Spoilers ahead....
Yes I know that will cause some controversy 😊.
I love telenovelas lets get that clear. Love them to death. But that doesn't mean I cant call them out for outdated stereotypes Okay, maybe not so much outdated but how our male heroes are allowed to be forgiven their excesses, allowed their weaknesses and redeem themselves without the slightest effort.
The heroes in this show are allowed just that. In this mostly great telenovela we are faced with our predominantly 3 alpha male leads. Ivan, Antolin and Camelo. They go through life making the dumbest mistakes, sometimes getting away with it and sometimes tragically not. Antolin is the worst case, a blackmailer and a killer, yet somehow in this tale he is rewarded with the love of a good woman and a relatively good life.
Ivan is the stereotypical male's male. He is led by his passions rather than his head and spends the first half of the series, pants down doing steamy scenes with his female co-stars. Looking back on this show, the only thing I remember about this show is his chiseled abs. If he had taken a deep breath and probably a couple of showers, maybe he would have able to assess what kind of woman the mother of his child really was. But his mad, passionate stupidity is never addressed or even corrected. Camillo is a variant of this, passionate and dumb. Just a little more boring.
Then we turn to Lucia. What a wonderful, wonderful woman is our Lucia. Who wouldn't want ro be her? Noble. Kind. Thoughtful. Selfless. Beautiful. Fantastic. No wonder there are artfully created montages of their sex scenes. Tiki torches, satin sheets rippling in the wind, their bodies tanned to perfection....you get lost in the fantasy. At first.
Then you get sick of it.
You begin to get mildly irritated with Lucia. Believe me it starts out slow and somehow you can't quite put a finger on It. Why are you beginning to despise this character who gets so much love and attention and who is wise as a sage and never makes a wrong turn unless she is asked to or for selfless reasons. And you ask yourself, that little nagging voice at the back of your mind calls foul.
Then we meet Mary Paz.
Mary paz is the very antithesis of Lucia. She has her own agency, in a world where a woman being sexually aggressive is seen as a crime. She goes after she wants and makes no apologies for it.
She is clear about her dislikes and likes and if you're dumb enough to fall for her excesses, she takes advantage of it. Much like Antolin. Who is never actually punished for that trait. But I digress.
You see the world of telenovelas like to demonize the Mary Paz characters by telling you something of a lie. That bad women are women that make mistakes, commit errors without remorse and it is entirely their fault. No one else is to blame for the mishmash they make of other people's lives. Not even the men that willing choose to pursue her are held accountable for their actions. Case in point. Mary Paz runs over a woman and kills her. She frantically runs over to her family and begs for their help. What does this family do? They cover it up. To be fair, Lucia made some comments about sanctity of human life. But these are soon overtaken by the fear of a family scandal and what does this meaan for them? It was here that I began to wonder about this family and the noble sister. And guess what, this poor deceased working woman is only brought up when the interests of Lucia and the grand dame Madam Carlotta are threatened.
I was also surprised that when Ivan the Noble heard that this family hid information about Mary Paz's accident, he wasn't shocked that again his perfect fiancee had hidden another secret to protect her family. But again, I forgot that Ivan is led by his p..passions.
Then as the story progresses, as if the producers didn't want any doubt of Mary Paz 'evilness'...she goes from fun loving, mischievous selfish brat to full on villain. And Lucia is painted even whiter to the point of disbelief. Her preachy speeches and angst filled love quotes are enough to bore us to death. I can feel the actress dying under the weight of the dialogue. And as we watch Mary Paz go full tilt into darkness and stupidity. We watch her also be punished relentlessly. Everyone that should love her, loves her sister more. MUCH MORE. She is unloved, despised and blamed not just for her choices but for everyone else's. That is par for the course. The message is very clear. Having agency and being flawed wins you an empty bed, no redemptive arc and a painful death. Having no agency, being demure and having all your flaws swept under the rug wins you the dashing male hero and the unrequited love of the entire male cast.
This is not reality. This is a lie. This is why thank heaven, modern audiences are rejecting the Mary Sue trope and are accepting to see themselves on screen. Because we women are selfish, self centered, a mess and many times we need a huge knock on the head for us to turn around and know what's what. And the best prize for this is self worth. Maybe a great guy or gal, but self worth trumps it all.
I hope telenovelas move away from this Cinderella model and move toward writing stories about real women. Women that other women can see themselves in. Maybe women who are forgiven for their faults and stupidity and bad choices and get their happy ever after just like their ripped male counterparts. That would be nice for a change.
I love telenovelas lets get that clear. Love them to death. But that doesn't mean I cant call them out for outdated stereotypes Okay, maybe not so much outdated but how our male heroes are allowed to be forgiven their excesses, allowed their weaknesses and redeem themselves without the slightest effort.
The heroes in this show are allowed just that. In this mostly great telenovela we are faced with our predominantly 3 alpha male leads. Ivan, Antolin and Camelo. They go through life making the dumbest mistakes, sometimes getting away with it and sometimes tragically not. Antolin is the worst case, a blackmailer and a killer, yet somehow in this tale he is rewarded with the love of a good woman and a relatively good life.
Ivan is the stereotypical male's male. He is led by his passions rather than his head and spends the first half of the series, pants down doing steamy scenes with his female co-stars. Looking back on this show, the only thing I remember about this show is his chiseled abs. If he had taken a deep breath and probably a couple of showers, maybe he would have able to assess what kind of woman the mother of his child really was. But his mad, passionate stupidity is never addressed or even corrected. Camillo is a variant of this, passionate and dumb. Just a little more boring.
Then we turn to Lucia. What a wonderful, wonderful woman is our Lucia. Who wouldn't want ro be her? Noble. Kind. Thoughtful. Selfless. Beautiful. Fantastic. No wonder there are artfully created montages of their sex scenes. Tiki torches, satin sheets rippling in the wind, their bodies tanned to perfection....you get lost in the fantasy. At first.
Then you get sick of it.
You begin to get mildly irritated with Lucia. Believe me it starts out slow and somehow you can't quite put a finger on It. Why are you beginning to despise this character who gets so much love and attention and who is wise as a sage and never makes a wrong turn unless she is asked to or for selfless reasons. And you ask yourself, that little nagging voice at the back of your mind calls foul.
Then we meet Mary Paz.
Mary paz is the very antithesis of Lucia. She has her own agency, in a world where a woman being sexually aggressive is seen as a crime. She goes after she wants and makes no apologies for it.
She is clear about her dislikes and likes and if you're dumb enough to fall for her excesses, she takes advantage of it. Much like Antolin. Who is never actually punished for that trait. But I digress.
You see the world of telenovelas like to demonize the Mary Paz characters by telling you something of a lie. That bad women are women that make mistakes, commit errors without remorse and it is entirely their fault. No one else is to blame for the mishmash they make of other people's lives. Not even the men that willing choose to pursue her are held accountable for their actions. Case in point. Mary Paz runs over a woman and kills her. She frantically runs over to her family and begs for their help. What does this family do? They cover it up. To be fair, Lucia made some comments about sanctity of human life. But these are soon overtaken by the fear of a family scandal and what does this meaan for them? It was here that I began to wonder about this family and the noble sister. And guess what, this poor deceased working woman is only brought up when the interests of Lucia and the grand dame Madam Carlotta are threatened.
I was also surprised that when Ivan the Noble heard that this family hid information about Mary Paz's accident, he wasn't shocked that again his perfect fiancee had hidden another secret to protect her family. But again, I forgot that Ivan is led by his p..passions.
Then as the story progresses, as if the producers didn't want any doubt of Mary Paz 'evilness'...she goes from fun loving, mischievous selfish brat to full on villain. And Lucia is painted even whiter to the point of disbelief. Her preachy speeches and angst filled love quotes are enough to bore us to death. I can feel the actress dying under the weight of the dialogue. And as we watch Mary Paz go full tilt into darkness and stupidity. We watch her also be punished relentlessly. Everyone that should love her, loves her sister more. MUCH MORE. She is unloved, despised and blamed not just for her choices but for everyone else's. That is par for the course. The message is very clear. Having agency and being flawed wins you an empty bed, no redemptive arc and a painful death. Having no agency, being demure and having all your flaws swept under the rug wins you the dashing male hero and the unrequited love of the entire male cast.
This is not reality. This is a lie. This is why thank heaven, modern audiences are rejecting the Mary Sue trope and are accepting to see themselves on screen. Because we women are selfish, self centered, a mess and many times we need a huge knock on the head for us to turn around and know what's what. And the best prize for this is self worth. Maybe a great guy or gal, but self worth trumps it all.
I hope telenovelas move away from this Cinderella model and move toward writing stories about real women. Women that other women can see themselves in. Maybe women who are forgiven for their faults and stupidity and bad choices and get their happy ever after just like their ripped male counterparts. That would be nice for a change.
