Monday, September 26, 2011

OPINION: DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES Season 8 Premiere

I have watched every episode of DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES. When it’s good it’s on fire. When it’s bad it’s like watching something roll to a slow painful death. What always keeps me coming back is the relationship between Susan, Lynette, Gaby, and Bree.

The four of them driving story together is when the show is at its best, but the writers seem oblivious to that, and they often have them off in separate stories that rarely intersect . Thankfully, this last season has set the stage to go out with a bang as Gaby, Bree, Lynette, Susan, and Carlos work together to cover up the murder of Gaby’s abusive stepfather by Carlos.

The opening moments of this episode were proof to what I have been saying for years: Eva Longoria is one of the most under-appreciated actresses in prime time television. She is comedy gold, but in an instant can go from camp to true anguish without missing a beat. As Susan expresses her doubts about the cover-up, the fear and horror on Gaby’s face as she confides her concern that Carlos could go to jail for what he did almost makes your forget that this is a television show. I know they want me to think that they might not all go along with the cover up, but that's just not what is going to happen so let's move on.

The real question is why was Lynette wearing what looks like a blue house coat that not even a grandmother would be caught dead in? I’m not saying when you are on your way to cover up a murder that fashion should be your first thought, but wasn’t she at a dinner party? Are you trying to tell me that is the coat she chose to wear for the evening? If that’s the case, someone needs to sit down and have a serious discussion with the wardrobe department.

The rest of the episode quickly fell into the trap of what I'm going to call, "shenanigans." It seemed that the writers thought to themselves, “what kind of wacky happenings can we have these women get into while trying to hide they are covering up a murder?” Nothing was driving the story forward, and if you saw the first ten minutes and the last ten minutes of this episode, then you're caught up.

There was one sequence, however, that was both completely ridiculous and laugh out loud funny(only because of Marcia Cross and Eva Longoria): Bree and Gaby trying to get rid of her stepfather’s car. As soon as we went from Gaby not being able to drive a stick(because of course that is the kind of car he had) to being pulled over by Chuck, Bree’s boyfriend, I knew that we had hit the capital of shenanigans city.

Despite rolling my eyes when Chuck got in the car to help them drive it to Gaby’s “Aunt Shirley”, I still laughed when Gaby insisted that she loved chewing tobacco after Chuck found "Aunt Shirley's" stash in her car and commented that he had never met a woman who liked to chew tobacco. The car got stolen when they pulled over for Gaby to throw up from the chewing tobacco. The story they gave Chuck as to where the car went? Aunt Shirley just happened to pass by. Chuck might be the worst cop...EVER.

With the exception of Lynette and Tom’s separation, and Carlos and Susan’s guilt, I had no idea where this season was going to go. The entire first episode, while entertaining at points, seemed like the writers were spinning their wheels rather then setting up story. Don't get me started on how they woefully underused Vanessa Williams's Renee, perhaps the best addition to the show in it's eight year run.

Then they brought me right back in with the note in Bree’s mailbox…”I know what you did. It makes me sick. I’m going to tell.” The same note that was sent to Mary Alice in season 1.

And suddenly…..the season had a direction.

1 comment:

  1. I agree, another viewer from the beginning and the beginning was if time turned back what DH does best....then the middle and it was everywhere (go back and watch the first 3 seasons writers) and then that ending pulled me right back in too...making me happy. Go go for the ride, I came this for and will finish the journey with Wisteria Lane.

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