House proud

When Desperate Housewives came onto our screens, it was exciting – the show was so different, so refreshing, and wickedly funny. It was a case of creator Marc Cherry hitting just the right spots with the mixture of murder mysteries, a suicide mystery – with the dead narrator’s wry comments on the happenings adding a delicious twist – the cameraderie and rivalry of the women, and the sense that anything was possible in the surreal otherworld that was Wisteria Lane.

The show was a spoof of sorts with its leanings towards heavy soap, and its tongue was for the most part kept firmly between everyone’s cheeks. Sure, there’s been the occasional serious moment, such as Bree’s (Marcia Cross) husband Rex kicking the bucket at the end of season one, and more recently the loss of Gabrielle (Eva Longoria) and Carlos’s baby, but the presence of Danny Elfman’s offbeat, jaunty music always hovering in the background reassures viewers that we should never take things too seriously.

This juxtaposition sits uncomfortably sometimes, especially with Gabrielle’s tragic situation, but everything was made right (well, kind of) when she finally admitted she was upset and participated in the ritual of letting the balloon go in the park to symbolise the letting go of the baby.

Still, it was a pretty cynical storyline, and no doubt viewers were starting to wonder when that baby bump would start to appear on the tiny Longoria’s trim and taut body. Makes you wonder if the story producers changed their minds and decided that an increasingly pregnant Gabrielle might detract from hers and the show’s sex appeal. She is, after all, the youngest and most overtly sexy of the regulars.

Since the Mary-Alice suicide and accompanying storylines were resolved last season, you had to wonder what they’d come up with to keep viewers glued. It’s been a bit of a hit and miss affair so far, although that doesn’t seem to have put a dent in the ratings, with it often coming in a couple of spots ahead of Lost.

The introduction of a new weird family headed by Betty Applewhite (Alfre Woodard), with son Caleb chained up in the basement, stirred some curiosity to begin with but has become a little bit tiresome. Still, Caleb has been picked up by the cops now so maybe we’ll find something out to keep us interested.

The swapping of roles for Lynette (Felicity Huffman) and Tom (Doug Savant) has been rather lowkey compared to the first season ride with the always manically harrowed Lynette dealing with the four kids. This also needs to lead somewhere new.

And as for Susan (Teri Hatcher) – well, she’s fast becoming one of TV’s most annoying characters. We all wanted her and Mike to get together last season but there seems to be very little sympathy for Susan since Mike spectacularly dumped her for her unforgivable behaviour regarding his weird son, Zack. Or is he his son? You never know in this program.

Of course, there’s also Bree and the insane, murderous George, and you have to wonder how she ever thought he was anything other than a complete loon. Where to for her now?

It’s still pretty appealing viewing when compared to most of the predictable stuff filling up the TV schedules – and at least it doesn’t have “CSI” or “Law and Order” at the beginning of its title – but it’s a hard ask for it to maintain the stunning momentum of the first series. Perfectly manicured and nailpolished fingers crossed.

Vicki Englund

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Desperate Housewives

On: Seven

Time: Monday, 8.40 pm