ABC goes for drama and comedy

It seems that reality TV has not quite killed off (officially) scripted shows: American TV network ABC will today announce the commissioning of seven new drama series and four new comedies, report Bill Carter and Jacques Steinberg in The New York Times.

The new series that is already generating the most positive talk, both inside and outside ABC, is a quirky romantic hourlong comedy-drama called “Pushing Daisies,”about a young man who discovers — to the advantage of a homicide detective — that with a touch he can both raise the dead and send them back again. His power complicates his relationship with a young woman he can love only unrequitedly. Lee Pace and Anna Friel play the couple, supported by Chi McBride and Kristin Chenoweth [it's created by Bryan Fuller].