Danny Feld/ABC Stay-at-home mom Lynette (Felicity Huffman) will go back to work when "Desperate Housewives" returns for its second season on ABC. Click photo for larger image. Go behind the scenes: L.A. Confidential: 2005 Summer Press Tour Journal

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- As the wisteria blooms anew, the women of "Desperate Housewives" will find themselves in new complicated and comedic situations this fall -- not that series creator Marc Cherry is willing to spoil much of the fun.

Here's what we do know:

Bree (Marcia Cross) will do battle with her mother-in-law (Shirley Knight) over funeral plans for her late husband, Rex (Steven Culp), who will be seen in flashbacks, including an episode about how all the families came to live on Wisteria Lane.

Lynette (Felicity Huffman) will return to the work force, and her new employer (Joely Fisher) will be quite a witch.

Susan's ex-husband (Richard Burgi) will play a more prominent role this season.

Edie (Nicollette Sheridan) will finally get a new home, rebuilt since the fire in the series premiere. Her 7-year-old son will also appear.

Felicia Tilman (Harriet Sansom Harris) survived being attacked by Zach (Cody Kasch) and is recovering in the hospital.

Hottie gardener John (Jesse Metcalfe) will leave the neighborhood while Metcalfe films a movie. Cherry would like to bring back hottie gardener No. 2, Justin (Ryan Carnes), if he can find a story for him.

Paul Young (Mark Moses), last seen at the mercy of Mike Delfino (Jamie Denton), "will be gone for a while," Cherry said, "and then he'll make a surprising return."

Andrew Van De Kamp (Shawn Pyfrom) threatened to do something terrible to his mother, Bree, but that won't happen until January.

As for some of the show's May cliffhangers, those will be resolved early in season two, especially what happened in Mike's house when he arrived home as Zach held Susan (Teri Hatcher) at gunpoint.

"The first couple of minutes of the first episode will resolve all that in a fun and exciting way," Cherry said. "We spend the whole first episode getting into the story between Mike and her and the new information he learned at the end of last season."

The first season almost had a completely different end, but Cherry said his initial idea was nixed by ABC.

"I can't tell you about that. It was so controversial, people would write about it if it was brought up," Cherry said. "Maybe when season six rolls around and [ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson] has been promoted to running Disney, he won't notice and I'll slip it in on him."

The new season will also feature scenes with new neighbor Betty Applewhite (Alfre Woodard) that were shot for the season finale but had to be cut for time.

"We had a different actress in mind, a white actress, and that deal fell through," Cherry said. Someone mentioned Woodard, and Cherry was hooked on the idea. "Alfre is a little bit older than our gals, but she just has a stunning face."

In addition to Woodard, there are rumors that "Dancing With the Stars" winner Kelly Monaco will appear on "Desperate Housewives," based on a TV interview in which Cherry was simply trying to be polite.

"I'd never seen her act, I've only seen her dance. ... My first response was, 'That would be great,' because I don't want to ever be rude, to say, 'I wouldn't have someone on my show,' but the truth is, I don't really know her work."

Cherry said there are no characters Monaco's age to be cast at the moment.

At an earlier gathering in the press tour, the women of the '80s prime-time soap "Knots Landing" marveled at the success of "Housewives." Cherry said he had breakfast with Donna Mills recently, and she pitched the idea of playing Sheridan's mother.

"All those actresses on 'Knots Landing' are so talented," he said. "If the right part comes, I'd be happy to work with any of them."

With the story hurtling forward, some characters will be left behind, but it may not be forever.

"My hope is it's a universe, and people drift out and sometimes they drift back in again," Cherry said. "Just because someone leaves doesn't mean they can't show up in some other way."

In the past year, Cherry has gone from unemployed writer to show runner of the hottest series on TV. He was even recognized by a concession-stand clerk at a Los Angeles movie theater last weekend. His mother, whom Cherry has said was the inspiration for Bree, gained notoriety, too.

"When the glare of the spotlight started to spill over on her, for about two days she was kind of enjoying it, Cherry said. "On the third day, she was like, 'OK, enough, I don't want to do any more interviews,' which is a sentence I never thought I would hear my own mother say."

Channel surfing

Rock group U2 will appear on HBO's "Entourage" tomorrow at 10 p.m. ... Viacom's gay cable network, Logo, launches on local Comcast systems Sept. 6 on Channel 163. ... CBS's "The Cut" moves to 9 p.m. Friday next week. ... Fox yanked "Princes of Malibu" after only a few episodes, but the remaining installments will begin to roll at 8:30 tomorrow on Fox Reality, a channel available on DirecTV but not local cable systems.