TV Review: The Wives of Summer - The Starter Wife, Ex-Wives Club, and Army Wives

On the big screen, guys like Spider-Man, Shrek, and Jack Sparrow rule. On television, though, the ladies are all the rage this summer. In particular, wives. I sampled each of the programs hopping on the estrogen bandwagon and here’s what I came up with.

USA Network’s The Starter Wife, starring Debra Messing, pulled in a whopping 5.4 million viewers for its two-hour premiere last Thursday. It’s easy to see why. The limited-run series, based on the book by Gigi Levangie Grazer, is a fizzy light summer cocktail. Oh, it’s nothing we haven’t seen a million times before. You know the drill — pampered rich wife gets dumped by childish husband for younger mistress and then has to re-invent herself. Yet there are several reasons to keep watching. Most surprisingly, Messing’s performance as Hollywood wife Molly Kagan is at the top of the list.

The chaotic neuroses displayed on Will and Grace were never to my liking. In fact, I think Grace Adler was one of the more irritating characters on television over the last ten years. So, it’s refreshing to see Messing in a vulnerable role, free from slapstick and mugging. She gives Molly a heart and gives you a reason to root for her, regardless of how familiar the terrain is. The fabulous supporting cast (Judy Davis, Joe Mantegna, and Anika Noni Rose) turns clichéd characters into entertaining counterparts along for the ride. Plus, the glossy, gorgeous production values are pure eye candy. This is a story about wealthy people and every frame looks rich and luxurious. Of course, it’s pretty much a sure thing that Molly will find love and herself at the end of The Starter Wife. She’s not going to get run down by a bus in the final half-hour. This is not that kind of movie. This aims to be total escapism entertainment and does so successfully.

More ousted spouses are to be found on ABC’s reality show Ex-Wives Club. Founding members of the club in question are celebrity exes Marla Maples, Angie Everhart, and K-Fed’s other baby-mama, Char Jackson. The opening credits remind non-Us Weekly readers that Maples was married to Donald Trump, Everhart was married to Sylvester Stallone, and that Jackson was dumped by a back-up dancer for Britney Spears. Each episode, the ladies help poor guys and gals get their lives back through therapy, makeovers, and revenge. Basically, it’s a real life version of The First Wives Club meets Extreme Makeover.

Article Author: Sean Paul Mahoney

Sean Mahoney is a pop culture junkie and freelance writer based in Los Angeles.

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