I just mini binge-watched all 4 episodes of Telenovela broadcast to date, and have no idea what would be spoilers or not, so just warning, there might be some.
I really liked what I've seen so far, but it's a little rough around the edges. The cast of characters is nearly perfect, but at this point, the show needs to develop these characters more than concentrate on love lives. Ana needs to be more miserable about the presence of her ex on the show, with more opportunities for them to have to appear together in public. And more time needs to be devoted to showing the filming of Las Leyes de Pasíon and Ana's script problems - exacerbated by the blood alcohol or pharmaceutical status of the scriptwriter.
Ana's typical American conundrum of not speaking the language of her nationality instantly recalled for me an interview I saw with My Name Is Earl co-star Nadine Velazquez. Her character, Catalina, spoke fluent Spanish; Velazquez, not so much. She admitted she had to learn Spanish to do interviews for Spanish- language networks, and that anyone who knows Spanish would recognize that, when Catalina went off in Spanish, it was usually some silly message from Nadine breaking the 4th wall instead.
I'll admit, I was never quite a fan of Longoria, but I love her in this show because her TV character is the one with the sex appeal, the perfection, the unattainable beauty - whereas Ana is human, flawed, insecure, vulnerable.
And her Miami is the Miami I just left a few years ago after grad school. Unless you live in Little Havana, on Calle Ocho, you can live comfortably without Spanish. But not without at least the semblance of glamour, no matter your income level.
The show isn't gut-splitting funny, but it's amusing. It needs to exploit the wealth of character that's just beneath its fear of success. It's not Ugly Betty or Jane the Virgin; i.e., it's not an American rip-off of an already existing telenovela. It's a parody of the genre (and from what I can see, also a funny look at the reality of being an American of Latin descent, as opposed to Latino, in Miami). But I can't figure out so far why it's afraid to run with that, the way Soap did with American soap operas. For sure, this will never be Soap en Español, but it can carve out a little niche for itself, like NBC's fish-out- of-water series, Welcome to Sweden.
I hope Telenovela doesn't make the mistake that Outsourced did - lose its focus very early. There's a market for a Latin-American sit- com. I was hoping Cristela would be it and was very disappointed when it wasn't renewed. Longoria is well- established in the TV business, but can she make this show a winner? I sure hope that's one of Las Leyes de Pasíon.
I really liked what I've seen so far, but it's a little rough around the edges. The cast of characters is nearly perfect, but at this point, the show needs to develop these characters more than concentrate on love lives. Ana needs to be more miserable about the presence of her ex on the show, with more opportunities for them to have to appear together in public. And more time needs to be devoted to showing the filming of Las Leyes de Pasíon and Ana's script problems - exacerbated by the blood alcohol or pharmaceutical status of the scriptwriter.
Ana's typical American conundrum of not speaking the language of her nationality instantly recalled for me an interview I saw with My Name Is Earl co-star Nadine Velazquez. Her character, Catalina, spoke fluent Spanish; Velazquez, not so much. She admitted she had to learn Spanish to do interviews for Spanish- language networks, and that anyone who knows Spanish would recognize that, when Catalina went off in Spanish, it was usually some silly message from Nadine breaking the 4th wall instead.
I'll admit, I was never quite a fan of Longoria, but I love her in this show because her TV character is the one with the sex appeal, the perfection, the unattainable beauty - whereas Ana is human, flawed, insecure, vulnerable.
And her Miami is the Miami I just left a few years ago after grad school. Unless you live in Little Havana, on Calle Ocho, you can live comfortably without Spanish. But not without at least the semblance of glamour, no matter your income level.
The show isn't gut-splitting funny, but it's amusing. It needs to exploit the wealth of character that's just beneath its fear of success. It's not Ugly Betty or Jane the Virgin; i.e., it's not an American rip-off of an already existing telenovela. It's a parody of the genre (and from what I can see, also a funny look at the reality of being an American of Latin descent, as opposed to Latino, in Miami). But I can't figure out so far why it's afraid to run with that, the way Soap did with American soap operas. For sure, this will never be Soap en Español, but it can carve out a little niche for itself, like NBC's fish-out- of-water series, Welcome to Sweden.
I hope Telenovela doesn't make the mistake that Outsourced did - lose its focus very early. There's a market for a Latin-American sit- com. I was hoping Cristela would be it and was very disappointed when it wasn't renewed. Longoria is well- established in the TV business, but can she make this show a winner? I sure hope that's one of Las Leyes de Pasíon.