'Army Wives' Season 5, Episode 1 Recap (Season Premiere)

['Army Wives' - 'Line of Departure']

It seems like forever since the last episode of 'Army Wives' was on Lifetime. It was actually August 2010, but with characters as strong and interesting as those in the "tribe," it didn't take long to get right back into the drama of their lives.

In fact, after the opening 'catch-up' scene at Denise's, the show jumped right back into the action with the promise of an exciting year ahead.

Words starting with "D" were big in this episode. Three of the families were enduring deployment, while Pamela was struggling with being a divorcée and getting an offer to become a detective. Since Brigid Brannagh is not leaving the show, and her spin-off was nixed by Lifetime, the chances of Pamela taking the job in Atlanta seem low.

I'm not sure this fits with the character, however, because she wants that job. Pamela said that nobody in her cop family has ever made it to detective, so that should be pushing her to jump at this opportunity.

The fact that Chase wants to resume their marriage, and Boone (Lee Tergesen) finally let her know that he wants her too, Pamela suddenly has a lot of decisions to make. But love or the chance of romance really shouldn't be more important for Pamela, not at this point in her life.

"Damn deployment." That was Roxy's assessment as she went through trying times without Trevor. T.J.'s become a sullen teen (and there's a new actor in the role) and Roxy is lonely. That point was driven home by the reappearance of Whit, Finn's dad.

It wasn't a romantic lure for Roxy; she just was reminded of how much she misses Trevor while Whit was there for a visit. Whit, on the other hand, got a glimpse of the life he might have had with Roxy. I wouldn't be surprised if he came back later this season.

Denise's "D." was a daughter-in-law. True, Tanya was still only engaged to Jeremy, but despite advice from Frank and Denise, their son was determined to get married. When Denise met her, it was a classic clash of characters.



Everything Tanya said came out wrong to Denise's ear, although I think her sizing up of Frank as "very John Wayne" was 100 percent accurate. And you just knew that the moment Tanya picked up Molly she'd notice that the baby was sick. It ses up next week's hospitalization of the infant ... and Denise blaming herself for not realizing the Molly was ill.

There was nothing dramatically worrisome about the Holdens, which is great for a change. After all the life and death troubles they've had, they deserve some good fortune. Everything with them is very good, but they are a family in flux. There was real longing in Claudia Joy's face when she walked out of Emmalin's empty room.

Em suggested her mom get a dog to keep her company, and I second that suggestion. Of course, if she does get a dog, it may have to move with her and Michael to West Point if he takes that new assignment -- and a third star. Or will Claudia Joy ask Michael to go without her so she can finish law school in South Carolina?

The family that may really be tested this season is the Burtons. Just when it looked like Roland was going to get Joan, Sarah Elizabeth and a new baby, the Army intervened to muck things up.

Joan couldn't turn down a promotion and the command of Fort Marshall, plus the lure of getting a star on her shoulder. But will her Army ambitions cost her a happy family life? That scene of Roland eating dinner alone spoke volumes.

So, the pieces were put in place and now we'll watch the dominos fall. It should be a good season, and hopefully a more compelling one than Season 4.

One more note: Kudos to the show staying so current about the ability to communicate via cell phones and Skype. That makes it easier to keep up with the characters "in theater."

'Army Wives' airs Sundays, 9PM ET on Lifetime.