Dead to Rights

Embalmed loved ones in this parody are given a two-week reprieve from the business end of a headstone. Should society mainstream these docile "pickleheads" or banish them to Putrid Sound? Amy Sitters' dedication to securing civil rights for a new underclass — zombies — is laughably liberal. But if she's successful, military plans to send reanimated soldiers into biologically hot war zones could be compromised. Meanwhile, lowlife Bill Parker, who makes history when he rises "from his eternal rest," undergoes humiliating medical tests and is surprised at how intelligent he's become. Astonishment sweeps the nation as new laws and medical, insurance, and marketing practices are enacted to contain and mainstream the pickleheads. Tabloid reporter Nape Webb, moonlighting as an assassin for hire, is ambivalent but takes the contract on Mrs. Sitters' life after researching his employer's motivations. He learns about the military's devious plot and enlists Mrs. Sitters' aid to turn the tables.