Jane the Virgin is easily one of the most intriguing, multifaceted shows out there right now. Advertised as a “satirical romantic comedy-drama telenovela” (say that five times fast), Jane the Virgin heaps a lot onto its plate, and manages to succeed every moment of the way.
Without spoiling too many of the key plot points, the show’s premise is about satirizing the dramatic, unrealistic elements of soap operas (in this case, specifically Spanish telenovelas) and transferring it to the real world. In Jane the Virgin, Jane Villanueva (played by the inimitable Gina Rodriguez), her mother, and her grandmother avidly watch telenovelas and marvel at the torrid romances and shocking plot twists; while viewers simultaneously see their lives, and those around them, unfold in a similar manner. Viewers realize that while the characters in the show think they are far-removed from what is portrayed on television, it turns out they actually aren’t – and this very basis makes for a remarkably exciting show.
Part of what makes this satire work so well is that it does not ridicule or deride its subject matter. Instead, the show employs what is called Horatian satire (named after Roman satirist Horace), which is characterized as being gentle, subtle, and light-hearted. This is in opposition to Juvenalian satire (named after Roman satirist Juvenal) that employs its humour in a much more heavy-handed, mocking, and aggressive way. What Jane the Virgin does is celebrate telenovelas while lightly poking fun at them, all while being completely aware of its own outlandishness. Narrated by a “Latin lover narrator”, the show utilizes metafiction and self-reflexivity through him. He actively acknowledges the audience, employs wit and humour, and draws attention to the satirical nature of the show. The best example of this is the way he caps the recaps by stating, “I know, straight out of a telenovela, right?” in regards to the characters’ storylines. To make things even more meta, Jane herself is a writer, and often uses her own life as a basis for her work.
Jane the Virgin is an intelligently written, multilayered show that uses satire and metafiction in a unique way, by using relatable characters and mixing the outlandish with the mundane. We are not constantly given unrealistic scenarios; rather, we are placed in a realistic world in which unrealistic things sometimes happen to its characters. This combination results in a successfully hilarious and heartrending show, one that consistently keeps viewers on the edge of their seats and makes sure to cultivate a relationship between the viewers and characters. It celebrates diversity (employing a predominantly PoC cast) and deals with the hardships of life in an evocative way, all while maintaining lightheartedness even in the face of darkness. A theme that Jane herself tackles with her own writing, it is all about the balance between the two. Where there is evil, there is good; where there is grief, there is hope. In the way comedians bring heavy truths to the surface through humour, Jane the Virgin studies the human condition through the exploration of tropes, melodrama, magic realism, and satire. The result is a show that acts as a commentary on the current social, political, and economic climates of our real world just as much as it uses its own clever imagination to create an intricate fiction. Jane the Virgin embodies everything that makes satire such a pertinent genre, making it one of the most unassumingly well thought-out shows of our time.
~ Z ~
