Caray, Caray!

There are many reasons to pity poor pathetic Esperanza. Here's another. Remember she told Mirtha how much her father adores her? But grand adoring father can't even bother to visit her for two minutes while he's at her very own house. No wonder she follows Mirtha's advice. Who else does she have?
 

Diego is being portrayed as deliciously amoral and smarmy....not to mention BSC. He ENJOYS being a rake and a scoundrel. Perla was pleased as punch with her little casa and adores generous Don Luis. I couldn't catch the conversations between Perla and Hip and later between Perla and Luis , but Perla definitely seems worried about Luis's interest in Hip. Juana certainly considers Modesta more than a servant. Modesta is Juana's trusted confidant and advisor. Asi es , asi sera....and Modesta will make it happen. Her raison d'etre is serving Juana.
 

This show is just awesome!!!

I have to say I love the count's hair unbound. I have a weakness for very long straight hair on men, whether in a queue or loose. The fake widow's peak is a bit much though - a bit of the Munsters there.

Otherwise - eeeewww - Diego is SUCH a creep. But the actor is doing a fine job! Very convincing!

Wow - Esperanza just can't see past her nose, can she? She doesn't begin to understand the consequences of her lies. "Well - there was copulation!" So funny that she had to make Fray Alvaro repeat the question. Loved it when Juana yelled at Espy that lying to the Holy Office could warrant the stake! (Hoguera = bonfire i.e. burning at the stake).

Several delicious webs of deceit in this TN!

Audrey
 

Have to agree with you Audrey...Diego in his long white sleeping underwear and flowing hair would be quite delicious...if he weren't such a loathsome scab.

Esperanza and Juana are both to be pitied (in spite of the latter's evil). Both are lonely, with only the companionship of their maids, and Juana knows she has raised a viper, much as she keeps trying to cover up the evidence.

Watching this telenovela is like having a great big juicy dessert every night. Pure pleasure.

Thanks for the pic, Dr. Carlos! And the site, doña Paula. And the recap Melinama.
 

I think that Andrés stole today's show. Got some onthejobtraining, a haircut, and gets to sample Diego's wine. I especially enjoyed the little scene between Diego and him with the Count flogging him with his napkin as a disgusted doña Juana looked on. Very funny stuff.

As evil as Diego is, it's often very difficult to take him seriously... I like that quality in a villain. He's reminding me of Fedra in LldA. Both are imposters and they both provide unintended mirth.

As much as I enjoy seeing Perla, I also find watching Isabel puff her little cigars to be... umm... sexy?

I know... I need help.

Carlos
 

Great title, great screen shot, great recap, great show!! Some scenes were so delicious I had to rewind. I remember now why this telenovela helped me learn Spanish so quickly...I tried to learn and devour every word.

Speaking of choice and useful telenovela phrases reminded me of my favorite sentence from Alborada, also the first full sentence I ever learned and could recite in Spanish: Gracias a Dios que soy la ramera de solamente un hombre, Thank God I am the whore of only one man. We haven't heard it yet.

ITA that Esperance can't see past her nose. She and Mirtha don't seem to be able to think in the long term. They are short-sighted. A problem comes up and they try to solve it, period. Juana and Modesta are always thinking several steps ahead and have a longer vision. They are good at juggling several balls at once.

I felt very sorry for poor Andres today. He's having a hell of a first week at work. Murder, pretty girls, royal taster...and imagine having to take work direction from a wretch like Gasca, yikes!

I applauded Modesta when she said according to the shamen of her area the sex of the baby is determined by the male.
 

Love the screen shot... not to mention the big fluffy cat.

Esperanza is seriously delusional. She deceives herself into believing her father adores her when we know he doesn't care if she dies in childbirth. Wouldn't an adoring father want her to live?

Esperanza is afraid of all the same things Juana is with the addition of religious dogma. I wonder how happy anyone was who ever believed the same things.
 

Carlos, funny we both mentioned Andres. He seemed perpetually befuddled and his lines were a scream.

Isabel is just completely cool and cool can be sexy. Not to mention she comes across as ultra liberated because she really knows how to work the systems.
 

UrbanA, I propose, despite all Esperanza's religious appearances, deep down she doesn't believe it. If she did, she wouldn't lie about Mary like that, and then swear oaths to support her lies. Even Luis, who never says much about his faith, halted his wife from swearing that her vision was true, because he didn't want her to heap up more sins on her own head.

His actions show that he really believes there is a God, and one day she will have to face Him. Espy's actions show that she doesn't.
 

As twilight falls, I have finished planting some geraniums and petunias. I've enjoyed reading the comments. This novela is one of my guilty pleasures, but it felt more deliciously guilty at 10 pm than it does at 1.00 pm. At any rate, Luis has his hands full ...talk about juggling, Sylvia. He's trying to divorce his wacky wife of little brain while keeping an eye on primo who he knows is trying to have him killed . Meanwhile, he is preparing to cut his amante loose after some vocational training and figuring out how to win over Hip and why his mom doesn't love him. Que lastima. The guy has a lot on his plate. Despite the juggling, I like Luis's swagger...his born-to-the-manor attitude. He seems to turn his shoulders as he moves with singular purpose through a room. Large and in charge is becoming to FC. I'd love to see him work with Carla and Monica again. They seem to bring out the best in him.
 

I am definitely digging Luis' swagger! :)

Might be the best I've seen.

Audrey
 

I believe Esperanza has convinced herself that she has seen the Virgin, which is why she is delusional. She might require this delusion to get it on with Luis which she may really want to do but feels too guilty about without the authorization from the VdG... which is still a neurosis at the very least.

Freud and Jung could have worked on her for their entire careers.
 

Susanlynn, you are so right that Luis is the master juggler. At least he doesn't have to be constantly worried as do Juana and Modesta because his juggling balls are more on the up and up while theirs are more nefarious. They are continually worried about their "web of lies" as Paula so aptly named the recap. ITA that he is the best swaggering juggler ever, heh.

In addition to trying to divorce Esperanza he is also trying to protect her from herself. Talk about an impossible job. Someone mentioned she is like a child and that is how he treats her.

The sheriff in this episode is played by the same actor who played the mafioso Garduño in Llena de Amor. I recognized his voice immediately.
 

I'm having a character problem again.
How are Luis & Diego cousins?
Luis' real parents are the dead count & countess. Diego's madre is Juana & her deceased husband, who is also Isabel's brother. Are the deceased count & Juana's husband related?
 

Maybe Juana is sister to the deceased count?
 

Yes, Variopinta, Juana is the sister of the deceased count. Have you looked at the Characters & Plot Synopsis lately? I recently updated it, and it's a very helpful resource for untangling all the complicated relationships.
 

Tks Paula
 

Paula, your updated Characters and Plot Synopsis is excellent. I hadn't checked it out since the update. Thanks for all you do to help keep things straight for us.
 

Glad to hear it's useful. You may want to refresh the character list one more time; I just put the finishing touches on it.
 

Paula, I forgot to mention, you get extra bonus points for the accents and Spanish punctuation. Nicely done!!
 

Thanks, Tutz. Did you notice the new picture I added to the list? Sure, he ain't TBLMOE, but he ain't bad!
 

Absolutely. Susanlynn will be happy as she adores Marcos. I recall him being one of my favorite characters from Alborada. I love the brooding look, great shot!
 

Oooh, aaah, photo of Marcelo Cordoba (Marcos.) Thanks! Didn't know he was an orphan. Can he carry a lead someday in some huge novela or will he always be a pal or villain?

GinCA
 

In what episode was the fire mentioned as I seem to have missed it, somehow, There weren't any flashback scenes, right? Thanks

GinCA.
 

Hi Gin. I think the fire was mentioned in a few of the earlier episodes to set things up for us. In the Cap 5 Plot Developments Paula said "Juana tells Diego that Agustin (father of Espie and Hipo) knows the secret because of a scar from the fire." We clarified that the fire was during a celebration on a barge. Somehow the baby cousins were saved and Juana decided to switch them so her son Diego would grow up to be the privileged count instead of Luis, the rightful count. Baby Luis must have gotten burned and there is a scar on his leg. Augustin figured out the switch when he saw Luis's scar. I think I got it right, if anyone has anything else to add or correct please jump in.

No, there have been no flashback scenes.
 

Thanks, Sylvia. I guess I heard all that was said in the episode and read Paula's summary. Perhaps later we will hear about the barge and the switch in an episode in the future. Just curious where the info came from. Thanks. This novela is keeping my brain stimulated, for certain, in trying to keep everything straight. Thanks again.

GinCA
 

Yes, Marcelo Cordoba is one of my top three telenovios...the number one spot is held by TBLMOE and Marcelo and Big Ed Yanez are tied for second place. GinCA~~~Marcelo definitely seems like galan material to me , but he is usually cast in a supporting role as a good or bad guy. In Sortilegio, he was married but had a boyfriend. He was basically a good guy in that show . In Amar sin Limites, he played a bad guy. To be exact, he was a tialoving abuelokiller. [He was sleeping with his aunt and killed someone's grandfather.] I hated that role and that show. In Pasion, he was a servant and a good guy. I love his role in Alborada. He is a friend and defender to all , but he is especially loyal and devoted to Felipe, whom he considers his father, and Luis. His devotion to Luis lets you know that the bond between them is stronger than a boss/worker connection. If Felipe is like a father to Luis, than Marcos is like a younger brother.
 

GinCA, I don't know the specifics. One great thing about Alborada is that they don't pound the key points into your head with a sledge hammer. In a typical novela, Diego would say, at least every other episode, "Oh, no! What will we do if Luis finds out that you're really my mother and you switched the babies at the baptism party on the boat, after the fire that killed his parents and a bunch of other people? Augustine is the only one who knows, so we need to keep him quiet, or we both go to the gallows!"

In Alborada, at one point Juana might say, "Agustin saw your cousin get injured because he was on the boat." Another day Isabel will say, "I missed the baptism because I was still in Peru." Luis might say, Diego became the count when his parents died in the fire." Another day, Juana will say, "We can't let Luis divorce Esperanza. Ever since he saw Luis's scar, I've had to keep him pacified." I'm inventing these sentences, but what I'm saying is that the core of the plot has only been revealed in little pieces, never all at once.
 

Thanks, Paula, for the help. I guess I'll have to keep focused on the dialogue. This has been the hardest novela for me to watch, listen and keep track of the usually lagging CC's. Of course, the best tns move fast and the lousy ones seem to repeat everything forever.... ha ha. I went out to lunch so thanks for the links so I can catch up.

GinCA
 

Where did Hipólita get the medallion & how did Luis get it?

I watch this every day & don't know how I miss so much.
 

Variopinta--
I don't know how Hipo originally got the medallion, but it was hers--her possession. It could have been given to her grandmother when she left for Panama, or sent along with Hipo when she was shipped off to live with her granma in Panama.

When Hipo was running out of money in Mexico, trying to return to her mother's family, she gave it to Martin to try to sell to someone at the inn where they were staying. Luis bought it, knowing it was Hipolita's and gave Martin more money than it was worth--and cautioned him not to say it was he, but some senor who was already gone.

Luis has been trying to find out who designed it/made it in order to discover more of Hipo's background.
DN
 

Oh right Dona Nube, I forgot, tks
 

This is just the best novela in a very long time. I've seen FC in 5 other shows, and he is burnin' HOT in this one!
He is made for novelas de epoca.

I also like Lucero much better here than in STuD or MEPS.
Ditto for Valentino Lanus & his other roles. What is the deal with his hair? Always messy on top - is that a hairpiece? (I am sooo slow about fake hair - for several years I marveled at the long hair of novela actresses...then realized....oh, those are extensions!).

The show moves so quickly that I feel like I'm seeing an abridged version. I wish there were more scenes between Luis and Hipolita.
Or just more scenes with Luis only...I so admire his acting.;)

Enjoying everyone's comments here.
Thanks, Paula, for getting this going.
 

Anya~~~I have good news for you. As the novela moves along, Luis and Hip have more scenes together , and we see more and more of Luis. After all, these two are the leads, and viewerville wants to see them together. Trust me...Alborada just gets better and better and better.....
 

Sorry for the double post. I don't know how I did that. P.S. Has anyone seen Mariana Carr in anything lately ?
 

Not lately, that I know of, but she was in Pasión.
 

Variopinta, the origin of the medallion was mentioned only once, as far as I know (yet another example of Albo. being stingy with clues). Hipo and Asunción were talking. Hipo asked about the medallion. Asunción said Augustín gave it to her, but when he dumped her like moldy bread, the medallion was simply a reminder of him and the pain he caused, so she wanted to be rid of it. So she sent it with Hipo to Panama.

Luis and Isabel have been wracking their brains, trying to figure out who Hipo's father is. If they find out Hipo had jewelry commissioned by Augustín, they just might put it together.

BTW, Isabel already figured out that Hipo’s father, whoever he is, must be holding something over Juana, so she protects him. Isabel also figured out that Agustin must be holding something over Juana, so he controls her. She's almost figured it out. The medallion should clinch it.
 

Not lately, that I know of, but she was in Pasión.
While searching for her, I just happened to find this. I had to laugh, because she says caray, caray in Alborada

http://caraycaray.blogspot.com/2008/02/mariana-karrs-restaurant-caray-caray-in.html
 

This is the most I can find on Mariana Karr

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0440078/bio
 

Cheryl went to Mariana's restaurant in Mexico , and I think that she met her.
 

Mariana Karr I've seen most recently on Univision in Zacatillo, which is on at 3pm everyday. I've seen her in it a few times, seems to be a small role and she looks to be wearing a curly wig that looks awful.

Lesa
 

Some photos of Mariana Karr

http://s655.photobucket.com/albums/uu271/telenovelasfans5/Mariana%20Karr/