Ghost Whisperer - Paranormal Delight, But What's with the Twins?

Do other people enjoy the CBS show, Ghost Whisperer? I was home baking brownies and vacuuming last night and I wanted something on the telly to keep the kitties and I company. The ScyFy channel (why do they spell it with two "y"s these days? Is it like the feminist wymyn/women thing? I think the ScyFy channel is about women but not about them watching. But I digress.) had a little mini-marathon of some paranormal show called Ghost Whisperer and I usually love paranormal stuff so I was on board.

I got utterly engrossed with the show. The main character, Melinda Gordon, has had a "gift" from childhood to see the dead - spirits trapped among the living. In each episode, she discovers a different ghost unable to go to the "other side" because of something troubling them in this world. She investigates the problem, approaches the living (breaking it to them gently that there is a real ghost involved), and helps resolve the problem. Dust hands off and wait for the next ghost.

It turns out this show has been nominated for a bunch of primetime Emmys (who knew? probably someone who watches the Emmys) and its production value is pretty spiffy. Melinda owns an antiques shop in a quaint small town (the set of Back to the Future done over, actually) and is married to a hunky paramedic/firefighter (who looks like he might later become a doctor on the show) who understands and accepts that she has this gift and tries to help when he can. There is also an unsuspecting (at least in the episodes I watched) widowed coworker, played by Camryn Manheim, who has a son.

I was struck by several things - first, Jennifer Love Hewitt is really stunning. Isn't she a spokesperson for ProActiv? Her skin is flawless - they should seriously have the 800 number periodically for ordering. Her character also seems to enjoy a certain amount of profound affluence. She is always stunningly dressed in designer or vintage togs with great accessories and no outfits repeat. The house she shares with her husband is also designer quality with great antiques and a complicated paint job. More importantly, every other episode involves a confrontation with a ghost in the antiques store after hours which results in the largely breakable items exploding into a million pieces. Yet she never seems troubled by the lack of inventory or the sweeping job she must have to do before Delia comes in the following morning. And Delia never says, "Hey, Melinda, did you really sell all those crystal balls, chandeliers and pricey vases that we had filling a third of the store? After we closed?" What's up with that?

And then there's the elephant in the room, or two of them for that matter. Jennifer Love Hewitt seems to be really really comfortable trotting out the twins. Her breasts are ALWAYS on display, to the point where its downright distracting. Are we sure the ghosts aren't attracted to her cleavage? It's a small town, people, not Housewives of Orange County! What's interesting is that Jennifer has credited her twins with nabbing her a spot on several "sexiest" lists and I can imagine she might have a viewership who waits for her character's occasional disrobing to reveal a lacy bra (although there isn't much difference from the tops to be honest). One of the quotes on the Internet Movie Database biography was from her Playboy interview (natch) in which she commented about her breasts, "I just accepted them as a great accessory to every outfit". Some people like earrings, other people just pop out the girls. Maybe its a California thing?