Swingtown

CBS/PARAMOUNT
Street: Dec. 9
Prebook: now
> Wife-swapping series is a big tease.

Not as desperate as Desperate Housewives or as dark as Mad Men, Swingtown follows several couples living in 1976 suburban Chicago. The Deckers are into “swinging” (swapping wives), thereby creating a moral crisis among the repressed Millers and the revolted Thompsons. Although the show is about sexual freedom, very little of it is actually seen on screen. The tantalizing talk is cunningly written by creator Mike Kelley (The OC, Jericho), but beyond the steamy pilot episode, the drama is less sexy and more mundane.

Shelf Talk: Swingtown is squarely aimed at female viewers who will appreciate the talk about relationships. The show wasn’t picked up by CBS for a second season, however, the existing episodes are being repeated on Bravo. As for stars, viewers might remember Molly Parker from Deadwood, Jack Davenport from the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Lana Parrilla from the 2005 season of 24 and Josh Hopkins from Brothers & Sisters.