CBS swings into '70s suburbia

NEW YORK -- Relax, everybody. Despite its racy come-on, the new CBS drama "Swingtown" isn't pushing recreational drugs and mate swapping, any more than it endorses smoking on airplanes or drinking Harvey Wallbangers, which are also part of the 1970s world it inhabits.

Granted, one of the shows married couples is swingers, a sexy husband and wife always looking for attractive new playmates.

"Opening up our relationship was the best thing that ever happened to me and Tom," Trina tells Susan, who, with husband Bruce and their two children, has just moved across the street in this upscale Chicago suburb.

In their open marriage they have reached "this whole other level of intimacy," Trina explains, washing down a pill with a sip of champagne.

"Swingtown" (which premieres 9 p.m. today) turns out not to be "That '70s Partner-Swapping Show." Instead, it's much more like "thirtysomething" in an earlier era.

It's an entertaining drama populated by likable, relatable people sharing modern life experiences.

Tom (played by Grant Show,) is a dashing airline pilot whose wife (Lana Parrilla), a former stewardess, is among the many stewardesses he's been with. But she's the only one he loves .

Susan (played by Molly Parker) is married to Bruce (Jack Davenport), a commodities trader on the rise. With his latest promotion, he has moved the family to a bigger house in a fancier area.

Susan, a full-time mom to two teenagers, has mixed feelings about her family's upgraded status. She feels like she's betraying her best friend, Janet, whom she left behind in her old, squarely middle-class neighborhood.

"To be honest, change is good," Susan rationalizes. "I feel like I'm ready for the next thing."

But all Janet can see is more of the same as wife of milquetoast Roger (Josh Hopkins) and mother of a teenage son. Played with tragicomic flair by Miriam Shor, she's a desperate housewife with a martyr complex.

What will be the impact of the '70s on Janet and the other characters? That's what "Swingtown" is all about.