ABC premiered a new medical drama, Body of Proof, in late March. After reviewing the pilot, it seemed to be a standard medical/crime procedural, so I allowed it to languish on my TiVo for months. Truthfully, I was just hoping it would be canceled, and I wouldn't have to watch it at all. There are a few interesting procedurals, including Bones and Castle, but most are boring and rote. But then Body of Proof got a second season, and I decided to give it a shot. Having watched the entire nine-episode run these past few days, most of my initial opinions hold firm. It is definitely a standard procedural, and far from the best on TV, but there are a few hints of something decent, so I will at least be watching the season premiere next fall.
The best thing Body of Proof has going for it is that it stars Dana Delany (Desperate Housewives) as the central character, Dr. Megan Hunt. Delany excels on Desperate Housewives, and continues to stretch her range on Body of Proof. She now plays a surgeon who, after an accident, been forced to switch careers, becoming a medical examiner. Although at first she comes acros as cold, Delany brings an earnestness and compassion to the role. It takes but a few hours for her to start to see the bodies as people, and really care about what happens to them.
Delany's plot is furthered by the fact that she has an ex-husband, Todd (Jeffrey Nordling, Desperate Housewives, 24, Dirt), and a teenage daughter, Lacey (Mary Matilyn Mouser, Life Is Wild), whom she drove away during her surgeon days. Now that she seems to value more than her career, to which she still devotes most of her focus, she is trying to repair things with Lacey. While Mouser isn't the best actress, the strongest episode of season one, "Talking Heads," is one in which Megan gets very involved in Lacey's life, and Lacey reciprocates.
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