ACTUAL FOLLOW-UP
Yeah, since you guys showed interest, I'll do a post about Stiffs.
It's the story of a forensic necromancer. Inconveniently similar to Pushing Daisies in some ways (which I did not realize until two weeks ago when I actually saw Pushing Daisies for the first time) but with a lot of Bones/CSI pushed in, and more fleshed-out necromancy rules and concepts.
Basically, Gavin is a necromancer who works with the forensics team in a city (somewhere probably in Oregon or Washington. Or British Columbia), solving crimes in an experimental and not 100% legal program. Testimony and investigation from somebody who uses "black magic" (a term our protagonist hates) aren't going to be accepted in a court of law, but in the cases where the department simply cannot figure out the crime at hand, they call him in to revive the victim to learn more.
Of course, it's not going to be easy. Gavin may be a calm and analytical man, spiritual but harshly tempered by logic and a strict set of rules governing his work. Some of these rules are self-imposed: don't keep a victim alive longer than you have to, don't revive those you don't need to, don't let emotions cloud judgment on this sort of thing. Other rules are from the city's laws... and the art of necromancy itself. A revived victim is legally dead. Their testimony isn't valid. It's a (semi-legal) starting point to piece the other elements of the crime together. Victims aren't always going to remember who or what killed them- they may have been caught by surprise, or suffered permanent brain damage. And their body has to be intact in order for them to be revived.
Bringing the dead back to life isn't as simple as casting a spell or performing an arcane ritual. Their body has to be in working order first- otherwise, they'll die straightaway when the necromancer tries to bring their soul back. So before any resurrections occur, the cause of death must be identified and fixed. Otherwise, the ritual will be pointless. It's exhausting for the necromancer to fetch souls from the other side, as well, and it only gets harder the longer the victim has been dead. Necromancy is not a field one can "wing it" in.
Gavin is not a doctor, nor is he skilled in traditional forensics. He's just the guy who brings back the souls. That's why he needs the team:
Grace- A surgeon in the midst of her residency, she suffered a breakdown due the stress of her chosen field. In theory, she loves fixing what ails the body. In practice, it's too difficult for her to do her methodical work while trying to keep a person alive in the process. But her skills are just what Gavin needs. Repairing corpses without the threat of letting the patient die turned out to be the salvation of her career. She's a friendly, good-hearted woman, methodical and prone to stress.
Paul is the section chief. A grouchy old man who ultimately green-lighted the necromancy program out of sheer frustration.
Jade is the lawyer who works with Paul. Stoic and terse. Seems to have a hidden agenda, since she works hard to keep a questionably-legal program running under her watch.
Athena is a middle-aged detective. She's seen everything, and believes in experience and time-tested detective work over things like necromancy. Not a strawman, but a foil to Gavin's sensibilities.
Alex is the coroner. Young, androgynous, and a little bit too enthusiastic about his work. Is a bit of a closet goth, but insanely cheerful about it. He's probably Gavin's biggest supporter in the department.
Joan, Brian, Claude, and Amal are the forensics team proper. Joan may have been in a radical activist group in her youth. Brian joined because he's a CSI fan. Claude looks like a playboy but isn't. Amal finds Gavin's work very worrying.
Helena is a street necromancer. Everything that Gavin cannot stand in the field is commonplace to her. She revives the dead for the long run, often does a slipshod job of it, and follows none of the laws. But of course, there's always a reason for everything...
idek, there's a plot or something.
It's the story of a forensic necromancer. Inconveniently similar to Pushing Daisies in some ways (which I did not realize until two weeks ago when I actually saw Pushing Daisies for the first time) but with a lot of Bones/CSI pushed in, and more fleshed-out necromancy rules and concepts.
Basically, Gavin is a necromancer who works with the forensics team in a city (somewhere probably in Oregon or Washington. Or British Columbia), solving crimes in an experimental and not 100% legal program. Testimony and investigation from somebody who uses "black magic" (a term our protagonist hates) aren't going to be accepted in a court of law, but in the cases where the department simply cannot figure out the crime at hand, they call him in to revive the victim to learn more.
Of course, it's not going to be easy. Gavin may be a calm and analytical man, spiritual but harshly tempered by logic and a strict set of rules governing his work. Some of these rules are self-imposed: don't keep a victim alive longer than you have to, don't revive those you don't need to, don't let emotions cloud judgment on this sort of thing. Other rules are from the city's laws... and the art of necromancy itself. A revived victim is legally dead. Their testimony isn't valid. It's a (semi-legal) starting point to piece the other elements of the crime together. Victims aren't always going to remember who or what killed them- they may have been caught by surprise, or suffered permanent brain damage. And their body has to be intact in order for them to be revived.
Bringing the dead back to life isn't as simple as casting a spell or performing an arcane ritual. Their body has to be in working order first- otherwise, they'll die straightaway when the necromancer tries to bring their soul back. So before any resurrections occur, the cause of death must be identified and fixed. Otherwise, the ritual will be pointless. It's exhausting for the necromancer to fetch souls from the other side, as well, and it only gets harder the longer the victim has been dead. Necromancy is not a field one can "wing it" in.
Gavin is not a doctor, nor is he skilled in traditional forensics. He's just the guy who brings back the souls. That's why he needs the team:
Grace- A surgeon in the midst of her residency, she suffered a breakdown due the stress of her chosen field. In theory, she loves fixing what ails the body. In practice, it's too difficult for her to do her methodical work while trying to keep a person alive in the process. But her skills are just what Gavin needs. Repairing corpses without the threat of letting the patient die turned out to be the salvation of her career. She's a friendly, good-hearted woman, methodical and prone to stress.
Paul is the section chief. A grouchy old man who ultimately green-lighted the necromancy program out of sheer frustration.
Jade is the lawyer who works with Paul. Stoic and terse. Seems to have a hidden agenda, since she works hard to keep a questionably-legal program running under her watch.
Athena is a middle-aged detective. She's seen everything, and believes in experience and time-tested detective work over things like necromancy. Not a strawman, but a foil to Gavin's sensibilities.
Alex is the coroner. Young, androgynous, and a little bit too enthusiastic about his work. Is a bit of a closet goth, but insanely cheerful about it. He's probably Gavin's biggest supporter in the department.
Joan, Brian, Claude, and Amal are the forensics team proper. Joan may have been in a radical activist group in her youth. Brian joined because he's a CSI fan. Claude looks like a playboy but isn't. Amal finds Gavin's work very worrying.
Helena is a street necromancer. Everything that Gavin cannot stand in the field is commonplace to her. She revives the dead for the long run, often does a slipshod job of it, and follows none of the laws. But of course, there's always a reason for everything...
idek, there's a plot or something.