Karma

This show is getting more and more complicated and escalating very quickly, but that’s why I can’t stop watching it. First, the Cinderella story is quickly turning into a revenge story, and the once epic love story is taking a back seat to the more dramatic issues in the show. In other words, the saint-like virgin Mary was put through Hell and back, and now has a completely new view of the world. Her one goal is to get revenge on the woman that ruined her life, and her parents are horrified by the person she’s become. I’ve noticed that religion and God are a huge theme in this show. There are many times where they have mentioned “God will repay you for this” or “God sees everything, and you will receive punishment for this”. The main characters spend some time in jail and throughout they made friends that would remind them that “God will get them through this”, and many scenes of them praying together. Other than the more intensifying plot, I’ve noticed some more technical characteristics that make this show what it is. There is a certain music that plays every time something terrible happens to any of the main characters, it really intensifies the devastation. On the other hand, there’s a specific piece of music that plays whenever the main characters are given good news, this often expresses relief and hope again. I can tell that a lot of money was put into this show by the amount of camera angles and the amount of outdoor footage. There are many different locations that are shot throughout the show but a good number of them are outside, because of the openness of the main characters house.

I’m not sure if this is normal for all telenovelas, but in my show the short intro clip that tells the title of the show and the names of the directors and the actors is in the middle of the show. Half way through the show, it will cut out to a video of people dancing, then after it will resume the second half of the show. It always throws me off because I’m used to the intro being after the first few minutes after a show has started.

Comments

  1. My telenovela does the same thing in terms of the title sequence! I've gotten used to it, but it definitely is different from American television. Do you think this is done for those who miss the very beginning of the show? Since many popular telenovelas are broadcasted at lunchtime or in the evening when families are together in the household, people surely end up tuning in a little late. Just a hypothesis- what do y'all think?

    As for the religious aspect of your show, maybe this is included to have the audience relate more to the characters and scenes. Religion is (generally!) an important aspect of Latinx culture, even though the numbers of the religious Latinxs are dwindling. However, since women over the age of 30-40 are typically the viewers of telenovelas, they probably grew up with prayers or sayings like the ones you have watched and described. Do you agree?

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    1. Yeah, you might be right about the intro, or maybe it's in the middle just to show when the show is half way through to give some perspective. I'll have to start paying more attention, but maybe there is some significant change in plot in the show from before to after the intro in each episode. Whatever it is, it's definitely different than what I'm used to!!

      I agree about the religion theory, that would definitely be a factor when considering the target audience. And younger viewers are probably watching with their mothers or grandmothers who have raised them with these religious sayings and rituals so it's something they're used to.

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  2. I think that the idea of karma is definitely a common one! It seems to be a basic understanding among people that what goes around comes around whether it be for religious reasons or not. I even know of people that don't believe in a god or anything that believe in karma or an idea similar. I think it must be a moral thing. We as humans like to think that if we do good, we'll get good in return and if we receive bad, it must be because of something we did. I think it's because of how must of us are raised. Many parents teach the idea of "treating people the way you want to be treated" and I think that is an idea we incorporate into other parts of life. A lot of shows include these basic understandings that many of us have in order to make them more relatable.

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