"Everyone has a little dirty laundry". The darkly comic series from ABC about the secret lives of the ladies living on Wisteria Lane became an instant pop culture phenomenon when first aired in 2004. 22.3 million viewers tuned in for the pilot, and the figure has steadily grown as audiences from around the globe have switched on to the shenanigans in suburbia. "Desperate Housewives" stirred up controversy right away. Critics struggled to understand why this show caught the public imagination in quite the way it did; 'family values' association groups lobbied sponsors in protest over its racy content; both men and women were divided over what to make of its gender politics; and the ladies of Wisteria Lane claimed the same kind of media buzz once reserved for the "Sex and the City" gals. Recipient of several awards, including the People's Choice Award and Golden Globe for Best Television - Musical or Comedy, "Desperate Housewives" is a breakout hit. "Reading Desperate Housewives" offers a variety of critical and often polemic responses to one of the most talked about shows on contemporary television.It aims to explore for the first time the goings on beyond the white picket fence, tapping into initial reactions and the controversy. Leading scholars and writers consider such diverse issues as the American 'culture wars', the state of feminism and contemporary femininity, queer theory, gender and sexual politics, motherhood and marriage, and television forms. Intellectually engaging and highly readable, it contains a complete episode guide to the first two seasons of "Desperate Housewives".