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The Show:
The ABC network was a different place before 2004. For most television producers, it was a graveyard of a station, becoming the first of 'the Big Three' (NBC and CBS, respectively) to find itself stumbling behind basic cable in the Nealson ratings scan. What does that mean for the most casual of television viewers? It means that for nearly a decade, ABC lacked anything mirroring a hit. For every Friends and Seinfeld, ABC countered with a Dahrma & Greg or (yikes) The Drew Carry Show. Yet, as the new millennium moved forward, ABC decided to take a step back, acknowledging all they did right, namely the nighttime soap. So as the old adage goes, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it", ABC went back to what they did best, with hits like Dynasty or Thirtysomething. The first miracle in ABC's resurrection was Desperate Housewives, a sudsy, dark comedy, equal parts mystery and soap opera. And while it became the biggest hit of the 2004-2005 season, Desperate Housewives faced the inevitable dip in quality that comes with the dreaded sophomore slump. But Season 4 mirrors the resurgence of quality that ABC itself sparked during Desperate Housewives' debut. In short, Wisteria Lane is back to being in the best shape its ever been.
Oh, that is until the tornado.
Warning: Some spoilers will rear their ugly head throughout the review. Do NOT read on if you are not up-to-date with the series.
The season picks up by addressing the shocking season 3 finale, in which Edie Britt (Nicollette Sheridan) attempts to kill herself. In typical Housewives form, the reveal proves to be darkly comic, while still in keeping with the character development of the last few seasons. But the season's narrative arc focuses not on Edie, but on Katherine Mayfair (the deliciously dark Dana Delany), a former neighborhood resident whom, after a mysterious 12-year absence, returns to Wisteria Lane (with her secrets in tow). Susan Mayer (Terri Hatcher), now blissfully married, finds that getting everything she wanted leads to wondering if there's anything more. After the Cancer discovery at season three's end, Lynette Scavo (Felicity Huffman) is still in treatment, and dealing with her terror of an illegitimate Daughter, Kayla, while Bree (Marcia Cross) finds her title of Wisteria Lane's top housewife threatened with Katherine's return to the neighborhood. On top of that, her faux-pregnancy is becoming more and more difficult to hide, especially with the surge of radical honesty the housewives have begun to share with one another. And finally, Gabrielle (Eva Longoria) finds herself back in the arms of her ex-husband, Carlos, as she tried to escape a loveless and strictly political marriage with the town's mayor.
Oh, and there's also a tornado.
The marvelously malicious world of Desperate Housewives has proven to truly live up to the title of 'guilty pleasure' with care-free pride, ignoring the overzealous copycats that attempt to mix soap opera with the macabre, usually lacking enough of one or the other. The fact of the matter is that few shows can perform the juggling act that Desperate Housewives does so well. Its success comes down to a number of factors, most importantly of which is the writing. Marc Cherry (who serves as both creator, executive producer and writer) has more than just grasp over the current 'Desperate' misadventures - he views every mistake the show has made with wide-eyed longing for something better. As opposed to sticking with the script, Cherry evaluates and evokes the same fresh and darkly comic look at the underbelly of suburbia as David Lynch did with Twin Peaks. And with constant re-evaluation comes a consistently fresh-take on old material; so out with mentally challenged murderer's locked in basements, and in with a dangerous assessment of the modern day family unit. This is a show that knows when to say when, sticking to what works, yet refusing to be scared by the idea of toying with the typical conventions.
But Desperate Housewives took a while to reach the state of television nirvana it currently finds itself in. While season one proved to be one of the best premiere outings of any show in recent memory, the series quickly went from Desperate to Separate, as the housewives began to find individual stories to carry them along. Susan became a one-woman Ally McBeal-esque show, about a klutzy mother who finds herself constantly at odds with her precocious hot-blonde neighbor, Edie. Bree found herself stuck in the story of suddenly single mother, trying to find a way to keep her life as organized as her kitchen. Lynette was simply Diane Keaton in her Baby Boom prime, juggling working, motherhood, and the suburban expectations. And finally, Gabby became trapped in the "spoiled, but beautiful woman who finds herself plunged into Americana Street, USA" storyline that only went so far. Four women. Four stories. And not a single one had its female leads acting like what they truly are - friends and neighbors.
Yet, the biggest twist this season is that everything and everyone on Wisteria Lane has finally found their footing again. Season Four marks a true return to form - quality reminiscent of the show during its initial inception. The dark comedy finds itself reminding viewers of exactly why this was one of the most talked about shows those four-odd years ago. The series has managed to hit dizzying heights of sudsy soap opera zeitgeist, while infusing the narrative arc with mysterious bits of hyperbole, such as Susan literal belief that Katherine's daughter isn't the same girl from 12 years prior, but someone else entirely, or a mysterious scar on the Mayfair's wood-panel floor.
Oh, and a tornado. There's also a tornado.
The DVD:
Desperate Housewives: The Complete Fourth Season is the first DVD release of the Writers Strike season, thus leaving the season with 17 episodes, as opposed to the traditional 24. The episodes are spread out over 5 discs, and are housed in the show's signature cleaver packaging, with a fold out booklet held inside of an attractive plastic slipcase. The set comes with a booklet that oddly omits any actual set information, aside from a short list of episodes on the back page. He booklet, however, plays as a Fairview Realty guide, with all the houses on Wisteria Lane displayed, with "sell, sell, sell" captions. The pages also feature advertisements for other series staples, such as the Scavo's Pizzeria, and Mike Delfino's plumbing services. While it would be logical to also have a guide to each episode, marking which have commentaries and which don't, the booklet is nevertheless a rather nice touch.
We also get an ABC Starter Kit, which is a DVD that features the pilot episodes of Pushing Daises, Dirty Sexy Money and Private Practice. It's a surprisingly valuable disc to be handed out for free in the package, and makes for a nice additional treat; Pushing Daisies is especially worth a watch.
The Video:
Desperate Housewives: The Complete Fourth Season is presented in 1.78.1 Widescreen format, made to be enhanced for 16x9 televisions. Never one to lack in production aesthetics, Desperate Housewives once again looks wonderful, with the sharp colors of Wisteria Lane's daylight escapades juxtaposing the darker shades of morose nightlife coloring. The show looks great, with every last one of Susan's sherbet colored Henley's (which by season's end are too numerous to count) displayed perhaps too proudly on screen.
The Audio:
Presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, Desperate Housewives: The Complete Fourth Season sounds just about as good as it looks. From the show's string-heavy score (thanks to the wonderful Danny Elfman) to simple chitchat over a weekly poker game, everything comes out clean and crisp. Oh, and the Tornado makes good use of the show's rear effects speakers from this season.
The Extras:
ABC is notoriously known for their plethora of DVD bonus features, and Desperate Housewives: The Complete Fourth Season is no exception. First of all, we're given no less than 7 Commentaries, which are a real treat for fans. But the real joy comes from the inclusion of a new feature called Couple Commentary that features the men/woman pairings of Wisteria Lane giving commentary on episodes that feature their stories most prominently. Cross and MacLachlan appear on "Now I Know, Don't Be Scared"; Delany and Fillion offer their thoughts for "Distant Past"; Parker and Chavira keep the chemistry going for "Something's Coming"; Huffman and Savant appear on "Welcome to Kanagawa"; and Hatcher and Denton offer the commentary on "Mother Said." Cherry also appears on two commentaries, the first ("Now You Know") with fellow writers and co-producers Bob Daily and Jeff Greenstein, and the second ("Mother Said") with writer David Warren and actress Nicollete Sheridan). The feature is a unique, and entirely appropriate form of audio commentary, and also allows fans to see the chemistry that the actors manage to maintain off set.
Cherry Picked has Marc Cherry hand pick his favorite scenes from throughout the season, with optional commentary. While his comments are at times enjoyable, the extra is essentially just a mini-"best of" clip show, yet has found itself becming a staple of all the Desperate Housewives season sets/ There are also a good amount of deleted scenes, again with Cherry's optional commentary. The deleted scenes are mostly unmemorable, and range from moments of minor character development to even an alternate ending to the season finale (while the idea of the cliffhanger remains the same, the shocking twist is reveled in a different fashion). Cherry's commentary is breezy, and light hearted, making for a rather enjoyable listen, especially for fans of the show.
The blooper reel proves to be rather unfunny, and slightly forced, with the characters inexplicably breaking out into dance anything a line is flubbed, or making a "funny" face anytime a scene is not in motion. Desperate, indeed. The only thing worse is a featurette called Spare Time: Hanging With the Men of Wisteria Lane, is a look at the male actors of Desperate Housewives while they play a game of bowling (note: the special should really be called the 'the White Men of Wisteria Lane', as Ricardo Chavira, who plays Carlos, is nowhere to be found). The feature, which runs just under 10 minutes, is sweet, as it shows the friendships that have bloomed on set between the male cast members. But the feature would prove more insightful if it delved into the actual risks of being a man on set (easier to kill off, less likely to get strong storylines, etc). The feature is fluffy enough to work, but had the potential to be something truly interesting.
Finally, the most interesting extra on the disc turns out to be Getting Desperate: From Beginning to End, a look at the season's sweeps episode, "Something's Coming", which featured, yes, a tornado. The featurette delves into the idea from inception to creation, documenting cast and crew reaction to the news, the logistics of what it meant, and deconstructing Wisteria Lane. It's an interesting look at "the most important episode of the season", and really delivers a behind the scenes look at what it took to create one of the most expensive episodes in Desperate Housewives history.
Final Thoughts:
The biggest surprise that Desperate Housewives: The Complete Fourth Season has to offer is that the show has finally returned to the landmark hit it once was. Aside from the sophomore slump, and the third season's attempt to bring things back to the basics, Season Four is truly a return to the darkly comic style that made the show such a cultural phenomenon (it plays in over 100 countries, and has already spawned a slew of imitators and International remakes). Bringing the storylines back to what worked - Gaby's promiscuity, Bree's focus on housewife extraordinaire, Susan...well, come to think of it, Susan has pretty much stayed the same - allows for Desperate Housewives to once again hit the peek of new millennial television, while keep itself fresh, and integrating new characters seamlessly. As for the DVD, the set is stronger than ever, with some good extras (including those wonderful commentaries), and a sharp disc translation. Take a chance, and give Wisteria Lane another chance; it's got sudsy soap opera plots, slapstick comedic pratfalls, and darkly comic mysteries that keep viewers enticed.
Oh, and a tornado. It also has a tornado.
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