TV fanatics familiar with Bryan Fuller probably know the writer and producer thanks to his cult dramedy Pushing Daisies (2007-2009), a heady mixture of quirk, morbidity, and quick wit. Pushing Daisies follows pie-maker Ned, who can bring the dead back to life (with some strictures, of course) and uses his power to solve mysteries. Add on top of that whimsical production design (think Tim Burton on a sunny day) and you’ve got an idiosyncratic gem. However, Fuller fans would be remiss if they passed over his earlier and even shorter-lived series Wonderfalls, which turns 20 today.
Wonderfalls is more magical realism than the later show’s almost fairytale aesthetic. Again, we’ve got a protagonist with a fantastical capability, but this time it’s Jaye Tyler (Caroline Dhavernas), who described herself as “overeducated and unemployable” in her high school yearbook and ends up mostly living up to that epithet as a listless 24-year-old Brown graduate working in a Niagara Falls gift shop. One day, inanimate objects start talking to her (provided they have a mouth), compelling her to venture beyond her misanthropic tendencies and start actually being involved in the world. Jaye’s outsider status seems to have been baked into her from the outset, with all her family’s names rhyming, save her own (mom Karen, father Darrin, sister Sharon, and brother Aaron). Jaye’s sudden interest in her fellow man surprises her childhood best friend Mahandra (Tracie Thoms, or Joanne from the film adaptation of Rent) and lands her a potential beau in the form of the heartbroken bartender Eric (Tyron Leitso).
Tonally, Wonderfalls is plenty zany and even cartoonish at times—one scene features Eric’s heart popping out of his chest and falling into Jaye’s hands—but in a way that’s distinct from Pushing Daisies. Part of that is due to the contribution of Wonderfalls co-creator Todd Holland, who also directed over two dozen episodes of Malcolm in the Middle. He brings the popular sitcom’s same fast-paced energy to Wonderfalls, which funnily enough also focuses on an intense family dynamics; the Tylers may be a smidge less dysfunctional than the Wilkersons, but they’re just as overbearing.
Sadly, this one season wonder was canceled, so we’ll always be left wondering if Jaye managed to silence the voices forever or made peace with their incessant commands. Those episodes we did get were a treat, though, and so we’ve ranked them all, in ascending order:
13. “Muffin Buffalo” (Episode 1.06)
This mid-season episode doesn’t rank the lowest because it drags or anything like that, but because of the outdated fatphobia that makes watching it pretty painful. “Muffin Buffalo” opens on Jaye and her brother Aaron (Lee Pace, so handsome) spying on her trailer park neighbor who she’s nicknamed Fat Pat. The Voices of course make it so she actually meets Pat (Eddie Kaye Thomas of American Pie fame), who’s lost a lot of weight, and tries to introduce him back into the world after years of agoraphobia induced by fat shaming. The writers seem aware that the whole thing is grim: “Fat Pat reminds me of a simpler time,” Jaye remarks, to which Mahandra replies, “When you were a bitch?” And Pat’s supposedly happy ending is shitting out over a dozen pounds to reach his goal weight—and briefly being in a coma—thanks to their other neighbor Mrs. Beattle’s (Beth Grant) laxative muffins. Last place.
12. “Cocktail Bunny” (Episode 1.11)
The Voices’ vague advice of “Save him from her” convinces Jaye that Eric’s estranged wife Heidi (Jewel Staite, best known as Kaylee from Firefly) is trying to kill him. Not only is Jaye sorely mistaken, but the escalating series of events make her look very unwell. Honestly, I may have just ranked this episode so low because I don’t like people calling Jaye “crazy.” Also, Heidi may not be a murderer, but she’s so mean-spirited it’s hard to understand what kind-hearted Eric sees in her. “Cocktail Bunny” still stresses me out years later, though, so I can’t contest the writers’ mastery of tension.
11. “Totem Mole” (Episode 1.12)
Wonderfalls unfortunately falls back onto the old trope of white people using Native culture to try to “find themselves” in this episode. Jaye accompanies Sharon and Mahandra to the fictional Satsuma Reservation and ends up accidentally speaking with the tribe’s recently deceased seer—which is a first for her. By following the Voices’ commands, Jaye realizes that her gift may not be such a burden after all. The episode’s highlights largely come from Sharon (Katie Finneran), who encounters her law school rival Deanna Littlefoot (Alex Rice) on the reservation and continually trips up while trying to prove herself to Deanna. The subplot culminates in Sharon accidentally locking Deanna in an overheated sauna, dramatically screeching, “Pry man, pry!” Finneran deserves more kudos for her comedy.
10. “Lovesick Ass” (Episode 1.08)
Remember when Spencer Breslin ruled the world? That kid was popping up everywhere: The Kid, The Santa Clause 2 and 3, The Cat in the Hat, Princess Diaries 2, and on and on. “Lovesick Ass” brings us back to that golden era, with Breslin starring as a troubled kid Peter who catfishes a Russian woman while struggling to get over his mother’s death. Jaye and Eric have to intervene, of course, and everyone ends up in a better place; even would-be mail bride Katya ends up connecting with Peter’s dad Dick (what Dick will do when he finds out Katya sent his son nudes is a question for another day). Eric is a winner here—not for doing shirtless work atop Jaye’s trailer, but for his staunch defense of socialism while debating Katya. King.
9. “Lying Pig” (Episode 1.10)
At a certain point, the Voices stop merely disrupting Jaye’s inertia, instead forcing her to go against her own wishes. Case in point: when Heidi shows up in Niagara Falls to win Eric back, the bass in the bar tells Jaye to “Mend what is broken,” despite her love for Eric. There’s some real character growth in this episode, with Jaye calling on Aaron for help and putting others’ needs above her own. It feels a little cheesy, but there’s maturity in Jaye’s insistence that Eric is “not that guy” and recognition that he at least needs to try to repair things with Heidi. Big shout-out to the Tylers’ sub-plot, though: Karen (Diana Scarwid) is feeling ignored by Darrin (William Sadler), so she goes out to dinner with a dashing fan. Darrin’s not jealous at first, but Sharon manages to work him up into a frenzy of fisticuffs.
8. “Barrel Bear” (Episode 1.07)
This episode benefits from a pair of impeccable guest stars: Rue McClanahan (Blanche from Gilmore Girls) is the glamorous Millie Marcus, who stole the title of first American woman to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel (“And live!” as Mahandra often interjects) from Vivian Caldwell, played by Louise Fletcher (Nurse Ratched from One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest). Because her title was usurped from her, Vivian never left Niagara, and she’s a harbinger of sorts for Jaye, accusing the younger woman of being similarly stuck. Some of the best moments of the episode go to the Tyler family once again, as Darrin explains to Millie he and Sharon’s involvement in the organization CLAW: “Concerned Ladies of America West—East Coast Branch.”
7. “Karma Chameleon” (Episode 1.03)
“Karma Chameleon” is the episode that best explores who Jaye is, thanks to the breathless observations of investigative journalist Bianca (Sarah Drew, best known as April on Grey’s Anatomy). Jaye is Gen-Y—strange to hear that term used in the show instead of millennial—a generation who “don’t just fall through the cracks, but jump through,” according to Bianca (I would argue the cracks have been impossibly widened for us, but hey, that’s just me). The end of this episode is ultimately heartwarming, despite initial All About Eve vibes from Bianca. After being disappointed she only merited five words in her mother’s book jacket blurb, Jaye finds the perfect way to describe herself: “Her blurb and life are a work in progress.”
6. “Wound-up Penguin” (Episode 1.04)
When a nun loses her faith, the Voices convince Jaye that it’s her responsibility to bring Sister Katrina (Carrie Preston) back to the flock. Preston does a great job as the fervent, high-strung nun, and her rapturous monologue about how cheese is “a bacterial flirtation with enzymes, the co-mingling of friendly microorganisms giving birth to curds and whey” still makes me want a good chunk of chevre. The episode has some of the series’ best dialogue and showcases the excellent casting. Even a janitor (Boyd Banks) with just one scene eats up with his delivery of a line about Johnny Cash being born Irish.
5. “Safety Canary” (Episode 1.09)
It’s the love episode! Every set of lovebirds manages to see themselves in the endangered macaws Humphrey and Lauren, who are struggling to mate in the local zoo. Thanks to the Voices, Jaye ends up getting their dedicated zookeeper Penelope (the talented Kellie Waymire, who sadly died shortly after filming) fired. Out of guilt, Jaye and Eric help Penelope steal the birds so they can help them mate in the Tyler family home (Aaron: “I wanted to see an engorged cloaca”). One of the most exciting developments of the episode is Mahandra and Aaron’s sudden romance—and funnily enough, Thoms and Pace were in Group 30 together at Juilliard.
4. “Crime Dog” (Episode 1.05)
Episode writer Krista Vernoff and director Allan Kroeker have plenty of noir-ish fun with “Crime Dog,” which sees Jaye attempting to bring home the family’s housekeeper Yvette (Audrey Wasilewski) after she’s deported back to Canada. We start off in the police precinct where Jaye, Aaron, and Sharon are all being questioned, with the latter’s smoking habit really selling the genre nod. The episode unfolds in flashbacks, with the clever writing augmented by moments of silliness (“By emergency do you mean there’s poop everywhere?” “Yes, Aaron, there’s poop everywhere”). Aaron clues in for the first time that something odd is happening with Jaye, and Jaye realizes that maybe her over-involved family aren’t such a drag.
3. “Caged Bird” (Episode 1.13)
While it’s disappointing that the season finale was unintentionally also a series finale, the writers do such a fantastic job of tying up loose ends and character arcs that ultimately it’s a very satisfying watch. And not just satisfying—stressful as well. Jaye intends to meet Eric at her trailer and tell him her true feelings before he leaves for New Jersey, but a bank robber ends up taking her hostage in the Wonderfalls gift shop along with her mouth-breather manager Alec, Sharon, and security guard Wade. There’s some great physical comedy as the hostages attempt to thwart the bank robber, but the episode really succeeds because of its emotional beats. Jaye shares a tender moment with Sharon, who she once pretended she wasn’t even related to, and Mahandra finally finds the guts to take her relationship with Aaron public. There’s plenty of love to go around.
2. “Pink Flamingos” (Episode 1.02)
“Pink Flamingos” is hands-down the funniest episode of Wonderfalls, following Jaye and Mahandra as they attend their six-and-a-half-year high school reunion. Their 10 year anniversary was pushed forward by former popular girl Gretchen Speck-Horowitz (Chelan Simmons, who reprised this role in Fuller’s Hannibal TV show) to celebrate just how great her marriage is. Except it’s not as fabulous as Gretchen makes it out to be, and Jaye ends up pitying her just in time for the Voices to demand that she “destroy Gretchen.” Everyone’s just having so much fun here, and we’re lucky to be along for the ride.
1. “Wax Lion” (Episode 1.01)
By ranking “Wax Lion” the highest, I am by no means saying the show is all down hill after the first episode. It’s just that pilots are rarely this fully formed and funny, while also managing to introduce us to the entire supporting cast and the series’ overall conceit. We get to see just how overwhelming Jaye’s family can be (especially when her father asks when she last orgasmed), the instant chemistry between her and lovelorn Eric, and the acerbic banter between Jaye and Mahandra that forms the cornerstone of their friendship. The show’s central question is posed to us colorfully through an apocryphal Native myth: will Jaye listen to the Voices and “surrender to destiny?” Most importantly, Jaye’s personality is so apparent from the outset; she’s dissatisfied and unambitious, with a reluctant heart of gold buried under all her snark.
Clare Martin is a cemetery enthusiast and Paste’s assistant comedy editor. Go harass her on Twitter @theclaremartin.