Calling all TV snobs: If you still think “Jane the Virgin” isn’t worth your time because it’s on The CW, think again.
First, a precursor: I’m a reformed snob myself when it comes to The CW. Even as a teenager, I found it so crushingly adolescent. I saw it as a network only to be openly watched by cheerleaders and dimwits. The CW is the reason people make their Netflix social media settings private—God forbid anyone see that they just spent six hours watching “The Vampire Diaries.” Even the network’s tagline “dare to defy” reeks of love-struck teenage angst. Defy what, CW? Probably your parents, because you’re a 16-year-old cooing over reruns of “One Tree Hill.”
But then “Jane the Virgin” arrived. Despite all its fluffy pink appearances in commercials and subway ads, “Jane the Virgin” is no mere guilty pleasure show. If anything, Season 2 (which is currently airing) is more proof that it’s one of the smartest —and most binge-worthy—sitcoms on the air. (Season 1 is currently streaming on Netflix.)
Season 2 catches us up on Jane’s (played brilliantly by Chicagoan Gina Rodriguez) life as a new mother to Mateo, her baby born from a freak artificial insemination accident. She struggles to balance the demands of motherhood, family life and the typical hurdles of a 20-something. If that somehow sounds too mundane, never fear: There is also an ongoing investigation into a drug lord’s whereabouts, a feud between Jane’s telenovela-star father and Britney Spears, a blackmail scheme involving Scientology tapes … you get the point. The CW has clearly branched out from wealthy high schooler drama and supernatural romance.
Refreshingly, this season also takes a step back from the torrid love triangle that dominated Season 1. Jane’s suitors, Michael (Brett Dier) and Rafael (Justin Baldoni), are still vying for her affection, of course, but the plot point’s given no more attention than her attempts to wean Mateo off breastfeeding. It’s the perfect amount of heart-fluttering romantic indulgence, tense yet never gratuitous. You can still agonize over whether you’re Team Michael or Team Rafael, but it doesn’t feel like her choice of man is the ultimate trajectory of the show anymore.
Above all, what makes “Jane” work so well is its self-awareness—it has, for all intents and purposes, an utterly ridiculous plotline. But unlike the network’s typical fare, this guise is not presumed to be anywhere near real life. These aren’t a bunch of gorgeous 27-year-old actors playing high schoolers, or seemingly average girls finding out they have secret super-special vampire powers. Jane is normal enough, sure, but her life is nothing like yours. Narrator Anthony Mendez even occasionally jumps in during dramatic moments with kitschy exclamations of “OMG!” or “I know, right?!” to reassure us that, yes, this is still a telenovela. But because that suspension of disbelief is right there from the get-go, it’s all so much more believable.
It’s time to let your guard down, TV snobs. Let The CW dare to defy your expectations.
Emma Krupp is an intern for The Mash, RedEye’s sister publication.
