If you’ve ever sat down and watched a TV show or movie with me, you probably know that within a couple of seconds, I’ll go straight to my phone. It takes a while for a show to get me to binge-watch it until 3 a.m. Don’t get me wrong, countless amazing TV shows have come out recently that are award-winning and much loved by many, but there are only a couple of classics that you can’t go wrong with, especially Desperate Housewives. Although the show is 19 years old, I still find myself on the edge of my seat, which says a lot coming from a person who gets bored easily when it comes to TV shows.
There are many reasons why it’s a timeless show that showcases everything all into one including drama, comedy, romance, mystery, thriller, and crime. Let’s take a stroll into Wisteria Lane, so I can tell you what it’s all about.Â
1) Starting off strong, aN AMAZING CAST
If you plan on watching Desperate Housewives there are a couple of things you should know about the show before you watch it. The cast is based on four women who are friends who live in the same neighborhood, dealing with secrets, lies, scandals, and committed crimes.
2) Gabriella Solis
If you know who Gabriella Solis is (played by Eva Longoria), you know how much humor she gives to the show. Gaby is well known for her prima donna attitude, love for shopping, having an affair, and marrying her husband Carlos for money, as well as her selfishness. When you read these characteristics you probably wouldn’t like her, but if you watch the show you will see how much comedy comes from her.
Just from this one minute clip of her, you can get a sense of what she is all about.
3) Bree Van de kamp
Marcia Cross, who plays Bree Van de Kamp is another example of a witty, amusing character. Bree is known for her emotionally cold personality, and her constant need to bake something for her neighbors with an apology when something goes wrong. Bree has an extremely honest personality and needs to be spotless at all times. She’s proper, organized, and will fake a smile if she has to. You will always catch her in a fancy sweater with a pearl necklace on. Her redheaded hair will be pinned straight, and blown out at all times, in any episode you watch.
4) Lynette Scavo
Lynette Scavo, played by Felicity Huffman, is married to Tom Scavo. They have six kids including Porter, Preston, Parker, Penny, and Paige. Lynette is passionate about her job in marketing and tends to have trouble taking care of all of her children due to their craziness, while also misbehaving a lot in front of the community. Lynette’s character is brave. She fights through cancer, she is caring, hard-working, and will always have your back no matter what. Lynette will fight for what she wants even if people may say otherwise to her.
5) Susan Delfino
Susan Delfino is clumsy and is labeled as the klutz in the group. She is extremely desperate for Mike Delfino (who later becomes her husband). Susan can be clumsy at times, but she has a good heart and has much love for her daughter Julie Myer and her son MJ, along with supporting everyone in her community and neighborhood.
Aside from the four women in Desperate Housewives, who are the leading stars, the show captures much more.
6) it captures love, heartbreak, and romance
In the show, there are many moments of both love and loss: Bree getting remarried multiple times; Lynette and Tom Scavo having a rough patch, and almost end up divorcing; as well as Susan finding love with Mike after her first marriage with Carl ended. Teenagers also find love while the drama unfolds when Julie becomes pregnant by Lynette’s son, Porter. Bob and Lee, a supportive gay couple in the neighborhood, offer advice and friendship to everyone in Wisteria Lane.
7) It captures crime, murder, and scandals
There are lots of plot twists all throughout the eight seasons in the show, which includes Mary Alice sadly taking her own life, and one of the neighbors receiving a note related to her suicide. In another episode, Lynette faces a dangerous situation in a grocery store, in addition to a family covering up a hit and run from someone’s grandmother. But, these are only just a few examples from the show where they try to cover up sticky situations and scandals.
There are scenes that can leave you on edge and eager to find out what will happen in the next episode, wondering who is going to get caught and how they will cover these things up.
8) it captures motherhood and girlhood
Susan and Julie are a prime example of the bond between mothers and daughters in this show. Susan raised Julie when she went through a divorce, and Julie was supporting her mother when she lost both Mike and Carl later on in the season. They have watched each other fall, and they pick each other back up when things are hard. Two best friends, mother and daughter, are present in Julie and Susan, as well as Gaby and Juanita.
9) it captures real life issues people face
Although there is much humor in the show and there will be many times you’ll laugh if you watch it, there are also moments that showcase people who battle with things in their life, whether that’s a health scare, alcohol addiction, or mental health issues such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression. Body image issues and insecurities being present in young children are also themes throughout the show. There are many moments of grief and loss in families, as well as friends and people in the neighborhood receiving shocking and disturbing news on the daily that people have to cope with hearing.
10) it captures true friendship
If there’s one thing about Gaby, Susan, Lynette, and Bree, you know that they always support each other and forgive each other at the end of the day. Friendships in this show can feel like a love-hate relationship. But, at the end of the day, they always end up sitting together, drinking, and playing card games while gossiping about their lives. The friend group is tight-knit, giving each other both moral and emotional support, sometimes in a humorous way that shows it’s all full of love.
11) it captures the bond with family
Family is a huge part of this show. The Scavo family helps each other run a pizza business, Scavo’s pizzeria, even when the company is falling. Siblings bond with each other such as Juanita and her sister Celia, Julie, and MJ, as well as Andrew and Daniella Van de Kamp.
If you want a little bit of everything combined into one series, you can watch all eight seasons of Desperate Housewives streaming on Hulu now, but don’t end up losing sleep binge watching too much of it like I did!