CBS
(Season 4, Episode 7)
Thanks a lot, guys. That had to be one of the most gut-wrenching hours on television in recent memory. Jim and Melinda had what is quite possibly the most perfect romance in the history of television. Their love for one another was absolute and complete, and it was the heart and soul of this series. When that heart was ripped from Melinda’s chest with Jim’s accidental death last week, the question became where do you go from here?
We know that Melinda can see earthbound spirits, and we knew that she’d seen Jim at the moment of his death. But it raises so many complicated questions. Of course, it would be difficult for Jim to leave Melinda and cross over. Since he can still interact with her because she can see him, how can he possibly understand that the best thing to do for her is to move on. We know that ghosts are often confused shortly after death, and as lucid as Jim seemed tonight, I think he’s still a little fuzzy on some things.
I can’t imagine that Jim would knowingly cause Melinda continued grief by staying by her side. What he thinks is good for her is denying her the closure she desperately needs. I did like that the “other” story brought back the police officer who accidentally shot and killed Jim, and gave us some closure on what happened there. It was nice to see Melinda able to forgive him so that she can at least move on from that.
We got to see deeper into the realm of the other side than ever before. Some of the things there rang a little odd for me. For instance, Jim’s brother telling him that he hadn’t seen his dad yet because he’d been told to stay behind and wait for Jim. That doesn’t really make sense. Why would he be denied the light? It made me a bit suspicious of the light, or at least of Jim’s brother.
We’ve already seen that there are other forces in the afterlife than “the light,” so what happens if and when one of them makes a play for Jim. Melinda has some important role to play in whatever struggles are happening in the otherworldly realm, and Jim could certainly be used as a bargaining tool with Melinda. Also, Jim being dead made Eli a much more valuable character to have around.
As for that ending, I was worried when his hand went into the older black man’s hand after he passed that this very thing would happen. What I didn’t expect was the amnesia. If Jim was able to inhabit the body of a recently deceased person, it kind of makes you wonder what else ghosts can do. He’s said himself that he barely knows what he’s doing and he was able to pull this off. Does this call into question other near death experiences? How long can he inhabit someone else’s body, or is he trapped.
In an interview, executive producers Kim Moses and Ian Sander hinted that we’re looking at a reboot of sorts for Jim and Melinda’s relationship. Moses said, “we’re going to reboot Jim and Melinda’s love story so that the audience can experience them falling in love from the very beginning … very few people get a second chance at true love and that’s what this journey is about.” This worries me. Is Jim going to stay in this other body and then Melinda and “new” Jim will fall in love all over again? Then we’ll get a Quantum Leap effect where we (and Melinda maybe) will see Jim in his face but everyone else will see the other actor.
Ghost Whisperer was a show that followed a certain formula. It’s basically a procedural, only with a unique procedure all its own. All of this has been thrown out the window now with a main character existing on the other side. I loved the looks we got into how this world worked and as much as I wish Jim wasn’t dead, I’m willing to give this storyline a chance to see where they’re going with it. I’d rather we spend time with Jim on the other side of the veil than possessing someone else.
Clacked by Jason Hughes 
on Nov 15, 2008 @ 21:16 EST5EDT
