for the Showtime network, where it ran for two seasons...
. He was going to contrast with the grim reapers by bringing people back to life. However, Ned never made it into the show so the creator kept the idea until he developed Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies is an American comedy-drama television series created by Bryan Fuller that aired on ABC from October 3, 2007 to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace as Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with his touch, an ability that comes with stipulations...
.