Bryan Fuller is one of our generation’s great story tellers; and with this esteemed title comes the inevitable. Fuller is a television series writer and creator who just can’t seem to catch a break. Instead he creates hilarious shows with critical acclaim rather that hoards of fans. To kick start 2010, waste your weekend with Bryan Fuller.

The Modern Choice: Pushing Daisies 2007-2009

Pushing Daisies lasted for only two seasons on ABC, but it had to be one of the most colorful shows ever to be produced for prime time television. Bryan Fuller actually left his writing job on Heroes to create and write Pushing Daisies, but with a lack of network and fan support, Ned, Chuck, Olive and Emerson were sent packing.

The concept of Pushing Daisies was wonderful as Ned, played by Lee Pace plays a pie maker who has the power to resurrect the dead. The only problem is that anything that is brought back cannot be touched by him ever again or it will die again. Another caveat to Ned’s power is that if he does not touch the resurrected within one minute, the world balances itself out and something else dies. This proves to be a major problem when Ned awakes his childhood crush Chuck from the dead and refuses to touch her again. Chuck then becomes Ned’s girlfriend who he can never touch thus setting off a series of mysterious events involving murder, robbery and deception. Pushing Daisies should be praised for the humor and the color, but most notably for the tone and the brilliance of character dialogue.

The Nostalgic Choice: Dead Like Me 2003-2004

Dead Like Me took the concept of death and dying and threw in the afterlife with a twist of emotional depression. Follow me? If not, then this is probably one of the reasons Fuller’s show about grim reapers only lasted a couple of seasons as well. Dead Like Me followed the afterlife of Georgia Lass. After dropping out of college, Georgia (George) takes a job as a temp, but is accidentally killed by a toilet seat thrown from a space station. This kick starts the series as George is then assigned to collect souls of those who die as a result of suicide or homicide. She does this all while still being a temp during the day. Although George is a soul collector, she never kills anyone. In the world of Dead Like Me, the killing is done by reapers. The relationships are set up like a workplace where individuals have responsibilities for a much larger cause. Dead Like Me wasn’t great for the original concept or even really the performances (Mandy Patinkin‘s Rube Solfer is amazing), it was brilliant for the comedy and realism instilled into the situation of death. Fuller treated death like a highway with Dead Like Me – whenever someone passed over, it was basically up to them to decide where they go next.

The Lesser Known: Wonderfalls 2004

Wonderfalls only last one full season but if you missed it, the DVD set is a great way to catch up. Fuller’s transition show follows Jaye Tyler, a recent philosophy graduate of Brown University who returns to her home town of Niagara Falls to work in a gift shop. Unfulfilled by her life choices, Jaye begins to feel as though she could be trapped in Niagara forever until she begins to see and hear inanimate objects as they come to life before her eyes. Jaye is convinced that she is going insane, but after listening to what some of them have to say, she begins to realize that living in Niagara might not be so bad. Wonderfalls is a great show if you’re interested in watching how someone adjusts to the world outside of school. Jaye always felt her life would mean something more, but as Wonderfalls unfolds, she learns that her life isn’t actually that bad.