Jenna Bans Movies

This spinoff from the popular ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy was a vehicle for Kate Walsh, repeating her role from the earlier series as brilliant neonatal surgeon Addison Forbes Montgomery Shepherd, the ex-wife of Seattle Grace Hospital's Dr. Derek Shepherd. Having relocated to Los Angeles, Addison immediately found employment at the high-end Oceanside Wellness Center, a freewheeling "alternative" hospital established by several of her former medical-school classmates. The large ensemble cast included Tim Daly as Dr. Pete Wilder, alternative-medicine specialist and equivalent to Grey's Anatomy's "McDreamy" (aka Derek Shepherd); Taye Diggs as Dr. Sam Bennett, internist and best-selling "self help" author; Audra McDonald as Dr. Naomi Bennett, fertility-and-hormone specialist and Sam's former wife; Paul Adelstein as Dr. Cooper Freedman, pediatrician and resident ladies' man; Amy Brennerman as Freedman's best friend, psychiatrist Dr. Violet Turner; and Chris Lowell as Dr. William "Del" Cooper, the hospital's laid-back receptionist and aspiring midwife. Also on hand were KaDee Strickland as Dr. Charlotte King, chief of staff at nearby St. Ambrose Hospital and staunch opponent of the unorthodox methods practiced at Oceanside; and Shavon Kirksey as Naomi's daughter Maya. Its format and "dramatis personae" previously established in a two-part episode of Grey's Anatomy in the spring of 2007, Private Practice premiered over ABC on September 26 of that same year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

One of ABC's most popular series of the 2004-2005 season, the weekly, hour-long Desperate Housewives took place on Wisteria Lane in an upscale suburban neighborhood. That Wisteria Lane was not as quiet and respectable as it appeared at first glance was brought home forcibly in the opening episode, when housewife Mary Alice Young (Brenda Strong) committed suicide right in the middle of her comfortable living room. From her vantage point in the great beyond, Mary Alice served as the series' wry, all-knowing narrator, filling the viewer on the various sordid details in the lives of her four best friends. There was divorcée Susan Mayer (Teri Hatcher), ever-looking for love in all the wrong places and agonizing over the behavior of her daughter, Julie (Andrea Bowen). There was Lynette Scavo (Felicity Huffman), who every day of her life kicked herself over her decision to give up her business career to care for her highly competitive husband, Tom (Doug Savant), and her irritating children. There was Bree Van De Kamp (Marcia Cross), the all-too-perfect, control-freak homemaker who eventually drove her husband, Rex (Steven Culp), to divorce court and her son, Andrew (Shawn Pyfrom), into malevolent misanthropy. And there was ex-model Gabrielle Solis (Eva Longoria), who despite having married into money and luxury couldn't stop herself from fooling around with teenaged gardener John (Jesse Metcalfe). Though her controlling husband, Carlos (Ricardo Antonio Chavira), was not privy to her infidelity, he had his suspicions that she was less than faithful. Prone to extreme displays of machismo, he took many measures to maintain the marriage. Weaving in and out of the proceedings was the oft-divorced Edie Britt (Nicollette Sheridan), with whom Susan competed over the affections of supposedly widowed plumber Mike Delfino (James Denton). The sexual intrigues of Wisteria Lane were augmented (during the first season at least) by the mysterious activities of Mary Alice's husband, Paul (Mark Moses) -- including digging up the backyard swimming pool in the dead of night -- and the strange emotional outbursts of their tormented, unstable son, Zach (Cody Kasch). Created by Marc Cherry, Desperate Housewives debuted October 3, 2004. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

No sooner has Sophia (Lesley Ann Warren) moved in with her daughter Susan (Teri Hatcher) than she sets to work stage-managing her daughter's love life -- and, by extension, hopes to reactivate her own. Bree (Marcia Cross) has no idea what her son, Andrew (Shawn Pyfrom), has in store for her; the only one who does know is bound by a vow of silence. Carlos (Ricardo Antonio Chavira) unwittingly drives Gabrielle (Eva Longoria) back into the arms of her stud-muffin lover, John (Jesse Metcalfe). And in a moment of near-fatal weakness, Lynette (Felicity Huffman) thinks kindly of the monumentally unkind Mrs. McClusky (Kathryn Joosten). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide