Life as a military family means there’s not always time to say goodbye.
So perhaps it’s fitting that “Army Wives,” Lifetime’s longest-running series, was cancelled last September after its seventh season ended in June — leaving several storylines about the group of army spouses unresolved.
In the two-hour retrospective “Army Wives: A Final Salute” — airing Sunday at 9 p.m. on Lifetime — fans will finally get to see the cast say farewell in a special the network put together as a gesture to the popular drama’s legacy.
“I think it [is] a classy sendoff to a show that demonstrates why it had such appeal,” “Army Wives” executive producer Jeff Melvoin tells The Post. “Everybody on our side of the camera was really invested in it and really believed in it. We were the only long-running show to handle the longest-running war in our history.
“We didn’t last quite as long as the war had, but we came pretty close.”
The special retraces the major plot points of “Army Wives” — the births and deaths, the marriages and infidelity — with insight on the characters from original cast members Kim Delaney (Claudia Joy Holden), Sally Pressman (Roxy LeBlanc), Brigid Brannagh (Pamela Moran), Wendy Davis (Col. Joan Burton), Sterling K. Brown (Roland Burton), Brian McNamara (Lt. Gen. Michael Holden), Terry Serpico (Col. Frank Sherwood), Drew Fuller (2nd Lt. Trevor LeBlanc) and Jeremy Davidson (MSG Chase Moran).
Melvoin, who also participated in the retrospective (taped last December), said it was a nice feeling for the cast to reunite, and hopes it brings some closure to the show’s fans who may have felt jilted by the abrupt ending. “I felt that it was not entirely the satisfying ending for the audience. I felt like we ran out of road a bit on a couple of key stories,” Melvoin says of the seventh-season finale. “Had we known halfway through the season that we weren’t going to continue we might have been able to craft stories that had more of a sense of completeness.”
Sunday’s special also features interviews with author Tanya Biank, who wrote the book on which the series was based, and commentary from real military wives on how true it was to their own experiences. “It was really helpful to people in the military to identify with, it helped them with their own problems,” Melvoin he says.
“It gave them some hope, the way the ladies were there for each other.”
And though it’s been nine months since “Army Wives” last aired, Melvoin says he still senses sadness among the show’s loyal audience. “I think our fans feel like I do and [like] a lot of our cast do,” he says. “They’re sorry that it’s gone.”
Big guest stars who served
‘Army Wives” booked a number of bold-faced guest stars over its seven-season run. Here’s a look at five of the most memorable names to stop by Fort Marshall:
- Ann-Margret: The former sex kitten/USO entertainer guest-starred as Gen. Michael Holden’s (Brian McNamara)Aunt Edie, who comes to the base for an unannounced visit in the Season Four Mother’s Day episode.
- Jill Biden: The Vice President’s wife played herself in a Season Four episode, stopping by Fort Marshall to kick off a Fun Run charity event.
- Susan Lucci: The soap queen reunited with her “All My Children” co-star Kim Delaney for a recurring guest role in Season Six playing Audrey Whitaker, the wife of a retired Brigadier General and old friend of Claudia Joy (Delaney).
- J.R. Martinez: The Iraq veteran and “Dancing With the Stars” champion showed up on the Season Six finale as a physical therapist treating wounded veterans who helped Gen. Clarke (Robert John Burke) take his first steps since his injury.
- Brooke Shields: The actress joined the cast as a recurring guest star in Season Seven as Col. Katherine “Kat” Young, a C-17 pilot at odds with Gen. Holden.