Jane the VirginIt’s Not Your Grandmother’s Novella Or Is It?
- 4 days ago
- 2 min read
By Denise Gobea-Arguello
February 2, 2015
Newcomer Gina Rodriguez along with a stellar cast in the CWs Jane the Virgin TV Show brings the Telenovela mainstream! We all grew up with the over the top dramatic, gloriously glitzy telenovela forever playing in the background at Abuelita or Tia’s house. I halfway paid attention to the novella plots, but they all seemed to include the usual cast of larger than life characters. Sexy vixens, handsome low-voiced, beautifully coifed male leads, and, of course, the pious grandmother faithfully praying for everyone’s souls. Well, the cast of Jane The Virgin delivers on all points and much more.
Lead Gina Rodriguez and the rest of Jane the Virgin’s cast, bring a fresh modern and uniquely American spin to the Telenovela. Half campy drama, half comedy- serial, may just spur a whole new fun and highly entertaining genre of American sitcom/drama/serial TV.
The premise is original and fantastic – Jane, who truly is saving herself for marriage, is accidently artificially inseminated with her reformed playboy - boss’s sperm. This event sets off a domino affecting all character story lines. The serial plot spiders out so quickly and after every episode you feel like you were just on a crazy carnival ride that was fun but over much too fast. But don’t worry if the plot moves too fast for you, the lush and romantically accented narrator will quickly bring you up to speed in the most delightful style. Voice over, text and at times subtitles, all work to keep you strapped in and enjoying the fast moving Novella-style plot progression.
Gina as Jane is real; some say almost too real in the way she reacts to the impossible situation she finds herself after working so hard to live an orderly and well-planned life. No wonder Gina Rodriguez is currently a TV darling, with guest spots and interviews everywhere. Gina’s off-screen personality shines through as someone so relatable, she reminds us of a high school friend or your favorite over-controlling prima.
Although Gina Rodriguez is an artist first and foremost, the magnitude of the shows acclaimed success and her recent Global Globe win for Best Actress in a Sitcom do not escape her. Best clue found in her acceptance speech – “this award is so much more than myself, it represents a culture that want to see themselves represented as heroes” – Gina Rodriguez.
Gina Rodriguez Golden Globe Speech
-Denise Gobea-Arguello
Gina Rodriguez Golden Globe Speech
-Denise Gobea-Arguello
(New season starts on February 2, 2015 check your local listings on the C W Channel)
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