Desperate Housewives - The Complete Second Season

Description

The ladies of Wisteria Lane returned for a second season of high anxiety, testy relationships, and a new mystery. Susan's (Teri Hatcher) angsty on-again off-again with Mike the plumber (James Denton) took an odd twist when her ex-husband (Richard Burgi) moved in with neighborhood seductress Edie (Nicollette Sheridan), then took an even odder one. Bree (Marcia Cross) resumed her widow's relationship with George the pharmacist (Roger Bart), then descended into personal addiction. Lynnette's (Felicity Huffman) return to the working world turned bizarre when her husband, Tom (Doug Savant), got tired of being a house-husband and returned to the workforce at Lynnette's own firm. And Gabrielle (Eva Longoria) had to cope in her own unique way with Carlos (Ricardo Chavira) in prison. With the first season's mystery surrounding Mary Alice Young (Brenda Strong, still around as the narrator) revealed--though repercussions were still flying--the show's intrigue came from a new character, Betty Applewhite (Alfre Woodard), and her son (Mehcad Brooks), who try, unsuccessfully, to fit into Wisteria Lane while harboring their own secret. While Woodard is a great actor, her storyline tended to drag down the action, the brilliant Cross was saddled with two dismal character developments, and the housewives spent far too little time together. There were laughs to be had, however. Huffman's interplay with Savant was a highlight, and Gabrielle's conflict with a perceived rival named Sister Mary Bernard (Melinda Page Hamilton) was the funniest of the season. No longer as fresh as it had been in its debut season, Desperate Housewives ended up taking a back seat to its Sunday-night running mate, Grey's Anatomy , and was shut out of the major Emmy awards, but its late-season resurgence was a positive sign going into the third season. With Lesley Anne Warren as Susan's mother, Sophie; Bob Newhart as Sophie's beau; Andrea Bowen as Susan's steadfast daughter, Julie; Jay Harrington as Susan's doctor; Mark Moses and Cody Kasch as Paul and Zach Young, who continue to be plagued by Felicia Tilman (Harriet Sansom Harris) about what happened with Mary Alice; Shawn Pyfrom as Bree's rebellious son; Carol Burnett as Bree's stepmother; and Kyle MacLachlan as an oddball dentist. On the DVDs Creator Marc Cherry dominates the DVD features. He has a conversation with his muse, his mother; he comments on 27 minutes of his favorite scenes; and he has optional commentary on both the deleted scenes (15 minutes) and on the two unaired story lines. The longer of the story lines (11 minutes) focuses on Susan and her novel, with some nice interplay with Bob Newhart. In the shorter one (4 minutes), Lynnette tries to sneak in a phone call aboard a plane. The five lead actresses do get a chance to talk about their "juiciest bits" (about two minutes of recapping the season's kisses, etc.), the making of an episode, costumes, and their characters compared to TV's past housewives (with contributions from actresses such as Happy Days ' Marion Ross and The Partridge Family 's Shirley Jones). --David Horiuchi Television's hottest show gets even juicier in its delicious second season. The women of Wisteria Lane are back, and just when you thought things couldn't get any steamier, a new neighbor and her handsome teenage son arrive to make new waves on the shady side of suburbia. Join the Emmy(R) Award-winning cast for all 24 episodes of Season Two, and discover Bree's new life without Rex, Lynette's chaotic return to the working world, and what becomes of Susan's on-again, off-again relationship with Mike. That's just the beginning of the secrets in store in this six-disc DVD experience. Sizzling with sensational bonus features, including revealing, never-before-seen story lines featuring Susan Mayer and Lynette Scavo, "there are almost too many things to love in DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES" (San Francisco Chronicle). Review: AnStill Delightful After All of These Years - Marcia Cross and Eva Longoria are reasons enough to watch this show. Also Felicia Huffman does just the kind of unethical things she did in real life, "for the children." Marc Cherry is a perverse writer who is addicted to writing about evil (mainly) men who murder and deceive their gorgeous and devoted wives. Each man is more handsome than the next. Each female character is more quirky than the next. This is the TV version of potato chips - you can't watch one (season) let alone one (episode). Also fascinating are the one or two episode appearances of the great stars of the prior generations, probably unknown to the audience who watch this show. And I mean great actors and actresses of the 1950's to the 1970's. And they play cameos as if they were simple bit players: Wally Shawn, Leslie Ann Warren, Laurie Metcalf, Marly Matlin, Valerie Harper, Carol Burnett, Justin Bateman, Polly Bergen, and many more Finally the great Kathryn Joosten was a great American resource, sorely missed by DH fans and, even more, the devotees of West Wing. She is more restrained in West Wing but probably more like her actual self in DH. Every scene she is in is a scene to remember. And Terry Hatcher had a brilliant first season and then was a brave soldier the rest of the show as the writers - who I fantasize did not like her - shredded her character leaving only her natural talent and beauty to get by with; Review: Desperate Housewives Season 2 DVD Extra Juicy Edition is filled with juicy extras! - Desperate Housewives is one of the best TV shows (along with Lost and Greys Anatomy) to come out in a long time. In a world where silly reality TV seems to have taken over, it is refreshing to see a quality show out there like Desperate Housewives. Desperate Housewives is one of the few shows that hooks you in, gets you addicted, and takes you on this emotional journey with the characters. With a great balance of comedy and suspense this show just makes you want to see whats going to happen next. I give Disney a lot of credit for putting so much in to there DVD sets. Desperate Housewives The Complete Second Season will come out in late August of 2006 and it will include all 24 episodes and will presented in widescreen format along with a 5.1 Surround Sound. Below are the Bonus Features according to the press release from Buena Vista/Disney. *Exclusive Unaired Storyline: This complete storyline, exclusive to the DVD, was shot for broadcasr but never aired. It features Susan Mayer (Teri Hatcher). *Anatomy Of A Show - Directors Diary: An episode director shows all the steps it takes to get the job done. *Iconic Housewives: Hear insights and wisdom from TV's most iconic housewives. Plus, the Wisteria Lane Housewives reveal their favorite women and memories from housewife past. *Mark & Mom: Creator/Executive Producer Marc Cherry is interviewed with (his inspiration for the show his) mom. *Deleted Scenes *Audio Commentaries *And Much More!