“Stop, I’m Already Dead”: Why iZombie Was Wickedly Funny

It’s always too early to mourn the dead, especially zombie ones. They never really go out of style, but zombies on TV had a particular heyday during the 2010s. The decade brought us AMC’s juggernaut The Walking Dead (2010–2022) and Netflix’s offbeat horror-comedy The Santa Clarita Diet (2017–2018). Somewhere in the middle of those two was iZombie, a strangely satisfying stew of crime-solving, undead drama, and absurd humor that ran on The CW for five seasons.

It was never a blockbuster hit, but iZombie gained a devoted cult following for its razor-sharp writing, earnest performances, and an original—yes, original—spin on the zombie genre. Created by Rob Thomas and Diane Ruggiero-Wright and loosely based on the Vertigo comic series of the same name by Chris Roberson and Michael Allred, the show deviated from its source material enough to be its own thing, but never strayed too far from the undead heart.

In the comics, Gwen Dylan (not played by Rose McIver) is a zombie gravedigger who lives in Eugene, Oregon. She must eat the brain of a human every 30 days to keep her memories and motor functions. A ghost and a were-terrier round out her group of close friends, a supernatural take on queerness, friendship, and identity. The series wisely focused less on the walking dead parts, but the iZombie show that premiered on The CW did something different.

Liv Moore—yes, that’s a perfectly on-brand name—played by Rose McIver —was a Type A Seattle medical student. Her life is upended after a boat party ends in a zombie outbreak, a combination of a new designer drug called Utopium and an energy drink called Max Rager. After being scratched in the arm by a zombie and found dead in a body bag the next day, Liv ends up on the undead side. She promptly breaks it off with her human fiancé, Major (Robert Buckley), coldly distances herself from her roommate Peyton (Aly Michalka), and gets a job as a lab assistant at the medical examiner’s office so she can quietly get her daily brain doses. Her secret is quickly discovered by her sweet and dorky boss, Ravi (Rahul Kohli), a former CDC scientist and now a zombie virus hunter with one goal: to find a cure.

In a turn that would become one of the show’s biggest and most fun quirks, Liv absorbs the memories of anyone whose brain she eats. This results in a weekly onslaught of new personalities to play for McIver, each one warts and all. A sassy dominatrix. A curmudgeonly old man. A romance novelist. A magician. A trivia-loving hitman. Liv embraced every brain with sincerity, earnestness, and a wink.

The brains would also be the only clues in unsolved murders, pairing Liv with Det. Clive Babineaux (Malcolm Goodwin), who, at least in the beginning, thinks Liv is psychic. And Ravi, comic relief aside, was a genuine scientific sounding board for Liv. He wanted her to confide in him, but he was also excited to watch her more “interesting” personalities (sans his PhD scientist brain, of course).

Brains, Bad Guys, and Bittersweet Goodbyes

No show is complete without a bad guy, and iZombie’s show-mance was with Blaine DeBeers (David Anders)—the smooth-talking, criminally untouchable (literally) zombie who scratched Liv at that boat party. From there, Blaine morphs into the only brain trafficker in Seattle. A series of wealthy, zombie clients who don’t know or can’t access brains need Blaine’s service to function. With his aristocratic sneer, daddy issues, and toxic masculinity camouflaged as wit and charm, Blaine was always a treat to watch.

The show also had a lot of solid side characters. Jessica Harmon played FBI agent Dale Brazzio, who eventually became Clive’s partner. Bryce Hodgson got a standout comedic season one role as Scott E., and the team was so charmed they brought him back as twin brother Don E., a lovable sidekick and Blaine’s lackey. Guest stars like Daran Norris’ sleazy weatherman Johnny Frost and Steven Weber’s Max Rager CEO Vaughan Du Clark (and his zombie daughter, Rita, played by Leanne Lapp) also provided some memorable one-off appearances as well as recurring threats for the gang.

The last two seasons of the series suffered. It lost steam creatively, and its finale was rushed and lacked the emotional resonance the fans felt the series deserved. But there’s something to be said about something being so silly, so absurd, and also so pure of heart at the same time. The comedy on the show was both sharp and silly, the puns were endless (Major Lillywhite, the name of Liv and Clive’s favorite bar, The Scratching Post, and Ravi’s zombie dog “Minor”), and the cuisine Liv made from brains was delightfully gross. Stir-fry? Brain hush puppies? Protein shakes? Yes, please.

Some episodes have stood the test of time. An episode like “Flight of the Living Dead,” in which Liv eats the brain of her loose, free-spirited former sorority sister Holly (Tasya Teles), who perishes in a plane accident while skydiving, brings a delightful zing to Liv’s often careful life. Holly’s energy was a boon to Liv, and their on-screen chemistry (especially as Liv wakes up from Holly’s memories in her body) was a reminder that iZombie, as much about zombies and murder as it was, was a love story.

It had zombies. It had gross gore and brain-eating murder. But it also had soul.