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At the end of the first season of Army Wives, a soldier, upset because his wife had an affair, walks into The Hump Bar (a favorite off-base hangout) with explosives strapped to his chest. He puts his finger on the trigger, and everything goes white. Most of the series’ characters are in that bar…
The second season picks up in the aftermath of that tragedy. Who’s been killed? Who survived? Who lingers between life and death? Who’s left behind to endure survivor’s guilt?
Claudia Joy Holden (Kim Delaney) and her husband, Brigadier General Michael Holden (Brian McNamara), face a tragedy that will either make them stronger or tear their family apart. Claudia Joy fights to hold it together, while Michael questions his ability to command the post.
Betty (Patricia French), the owner of The Hump Bar, turns to Roxy LeBlanc (Sally Pressman) to rebuild the bar. Meanwhile, Roxy’s husband, Corporal Trevor LeBlanc (Drew Fuller), has been wounded in Iraq. He returns home to face the possibility that his shoulder may not heal enough to keep him in the army. He wants desperately to go back to his unit, which Roxy can’t understand.
While her husband is deployed, Denise Sherwood (Catherine Bell) meets a young doctor at the hospital where she works as a nurse—and feelings get a little deeper than she planned. She’s been married to Major Frank Sherwood (Terry Serpico) for over twenty years, but now she wants to spread her wings and gain some freedom—much to her husband’s fears.
Pamela Moran (Brigid Brannagh) deals with her Delta Force husband’s constant deployments while raising her son and daughter and inspiring the other wives on base with her daily talk show, Have At It. Then she attracts a stalker, and her inability to protect her children while her husband is away becomes a scary reality.
Lieutenant Colonel Joan Burton (Wendy Davis) struggles with an unwanted pregnancy at the height of her military career, while trying to keep her husband, Roland (Sterling K. Brown), from leaving her. The baby will open up a whole new set of problems for her position as Lt. Colonel. Roland faces his own problems as he tries to regain employment and deal with his wife’s mood swings and the scary thought of becoming a father within the military for the first time.
Even if you’re not really into dramas, give Army Wives a chance. It’s more about military life than who’s sleeping with whom, and that’s just one of the many reasons why I love it.
Army Wives is filled with box-of-tissues scenes, but, at the same time, it also inspires hope. Of course, all of the show’s storylines go much deeper than what I’ve summed up here. To get the full impact of the challenges that each army wife (and one husband) faces, you’ll need to watch both seasons of this wonderful Lifetime series. Not only do you get a peek into the life of an army wife, but you’ll also see a little bit of what a soldier deals with through Trevor, Michael, and Frank. Their dedication to following army protocol will drive you nuts, even though you’ll understand why they have to.
In the first season of Army Wives, I was kept off-balance by what might happen next—never quite sure what it would be and always guessing wrong. In the second season, however, the plots are a bit more predictable, as if a whole new set of writers were brought on board. So, for me, the first season was definitely better. At the same time, though I could predict many of the storylines, and I totally saw the season finale coming, it’s still quite shocking—and it definitely made me want to catch the third season to see what happens next.
Yes, Army Wives is basically a soap opera that takes place on an army base (kind of like M*A*S*H*, only not as humorous). But if a woman like me, who’s never been interested in soap operas, can fall in love with this series, then I’m pretty sure that just about anyone else can, too. It’s heartbreaking and inspirational, but, most of all, it’s real. I only wish I could be half as strong as these women are; they’re truly phenomenal.
DVD Review:
After watching the second season of Army Wives on DVD, Be sure to watch the extras. The Tribe gives you insight into each of the characters within the “tribe” of army wives. Army Wives Gives Back takes you out to meet real army wives who are given a very nice gift from the series, delivered by the actresses who portray their lifestyle. A mini-documentary takes you to the real army base at Fort Bragg with the cast and crew of Army Wives. You’ll also get deleted scenes and bloopers (my favorite feature—even though there are never enough of them), and you’ll learn why the military supports the TV series.
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