See Also: 'One Wonderful Day' Episode Guide

Synopsis:

Mary Alice Young recalls her days of desperation when her name was Angela and she worked at a rehab clinic. Everything changed when Dierdre, a young junkie with a baby son named Dana, showed up on her doorstep, begging for money. Mary Alice demurs until Dierdre makes her an offer she can't refuse: to sell Mary Alice her son. Mary Alice and her husband accept, and flee to Wisteria Lane to start a new life. For three years, they're happy, until Dierdre shows up on their doorstep, cleaned up and seeking her son.

In the present day, the ladies of Wisteria Lane rush to be by Bree's side at the hospital where Rex is awaiting surgery. He needs a pacemaker, but Bree is optimistic. Susan fills them in about Mrs. Huber's journal and tells the other ladies that she thinks Mrs. Huber was blackmailing Mary Alice. Back on Wisteria Lane, Felicia Tilman chases Zach, who has fled back to his house. She tells him his father is gone for good, and he takes a swing at her with a bat, demanding to know what she's done with his father. Down the street, Edie is trying to make friends with Betty Applewhite and her son, Michael, but Betty is standoffish and rebuffs Edie's friendly overtures. Susan keeps calling Mike and leaving him messages, hoping to find him, and he finally calls her from his truck, where he has Paul Young tied up in the back. Susan is surprised when Mike agrees with her suggestion to give Mrs. Huber's journal to the police.

Carlos is equally surprised when Gabrielle shows up in court to testify in his defense. She says she's doing it for their child, and that he'll be taking care of the child after it is born. Lynette tracks down her husband at the arcade, where he is playing games, seemingly without a care in the world. He confronts her about how she told his boss's wife to make sure he wasn't promoted and then tells her he quit his job. In the hospital, Bree comforts Rex and promises that the best is yet to come for them.

After seeing Julie off for a weekend with her father, Susan pays a visit to Mike's house and is surprised to discover Zach inside--with a gun. They sit across from each other until Edie knocks on the door. Susan answers and Edie tells her about the attack on Mrs. Tilman. Edie wants to stay with Susan, but Susan has to send her away because of Zach. When Susan tries to talk to Zach, he tells her Felicia told him that Mike was going to kill his father, so he's come to kill Mike.

In court, Gabrielle testifies for Carlos, explaining that he wasn't gay-bashing but rather going after men he thought she was having affairs with. John enters the court and whispers to Carlos that he attacked the wrong man, causing Carlos to lunge at him. Unfortunately, Justin, one of Carlos's victims, is in the way, making it look like Carlos is attacking him, again. John smirks as Carlos is restrained. Somewhere in the desert, Mike drags a confused Paul out of the car and makes him start walking. When Paul defends his murder of Martha Huber, Mike quickly tells him that that has nothing to do with this. At the hospital, Dr. Craig mentions Rex's raised potassium levels, and suggests that someone is giving him potassium. Rex gets upset when the doctor asks who prepares his meals and sends him away when he suggests Bree and the most likely suspect.

Tom finally comes home and Lynette apologizes. He tells her he can use a break and that he's made a decision: Lynette is going back to work and will provide for the family for a while. Susan tells Zach she doesn't think Mike would kill his father, and when she brings up his sister "Dana," Zach sets her straight, telling her he is Dana. At the hospital, an ailing Rex looks at his chart and writes a letter to Bree telling her he forgives her. Shortly afterwards, Bree receives a call from Dr. Craig: Rex has passed away. She returns to polishing the silver before breaking down completely and sobbing hysterically.

Mike is preparing to shoot Paul when Paul tells him what really happened: Dierdre came to the Youngs' house to get her son back, claiming she'd cleaned up. Paul tried to stop her from going to get Zach and she knocked him out. Desperate not to lose her son, Mary Alice stabbed her. Together, Mary Alice and Paul decided to bury her in the pool in Zach's toy chest. Mike is surprised to learn Dierdre had a child, and after a moment of indecision, lowers his gun and goes back to his truck, leaving Paul behind. While Lynette contemplates going back to work, Gabrielle sits alone at home, as does Bree. Susan sits with Zach as Mike pulls up to the house and walks in.

Analysis:

A good cliffhanger is hard to do. It doesn't have to involve explosions or someone getting shot--Veronica Mars pulled off a nice cliffhanger following an exciting action sequence when the teen detective opened the door to greet an unknown visitor. And sometimes cliffhangers that are meant to be shocking and disturbing just fall flat, like Enterprise's 2004 season ender when the crew of the NX-01 completed a year long mission--and ended up in an altered timeline in the 1940s. All cliffhangers are not created equal, and pulling a good one off takes more skill than one might think.

So it is with regret that I have to express my disappointment with the Desperate Housewives cliffhanger for season one. I'm happy that the mystery of Mary Alice and her secret was finally wrapped up. Though it wasn't exactly shocking that it was Mary Alice, and not Paul, that killed Dierdre, it was skillfully set up throughout the episode. Mary Alice's desperation, which was nicely tied in with the desperation of the other women, is palpable and understandable in the episode. Certainly Dierdre, who eagerly offers to sell her baby to Mary Alice in the teaser in exchange for drug money, doesn't come across as a very sympathetic compared to sad, unfulfilled Mary Alice.

That Zach might be Mike's son is not a big shocker, either, given that Deidre and Mike were involved and it became evident towards the end of the season that Deidre was the one in the box. Given that Mike and Susan had gotten to a state of near-bliss, something was bound to come along and throw a monkey wrench in their newfound joy. That Zach, who is obsessed with Susan's daughter, might be Mike's son would certainly complicate matters.

But my main problem with the cliffhanger is this: is Zach was going to shoot Mike, it would have happened before the credits rolled. Does anyone really think that Zach will shoot Mike in the season opener and that will be it? I guess anything's possible, but the chances of that happening are somewhere between slim and none. The rule of cliffhangers suggests that if Mike was going to be shot or in any real danger, he would have faced it before the credits rolled, not when next season picks up. I could be wrong about the outcome, but I just didn't feel much suspense when Mike opened the door and walked in. Part of it could have been the way it was filmed--there wasn't much build up and the score didn't really build the moment. As far as cliffhangers go, this one isn't particularly memorable or suspenseful.

I also have to express how disappointed I am that Rex was killed off. If indeed that was the case--I'm holding out the hope that Rex faked his own death with the hopes of finding out whether or not it was actually Bree who was giving him the potassium. But given how he was shaking when he wrote the note, I'm not holding out much hope, which is a shame. Steven Culp is one of the show's most talented actors and his portrayal of Rex was always multifaceted and layered. He made a ideal counterpart to the would-be perfect Bree and while it will be interesting to see how Bree copes with widowhood, I'm very sorry to see Rex go. Even his final act intrigues--did he write the note because he really forgives Bree, or so that she will be implicated in his death?

Lynette is headed back to work--this, too, isn't a big shock. She longingly sat across from from her former co-worker a few weeks ago and was clearly tempted to jump at the job that is dangled in front of her. And Lynette seems more driven than Tom ever has. Lynette might not be the only housewife going back to work. Now that Carlos is in jail and knows about Gabrielle's infidelity, she might be on her own as well.

The characteristic humor livens up the episode, like when Edie knocks on Susan's door and tells her she's upset about what happened to Mrs. Tilman and wants to stay with Susan for a while. Edie's interpretation of Susan's warning makes for a great laugh. Another misinterpretation turns to humor when Carlos lunges for John after John has confessed to sleeping with Gabrielle. Instead of John, Carlos ends up pouncing on the hapless gay gardener he's accused of committing a hate crime against. Looks like Carlos will be going away for quite a while.

The main mystery of the season has been wrapped up, but with the arrival of the Applewhites, there's no doubt new secrets will come to light next season. Is Mike really Zach's father? Could Rex really be alive? Will George ever be caught? Will Bree be accused of poisoning Rex? What brought the Applewhites to Wisteria Lane? There's plenty more intrigue to be uncovered on Wisteria Lane.

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