Desperate Housewives - Season 3 [DVD]

For the vast majority of TV series there is an unavoidable law of diminishing returns so that by the 3rd series the interest is often lost. Only the savvy few adapt enough & have good enough scriptwriters to last the course.
The first 2 seasons of DH were fun & interesting enough to keep you watching. Season 3 was always going to have to up the ante if audience interest was to be maintained. So it is we are presented with far tougher story lines than seen in either of the previous 2 seasons. Toms daughter & her mother become a real problem as he & Lynette open a pizza restaurant, Carlos & Gabrielle's marriage ends, Bree finds herself imbroiled in all sorts of gran guignol style scenarios thanks to the new man in her life,(a brilliant turn from Kyle Mclaughlan as the spineless yet creepy mothers boy Orson),. New characters crop up, (Dougray Scott the only irritating performance as the wooden new man in Susans life Ian),.
As ever with DH the writers are not afraid to shake things up and so several characters meet with swift & unexpected ends. The standout episode is 'Bang' where a deranged jilted wife takes hostages in the local supermarket. This episode really illustrates how things have been 'moved up a gear', it's funny yet still shocks. This series is far more gruesome than those before yet is still very funny and above all the five main ladies continue to dominate.
The main themes of love, hate & the consequences of deception remain the central thread running through Desperate housewives. The pace my have changed but this remains a very likable programme that has still not outstayed it's welcome.
The sound is fine and the picture is excellent even if the colours are somewhat oversaturated,(giving Wisteria lane a kind of 'land of Oz' type feel),.
The extras look good but are a little bland. The deleted scenes are okay but the breakdown of the final episode is not much and the picking of his favourite episodes by Marc Cherry is just self indulgent filler.
Never mind it's the series that matters and this one doesn't fail to deliver as Bree, Susan, Lynette, Gabrielle & Edie continue to struggle to keep their composure through lifes misshaps to the sound of Mary Alice's smug commentary!

Well, we all thought it had declined in quality during Season 2 but with Season 3, Desperate Housewives is back to its old self and perhaps, is better than ever before. Witty, silly, dramatic, mysterious, complex, dark and shocking - this show has it all. It sort of went a bit lame during the second half but the ending of the season makes up for all that - it is simply the most shocking final scene ever and leaves you wanting more guaranteeing you'll be back for Season 4. If you haven't seen it yet, or simply want to relive it all again, then pre-order this box-set. You won't be disappointed.

I am a MASSIVE fan of Desperate Housewives, but this was the poorest series out of the four they have done so far. I watched every episode and purchased the DVD and still re-watch them, but I wouldn't say it was a particularly strong series.

I'd say the first 8 episodes were particularly strong, not forgetting the sensational episode 'Bang!'. Despite it being in the midst of a weak series, it's by far one of the best ever episodes and gives me goosebumps at the end every time. But yes, the first third of the series looked particularly promising but from about Episode 10 - 20 it just went downhill for me.

I thought the seasons mystery was lacking the particular oomph the others had. Season 1 was just a huge puzzle, Season 2 finished with the unexpected twist.. but I found this mystery surrounding Orson/Alma/Gloria to be slightly dull in comparison and predictable - It could only have been Gloria or Alma, as it being Orson would have been too obvious. Maybe the weakness has something to do with the fact they decided not to make Orson a villian at the last minute... He was originally supposed to be in league with the woman he visited at the psychiatric ward at the end of Season 2, setting out to destroy Bree.

After the mystery was solved prematurely due to Marcia Cross's pregnancy, they lacked quality I thought. The storyline with Rick wasn't too bad in the end, I felt sorry for Lynette when she had to fire him - some great acting from Felicty. Mrs McClusky's storyline was pretty odd with her husband in the freezer. I would have preferred if that wasn't in there but I guess there had to be a filler storyline with Bree missing. The relationship between Carlos and Edie just didn't seem right to start with either, but it wasn't so bad after a few episodes.

I think the last three episodes, 21 - 23, really picked up again, with the revelation of Lynette's lymphoma, Susan's hilarious trip to the woods and Edie's desperation at the season finale. Bree's return was a good surprise for the end of Season 3 and lead nicely into Season 4, which is just fantastic.