yo soy betty la fea final post

The last episode of my telenovela was bittersweet. It was sad because I was finally done watching it but happy because it was so good. I did not expect to enjoy my telenovela as much as I did. It was such a Cinderella moment to watch Betty transform into someone so beautiful and everyone's response to this. Betty's success in the workplace and with her love life made me very happy for her in the end, even if she is a fictional character. However, despite her being a fictional character, I feel as though everyone can relate to Betty on some level or another. Betty, like Cinderella, ended the show finding happiness.

Eva Luna Final Blog Post

It is official: I have become addicted to Eva Luna. I watch it in my free time when I do not need too. This addiction has made this course so enjoyable and much easier to complete the assignments. One of the things that I first noticed about Eva Luna was the music. The theme song is extremely catchy even though I do not speak spanish and have no idea what they are saying. As I mentioned in a previous blog, whenever Eva and Daniel have a romantic moment the theme song plays in the background. I also noticed that there was a new song introduced towards the end of the series. This song is titled Eva Luna and was obviously written specifically for this telenovela. I have also experienced many instances of of incidental music. My favorite of these types of music is the suspense incidental music. It makes the scenes much more dramatic and intense. While Victoria does not have specific character music, she always seems to have suspense music following her which is most likely because she is the most dramatic character on the series. I still have one episode left to watch and I cannot wait to see what happens!

Una Maid en Manhattan - 3

Since this Freshman Seminar began, I have learned so much about the wonderful world of telenovelas. The first time I watched a telenovela I just lagged through it. I didn't pay it any mind, I just saw a group of people acting like mad men with extreme facial expressions and reactions, but there is so much more. At this point, I am so hooked. Even after this class ends I may still be curled up catching up on my show on the weekends. You don't even need to understand the language to see the complexity of these productions. So much thought and planning goes on to produce every single episode. You may think they chose threw in a random song for the scene you just watched, but no. That song was specifically chosen to send your mind a message of what's happening with the characters and the emotions. It may have even been personally made for that very scene. I am watching Una Maid en Manhattan. This is no longer just an assignment for me, I am emotionally involved. It is just so gripping! Many girls from my hall even started watching it with me. However, when we watch, I know it isn't the same thing. They see a complex and compelling melodrama; I see actors, producers, writers, cameramen, and so many others who are working just out of the camera's eye, striving for perfection. So much to lose, but so much to gain as well. I'm glad they risked it.

blog Post 3: Finale

All in all, I am very glad that I decided to take this class. I've learned a lot about Latin American culture through watching Telenovela. It is interesting because I used to watch Korean dramas when I was in Korea, and I also watched many Television shows in America. And now I had an opportunity to watch Telenovela, a Hispanic version of melodrama. I find myself more of a well-rounded person now. Watching my Telenovela made me wanting to learn more Spanish. It made me regret not fully learning spanish when I was in high school. Watching Telenovela gave me a constant desire to be a part of the Latin American culture.

In terms of the Grand Finale of Rubi, I have to admit that it was not so predictable like other episodes. At one point, my jaw literally dropped from being surprised. What kills me the most was that the ending was not clear. It left the audience hanging. It made me wonder what would Rubi do as she was seducing the main guy character once again in the hospital office. As she winked at the camera, the scene faded, and it was over. It was a bitter, sweet and glorious moment. It's kind of similar to how I feel as this Odyssey class is ending. I hope I will give more love and respect to Latin American culture and the Telenovela.

Por favor, ¡bésala!

One of the most intriguing yet most frustrating part of my telenovela, Dame Chocolate, is the main love story. At the beginning, Bruce touches Rosita's special holy birthmark, which means they are destined to be together. So, throughout the whole telenovela, you know that they are going to end up together at the end. The frustrating thing is that they never both love each other at the same time until the very end! They keep going back and forth. First, Rosita loves Bruce, but Bruce just uses her. Then Bruce does fall for her, but Rosita runs away because she thinks that he doesn't love her. Rosita comes back with a new face and calls herself Violeta. Bruce falls for Violeta, but Rosita/Violeta is just seeking revenge. Then she does fall in love with him, but Bruce is angry when he finds out that she was just using his love for revenge. So for a while Bruce hates her and marries someone else, but then he starts falling for Rosita again. It's a convoluted love story, that can be so frustrating at times. You just want the two of them to get their acts together and just love each other because they're destined to be together! 

In general, the main love story is much more interesting than the other side stories. My DVD is an abridged version, so sometimes it will randomly skip to the middle of a side story scene, which can be confusing. It is also harder to feel attached to the other characters because you don't see them as much. One side character that we actually can come to love is Fabian. He came from España to visit his father, Mauricio who is Rosita's lawyer, and then fell in love with Rosita/Violeta. He is a very caring man, who is a good friend to Rosita. He even has his own song! Although I miss pieces of his relationship with Rosita because of the editing, I still can get a good gist of how it is. 

Overall, I do like my telenovela. It was a little more rosa than I wanted, but it turned out to be a good one, with a male protagonist that is muy guapo!

The Team that Makes a Telenovela

    Many of the themes and structural elements of telenovelas Dr. A discusses in our First Year Odyssey Seminar appear in Una Maid en Manhattan. Una Maid en Manhattan is currently airs on Telemundo from Monday to Friday at 8/7 central. With just 67 episodes, a little over half of the average number of episodes per telenovela, the plot has already begun to twist and turn even in the first episode.
    I am amazed at how fast Telemundo can produce the episodes for Una Maid en Manhattan. In class we learned about all the people involved in making a telenovela a success. From the writing team and the directing team, to the cast and the viewers at home, without all of the parties involved, a telenovela can not survive.
    So far I have identified the main protagonists to be Marisa, Lalo, Cristóbal, Lucas, and Belinda and the main antagonists to be Miguel and his accomplices, Victor, Sara, Ronnie and Estanislao. Marisa’s character continues surprise me. Even though she is supposed to embody the typical ‘Rosa’ character, she does not strike me as the stereotypical female in peril. The more I observe her, the more she seems to almost be the anti-Rosa. Marisa is smart not naïve. She is beautiful, but is not the traditional thin and fair skinned telenovela beauty. The fierce bond and she shares with her son Lalo is incredible. The way she calls him “mi amor” with all the tenderness in the world sends shivers up my spine. For my final paper, I think I want to take Marisa’s character and focus on the ways she shakes up the stereotypical telenovela heroine.
    Another element of telenovela production I have observed in Una Maid en Manhattan is the use of music. The opening song of the telenovela is the song “Amor sin final” sung by Litzy and Eugenio Siller, who are the actor and actress that play Marisa and Cristóbal, and who are both famous Mexican singers. In the scene where Miguel is holding Lalo and Marisa hostage in the house with the police and swat team outside the music is filled with loud, heavy notes signaling danger. Yet at times when Marisa and Lalo are have an affectionate mother-son moment the music is filled with the light and airy strumming of a guitar.
    The interior and exterior scenes make Una Maid en Manhattan more recognizable to viewers. The opening credits include random shots of New York City’s bustling Times Square. The exteriors shots make the telenovela seem more realistic. These outside scenes include when Lalo is giving tours at the hotel, when Lalo and Marisa are in the cab leaving Michoacán for Los Angeles and the location of Marisa and Victor’s wedding. The construction site where Cristóbal, Lucas and Ronnie all work also looks more realistic. The interior shots appear to have been shot on a set, like the inside of the hotel in Michoacán, Belinda’s apartment, Marisa’s mom’s apartment and Cristóbal’s office. However, not all of the exterior shots are deceiving in their realism. Though the scene where Estanislao stops Marisa on the street is supposed to appear to be outside, there is not enough noise and filth to truly imitate the real life New York City streets. Here the budget available to produce the telenovela could probably not cover the cost to close down a part of the city to shot this scene. This one scene proves that a lot of effort and compromise is needed make keep a telenovela entertaining.

Esa Hembra Es Mala

..that's the name of the theme/opening song for the telenovela Teresa. And as we learned in class, there's much to get and learn from just the song title itself. Straightaway, you can already assume that "esa hembra", referring to the main female protagonist, is "mala" or evil. The song is written in a third-person point-of-view that goes on to say :

        "..ella esta tan bonita/ que hasta parce bendita/ pero es un angel caido/ ella es una maldicion.." 
   lyrics in Enlish: "..she is so beautiful/ she even appears holy/ but she is a fallen angel/ she is a curse.."

These few lines, I think, are the most defining of the telenovela's protagonist, Teresa. If you skip about 20 seconds into the video I have linked, you see Teresa. She is very attractive--an expected standard from the telenovela world. She is, however, somewhat of a "fallen angel" as it says in the opening song. Viewers at home can see that side of her more; characters in the novela cannot. Or better said, they are more prone to being ignorant of Teresa's greedy and manipulative nature. With her pretty face and acting skills, Teresa is particularly able to fool guys from realizing her true goals. The theme song makes it a point to say that Teresa is evil despite that she would "..give up her own life/ just to make you happy..". Because, really, making "you" happy will most likely means Teresa gets what she desires from you.