TV: "Desperate Housewives" copying "Lost"

There's a new trend on the tube. When the season of "One Tree Hill" started this year, fans were prepared to deal with the plot's mysteriousness since the writers had decided to skip college and jump four years ahead in the characters' lives. Most fans new everything and anything there was to know about the characters, so this change of pace allowed for a little suspense. "Lost" had a similar epiphany when they tricked fans into thinking that Jack's bearded, drunken, suicidal alter ego was from the past when it was actually from the future, changing the series' original flashback format and introducing peaks into the future that would happen throughout the season. Then "Prison Break" got picked up for a fourth season--to everyone's surprise--with the twist that it would jump ahead a couple of years and tell the story of why Sarah isn't dead and why she isn't shacked up with Michael in flashbacks. This plot device is obviously helpful. After all it's the entire basis for "How I Met Your Mother." Not to mention, "Life" "New Amsterdam," and "Psych" use flashbacks in nearly every episode to reveal the main character's persona.

But it's become so popular that now "Desperate Housewives" is following suit. Not only have they determined a date, 2011, when they're going to end the show like the producers of "Lost" did, but they're planning on jumping five years ahead in the lives of the ladies for this season's finale. I'm not sure if it'll be 2013 or if they're going to pretend that these storylines have been taking place in 2003. But whereas "Lost" stays in the past and occasionally pops into the future, "Desperate" will stay in the future and allude or flash back to things that have happened in the past.

People who participate in fan fiction could have a field day with this. Imagine what will happen to Gabby and Carlos. Will she still be a doting wife to her blind husband five years from now? Will he magically have his eyesight back? Will Lynette leave Tom for that chef guy, who's coming back this Sunday night? Will Mike kick his drug habit? Will Susan screw up their kid? Will George pay for what he did to Mike or succeed in making sure his grandchild doesn't turn out like its mom or uncle? Will Dylan find out her mom's dirty little secret? And will Edie ever get a life? Dum-dum-dum!!! Which plot line are you most excited to see 5 years in the future?

Which TV show would you like to see jump 5 years ahead?
Which shows need it? (I would say either "Ugly Betty" or "Smallville.")