I have a sneaking suspicion ...
Question: I have a sneaking suspicion that the jump into the future on
Desperate Housewives will turn out to be very successful for the show, because it enables the writers to focus on a new "mystery arc" without bringing in a bunch of new characters we don't care about. I'd be willing to bet good money that one of the main stories of the upcoming season will be about why Susan and Mike are broken up, followed by their finding their way back to each other (which would mean Gale Harold's character will turn out to be a bad guy:
Quelle surprise). Season 2 was widely seen as a failure, largely because what had been envisioned as the Big Storyline centered on people we'd never heard of and were given no time to develop an interest in. Dana Delany's story was more successful, but now Marc Cherry doesn't have to worry about finding a bunch of new characters. The five-year gap will probably be able to fuel the storylines for a couple of seasons, maybe even until the show ends its run. On another note: If you think
House of Payne is
bad, you should see
Under One Roof on MyNetworkTV. I watched a couple of episodes and was amazed a show that bad could have been made by professionals.
Answer: No thanks on the last tip. As for
Housewives:
I agree in theory, although it's also possible that taking a risk like this could backfire. We'll have to see. But I like your argument that by making the leap this way, we can retain a focus on the show's core characters while putting each of them in new situations with new secrets that will require months of untangling, which could be great fun.
Mad Men is doing much the same thing this summer by jumping the story more than a year ahead from last season. In a TCA session with critics last week, creator Matthew Weiner explained that this device, which he may use again in future seasons, lets him start fresh while also allowing him to explore the events that happened in between, giving the show what he called "an additional storytelling energy." As long as this device doesn't become too commonplace, I'm on board. I know already that it works for
Mad Men in maintaining the aura of mystery that surrounds so many of those fascinating characters.
