Last night, I caught a rerun of the first episode of Lifetime’s new series, Drop Dead Diva. Once I got past the show’s silly premise (Deb, a thin, wannabe model dies and her spirit is placed in the fat-chick attorney body of Jane), as well as my embarrassment over the fact that I was watching something on Lifetime, for cryin’ out loud – I found the show rather enjoyable.

Besides its thematic content (body image, weight issues), it seems like Drop Dead Diva may turn out to just be some fun, light summer viewing. I like that Margaret Cho is cast as Jane’s personal assistant. And Brooke Elliott as Jane-Deb is absolutely adorable, and fun to watch. She’s pretty, she’s bubbly, she’s smart – and she’s fat.

I recognize that my quality standards for entertainment may be lowered dramatically in this instance. I suspect that I’m willing to overlook some cheesiness and silliness, simply because I’m so grateful to finally have a lead female character who looks like me – especially one who, so far, seems like she could be well-drawn enough to transcend those six scenarios I outlined in yesterday’s post.

Now – a word about doughnuts and cheese spread. The pilot episode made it clear that this is what Jane likes to eat. Okay, fine. But this information was delivered in a way that struck me as surprisingly nuanced. Once Deb (the thin woman) is ensconced within Jane’s body, she is told by her “guardian angel” that along with Jane’s body and intelligence level, she now has all of Jane’s cravings (i.e. doughnuts and Cheez Whiz). While at first glance, this may seem like one more example of the fat-girl-craves-junk-food cliché, it could also suggest that such cravings are simply a physiological phenomenon, and not some kind of indication of weakness or lack of willpower.

I’m curious to see how Drop Dead Diva handles this. I expect that at some point, Deb is going to try and put Jane on a diet, thinking (as many naturally thin people tend to) that dieting shouldn’t be difficult. All you have to do is eat less and exercise more, right? It’s not exactly rocket science. This is precisely the kind of thinking that leads to the moral judgments about fat people (i.e. if they can’t manage to lose weight, then they’re clearly just lacking motivation and willpower, those lazy slugs). It stigmatizes one group of people (the fat) while allowing another group of people (the thin) to feel that they’re somehow superior. It would be interesting if Deb, now in a body with a completely different physiological makeup from her own, recognizes that, well – it’s not really as simple as all that. Maybe there are more factors involved than simply the strength of one’s desire to be thin.

Perhaps Drop Dead Diva will advance the concept that just as some people are naturally thin, others are naturally fat. Perhaps Deb will realize this, and find that being fat isn’t that dreadful. Perhaps she’ll acknowledge the kind of extreme sacrifices she would have to make in order to achieve (and maintain) a weight that is unnaturally low for her body. Perhaps she’ll realize that it’s not worth it to try and become someone that you’re not.

A simple message, to be sure – but a worthy one.