Fixing Season Three

I was writing a fic on the Tom/Lynette/Rick season 3 triangle yesterday (which I generally don't spend a lot of time thinking about because I hated that storyline), and because of that I started to over-think it in that obsessive way I have. Why did I hate it so much? The obvious answer is because I'm such a die hard Tom/Lynette fan, but the more I think about it, the more I think it was a lot more than that. I'm sharing my crazy thought process here, like always, because writing really helps me organize my thoughts.

So here are some things that I think could have improved the storyline (for me):

Some Kind of Resolution

The number one thing I hated about season three was that nothing was ever resolved. Lynette was so unhappy with the Norah situation and feeling like Tom betrayed her, but they never actually talked about it. The shooting at the grocery store and all the many issues that it brought up: never discussed (don't even get me started on that arbitrary, pointless child molester plot). Kayla is kind of crazy and obviously has some serious issues with what happened to her mom, but eh...that's not that important. The whole Rick thing? Oh, Lynette gets cancer and it's all swept under the rug, but wait! Let's randomly bring it back in season four but STILL not have anything get resolved! If there had just been some kind of conversation between Tom and Lynette--something to actually show that they worked through any of these problems--I think that I wouldn't have disliked this storyline so much.

The Timing

I think one of the things that bothers me most about the plot was the timing of it. Truly, all through season three, Tom and Lynette had marital problems, but I feel like there was this lull in the middle where it wasn't quite as bad. This plot was directly preceded by "My Husband, The Pig" and "Dress Big," which, to me, seemed like two truly startling episodes of realization for Lynette. Honestly, I find it hard to follow the jump of logic from Lynette completely breaking down because she thought her husband might be dead to suddenly falling for some random guy she's only known six weeks. It felt like one minute she had a revelation about moving past all the crap she and Tom had been going through, and the next everything was so awful that she couldn't deal with it. I would have liked to see the Rick plot earlier in the season, I think--probably right after the grocery store shooting.

Which brings me to...

The Situation

So, if this storyline would have been right after the grocery store shooting, I would have also liked to see the setup for it changed. Lynette, obviously in need of some counseling after the shooting, but refusing, sinks further into some guilt-ridden depression over what happened to Norah. Coupled with Kayla moving in, it becomes something she has a hard time handling. Between her natural tendency to not talk about her problems, and Tom being so involved in opening the restaurant, it only serves to drive more of a wedge between them.

Then, instead of having Rick be employed at the restaurant, he could actually be a new employee at the ad agency (where Lynette still works at this point in the season). The same type of escapist plot could be utilized here, only with late work nights instead of romantic dinners. Both Tom and Lynette feel the distance getting worse between them, but don't know how to fix it.

The climax: Something drastic happens with Kayla (she runs away or is hit by a car or something extreme), that brings Tom and Lynette back together, and finally makes Lynette talk about all the anger and guilt she feels (both toward Tom and herself) over everything that's happened. In addition to the air being cleared here, Lynette and Kayla also finally have some kind of conversation that reveals how completely screwed up Kayla is (confused about her mother's death/her relationship with Lynette). With everything out in the open, Tom and Lynette finally try to work on their problems, but it's made difficult because they're dealing with Kayla and Lynette is also still working with Rick. Finally, Lynette realizes that she has to choose between her emotional affair with Rick and really putting everything she has into her marriage, and she ends up deciding to quit her job.

Just as she makes a choice, she collapses and Rick is the one to take her to the hospital. There, Tom finally learns about Rick and they have a confrontation. Tom feels upset and betrayed (even after Rick tells him that Lynette chose Tom in the end), but when he finds out that Lynette has cancer, he has to choose between staying or going as well. Of course, he chooses to stay by her side.

This goes into season four, dealing with Lynette being sick and trying to get their marriage back to normal.

For me, this serves the twofold purpose of actually addressing some of the many, many, MANY issues of season three that the actual show just swept under the rug, and humanizing Kayla. One thing that really bothered me was that she was so demonized. I always wanted to see her have a redemption arc, and it never happened.

So there you have it. My own twisted little version of this.

Now if I could only rework the other parts of season 3 that didn't work for me...(*cough* Edie goes to Susan-levels of craziness to keep a man *cough*).