Gossip Girls

Last night was a classic Desperate Housewives episode. I hope this sudden artistic resurgence isn't just a onetime thing and the beginning of a whole new era. Edie is back to her double dealing, Susan is thisclose to hooking up with Mike, Gabrielle got her bitch on, and Lynette nearly went on a date with someone who wasn't Tom. Oh, and Julie's in the house! And Marcia Cross isn't on bed rest after all; she's in her mountain ski whatever ordering muffin baskets for her friends! Yay!

It's awfully brilliant to air an episode whose main theme is gossip and the way in which rumors dominate suburban life. The whispering hadn't caught up with poor Gaby, who learned — at her engagement party, no less (nice) — that Edie was sleeping with Carlos. Memo to Edie: Dropping this bombshell as someone celebrates her betrothal is even worse than wearing white at the wedding. Gone was the loved-up, smiley Edie of weeks past. This week she was determined to keep Carlos for herself at all costs, even if the price was Gaby's friendship. The independent, ballsy Edie's willingness to give up the Wisteria women spoke volumes about her love for Carlos. And just as in the old days, tonight Miss Britt just loved to be the center of attention — whether she was trading idle gossip ("since when does praying make boobs look better?") or telling Gaby about her hot romance. Gaby and Edie have always played so beautifully against each other, even if tonight's showdown in the driveway was the adult equivalent of sticking out one's tongue in the school playground.

Lynette and her chef are having an emotional affair. "I just chose ravioli over motherhood," she said, and with her shiny locks and sexy black dress, I'd say she was trading those rugrats for more than just pasta. I know the Lynette of season 1 would never have run off and had some kind of affair with a pizza-joint staffer. But tonight, the fact that she got all dolled up, flirted shamelessly, and snuck around behind her hubby's back proved that she is embracing her sexuality and her natural coy manner. For the past year and a half, it's seemed as if Lynette were hidden behind a cloak of marriage and mommyhood, and now she's finally emerged with her cute laugh and curler to reclaim her place as one of the sexier women on the block.

Tom, meanwhile, has reverted to being the whiny and selfish (but not annoying and pie-hungry) yuppie we all loved to hate. His jealousy over Lynette's interest in the pizza chef shows that despite a recent spate of arguments and a thrown-out back, he really does care deeply for his wife. This was the first episode in a long time where we truly saw that.

Finally, we also have Susan back. We first fell in love with her when she locked herself outside, naked, then fell in a gigantic plant. Then she became a selfish, whiny near Londoner. Tonight, Susan was back. Her best friend, confidante, and daughter was in the house, and the two were up to their old tricks, as Julie helped her mom spy on Mike. We finally got some insight into Susan's mind. Far from the flighty, tacky nightie enthusiast she's been recently, she ended up on a therapist's couch expressing heartfelt anguish about having to choose one man over the other. As she bawled on the shrink's sofa, we at long last understood her rationale for dumping both — she felt terrible hurting each guy's feelings, aww. And at Edie's party, we even got a mention of Susie Q's career as a children's book illustrator. I'd all but forgotten it existed.

Mrs. McClusky's battle against neighborhood gossips and taggers was the first time I've felt genuine sadness and compassion for a Wisteria resident since Zach in season 1. Credit here goes to the writing and to the fantastic acting of Kathryn Joosten. Her interaction with Lynette's son is adorable; sometimes their conspiratorial dynamic is very Tom and Lynette.

Gabrielle finally got away from this whole "soft" image she was starting to develop and got back to her usual snippy self. Upset after Edie's revelation, Gaby tried to get her neighbors to turn against her new rival. "Good friends share more than gossip and brunch!" she yelled when they protested. "I want icicles hanging from that bitch's ears!" Lynette and Susan were so afraid of her that they hid out at Edie's son's birthday party, and the image of them crawling on all fours as Gaby's sinister convertible pulled up the road is something I will never forget. Welcome back, Gaby, Hell on heels! And props for this heavenly observation, Mary Alice: "For the first time, Gaby was willing to let Carlos be with someone else...because he still belonged to her." Oh, man. Am I the only one who feels sorry for Edie? I've never seen her look happier than when she was with her two boys. I hope that Carlos was just downplaying the relationship in order to spare his ex-wife's feelings. Or, because he knows Gaby's a busybody, to prevent even more salacious gossip from spreading.

Welcome back to greatness Desperate Housewives. I honestly think this is the start of something even better.