Is "Desperate Housewives" back on track?

It’s the question “Desperate Housewives” fans have been waiting to answer since the end of last season:

Is the show back on track?

After watching last night’s premiere, I would say yes…and no.

Yes, everything about the premiere was better than last season, but there were still a lot of problems for me.

I hate the Lynette-Tom story. Nora is annoying and I see that story getting old really quick unless some kind of action is taken.

And do we really need Bree engaged to another psychopath? Didn’t we do that already? I don’t have a problem with Orson driving this year’s mystery, but I hate for it to be at the expense of Bree’s character—especially since she gave us most of the episode’s best laughs. Why couldn’t we just see Bree dating?

[On a side note, I can’t help but wonder if maybe that’s not the same argument a former producer had when he resigned from the show. He had planned to put Orson with Susan, but Marc Cherry overruled him. They had a falling out and then the producer was gone and Orson was with Bree.]

I did like Edie trying to sell the Young house and Susan’s story had a hint of her former self, but somehow it just wasn’t enough for me.

In the show’s defense, my apathy may have more to do with NBC’s excellent football coverage than the show itself. Maybe I’d just rather be watching something else.

I’ll give it another week to change my mind, but more than likely I’ll soon move away from Wisteria Lane.