Desperate Housewives - The Complete Third Season

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Product Description
Studio: Buena Vista Home Video Release Date: 12/26/2008

Amazon.com
After the second-season Desperate Housewives took the misguided direction of splitting apart its five principals, the third season was a comeback for the ladies of Wisteria Lane with some sparkling moments and a more engaging mystery. Following the previous season's cliffhanger, Mike (James Denton) was not written out of the cast after all, but left in a coma. Susan (Teri Hatcher) keeps a vigil at his bedside and meets Ian (Dougray Scott), a handsome and rich British man keeping a similar vigil for his wife. Newly single Gabriella (Eva Longoria) meets an unexpected admirer, while Edie (Nicolette Sheridan) finds unexpected family--and an unexpected beau. The season's primary mystery revolves around Bree's (Marcia Cross) new husband, Orson (Kyle McLachlan), who turns out to have some skeletons in his closet--including one he shares with Mike--and some women in his past that he wishes had stayed there (Valerie Mahaffey and Dixie Carter). We no longer see Lynette (Felicity Huffman) in her office; rather, the emphasis is on Tom's (Doug Savant) new "dream job" of opening a pizza parlor and the financial and personal conflicts that arise from it. The mystery is resolved unusually early, leaving the rest of the season to weddings and a shock ending. Even if a few scenarios were a little too obvious going for the emotional hot buttons (a hostage situation at a supermarket, a forest encounter), the writing and the cast were so good that we didn't mind being taken along for the ride and still found the moments moving. Huffman was the season's standout and accordingly scored the cast's only Emmy nomination, but everyone was in top form (including Cross, who was sorely missed when her real-life pregnancy knocked her out of a number of late-season episodes). Bonus features include featurettes on Eva Longoria and the season's weddings; clips from Amas de Casa Desesperadas, the Spanish-language version of the show with a different cast; a season recap; Marc Cherry's favorite scenes; eight deleted scenes with commentary by Cherry; and a blooper reel. --David Horiuchi

Customer Reviews: Read 45 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

Desperate Housewives - Season Three May 23, 2007
43 out of 47 found this review helpful

After a good though not great second season, "Desperate Housewives" got back to full form for its third season. Even though season three wasn't as good as the first season, it was definitely better than the second season. Teri Hatcher (Susan), Felicity Huffman (Lynette), Marcia Cross (Bree), Eva Longoria (Gaby), and Nicollette Sheridan (Edie) all return for more hijinks on Wisteria Lane (located in the fictional town of Fairview), which saw plenty of the usual ingredients (romance, sex, murder, secrets, etc.) mixed in with its share of sharp comedy, serious drama, and intriguing mysteries that have been frequently featured in its first two seasons. Other series' regulars who came back for season three include James Denton (Mike), Ricardo Chivara (Carlos), Doug Savant (Tom), Andrea Bowen (Julie), and narrator Brenda Strong (Mary Alice).

After the disappointing storyline involving the Applewhites of season two, creator Marc Cherry and his staff of writers came up with a storyline for season three that was far more intriguing. This starts with a new character for the third season: Orson Hodge (well played by Kyle MacLachlan). As most fans of this show know, Orson was first introduced late in season two, and played a major role in the last episode of the second season, which led to a bigger role in season three. As we began to sense in the season two finale, Orson was someone with a troubled past. This led to him hitting Mike with his car (Mike was suspicious of Orson), and then in the final scene starts having a relationship with Bree (who met Orson at the psychiatric hospital that she checked herself into after thinking she was about to have a nervous breakdown after dumping her son Andrew (Shawn Pyfrom) along the side of a road in the middle of nowhere and daughter Danielle (Joy Lauren) running away from home). In the first episode of season three (which begins 6 months after the end of season two), we start to know some of Orson's past, and it's not pretty. But his relationship with Bree brings some joy into his life, and they marry in the second episode. But the journey into marriage turns incredibly bumpy when Bree starts to sense some of the things that have haunted Orson's past, and some of those elements come back, most notably in the form of his crazy mother, the return of a previous wife (who everyone thought was missing and presumed dead), and the mystery involving a dead woman who Orson had an affair with. All these situations are put to good use and in the end the payoff delivers. Though the end of this storyline comes sooner than anticipated, thanks in part to Marcia Cross' real-life pregnancy. Shortly after production began on the third season, Cross announced that she was pregnant, which kind of put a little bump in the road for what Cherry was planning for the season. He didn't want to make Bree pregnant, so he and his crew devised ways so that we don't notice Cross' pregnancy in the episodes by having constant close-up shots of her face or putting items in front of her in many scenes. If there was a scene where Bree had to perform a minor stunt, a body double was used (such as a moment where Bree walks up a ladder). And when Cross was ordered to stay on bed rest for the remainder of her pregnancy (with twins), she invited the crew to come to her home to shoot some scenes. As a result the storyline ended two-thirds of the way into the season, which allowed Cross to go on maternity leave from the show. But no need to fear, Bree makes a triumphant return in the final episode. Thank goodness, because of all these desperate housewives she has become my personal favorite. "Desperate Housewives" slightly lagged a bit without her perfectionist attitude.

Besides MacLachlan, there were other interesting new characters that get introduced. Dougray Scott was superb as Ian, an Englishman who strikes up a relationship with Susan; Josh Henderson is excellent as Edie's bad boy hunky nephew Austin, who starts a sweet romance with Susan's daughter Julie; Valerie Mahaffey is terrific as Orson's previous wife Alma, who appears in the first episode, then disappears for a while before reappearing at the mid-point of the season (much to Bree's shock); John Lafferty is very good as Gaby's new beau (and Fairview mayoral candidate) Victor Lang; Kiersten Warren is obnoxiously hilarious as Nora, (first introduced in the season two finale) an incredibly annoying woman who Tom had a one night stand with years ago and got pregnant with his child before he married Lynette, and tried to wreck havoc on the Scavo household by trying to get Tom back; Rachel Fox is cute as a button as Nora's daughter Kayla, who also happens to be Tom's daughter; Laurie Metcalf (from TV's "Roseanne") is memorably menacing as Carolyn, a friend of Alma's who suspects Orson murdered her; and the great Dixie Carter (from TV's "Designing Women") is a hoot as Orson's evil mother Gloria.

While new characters popped up in season three, there were some old characters from the previous two seasons that turned up as well. Mark Moses and Cody Kasch returned for a couple of episodes as Paul Young and his troubled son Zack (who actually was Mike's son); Jesse Metcalfe shows up in an early episode as Gaby's former gardener (and lover) John; Richard Burgi turns up briefly as Susan's ex-husband Karl; and Steven Culp returns to narrate an episode as Bree's late husband Rex (Mary Alice got the day off on that episode).

While there have been so many memorable characters on "Desperate Housewives", there is a reoccurring character who's so funny on the show that it would be a shame if I did not mention her. And that character is the old cranky Wisteria Lane neighbor Mrs. McClusky, played to the hilt by Kathryn Joosten. First introduced back in season one, Mrs. McClusky was at complete odds with just about everyone, especially Lynette. But since then she has started to show a softer side that is wonderfully touching. She's now good friends with Lynette, and helps out the Scavo family by babysitting their kids while Lynette and Tom are at work. The character even had a minor storyline late in season three that involved her late husband. This character has become one of the best things on "Desperate Housewives", and Joosten is perfect in the role. She's already won an Emmy for the role (as Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for season one). This character doesn't appear in every episode of the show, but for the episodes that she does turn up in (whether its one scene or five scenes) brings a smile to my face, which is usually followed by laughter. This character provides some of the biggest laughs on the show.

During its first three seasons, there have been many great episodes of "Desperate Housewives". But the very best episode of the show so far (in my opinion) comes in season three. Episode 7, titled "Bang", is the bone-chilling, on-the-edge-of-your-seat episode about that supermarket hostage crisis that affects the residents of Wisteria Lane. This episode has all the elements: some big laughs, high drama, and suspenseful thrills. Plus, Laurie Metcalf gives a great performance in this episode as Carolyn, the crazed woman who literally snaps after hearing some very disturbing news and proceeds to go off the deep end by taking some residents of Wisteria Lane hostage at the supermarket. This episode is an absolute must-see.

"Desperate Housewives" - The Complete Third Season should be out on DVD before the start of the fourth season, and I encourage anyone who bailed out on the show after season two to go out and get it the moment it becomes available. Until then, you'll have to catch reruns of season three throughout the summer. Or you can view seasons one and two, already out on DVD as well as reruns airing on Lifetime. But one way or another, the third season of "Desperate Housewives" is a winner. And the season ends with another stunning cliffhanger, which will lead into season four.

*** ADDITIONAL COMMENTS ***

Since this review I watched these episodes again on DVD, and I need to bump my original rating of 5 stars down to 4 1/2 stars. Don't get me wrong, this is still an excellent season of "Desperate Housewives", but I had a few annoying quibbles about it while watching the episodes on DVD. And all of this takes place in the second half of the season. First off, the character of Ian started to get on my nerves in the later episodes. If you recall, Susan started dating Ian while Mike was in a coma from his accident at the end of season two. Susan fell in love with Ian, but not long after Mike woke up for his coma he wanted Susan back. And every time there was a scene where Mike and Susan shared a moment together and Ian either saw it or heard about it, Ian would constantly complain about it over and over again. I started to get really tired of hearing him complaining about Mike. It's like you just want to shout out at the character: "quit your whining!" Another setback was the behavior of Lynette's husband Tom. This (which also takes place during the last part of the season) deals with Tom's job as the owner of his new pizza parlor. After hiring wife Lynette to be the manager, they start disagreeing on certain things, but this storyline takes a slight detour when a new character is introduced. After Tom suffers a major back spasm that requires bed rest, Lynette hires Rick (played by Jason Gedrick), who's a master chef. During the course of these later episodes, it seems that Lynette and Rick are attrached to each other, and that drives Tom into a jealous rage. Plus while Tom is at home recuperating from his back problems, he starts having angry fits that I found to be kind of unpleasant. I only wish that the writers could have found a better way to handle these situations. But in the end all the resolutions turn out to be good, and the show moves on. But because these two storylines got a little irritating during the second half of season three, I now give "Desperate Housewives" 4 1/2 stars.

5 out of 5 stars

Desperate Housewives Season 3 DVD The Dirty Laundry Edition is coming September 4th, 2007 May 29, 2007
12 out of 14 found this review helpful

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. It can be a bit far fetched at times, but it is meant to entertain and thats exactly what it does. 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. According to the press release from Buena Vista Desperate Housewives The Complete Third Season will be a six-disc set which includes all 23 episodes and will come be presented in widescreen format and 5.1 Surround Sound along with the bonus features below.

BONUS Features

*Behind-the-scenes look at the season finale

*Spanish audio track

*Eva Longoria shares stories from some of her favorite bloopers

*Marc Cherry's favorite scenes

*Several unaired story lines

*Deleted scenes and outtakes.

5 out of 5 stars

What a great season June 18, 2007
7 out of 11 found this review helpful

Season 3 of DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES is leaps and bounds better then the second season.

The storylines this season are great.. Why did Orson hit Mike? Did Orson kill his ex wife? Will Gabby get married to a politician? Carlos and Edie?!

This season will keep you hooked, and won't let you down. The ladies, and gentlemen, all perform greatly. Felicity Huffman is arguably the best this season.

It is worth it to buy this set just for the episode, "BANG," which is one of the best episodes DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES ever had, and is probably one of the best episodes on TV. It is shocking, and Laurie Metcalf does a wonderful job in it.

This is one of the best shows on TV, so pick it up, and enjoy!

4 out of 5 stars

A Luster Restored July 17, 2007
7 out of 10 found this review helpful

Season Two of Desperate Housewives wasn't all that bad, but it did suffer from a few noticeable mistakes-mainly the storyline with the Applewhites and how the writers made them suddenly disappear in the middle of the season(and subsequently killing off any remaining interest viewers once had with the story). The first episode of Season Three was fair but a forgiven fairness as it was an opener to tie up loose ends and see where the characters might go next. One factor that helped make Season Three so good was how it became as intriguing and as witty as remembered from the early days. The pace and flow had also returned. You wanted to tune in each week to see Susan deal with Mike's memory loss while dealing with Edie's manipulation at the same time, Bree having to contend with the lack of morality in her children as she also learned about Orson's past, and Lynette finding patience with Tom while finding tolerance as she dealt with the psycho from hell in the form of Nora. Some of the best episodes are from this season such as Episode #3 with "A Weekend in the Country," and #6 in "Sweetheart, I Have To Confess," an episode that was most entertaining and funny. The scenes with Lynette, Susan, and Gabby getting drunk while Bree was trying to win the attention of a former friend at an upscale country club were classic. Also included is the memorable "Bang,"(episode#7). This episode was believeable and emotional right down to Lynette finding closure with the death of Mary Alice. Laurie Metcalf(Roseanne)was superb as the jilted wife who snapped. Next came Episide #8 with "Children and Art," in which Lynette discovers a chilling secret about the new neighbor. The writers handled this story with brilliance and bravery for tackling a taboo topic on network television. Felicity Huffman gave a magnificent portrayl. Also first rate was Episode #10, "Miracle Song," and with the first 10 episodes, Desperate Housewives was as bold as ever and was once again filled with the offbeat drama and dark comedy we know and love. The glaring mistake with this season was in Episode #13, "Come Play Wiz Me." This episode was awful and filled with ridiculous storylines. The plot involving Orson's ex-wife drugging him into the bed with the help of Gloria made me think the writers were wishing for a daytime television slot. Then we had the return of Zach-very pointless and off the mark. Also, it was an insult to viewers to make us think that Gabrielle would even consider a date with Zach under any circumstances. Lynette's decision to quit the firm was touching, but then the whole scene with her faking her pain in front of her boss just came off as plain stupid. Episodes #14 & #15 is where the mystery involving Orson's past and the murder of Monique is solved, and this conclusion was just as good and just as surprising as the mystery involving Paul and Mary Alice and a baby named Dana from the first season.

3 out of 5 stars

An improvement over Season 2, but still lacking June 6, 2007
6 out of 15 found this review helpful

Desperate Housewives- Starring Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria, Nicollette Sheridan and Kyle Maclachlan.

When Season Two finished critics had groaned, fans were disappointed, and over 2 million viewers tuned out for good. Was season two really that abyssal that it deserved every bit of criticism it received? Not exactly, but it was needed to open creator Marc Cherry's eyes and get him more involved in his creation, because clearly who ever stepped in wasn't sure what they were doing. So Cherry buckled down and cut his summer break short and got together with his team of amateur writers (except a select few) and tried to develop a more exciting, engaging, and explosive season other than the lackluster one we were stuck with last year. There were a few improvements made. When the season premiere played on my television set in September, I agreed with Cherry, he had gotten back on track. The characters were back to their old selves, Susan *had* a storyline, the mystery was mysterious, and the housewives actually got to have some scenes together. But there was the bad news, the dialog wasn't near as sharp, some storylines were completely unoriginal, and they stole the whole lunch scene from Sex and the City. I began to wonder if Desperate Housewives was another Six Feet Under, great for a season, lacks for a few more, and then becomes so dreary with infinite plot lines that didn't work from day one that you don't even want to know how it finishes because you don't care. There are of course a few things that made this season memorable, and some not so much.

The Good:

I liked Bree's arc until the season finale. It was a little unrealistic that she was on a honeymoon for 3 months, but it was a decent cover up for Marcia's maternal leave mid season. I enjoyed Susan's arc for the first episode, then it became boring, same with Lynette. Gabrielle had some great scenes with Xiao Mei, and I still have no idea why they got rid of her, she had great potential. There were a few very good episodes. For the most part, the storylines ended well. The Orson/Alma mystery had its moments of brilliance. I also liked the shows darker suburban tones, and two mysteries that didn't involve a murder. Art was another character they gave the ax to prematurely. It was nice to see more Edie, although I didn't much care for her transition into the needy romantic post Bree's departure. I was thankful they didn't drag the Susan/Mike relationship on any longer; I rooted for them for season one, but by mid season two I was almost yelling "just marry her already!". I enjoyed watching Lynette deal with Rick. Carlos and Gabrielle's divorce also had its moments of brilliance. One of the best scenes between them was when he threw her out of his car on the way home. I still think she needs her comeuppance which I expect Victor will deliver in Season Four. The hostage situation, and the Bigsby's, Bree finding a good husband, and an evil mother in law. I also thank the writers for adding the many household tricks in Bree's dialog. I would have never have learned that sour cream makes a moist pound cake, or that salt is used to get rid of red wine stains.

The bad:

Jokes? What jokes? Either I missed them because they weren't funny, or there was a serious lack of them. Most of the new characters; they all lacked personality. Austin, Alma, Ian, Nora, hell, everyone except for Rick, Art, Rebecca, Carolyn and Gloria completely bored me. The outcome of Gabrielle's baby story was lame, and stolen from Nip/Tuck I might add. I didn't think it was smart to steal plot lines from Sex and the City, which is still the superior show. There wasn't much screen time for Bree, which again I understand because of Marcia's pregnancy, but it's still a fault. The many inconsistencies; where did Justin and Bongo disappear to? What happened to Orson hating Mike? I admit, I too missed Andrew when he was a psychopath. There were also many mediocre episodes this season. Nothing exciting, nothing boring, just plain. Gabrielle's general storyline after Carlos and her broke up. Didn't care for Rex's narration, couldn't they have brought him in a flashback or something? I also found it very weird how everyone in the neighborhood magically became friends with one another. Since when did Tom talk to Carlos about their wives? And the whole teenage love triangle thing was extremely corny. This is Desperate Housewives, not The O.C.

The Ugly:

The return of... Zack? I like his character, but why did they have to do hitch him with Gabrielle. After he killed his grandfather to gain his fortune, they could have done anything, and they chose that? I hated the way a lot of scenes were written. Cherry's new writers were mostly from old sitcoms and it showed. Most of the time I was just waiting to hear a laugh track. I don't even want to mention what Alma did to Orson. Who thought of that? Gabrielle lost her baby... again. The only thing that's different is that no one cares. I hated the way they handled Bree's wedding.

Most of these varied from an episode to episode basis. There were a handful of great episodes such as:

Episode 6: Sweetheart, I Have to Confess

This was the best episode of the season. Very well written, actually funny, and mysterious. A

Episode 7: Bang

Though it wasn't as good as I thought it would be, mainly because of Gabrielle and Carlos (the feud got old last episode), one of the best episodes of the series. A-

Episode 10: The Miracle Song

They finally made a holiday episode. It was very well written, and there were lots of twists and turns. A

Episode 15: The Little Things You Do Together

Lynette and Tom finally open up their restaurant, and it didn't come off cheesy either. The mystery wraps up, but wasn't as for filling as Season One or Two. A-

Then there were the ones that weren't so good:

Episode 2: It Takes Two

All four housewives had horrible storylines. And where was Edie? C-

Episode 13: Come Play With Me

Zack and Alma single handedly ruined this whole episode. Worst episode of the season. D

Episode 16: My Husband, the Pig

Out of character, cheesy, boring. Didn't like anything from this episode either. C

Episode 17: Dress Big

This episode was just incredibly boring. Lynette's over-reacting to Tom was too melodramatic. C+

Episode 23: Getting Married Today

The only reason why this episode is on the 'worst' list is because it was the season finale, and nothing exciting happened. Plus the cliffhanger was lame. C+

Overall this was just another ok season. I really do think this is following in the footsteps of Six Feet Under. There are a few promising storylines for Season Four, but I doubt they will go anywhere they haven't before. Plus, there was no new mystery introduced except for the fate of Edie, which is pretty obvious. I won't spoil it, but if you're interested in learning the truth, listen to Marcia's interview on Letterman.

I will add more to this review when I have a chance to look through the DVD.

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