Viewers can relate to Walkers

[Still Dirrty]

"B rothers & Sisters" has no patients to save, no crimes to solve, no bodies to autopsy and no cryptic clues to decipher.

What it does have: family - and lots of it.

Sally Field stars as Nora Walker, the matriarch of a multifaceted family that includes two daughters, three sons, one uncle and a mistress who had a longtime affair with Nora's now-deceased husband. That tryst, it was recently revealed, begat another daughter.

It's a complicated family tree, for sure. But it's one that has strong appeal. "Brothers & Sisters" is one of the few successes of this year's television season, averaging more than 10 million viewers per new episode. It was recently picked up for a second season.

"We all, as viewers, mark our lives by these characters," said executive producer Greg Berlanti. "We watch them screw up and make mistakes and fall in love and fall out of love, and it reminds us of ourselves, and we grow up with the characters."

The ABC drama is a show with which viewers can connect amid a TV landscape chock-full of often confounding serialized dramas. Even the Welsh-born Matthew Rhys, who plays brother Kevin Walker, can relate to this quintessential American family.

"The themes we deal with are very universal," Rhys said. The show "transcends any social, economic or cultural boundaries."

Reactions to "Brothers & Sisters" are similar to those Patricia Wettig used to hear when she starred in "thirtysomething."

"I'm doing my normal grocery shopping and people start talking about the show to me," said Wettig, who plays William Walker's longtime mistress, Holly. "In 'thirtysomething,' we were just trying to render the stories that were familiar in our lives at the time, and 'Brothers & Sisters' comes from a similar impulse. We try to tell the stories of a large extended family and family business and not to shy away from some of the complicated aspects of relationships."

For Wettig, the family ties exist on both sides of the camera. Wettig's husband, Ken Olin, is an executive producer on "Brothers & Sisters"; her daughter, Roxy Olin, has had a recurring role as Michelle; and her son, Cliff Olin, is a staff writer on the series.

"We have a little bit of the family thing going on here," Wettig said. "I guess I don't separate very easily family from work. It all gets a little mushed together."

As the "other woman," Wettig has the challenge of trying to make the audience sympathize with her character - not an easy task, Berlanti said. When her character was first discussed, Wettig said, she was supposed to be the proverbial bad guy.

"I think everybody has a prejudice about who and what the 'other woman' should be," Wettig said. "And immediately the prejudice is, 'No, I don't like her. I don't want her to be part of this family.' But I hope, as you get to know her, she is a complete person as well."

Emily VanCamp, 20, who played girl-next-door Amy Abbott on Berlanti's "Everwood," recently was cast as Holly's daughter, Rebecca.

"Greg saw me grow up, that's for sure," VanCamp said. "I was 15 when I met him for the first time. And now suddenly I'm playing this much more mature, much more adult young woman."

"I'm the one that basically threatens any of the guys that come anywhere near her," Berlanti said with a laugh. "I feel very big-brotherly toward her. . . . It's so cool to be writing for her again."

Berlanti, who created "Everwood" and "Jack & Bobby" and was an executive producer for "Dawson's Creek," said he's been stealing moments from his family for years.

"I wouldn't be able to write about all that stuff and be part of telling those stories if I didn't come from a family that loved me in a similar way," he said. "My mom is very similar to Nora. My mom used to say: 'In "Everwood," you killed me. And in "Jack & Bobby," I was a *****.'

"Nora reminds me a lot of my mom, and I think it's nice to finally pay tribute to my mother and write a strong matriarch."

If you view

What: Brothers & Sisters

When: 10 p.m. Sundays

Network: ABC

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