For the masses of diehard fans out there, the ABC series Desperate Housewives: The Complete Sixth Season, has made its way to DVD. In this season, Susan (Teri Hatcher), Lynette (Felicity Huffman), Bree (Marcia Cross) and Gabrielle (Eva Longoria Parker) are back and surrounded by mischief as usual. There are affairs, deaths, a secret pregnancy, assault, a new housewife, and even a killer on the loose. It may all sound intriguing, but the experience is honestly nothing more than your standard run of the mill soap opera. Wisteria Lane seems to have lost a little magic with Season 6.
Season 6 introduces a new family to the neighborhood, the Bolens. Drea de Matteo joins the ranks of the housewives as Angie Bolen, wife of the rather sleazy Nick Bolen (Jeffrey Nordling) and mother of the high-strung Danny (Beau Mirchoff). Their family isn't immune from drama, and their own saga plays out rather dramatically.
For those who don't follow the show regularly (or at all), this DVD-set is not a great introduction. Each episode is so densely packed with events that it's not quite easy to immerse yourself in the story. It would not be an understatement to state that by season 6, you've missed a lot. Unless you're an established fan, it may not be worth it to catch up.
The opening episode finds a lot of trouble on Wisteria Lane. Lynette is in an unwanted pregnancy and is hiding it from her friends and family. Bree is entangled in an affair with Susan's ex-husband, Karl, and Susan's daughter, Julie (Andrea Bowen), is strangled outside of her home on Susan's wedding night. The opening episode promises a lot of dramatic tension throughout the set, but unfortunately, by the season finale, it's more like an overdose.
The main issue with Desperate Housewives is that it's set up to be a dramatic, over-the-top type of series. The events are full of tense, erratic drama, but throughout the season, it was clear this formula was wearing thin at the seams. Season 6 felt like watching a Cartoon Network Adult Swim sketch written by modest, but somewhat gossipy elderly women. Maybe it's the stress of developing drama that's juicier and more sinister than the last, or maybe Desperate Housewives is starting to satirize itself. Either way, it wasn't very engaging.
Despite the lackluster impressions, Season 6 is not without its merits. The actors are believable in their roles, even when the events are stretched into wackiness. The housewives live up to the title of desperate, portraying women who have everything but nothing at all. It's squeamish to watch a woman throw away her self-respect over another woman's husband, or watch another struggle with pregnancy depression. It's human nature to be enthralled by those who at their worst, and Desperate Housewives is a series that attempts to play on this morbid curiosity.
To it's credit, the show does a decent job of portraying highly complex characters in strange situations. The appeal is that most of these characters turn to their darker nature when the pressure hits. It's the reason that this series draws comparisons with soap operas, but the highly stylized nature of it manages to set its production value apart. Some of the themes explored in Season 6 are interesting concepts, including homosexuality and self-reflection. However, they aren't picked apart with any depth, showing that Desperate Housewives understands exactly what their audience expects from them. The answer is simply entertainment, and they attempt to provide it...sometimes to mixed results.
Simply put, Desperate Housewives: The Complete Sixth Season is only for the die-hard fans of the show. It caters to a distinct sub-set of entertainment viewers, and striving to continually up itself in hysteria may or may not prove to be its undoing. For the casual observer, this set could prove to be a lackluster investment.
DVD Bonus Features
Desperate Housewives: The Complete Sixth Season features a plethora of extras, including bloopers, deleted scenes, and creator Marc Sherry's pick of favorite scenes. There's also a wacky interview segment featuring Miss Piggy and a “class” for aspiring actors, including tips for an acting career and development.
"Desperate Housewives: The Complete Sixth Season" is on sale September 21, 2010 and is rated PG13. Comedy, Drama. Directed by Andrew Doerfer, Bethany Rooney, David Grossman, David Warren, Larry Shaw, Lonny Price, Marc Cherry. Written by Marc Cherry, Bob Daily, Alexandra Cunningham, Jamie Gorenberg, Peter Lefcourt, David Flebotte, Matt Berry, Josann McGibbon, John Pardee, David Schladweiler, Jason Ganzel, Joe Keenan, Joey Murphy, . Starring Beau Marchoff, Drea De Matteo, Eva Longoria Parker, Felicity Huffman, Jeffrey Nordling, Marcia Cross, Teri Hatcher.
