Mirror Mirror (Desperate Housewives)

The episode fills in some of the gaps in the five-year jump and includes flashbacks.

After realizing she hasn't had her period, Gabrielle suspects she might be pregnant. She flashes back to slapping her doctor (Tim Bagley) after he told her about being pregnant (with Juanita). Carlos thinks it's a blessing. Later, in another flashback, her doctor again tells her she's pregnant. She wants to hit Carlos for getting her pregnant again, and wants him to get a vasectomy. Back in the present, Carlos reveals to his wife he never got a vasectomy. At Mrs. McCluskey's surprise birthday party, the two argue about this. Gabrielle's happy to finally get her period. She and Carlos decide to use birth control for the time being, just in case they decide to try to have a son later on.

Before they head off to Mrs. McCluskey's surprise party, Jackson surprises Susan by saying he wants to move in with her. She flashes back to meeting Jackson before hiring him to paint her house. She mistakenly believed he was hitting on her, but once that was cleared up, she hired him. In another flashback, Susan stopped Mike from signing their divorce papers as she wondered if they should end their marriage. He signed the papers and left. She returned home and seduced Jackson, but afterwards made it clear she only wanted something casual. Back in the present, Susan turns down Jackson's request to move in with her. Before Susan answered the door, Jackson told her that he was in love with her. At Mrs. McCluskey's party, as Susan says she wouldn't be bothered if he was with someone else, Jackson kisses Katherine. When Susan says she wants things to stay the way they were, Jackson walks away.

Lynette finds Penny sitting in Tom's car. Penny overheard the twins talking and wonders if Tom's dying. Lynette denies this, then flashes back to going to the hospital where she learned Tom had a massive electrical shock that could have damaged his heart. Tom woke up in the hospital bed to tell Lynette he wanted to find more in his life. Later, Tom surprised Lynette with his new car. Back in the present, Tom tells Lynette he wants to take the kids out of school for a year and go around the country in a RV. He's already made plans to sell the pizzeria. At Mrs. McCluskey's party, Lynette argues with Tom about it and splashes a drink in his face. Later, she reminds him that the pizzeria was his adventure.

Orson wants to tell everyone at the party about being Bree's partner; Bree admits she hasn't told Katherine yet. She flashes back to a brunch the day before Orson's sent off to prison for three years. While she got Orson another drink, Bree took her own drink in private. In another flashback, Katherine found Bree, drunk, when she should have been working. Katherine promised to move in with Bree to help her. Back in the present, as Bree and Orson head to the party, Bree fires Orson rather than tell Katherine the truth. At the party, he tells Bree he wants a divorce. She finally admits the truth about her drinking and what Katherine did to help her. Orson meets with Katherine, and offers to work for them until Katherine decides he's ready to be a partner.

After learning of Mrs. McCluskey's upcoming 70th birthday, Dave suggests that they throw her a birthday party but have Susan host it. Edie's job is to distract McCluskey with drinks. While she's out, Dave moves things around in her house. When she comes home and finds what's happened, she goes to her party with a baseball bat and tries to attack Dave. She's taken away by an ambulance, with everyone thinking she's senile. Before she's driven away, Dave tells her he's sorry. Mary Alice informs us that Dave's moving carefully with his revenge plan against a man.

The episode was watched by 15.95 million viewers, and had a 10.0 rating and a 15 share. It was #5 for the week.

On its UK airing of 19 November 2008 on Channel 4, the show received 1.77 million viewers, and with its E4 viewing which aired the previous Sunday counted in the ratings arrived at 2.29 million viewers.

• French: Une soirée pleine de surprises (A party full of surprises)
• German: Ein Blick in den Spiegel (A look into the mirror)
• Hebrew: מראה, מראה (Mar'a, Mar'a; Mirror, Mirror)
• Hungarian: Tükröm, tükröm (Mirror, Mirror)
• Italian: Riflessi del passato (Reflections of the past)
• Macedonian: Навраќање Во Минатото (Remembering of the past)
• Greek: Καθρέφτη, Καθρεφτάκη Μου (Mirror, Mirror)

• The title is taken from the lyrics of "Who's That Woman" from the Stephen Sondheim musical Follies.
• Although credited, Charlie Carver (Porter Scavo), Max Carver (Preston Scavo) and Joshua Logan Moore (Parker Scavo) do not appear in this episode.
• In the previous episode (Back in Business), Gaby mentions that condoms are on her "marketing list", but in this episode she mentions to Carlos that they will start using birth control instead of him having a vasectomy and says after kissing him that all he will be getting is a kiss until they have a box of condoms in the house.