Jack Klugman was 54 when he assumed the role of a medical examiner on Quincy. Coincidentally Dana Delany also was 54 when she became Medical Examiner Megan Hunt on Body of Proof. Only one of them won’t be confused with an abandoned corpse. Delany must have a better skin regime than Klugman. She also isn’t so cranky when investigating a case. She ought to be cranky with all the weirdness in her life that pops up in Body of Proof: The Complete Second Season.
“Love Thy Neighbor” makes you guess that the episode’s victims will be a cute young couple. But they escape being hit by a car barreling through the woods. The driver is the corpse of the hour. When they investigate his life, Delany discovers his neighborhood on the sweet cul-de-sac is secretly bitter. She’s trying not to be bitter towards her boss for various reasons. Jeri Ryan is the head medical examiner. She’s also dating Delany’s ex-husband. This creates odd tension as Delany reconnects with her daughter (Mary Mouser). She doesn’t want to pump the kid for details of what her boss is doing after hours. “Hunting Party” has the wife of a tycoon shot instead of a deer. There’s way too many suspects. Megan pulls Delany of the case when she points the finger at the husband. She gets stuck on a low level homicide that leads her back to the rich man. “Missing” kills a nanny and has her charge kidnapped. The ransom does not matter as making sure the kid gets his lifesaving medicine in time. Delany needs to solve this case quick. “Lazarus Man” checks out of the morgue before his autopsy can start.
“Point of Origin” heats up the office during a fire investigation. One of the staff saves a woman from a home fire, but turns out another died inside. Delany attempts to investigate, but the arson inspectors get in her way. Ryan doesn’t have her back when she sides with the guys from arson. This is shaping up to be the battle of the bonesaws. “Love Bites” uncovers the body of a drug company representative. Delany must locate the original kill site and why the body has no blood. Pharma reps are supposed to have blood in their veins and not gold? It’s not the Ice Truck Killer from Dexter. A murderer dumps his victim off at a med school on “Gross Anatomy.”
“Hard Knocks” makes a popular high school girl a victim of raving to hard. Was it the drugs or a person that danced her into the grave? “Falling For You” drops a bride on her wedding day. Who made her go over the edge? Who doesn’t drive you nuts on your wedding day? “Cold Blooded” shoves an entire family in the walk-in freezer at their restaurant. Who iced them?
“Identity” comes across a car wreck with one girl dead and the other in critical. Things get confusing when they identify the wrong girl as the corpse. It gets more befuddling when the dead one didn’t get killed by the car wreck. “Going Viral” is a two-parter with star power. After an outbreak in the city, Luke Perry arrives on the hot zone to take over the investigation. Will he be bumping heads with Delany or Ryan? This is Luke’s best work since Oz.”Mind Games” freaks out Delany with what might be the return of a serial killer. This is a good enough cliffhanger to get the series renewed.
Body of Proof keeps up the pressure between Delany and Ryan. The duo are the perfect battlers with a Desperate Housewife screwing with the former Borg. Delany looks perfect in the role since she’s finally hit the right age to be a medical examiner.
Episodes
“Love Thy Neighbor,” “Hunting Party,” “Missing,” “Lazarus Man,” “Point of Origin,” “Second Chances,” “Hard Knocks,” “Love Bites,” “Gross Anatomy,” “Your Number’s Up,” “Falling for You,” “Shades of Blue,” “Sympathy for the Devil,” “Cold Blooded,” “Occupational Hazards,” “Home Invasion,” “Identity,” “Going Viral” (two-parter) and “Mind Games.”
The video is 1.78:1 anamorphic. The transfer brings out the details in the victims on the table. The audio is Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround. The mix really comes into play during the reveal of the episode’s victim. The episodes are subtitled in English, French and Spanish.
Design of (2:27) covers the production designer’s impact on the show.
Bodies of (2:37) explains how they make realistic corpses so actors don’t have to hold their breath that long.
The Effects (3:30) covers how to fake a house fire.
The Stunt Work (12:52) is a two part piece that breaks down how a wreck ad falling bride goes down. They use a lot of Matchbox cars in preproduction.
The Fashion of Body of Proof (2:39) takes us into the wardrobe trailer. Quincy never dressed this fancy.
Body of Goofs (3:37) are lots of blown lines around stiff bodies.
Webisodes “Outbreak” are five parts of what ran on the web. They focus on the TV news reporter covering the story.
Body of Proof: The Complete Second Season does a fine job mixing freaky murders with Dana Delany’s unbalanced homelife. She wants to make it up to her daughter while her ex-husband hooks up with her boss.
ABC Studios presents Body of Proof: The Complete Second Season. Starring: Dana Delany, Jeri Ryan, John Carroll Lynch and Mary Mouser. Boxset Contents: 22 episodes on 4 DVDs. Released: September 18, 2012. Available at Amazon.com.
