Caray, Caray!

Bajo. Absolutely right on about Bajo, NovelaMaven! The only other telenovela I have seen that took up such important issues (and there may be more) was Para volver a amar, a Televisa/Univisión novela from a few years back that won a lot of awards, but apparently wasn't that much watched. Despite its use of some telenovela clichés as well, it was a serious survey of the status of women in early 21st-century--i.e., contemporary--Mexico.
 

Bajo

SpanProf, I'd argue that it goes beyond taking on important issues. What's most striking to me is the point of view or perspective of the story. It is a normally voiceless constituency for once getting to tell the tale.

Actually, now that you mention it, Para volver a amar (and the wonderful Colombian novela on which it was based, El Último matrimonio feliz) also shifted the usual perspective, telling the story through the eyes of the women.
 

Bajo. Yep, exactly! And with regard to Bajo, that perspective is that of the parents of some of my students, and in a few cases, of the student him or herself. In my advanced conversation class, there's a unit on immigration and I have each student give a presentation on what he or she knows about their immigrant ancestors. In addition to stories about how the Chicago Fire of 1871 brought one student's Irish immigrant ancestors together (they met very cute, evidently), and others of that ilk, there were some harrowing stories of coming to the U.S. by paying coyotes, hiking through the desert and then experiencing difficulties once they arrived.
 

Bajo. Not to mix in politics too much :), but the Reagan amnesty was a godsend for a lot of latino families.

 

Bajo

Yes, true. (And since you are talking about the very gist of this particular show, I see nothing amiss in your comment.)

It's interesting that it's precisely Telemundo stepping up this way. If there is such a thing as a typical T-mundo novela, it's one in which the characters are beautiful people from Nowhere who just happen to speak Spanish in Miami, Chicago or Miami, Las Vegas or Miami, New York or... (Well, then there are also the gory narconovelas, the money-in-the-bank ones, I guess.)
 

Bajo. Thanks, NovelMaven! I was surprised as well, and very pleasantly so. I must admit that the main reason I was watching Telemundo telenovelas is that they're offered at 8PM, repeated at 11PM and then easily available online the very next day--which gives the viewer a lot of flexibility. Btw, I have a male colleague who was absolutely addicted to the Kate del Castillo Telemundo tn about a female narcotraficante.
 

General

SpanProf, you mean La reina del sur, right? We were all blown away by that one. It set a standard that so far no other novela has even approached. There were several reasons for that: it was an exciting and moving story based on a very good book by Arturo Pérez-Reverte and the adaptation was superb; it had a relatively huge budget; it had a remarkable international cast (including Kate, who gave what may have been the performance of a lifetime); and it had several breath-taking locations. I actually bought the thing on DVD when it came out and gave a set to my Mexican son-in-law.

At the moment, I see that Netflix has the series available for streaming.
 

BAJO

NovelaMaven, I'm glad you called attention to the perspective of the undocumented Mexican immigrant. I too think that's one of the things that gives the telenovela its power. I felt that especially strongly tonight, especially in the visceral terror Carlos felt as he handed his newly purchased illegal identification to the prison guard, who seemed at first to recognize it as fraudulent.
 

General

NovelaMaven, I loved your remarks about La Reina del Sur. I too was blown away by that telenovela. I have a friend who so far hasn't felt this enthusiasm. She asked me recently "When did you start to be gripped by the novela?" I responded, quite honestly, "at the very first minute." I've now copied your remarks and sent them to her.
 

I agree 100% about La Reina del Sur. I can't understand why one wouldn't be grabbed by that amazing first episode when we see Teresa preparing her bath, awaiting her lover's arrival and...that fatal phone rings, and she hears El Güero's voice (in her mind) telling her that if it rings she has to flee.
 

BAJO

I’m struggling with the Adela/Mati thing. I keep typing her name as Adela, but everyone in the novela calls her Mati, so maybe I’ll think about doing that. Anyway, she tells Carlos that La Colonia killed her brother.

Luis and Nick follow Susy to the beach. He temporarily steals some expensive running shoes and sunglasses and approaches her, asking her to watch his shoes. He says he lives in Beverly Hills.

Rodrigo gets a supposed love letter from a woman but it has a secret message with the money he has on the outside (presumably from his prison drug deals).

Felicia tells Maria that it was Mati who beat her up. She also tells Maria that, even though Rodolfo is her cousin, Maria should not let him get away with his secretive phone calls.

Carlos takes Adela to church and they light respective candles for her brother and for God’s help in Carlos finding his son. Whoops! They kiss in the church. Father Domingo reproves Carlos after seeing the kiss because he knows Felicia is expecting to marry him.

El Faier tells Jay on the phone that he has to wrap the pills so that Greicy cannot see what she’s bringing in.

Adela tells Carlos about El Faier, that he’s a honcho with the La Colonia gang and that he might know something about Rodrigo’s whereabouts. Carlos then buys a fake green card for $100 as ID to get into the prison. He agonizes about doing this because he’s never even run a red light since arriving in the US.

After the visit to the beach we discover that Luis’ friend Nick is undocumented, brought as a toddler to the US. He can’t understand why Luis, born in the US, isn’t more serious about school.

Adela tells Luis that she was in the gang but isn’t any longer. She also says she’s moving to the Sanders tomorrow to work and, presumably, live there.

Maria confronts her husband about his secret phone calls. He tries to say he’s arranging gigs for the band, but she also says there’s been no sex for weeks, and he must be getting it somewhere!

Carlos stops at the restaurant to repay his sister 20% of the money he borrowed. Feli makes a crack about giving a round for the table for the person who can describe the difference between a lady and una lagartona trepadora (social climbing bitch). Maria insists Carlos go talk to Feli, and he tells her he’s sorry, but he can’t give her what she wants of him.

Willy and Sharon show up while Carlos is gone. Sharon drags Luis off to his bedroom to distract him. Willy tries to threaten Adela, but she knees him in the jewels, twists his arm behind his back, immobilizing him, and pulls his hair. Luis rushes out and Adela tells him that Willy threatened her. Luis says he’s a rat, but not in a gang.

Greicy gets the drugs from Jay, but it looks like her bag is being searched on the way in, even though she tried not being the third person after the last one searched.

Carlos presents his fake green card and sweats bullets while the guard goes away to check something, but all is well there. He has asked for El Faier. Rodrigo comes to the visiting room. Their eyes meet. Rodrigo: “Papá?”
 

Bajo. And dang! They had to close the episode right after Rodrigo said "Papa?".
 

Bajo

thanks novelera, there were no captions for me tonight, and you are so good at spotting the little details, thank you so much!

but I must say without stumbling through the captions I was more able to watch the characters, loved that thing Adela did when Willy does his big man introduction, she turned away and flicked her finger off her shoulder at him, her mannerisms speak as loud as her words.

then loved it when Adela head butted him, kicked him in the nether regions, grabbed his hair and arm, and walked him to the door,,, but when Willy called it in, what did Felicia then tell him to do?

yes, I guess with the whole world looking for a girl named Adela, she's going with the Mati thing.

and I couldn't figure out what Felicia's question was, una lagartona trepadora ?? you say, that would be Sharon right? (Willy's sister), do I get a free round.

the character description mentioned that Sharon is a neighbor, so that explains better why she is hanging around Luis.

Luis always seems like he is on the edge of the dark side, but then he comes back, like giving that guy back his shoes.

 

BAJO
Thank you, Novelera ! I won't have the time to watch until later so your recap really helped me get the main ideea of what has happened.
Carlos and Rodrigo meet already ? Yey ! The story is moving fast, I wonder what will be next. Adela moving in with the Sanders.... Hmmm,this has to spell trouble one way or another.
Deb, good point about Luis always being on the edge of the dark side. I thought he would cave when Carlos lost the truck and things looked rather bad for them but he really is a good kid, trying to do what's right. His friend who doesn't have papers - can illegals go to school ? This is one of the reasons I find this story so interesting, I get to learn so many new things about US immigration. I'm an immigrant myself here in Europe and although I've never been an illegal one I still had to struggle with a million things while trying to settle in.

Btw, I'm Adriana Noel
 

Bajo
Tks Novelera

How did Carlos find out Rod was in la carcel & that he is El Faier?
I did catch that Mati said "El Faier is Carlos' son" but don't know how that came about.
Very good scene with Carlos worried about his id at the prison.

Agree about "La reina del sur". Kate del Castillo was fantastic in it. I even read the book afterwards.


 

BAJO

Many thanks, Novelera, for your very helpful recap. Unlike deb, I did have Spanish captions last night, but I find that many of the characters speak so fast that the captions go by before I can process them. Hence, I'm especially grateful to you for providing so many details that I missed.

I knew that Carlos gave his sister back some of the money he had borrowed from her, but I had no idea it was 20%? How did he manage to put together that much money so quickly?

When Willy and Mati were fighting, I expected to see Mati find the pistol he had put in the back part of his pants waistband. I was surprised that that didn't happen. True, he put the pistol there when he was casing the house by himself, but why would he have removed it when he went back with Sharon? If he didn't remove it, it's hard to imagine that Mati wouldn't have seen it as she was struggling with him.

Deb, it's true that most people are looking for "Adela," and so on the whole Mati is wise to stick with "Mati," but I think Felicia told Willy to get rid of Mati. Fortunately, I don't think Mati ever told Willy her name, even though he asked.

I can't wait to see what sort of response El Faier gives to Carlos. It seems a bit soon in the novela for El Faier to receive him warmly. I also wonder whether the inspection of Greicy's pocketbook will reveal what she's been up to.
 

Bajo. Variopinta: Adela knew that one of the highest ranking members of La Colonia gang was El Faier and that he was in that LA area prison. She didn't know he was Rodrigo, but as such a high-ranking person, she thought he would know either where Rodrigo was or what had happened to him. Now this is going to be a real test for Rodrigo if he finds out that the woman he is trying to have killed is also the woman his father loves. Family or have someone who really wasn't even responsible for Noemí's death murdered? And btw, we learned the limits of Felicia's charity in her conversation with Padre Domingo. Ok to contribute to an orphanage, but nothing for rehabbing former gang members. Though I thought she had a point when she reprimanded Carlos that if he wasn't interested in a permanent relationship, he shouldn't have kept going with her, that attitude toward charity is one more reason why she's really not good enough for him.
 

Bajo. And did Padre Domingo LIE to Felicia about what acquaintances of hers he had just talked to at the church? tsk tsk.
 

Bajo. La lagarta trepidora would be Adela, I think. Yes, the undocumented can go to school, It can be a lot more difficult for them to get financial aid for college, though, although there are some "Dreamer" scholarships out there. From what I have seen, they work part time, while attending a community college, then go to the cheapest state university they can commute to, also while working part time. At least one of my students graduated, though undocumented, and then became a Dreamer activist. Another of our majors (whom I didn't know) graduated with honors and wanted to go to law school, but would not have been allowed to take the bar exam as a non-citizen. At the time one of the advisers advised her to try to get into the military and to see if she could get citizenship that way, though I'm not sure that would have been possible. In California now, I believe, you can take the bar exam and be licensed to practice even without documents.
 

AVENIDA BRASIL

I'm just back from a long weekend away...need to catch up, but will post thoughts as I have them :)

~ Wee Rita
 

Bajo
Tks SpanProf
So Carlos didn't know when he went to the prison that El Faier was his son?
 

Bajo. You're welcome, Variopinta! Nope, he didn't. And imagine what a dramatic scene that's going to be tonight!
 

Bajo

Loved the recap, Novelera. Thanks so much. I'm almost always a day or two behind on this show so I don't like to look at comments or recaps until I've caught up.

Being the shallow person that I am, I loved seeing Willy's hair all pouffed out after Adela messed up his stupid little ponytail.

I think Luis never intended to steal the shoes and shades at the beach. He told Nick he was just going to "borrow" them. Even though Susy could tell he was a fake, she seemed to think he was kind of cute.

Felicia must be a very good actress because she is starting to look ugly to me. :D

Like SpanProf, I'm quite anxious to see how the Rodrigo-Carlos scene plays out tonight.
 

Bajo. Second what you say about Novelera's recap, NovelaMaven. I always find things I've missed in her recaps. Luis not only didn't intend to steal the shoes and shades, but he gets to look like the good guy when he "finds" them and returns them to their rightful owner.
 

AVENIDA BRASIL
Wee Rita--Enjoy the show! I'm getting a kick out of no one believing Carminha and then just with a look and a raised eyebrow from Rita, she has to contradict herself.
 

Bajo. I hope that the main conflict for the entire rest of the novela isn't that Rodrigo is a seemingly insurmountable barrier between Carlos and Adela. Things have been so interesting up to now! Also, I'm suspecting that things are going to end badly for Willy! It can't be good that he's trying to find out Laura's address. Jay killing Casper--did Rodrigo really directly order that? Awful. And if he's going to bump off a pandillero a day, I say the members turning on each other.
 

Bajo. And another great scene of Adela making a La Colonia gang member eat his lunch, so to speak.
 

Bajo. And how long before the other gang members figure out that if Jay is going to be killing one of them a day until they find and kill Adela, the best way to handle it is not to find Adela but to kill Jay? Then they can stop obeying El Faier and El Colmillo (after all, they're in prison) and form some kind of gang coop to import and sell drugs and keep more of the profits for themselves. Btw, Rodrigo is only supposed to be 24--he was only 14 when he joined the gang. In that case, the Carlos character could be as young as 44 or 45.
 

Bajo

"In that case, the Carlos character could be as young as 44 or 45."

Or even younger, SpanProf, since Teresa's tombstone shows she was born in 1975 (and died in 2005).

So el Faier took his name from the fireworks on that 4th of July when the family crossed the border and it's a tribute to his mother because he associates her with those fireworks. Well. Quite a mixture of love, grief and disappointed dreams in that nickname.
 

Bajo

ah, no captions again.

I'm loving Adela more everyday,

this show brings to mind an episode of Seinfeld, where the topic was "when worlds collide", but I'm thinking Father Carlos, being who he is, will take on the mission to make this all work, not possible do we all say.

poor Laura with her bandaged hand, so Felicia now knows that Mati is the name of a guy. Having a brother that's a cop makes her even more dangerous, I hope he likes Carlos.


 

Bajo

and Jay/Yei now knows Adela's new look.

 

Yes, deb, "when worlds collide"!

Yup, Adela's cover, such as it is, is blown both with La Colonia and with La Felicia.

As for Rodrigo/el Faier -- for all his aggressive posturing, he knows very well that he's in a bad place, one he doesn't want his baby brother exposed to. I suspect a good part of his apparent hostility to Carlos includes a desire to protect him too (not to mention a desire to protect himself from Carlos's judgment: the strategy is to portray yourself in the worst possible light before anyone else can do so.)
 

Bajo

so nice that you are commenting on this one NovelaMaven !!!

say, the merc wasn't in Greicy's purse, so she can pretty much walk anything into the prison on her body that will pass through the metal detector. (the best thing that could have happened to her would have been to get caught)

 

Bajo

Thanks, deb. It's good to be home. :-)
 

Bajo

Ah!

Mercedes Molto (Deborah Sanders) was 'Mademoiselle' - the governess, in "Pasión Prohibida".

 

Hello to One and All, especially to NovelaMaven whom I recall with great fondness from your keen insight and precis writing in our Univision chats. The last novela I watched over there was Quiero Amarte. I really liked the older actors, Diana Bracho, aunt of Julio, José Elías Moreno, and Otto Sirgo, and of course, the young and handsome,Cristian de la Fuente. And, I loved the theme song written by Armando Manzanero, mentor and friend to my idol José José.

But after that, I decided that I was giving up on traditional novelas. I am tired of the formla. I want to watch something more realistic. By accident, I found this novela on the first day it aired as I was surfing in the afternoon. I decided that I would record to watch at night and then learned that it is also broadcast at night. The time doesn't matter. I record everything I care about.

Anyway, I am thrilled with it. I am super busy now and will not comment much, but I want you to know that I appreciate all of you for helping me understand what is going on. I don't use captions. With the Univision novelas, I understand almost everything. This one is much more difficult. I suppose that it is intended that way to mimic the style of the street talk with the gangs. The higher in status, the easier it is to understand the characters.

Generally, I find Mexicans and Guatemalans who work here in a variety of jobs very easy to understand. Adela doesn't sound Mexican to me. Are they giving her a street dialect? To me it sounds like a mixture of countries, possibly Mexico and Cuba. I have more difficulty understanding many, not all, Cubans, depending on how fast they talk of course.

I am delighted to be watching this with all of you. Thank you for your devotion to the cause. All the best......
 

El Senor

Yep! An El Senor comment. (I wanted to watch Bajo but am watching No Creo en los Hombres and couldn't justify yet another show, darn it). But I came here to say THANK YOU MONICA! Finally. Someone calls Dona Alba out on her high-faluting moralizing, all the while knowing that her sons are drug-dealing, rapist murderers. She may have been born into the life, but she doesn't get to act above it all while living off the gains and constantly defending Aurelio. He may be her son, but come on. (I've been annoyed by her for a couple seasons now, can you tell?) So big thanks to Monica for calling her on her hypocrisy. Now I just Monica survives all this.

Kelly
 

Just checked on "Adela's" real nationality. She was born in Ecuador of Columbian parents. I have a good friend from Ecuador whom I understand perfectly.
Obviously, she is talking "street talk." In this novela, is she of Mexican origin?

Many thanks..
 

Bajo

Floridia,

What a nice surprise to see you commenting here! I hope you stop by from time to time – your voice is always welcome. (Didn't we have a conversation about osea, o sea last time we chatted? :D)

Yes, Adela is supposed to be Mexican-American. She was born in Mexico but came to this country as a child.
 

Bajo

Floridia- the cast description says,

Adela,
a young Mexican who came to the United States as a child, accompanied by her mother, older brother and grandmother, her mother is an alcoholic and promiscuous woman, her grandmother was the one who took care of her, but when the old lady died, Adela was a teenager and went adrift and together with her brother Matias, she joined the gang, where she found acceptance and the family that her mother always denied her.

 

Bajo
Great comments, all! And, welcome, Floridia. I believe I’ve seen you comment occasionally on a Telemundo novela. I completely gave up on Univisión long ago. The novelas are too long and have too many remakes. I heard it was decent, but remaking Amor Real should have been a felony, with the perpetrators sent up the river for 10 years.

Yep, there’s always a reason why the male and female protagonist can’t be together for a very long time. This time it’s El Faier. I really don’t like him at all. So he blames his father for his mother getting cancer? What? I guess, if we could sit him down and get him to explain it, it would be that his father remained a humble gardener and perhaps his mother didn’t get the very best medical care. That hasn’t been made explicit. But I could have slapped him when he told Carlos not to even mention his mother’s name.

I never read the cast descriptions they put out because they often tell too much about what’s going to happen. So, I guess Adela is also undocumented. I don’t remember their saying either way in the actual scripts. So I was thinking it wouldn’t be so easy for Deborah to cheat Adela. It might have been mentioned once before, but it was emphasized last night. None of the staff are ever to talk with Jacob about their salaries. Deb, yes, I remember the Deborah actor has Mademoiselle in Pasión Prohibida. I bailed on that one about half way.

Interesting theory, NovelaMaven, about Rodrigo consciously or subconsciously driving his father away to protect him. I still don’t like him and don’t really want any redemption and happy ending for him at all.

That scene of shooting the guy who didn’t kill Adela was awful. He wasn’t a good guy, but he showed some signs of humanity when Adela was raging at him. Of course, he’s already shot, maybe dead, as they weren’t specific, but why doesn’t she tell him she did NOT keep those drugs, and that it was Noemi.

SpanProf, I get the feeling that the extreme loyalty, not to mention the fatalism, instilled in those gang members would preclude a rebellion, even with the threat about each one who sights Adela and doesn’t kill her being killed himself. Did Rodrigo actually order that to be done, or was Jay improvising? It was via a cell phone call, in any case.
 

Bajo. Thanks, Novelera. I wasn't exactly clear about whether that threat of killing a person a day or whatever if they don't spot and kill Adela was really from Rodrigo or not. It may even be an idle threat on Jay's part, as it goes so far too far that maybe the coop arrangement that I suggested facetiously might not be possible, but I think it would threaten Jay's continued leadership. I agree that gangs don't seem to be good candidates for either representative or grass-roots democracy.:) Rodrigo might be a candidate for redemption followed by immediate death.
 

BAJO

Hmmm...looks like I'm one of the few people rooting for Rodrigo. I guess I'm a sucker for a pretty face :-). At any rate, I think Yei's shooting Caspar was Yei's idea, not Rodrigo's. So too was Yei's claim that Rodrigo said that for every day that Adela remains at large, another person will die.

So if I'm willing to give Rodrigo a pass, who am I hoping will meet a painful death? Yei, for sure. I'd be happy to pull the trigger myself. I'm also pretty unhappy with Felicia and Deborah (the wife of Señor Jacob), though I'd be content simply to see them miserable at the end but not dead. [It's a good thing the CarayCaray captcha simply asks me to prove I'm not a robot, not to prove that I'm not vindictive. :-) ]
 

Bajo. Thanks, Juanita! Excellent observations on Yei/Jay. I think for total redemption on Rodrigo + living happily out of the gang and with Greicy, they may have to do a bit more to soften his misdeeds--like trying to show that the people he ordered to be killed didn't really die, or he didn't really order their death (Matías, for example), they more than had it coming even under actual laws, all he's really guilty of is smuggling, etc. :) But as I've said before, anything is possible in telenovelaland, even in one set in a more realistic environment, like this one.
 

BAJO

NM, there were many fascinating conversations; I had forgotten about o sea
but I am intrigued by the expression.

How would you all describe Adela's dialect?

I am absolutely rooting for Rodrigo for the sake of Carlos.

I don't like death as a punishment. Life in prison is fine as long as the villains
don't have tunnel builders to bale them out.


Enjoy the comments....
Thanks
 

Bajo
The only redemption I see for Rod is to sacrifice his life for someone, he is too far gone for the world of the uncorrupted.
 

Bajo

I agree, Variopinta. Rodrigo flat out ordered Jay to kill Adela after El Colmillo told him to do it. So no credit to him that she's still alive. She's still alive because she's the protagonist. And he did kill that other prisoner, who died after the beat-down.
 

BAJO

My guess is that Rodrigo will do something to save Adela, thereby earning many points toward telenovela redemption. Also, wasn't the prisoner Rodrigo killed one of those who were going to assault Greicy?
 

Bajo

ok, I got to watch some of the show online with captions, a couple of late comments.

so Rodrigo and Carlos haven't seen each other in 10 years, and when Carlos asked why he was in jail did Rodrigo say, it was his decision, was it to get closer to Colmillo, who's locked away doing life, and he said he liked the power, the prison was his palace.

and Rodrigo said the Colonia's were forbidden to speak his name, el Faier, to outsiders, and asks Carlos where he heard it?

and later Carlos asked mister Jacob for an advance in his pay, so he could get a lawyer for Rodrigo.

and I guess the warden didn't look at his ID, just assumed his last name was Martinez, like Rodrigo.

loved Maria's squeal when she heard the news.

and Laura stopped Adela from telling her where she was.

 

BAJO

A joyful Carlos is trying to tell Mati that she helped him find his son Rodrigo, who is known as El Faier. She obviously knows this is it for their relationship and nearly faints from the shock.

Felicia gets her brother the cop to give her Laura’s address based on the calls Mati made to her mother while she had possession of the cell. Obsessed much?

Carlos offers to do extra work for Jacob to pay off the loan he means to use to get Rodrigo out of jail. Jacob mentions there is a plumbing job in the kitchen after at first trying to convince Carlos he doesn’t need to repay so quickly.

In the servant bedroom she shares with Ramona Mati pulls out the gun she took from Casper and swears vengeance on El Faier. [I’m going to give up on the phonetic thing and just call him Fire.]

Carlos is in denial. He comes to Mati’s room at the mansion and swears that his son Rodrigo could not have been responsible for what happened to her.

At school Sharon overhears Luis and Nick discussing Luis’ feelings for Susy and turns 100% chola on him.

I’m sorry. I think they’re overdoing it with Deborah. She is over the top nasty with Carlos. She tells Mati she has to use a set of servant’s dishes. She’s completely sadistic and grins like a shark when she gets her way; i.e., Mati agrees to clean the kitchen twice if Carlos makes a mess repairing the dishwasher.

As part of her campaign, Feli lends her car to Luis.

Rodrigo has a flashback to when his mother told him she was too weak to carry Luis to the bedroom. He blames how sick she is on his father. She tells him that she was the one who kept it from Carlos when she realized she was ill. She apparently didn’t want him to work even more to pay for her care.

Rod is in a black rage after his father’s visit. First he beats on a punching bag, and then he has some real cold sex with Greicy, who is hurt by the lack of tenderness.

The old servant, Ramona is kind of a pain. She rags on Mati, tells Deborah that Mati is dangerous, and rudely tells Mati to put out the lights in their shared room. We see a scene where she is so frightened Mati will take her job. Of course, that’s Deborah’s plan and Ramona must sense it.

Deborah is all dolled up for a party with the Governor. Mati asks for her pay, and is coldly told that she won’t be paid until the end of the month and $5 per hour, less what she’s docking her for showing up late the first day. Shocked, Mati reminds her of the minimum page of $8, only to be told that she could get someone legal from an agency for that. Basically, take it or leave it. Carlos hasn’t gone for the day and overhears. He offers to tell Jacob what’s going on, but Mati pushes him away.

Mati goes into Jacob’s office and steals part of the money she saw him put in a filing cabinet earlier. I note that she doesn’t take it all. She leaves him a note of apology and begs him not to blame Carlos.

Luis shows up at the mansion and overhears a conversation between the Horrible Boyfriend Brian and Susy. She’s mad at him for not apologizing to her father for his behavior at the pool party. He breaks up with her. When Luis approaches her, coming out of the bushes, she thinks he’s there to mug her. Eventually Luis accuses Susy of being shallow like her friends and walks off.

Mati meets Laura at the bus station. After she tells her mother that she loves Carlos, Laura is pretty unsympathetic. Her basic life philosophy is that neither she nor Mati should expect anything ever. She gives Mati her cell so she can contact her later. Mati gets a ticket to San Diego because she can’t get one to Tijuana. [I thought she was stealing enough money for both of them to leave LA, so I don’t understand why that didn’t happen.]

Mati calls Carlos to tell him goodbye forever.
 

Bajo. Carlos's wife not telling him about her cancer may not just be because she doesn't want to worry him or keep him from his work. As we also saw in Para volver a amar and as I have seen in volunteering with the American Cancer Society, cancer among some latinos is seen as both shameful and hopeless. There's a lot of denial. In other words, attitudes are more or less where they were among anglos 50 or 60 years ago, and it took not only a lot of medical advances but lots of educational activities, public service announcements, etc., on the part of the Cancer Society, breast cancer organizations and others to change US attitudes. Back to the main plot: I'm getting the feeling that Mr. Jacob will somehow save both Carlos and Mati, and maybe a few others too. He is very good and in his magazine has a bully pulpit. I'm with Variopinta that Rodrigo may sacrifice his life for someone.
 

Bajo. I agree about Deborah. She's kind of like one of those caricatures of a nasty society lady from 1930s movies, and is so mean that it's a little hard to see how Jacob could have married her.
 

Bajo, miércoles

Novelera, thanks so much for the fine recap! Both pithy and pissy – you have quite a knack! I especially liked:

"Obsessed much?"

"turns 100% chola on him"

Yup, Deborah is cartoonish (I see her as more a creature of Walt Disney than of Frank Capra), but then so are Felicia and María and Willy and ... just about everyone but the central characters. I can live with that.

Rodrigo is Lucifer, the fallen angel. Like SpanProf, I agree with Vario about his likely ultimate fate. He is doomed but his inherent "nobility" will emerge before he dies. At the end, even Adela will be weeping at his grave.

SpanProf, excellent comment about attitudes toward cancer in the hispanic community.

So the story is just barreling along! Yes!
 

Bajo

Juanita,

" [It's a good thing the CarayCaray captcha simply asks me to prove I'm not a robot, not to prove that I'm not vindictive. :-) ]"

HAHAHAHAHA! No kidding! If Captcha were screening for 'vindictive,' not many of us would make the cut!

Floridia,

"How would you all describe Adela's dialect?"

Fascinating question. I was listening hard last night and this is what I think*: she is using the same basic "neutral" Spanish that we've heard from the actress in other recent roles, but she is going for a bit of the sing-song Chilango rhythms of Mexico City. (The rhythm goes well with her nervous bopping body language. She's only still when she's asleep.) The writers obligingly sprinkle her dialogue with some street Spanish and Spanglish, of course.

The actress is naturally a 'fast talker.' That fits her role very well, but it may make her dialogue a little harder to understand. Me, I'm using Spanish captions because I HATE missing stuff.

*Pure speculation and more than likely, all wrong. :D
 

Bajo. NovelaMaven, Thank you! I totally agree about Novelera's recap. In fact, the story is barreling along so fast that I wonder how long this telenovela is going to be! And since I really am a Spanish professor (though my specialty is not linguistics), I must say your evaluation of Adela's speech seems absolutely right on and is one more sign of the excellence of the actress who plays her, who, as others have noted, is not Mexican or chicana but catches some of the speech patterns of both very well.
 

Bajo. Great story on cnn online today about an undocumented teen-age drug trafficker, btw.
 

Bajo. And about how no matter how young a child is when he joins a gang, the gang considers him a member for life. It can be very dangerous to try to leave one.
 

First of all, thanks Novelera for the detailed summary. I appreciate it.

NovelaMaven,

Excellent description of Adela's "bopping body language" and the accent she's using.
I do not know the actress, but in general I think these novela actors rival American TV and movie stars any day. They work hard, and they work often.

SpanProf, what age group or level do you teach? Excellent comment on the cancer issue; how true! There was a shroud of secrecy around it years ago and for some, there is still one today.

I like to train my ear without the captions, but it is true I miss stuff; yet with time, I will become more acclimated and understand better.

Back to the prison visit, please correct me if I am wrong.

I thought I heard that Rodrigo went to prison because of an assault.
Does anyone know how long he has been incarcerated?

Did the warden ask Carlos to convince Rodrigo to act as an informant in exchange for leniency? That's what I heard.


Re: Susy, I am very disappointed in her for continuing on with that "thug"
in light of his actions toward the maid, his attitude in general, and her father's
insistence that she not see him anymore. She seemed disappointed that he was
breaking up with her when it should have been the other way around.

I also thought that the point of Luis' visit--aside from looking at Susy--was to
tell her that he is not a thief as her friends may have thought...not sure on this.


Enjoyed the recap and all comments. Thanks to all....
 

Bajo. Floridia: Thanks! Yes, thank God for Betty Ford! I teach at the college level--mostly 3rd and 4th year, though we offer a small MA program, and I usually teach at least one combined 400-500 level class a year. I'm not sure anyone has said how long Carlos has been in jail, and yes, the prison warden does want Carlos to get Rodrigo to become an informant. Fat chance! And she seems not even to realize that he's a gang leader!
 

Hello everyone,

I look forward to Bajo el mismo cielo episodes. The story is going at a quick pace which is refreshing for a novela. Luis' encounter with Susy was strange. I wondered how she would react, he comes to her house uninvited and hides in the bushes. I am not surprised she thought he was a thief. Also, Rodrigo and greicy aka Faicy scenes were short but alarming. Rodrigo is a deeply troubled person since 14 years old and Greicy does not know what she had gotten herself into. She herself said it best; during their first time he was affectionate and warm, yet on that occasion he was cold and it felt like he was a different person. As others have speculated, he still cares very much for "the colonia." Something needs to happen that will disillusion his ideal vision of the gang. He has had it good in jail because he does everything "el colmillo" says. What would happen if "el faier" starts to questions the orders he is given.
 

Bajo. It has occurred to me that the mention of Padre Domingo's program for ex-gang members could offer Rodrigo an out, though I doubt that he would take it. I know there are anti-gang and community organizations in Chicago led by ex-members of gangs.
 

Bajo
Marvybaby11, welcome! I’m happy to see this novela is attracting some newbies. SpanProf, that was something I hadn’t thought of, that Carlos’ wife might be ashamed of her illness. But she did tell Rod that she was worried about los gastos.

I had expected Luis to continue his rich-boy charade by pretending Felicia’s car was his own. But it seems he just wanted the transportation to get there.

Yes, Floridia, it was stated, can’t remember by whom, that Fire went to prison for assault. But he also said he purposely got arrested to get power (was that said to Greicy? Or to his father?). I have read that you don’t have any “street cred” in the gang culture if you haven’t been in prison. The sub-text of Fire’s statement was that he never would have been caught if he hadn’t arranged it, that he’s way too smart.

Something about recaps. In the past I have done lengthy, time consuming ones, often twice a week for En Otra Piel, Dueños del Paraíso, Marido en Alquiler and Corazón Valiente. We’ve never had the number of contributors that are on the Univisión part of the blog, so full daily recaps just aren’t in the cards. I’ve always only done them for novelas that I like and always right after the show since doing them the next day California time results in not many people seeing them and few comments. What I’ve been doing lately is putting one up when I have the time. My “forever” Advanced Spanish class never meets in the summer, so I have extra time there. Also, I’m not writing long ones describing everything that happens. Right now this works for me, but I don’t want to commit to a regular night.
 

Bajo. Your recaps are great, Novelera, and much welcomed when you do them! One of the things I like about the Telemundo site is, recaps or no recaps, people do chat and ask questions about what happened in the previous night's episode, and contribute insights about the meaning of what just happened. And Bajo el mismo cielo seems to spark a lot more commentary than Tierra de reyes ever did.
 

BAJO

Many thanks, novelera, for another terrific recap. Frankly, I prefer recaps like yours to the epic sagas people at times contribute for the Univision novelas. You cover the important points succinctly and with a good deal of wit, and your recaps don't require me to set aside almost as much time to read them as to watch the novela.

One thing I thought was interesting in last night's episode was that it was Laura who encouraged Mati to steal the money. Perhaps she would have done so anyway, but perhaps not. At any rate, her innate decency shines through in her leaving a note for Señor Jacob. I wonder, though, whether Witch Deborah will find the note first.

Speaking of Mati's mother, if she gives Mati her cell phone, how will she receive calls from Mati? She doesn't strike me as someone with a landline or an extra cell phone.

Like marvybaby11, I was not in the least surprised that Susy thought Luis was a thief, or worse. Luis thinks it's because she's prejudiced against people of his social class, but come on! If someone I barely knew snuck up on me in the dark, grabbed me, put a hand over my mouth, and told me not to yell, I'd be terrified and would be sure he was up to no good. Perhaps Telemundo is trying to show that not all rejection is caused by prejudice?

SpanProf, I'm glad you mentioned Betty Ford. Her speaking openly about her cancer was a very brave and important act, and it helped bring about a huge change in people's attitudes.
 

Bajo

Juanita, I have a vague memory of Laura speaking on a land line one of the times Mati called her. It's REALLY vague, so I can't bring it up clearly. But surely that would be a big writing glitch if they had Laura say to call and no number for Mati to call.
 

Usually I don't comment on Telemundo novelas but Bajo el Mismo Cielo is so refreshing. It's nice to watch a novela without the typical Cinderella story plot. Novelera your recaps are wonderful, I look forward to reading them every day. By the way, I believe the actress portraying Mati is Ecuadorian.
 

Bajo. Ok. So stopping the bus and convincing Mati to leave with him while everyone claps is hokey and I admit that I've seen practically this identical scene in at least a couple of romantic comedies--if not more-- in my lifetime but, dang, it's still satisfying! Of course, even though ultimately I'm guessing that Jacob will be too nice to press charges against Mati for taking enough money for her bus ride, no way she's ever getting that job back! And I expect that that final confrontation with Felicia is just the beginning of more problems for Carlos and Mati/Adela.
 

Bajo

yes SpanProf, we all need a friend like Felicia to keep everyone honest, NOT,
ah but she is fast becoming a very complex character
and does it all with a perfect set of red lips.

Carlos is a pretty sharp guy, I don't think Adela has told him much about Matias, but he has connected his death with la Colonia, and thus Rodrigo, but he is pretty sketchy since he doesn't have any details, thought for sure he would see or at least feel the brand on her side by her ...,
or maybe he did.

mister Jacob is too nice a guy to get caught up in all this but then that's how he is, remember how he stopped to help when Noemi had Adela and Luis at gun point, tell us more about his magazine.

new character- Rudolfo's friend Isabel Garrido played by Ahrid Hannaley, (Cecila the secretary in "Corazón Valiente" and Beatriz in "Marido En Alquiler" and at one time a host on "Suelta la Sopa" but hasn't been heard from since she punched out a bouncer in a bar for real, or so they say)

novelera- love everything you do, love anything you do, and any way you want to do it is fine with me, punto.

btw all, novelera brought me to posting on Caray,Caray while reading her terrific recaps on "Flor Savaje" (same author).

 

AVENIDA BRASIL

Okay, I finally caught up. Here are my thoughts in no particular order:

Looks like Carminha is heading to the manicomio. If you ask me, Nina should be joining her! Girlfriend is obsessed! Putting your own life, and other people's lives (people you supposedly love) at risk is going waaaay too far in a quest for revenge. I had no idea how Nina was going to resolve the 'adrift on a yacht with Max' situation, that was stressful! She is truly nuts. Hard to keep rooting for a heroine who is so foolhardy and fixated.

Is Jorgito taking that tiradero kid under his wing, bringing him to his home, etc purely for the purpose of grilling him for information re Lucinda, et al? If so, COLD, Jorgito! Also, umm, way to go there on telling the kid that girls like clean boys not dirty boys...he lives at the city dump, for crying out loud! Nice one, duh.

I notice that Telemundo has been heavily editing the Carlitos and His Mujeres storyline (fine by me)... They seem to be about to enter into a polygamy type dealio. Eww. Oh well, each to their own, I suppose. Or in the case of these women, each to one-third of their own.

The way Carminha treats Agatha is horrendous to me. If I was Tifon , I would've dumped her years ago, and applied for sole custody of Agatha. Feel bad for the young actress too, all the comments about her weight!!

Leleco is all kinds of gross to me. When I see Tessalia fussing over him, it looks like a doting daughter, or even grand-daughter rather than girlfriend. He should get back with Muricy. Adauto is the village idiot, what was she thinking?!

~ Wee Rita
 

Bajo. Deb: And of course just at the moment Adela seemed about to spill everything to Carlos about her background and how she's in danger of a gang hit ordered by his son (though maybe she wouldn't have gone that far) is when Felicia shows up! Anything to keep the suspense going and to keep Carlos from knowing everything he needs to know. And Rudolfo--such a typical bigamy situation!
 

BAJO

Thanks for the kind words, everyone.

Well, I'm with SpanProf, the a la Top Gun scene of the guy carrying off his woman got to me. Not to mention the steamy sex on the beach (That's the name of a cocktail, isn't it?). I did sort of expect some comment on the mark on her abdomen, though. It must clearly have an image and not look like an accident.

Of course, they have to write in some delayed gratification again as Carlos will probably not like that "Mati" is not Adela's real name. Felicia is right out of the playbook as the obsessed "other person" that in TNs can be either male or female. Doesn't matter how many times the protagonist tells them it ain't gonna happen, they persist.

Wow, Deb, I hadn't heard the chisme about the Suelta la Sopa actor. I don't watch the show but I wondered why she wasn't in the promos any more.

So Rodolfo's other wife is in Hermosillo. It wasn't clear to me whether he is the father of the child we saw. I kind of thought he was more like the step-dad, but I can't remember why I thought that.

It's interesting to see Rosalinda Rodríguez in a serious role as Laura. She's really good at comedy. She was an evil stepmother, but funny at times, in Reina de Corazones, and a funny servant in La Casa de al Lado.

Sigh. Fire stabs himself to "save" Greicy (but probably also to preserve his "mule"), tells her he can't let her risk it any more. This convinces the dummy that he really loves her. And maybe he does and I'm waaay to cynical. But I don't have much use for the guy, one of the major reasons being his contemptuous treatment of his father, both in the present day and in the flashbacks from the past.
 

Bajo. Hi, Novelera. Thanks once again for your right on remarks! Carlos did notice that Adela was reluctant to take off her clothes and he figured out that she might have a scar or some other body defect. He told her that it didn't matter, only what she was like as a person mattered (Was there ever a more perfect male love interest?). And under the circumstances, I think he wasn't paying much attention to what kind of scar it might be. Of course I'm not male, so I couldn't know for sure. :)
 

BAJO

I was cheering for Laura last night. Her innate distrust served her well: she KNEW that broad was up to no good. Financial help for families of gang members??? Say what??? Loved seeing Felicia trying to catch her balance after Laura pushed her out the door.

I also liked María reading Felicia the riot act for lending her SUV to Luis. The kid doesn't even have a license!
 

BAJO
NovelaMaven, thanks for pointing out those castigating Felicia scenes, a not-so-guilty pleasure for me.
 

Bajo. And Felicia told María that Rodolfo is obviously up to something. A sibling always knows!
 

Bajo. Or in this case a cousin.
 

BAJO

"And Felicia told María that Rodolfo is obviously up to something."

That's as good a way as any to shut her up when her comments were hitting too close to home, SpanProf.

BTW, the Rodolfo/Esposa número 2 scenes in Hermosillo were kind of tacky, as if they belonged in some other novela (a world inhabited by Deborah and Sharon and the other cardboard figures who people the background). For one thing, both actors seem spectacularly miscast, at least to me.

I also had a problem with the bus scene. I kept expecting to hear approaching sirens and see the SWAT team bearing down on Carlos after the bus driver had activated his panic button. Sorry, guys. :(
 

AVENIDA

Wee Rita: Carmina is definitely showing her crazy side. And Nina doesn't seem like she's far behind. Both women are so intense, it fascinating (and stressful) to watch them try to one up each other. I'll admit that I loved how Nina totally got Carmina with the jewelry....Carmina looked crazyyy. And Nina sure can think fast on her feet, Max looked liked a dummy locked in his own boat.

ITA about how Carmina treats Agatha. I don't know how the family has let her get by with that behavior this whole time.

jlk
 

Bajo. NovelaMaven: That might be what would happen in the Real World.:)
 

Also wanted to add a thanks to Novelera for recapping another tn I finished watching. I just watched Flor Salvaje this summer (really good tn!) and enjoyed reading your recaps along the way!

jlk
 

Bajo

I was thinking Carlos would just drive to San Diego and meet the bus, but the look on Adela's face was precious, especially after sitting there alone with her hand on her gun, worried about the other passengers, I don't think she has ever known the love of a man, or from anyone for that matter, except maybe her brother.

 

AVENIDA BRASIL

jlk, Yes! The jewelry switcheroo was ingenious! Don't know what you'd call that thing Nina is doing to Carminha...gaslighting by proxy?

~ Wee Rita
 

Still enjoying this; think the actress playing Laura is excellent. Now that it was mentioned, I remember her playing that maid in La Casa.

I like brief recaps, and do not like the novellettes written over on Uni, altho I
appreciate that the recappers put their hearts and souls into that task.

Agree with NM about cheering for Laura not giving up any info to Felicia.

Enjoying the commenets...On with the show!
 

BAJO

I recorded Bajo last night, but I only got to see it a short while ago. I agree with SpanProf that the bus scene was straight out of a zillion Grade B movies that I try to avoid, so I was quite surprised at how moved I was. I would definitely have been applauding and cheering had I been on the bus. (You mean I wasn't on the bus? Then what was I doing applauding and cheering?)

The second-most satisfying moment for me in last night's episode was Laura's not being taken in by Felicia [hiss here] and not giving her the info she wanted.

The third-most satisfying moment: the somewhat schmaltzy scene where Susy tells her father that she felt bad that she had made the young man whose name she doesn't know but we do feel bad. She didn't want to be like some of her snobby friends. Again, like the bus scene, this normally wouldn't have worked for/on me, but this time it did. Hmmm...am I less cynical during the daylight hours than at night?
 

Bajo

Thanks, Juanita, I had forgotten the scene with Susy and Jacob. Yep, she and Luis are fated to be novios based on what a sweet girl she is.
 

We're all on ONE blog. Please stop talking about the "Univision side" and the "Telemundo side." If you wouldn't say it directly to the face of the recapper/s you're referring to, please don't say it at all.
 

Bajo

a couple of other things we learned in thurs show,

although there were many advantages to marrying Rudolfo, Maria tells Luis she did it because she loved him. (have we even seen one scene where Rudolfo is with his kids?)

Felicia learns from Maria that Rodrigo is alive and kicking in prison, so her already faltering plans to capture Carlos takes another blow.

and good kid Luis lies to his dad that he was at Nick's instead of out driving around in Felicia's car.

 

Bajo el mismo cielo... friday, epi 14
part 1

Felicia wants Adela to tell Carlos her real name, Matias was probably her lover and her mother is a drunk, Carlos holds them at arms length, but Adela doesn't spill, Carlos gets a call from mister Jacob, who is waiting for him, so he tells Mati to stay put, and to explain when he comes back.

Felicia goes to the Padre, and wants to know where god is when she needs help, then dumps on him, how after she lost the baby, Carlos made her feel protected, cared for her, made her laugh again, he is the most passionate man she has ever met, he makes me feel complete, he's mine and I will fight for him to the death, (we're still waiting for the Padre's response)

Adela pulls out the old pictures of Rodrigo, blames him for everything, later calls her mom, Laura is disappointed Adela is still here, and warns her again about the consequences of being with the father of the guy who had Matias killed.

Carlos gives mister Jacob back the money who feels betrayed and wants to turn Mati in, Carlos softens him with everyone needs a second chance, she is the best person in the world, etc. etc. (Carlos really gets to me too).

(interesting before Gabriel Porras (Carlos) went inside to confront mister Jacob he did one of his head rolls like when he plays a hit man on a job that needs to be done)

Felicia has Willy watching Carlo's house, she tells him to get her out of town, he sneaks in wearing a mask and grabs her with his gun, Flag attacks, Adela gets her gun, shots fired, Luis runs to help (oh no) right into the crossfire, Adela protects him with her body, knocks him down but Willy doesn't shoot, turns and runs, with Adela on his heels, (but she doesn't jump the fences so well) Luis asks what is going on, but Flag is not talking.

Willy sneaks into a house, holds the lady hostage, Mati wants him to come out where ever he is, and fight like a man, tells him this is her family, don't mess with them.

back at the house, Luis (who knows her story) thinks the Colonia have found her and will return and kill them all, he tells her to leave, but clever Adela knows that gangs hunt in packs like Hyenas, this guy was alone, and links his voice back to Willy, this confuses Luis.

Willy checks in with Felicia, I just wanted you to take her to a field and scare her with the gun so she would never come back she says as she drops some change into a beggars cup, not so easy, Willy replies, she had a gun.

 

Bajo el mismo cielo... friday, epi 14
part 2

the Warden finds the hollow books in the library, confronts Rodrigo about it, he admits nothing, Greicy overhears that there were drugs in the shampoo bottles she brought in, Rodrigo is sent back to his cell, convinces his #1 guy, Nacho, to take the fall, you'll move up the ranks and your family will be paid, later Greicy confronts him, I was tricked just like you, he tells her, and then later he tells Colmillo, I'll take care of it I promise, Colmillo doesn't want to hear any more promises, you said you would take care of Adela Morales.

mister Jacob lets Carlos off the hook, but I don't want her to ever set foot on my property again he says, but I know you have feelings for her.

Carlos then meets with Jacob's lawyer, who will take Rodrigo's case and give him a special rate (was it a home robbery, but Rodrigo didn't hurt anyone)

Carlos arrives home wants to celebrate, tells of the lawyer but Rodrigo being in jail is news to Luis who is upset Carlos didn't tell him, he storms off into the house followed by Carlos who walks into the damage from the gunfight, Adela tries to explain, shows him her gun (how does Carlos make it through the day surrounded by these people)

he wants to hear it all, Adela spills, her name is Adela Morales, that was her mother Felicia went to see, Matias is her brother who was killed by the Colonia, some soft guys let her go but marked her, she shows the brand to Carlos, it is a death sentence to anyone that is around her.

mister Jacob doesn't go to the cops, but Felicia does, to brother Cristóbal, I need your help, there were shots fired at Carlos' house, a neighbor told me, they didn't call the police because they didn't want complications, (he knows Carlos is undocumented), I'm sure it was that girl who lives there, and no I'm not jealous. Oh and don't tell anyone I sent you.

Rodrigo has a visitor, no I don't want to see my father, it's a lady, aunt Maria has come with hugs, and a truck that was his favorite toy and other disgusting sentimental things, he didn't recognize her, they last saw one another before he came to the states and when Maria arrived he was already gone. the Rodrigo you knew no longer exists he tells her.

and as a last straw Carlos asks Adela again, are you a member of the gangs I hate so much, and with tears in her eyes she says,
si.

 

Bajo

and who couldn't love this wild woman?


 

BAJO

Deb, I loved your recap. Thanks so much! I think my favorite line was "Luis asks what is going on, but Flag is not talking." And I too have been wondering (but also admiring) how Carlos manages to deal with the torrent of unpleasant revelations from or about Mati.

I think we did get the Padre's response to Felicia. IIRC, he told her that if Carlos has fallen in love with another woman, she (Felicia) should forget about him, move on, and seek her own happiness. To which she replies, "Carlos is my happiness."

At the beginning of the telenovela, I wasn't sure that I liked Gabriel Porras as Carlos, but I'm liking him more and more. He does persistence and determination very well, not only in Bajo but also a couple of years ago in "El Señor de los Cielos," where he played a federal agent opposed to the narcotraficantes. Of course there, his determination/dedication cost him his life. Hopefully he'll come out much better in Bajo. ¡Ojalá!
 

GENERAL

Please stop talking about the "Univision side" and the "Telemundo side."

Seriously, Diva? I mean... SERIOUSLY????? And you don't see that "request" as just a tad heavy-handed?
 

BAJO

And who couldn't love a recap by deb? Thanks so much!

"(interesting before Gabriel Porras (Carlos) went inside to confront mister Jacob he did one of his head rolls like when he plays a hit man on a job that needs to be done)"

Excellent observation – who knew a head roll could be so versatile! :)
 

Thanks for the wonderful recap, deb. I find it humorous that Tia Maria brought Rodrigo his toy truck. Rodrigo has been softening up with each visit he receives, even though he is not showing it affects him at first. He rejects their hugs ,but that could be because of the "no contact" policy. If he hugs them ,maybe the guards would get more upset. I do not understand how they keep letting contact happen. Every time a new family member comes they are putting themselves in harms way since "la colonia" can target Rodrigo's family (if he ever wants to get out). I do not think they'll let him get out, even if he has a change of heart later in life. He buried Rodrigo ten years ago, but he has been able to keep the charade up by distancing himself from his family. Once he sees his little brother Luis, he will have to answer the big "Why?". Also, the lies he has been telling Greicy have been revealed. She does not trust him blindly anymore. Sure, he did not know he was trafficking drugs. She was tricked into committing a major crime because she cared for him. - I am not a robot
 

Juanita, blog mom here. I strongly object to your criticism-disguised-as-a-compliment. As I have pointed out ad nauseum, everybody writing here is doing it for free and I don't want anyone criticized or told how to write a recap. You could have just praised the writer you prefer without slapping out at the others. Future such comments will be deleted.
 

Bajo. Yep, great recap, Deb! Once it became obvious that the intruder was only Willy again (despite the scary previous night's preview), I knew everything would be ok. :) Felicia really should consider getting a new henchman! I totally agree with marvybaby that with the way family members are starting to pass through the prison, not to mention that Greicy is beginning to sound like a girlfriend if not a wife, it's only a matter of time until despite himself Rodrigo rejoins the regular human race. I can hardly wait till Luis shows up and starts yelling at him for letting the family think he was dead for so many years! Also agree that if he tries to get out of the gang, it will be very dangerous!
 

Blog Mom, I'm sorry if I offended anyone. That was certainly not my intention. I have great respect and admiration for all the recappers and the recaps they create. I was simply expressing an opinion about the kind of recaps I tend to prefer. (Ironically, Diva/5 ft was one of my favorite recappers when I watched Univision novelas.)
 

Bajo

I finally watched the novela. Thanks for the recap, Deb. A fine effort, as usual. My DVR is pretty full, so it didn't record all of the novela. In my area of town we have a new library. It was a major hassle to get it finished. Funds were raised, but the builder bid low and then tried to change order the city to death. Lawsuits ensued. But the library is glorious, with dozens of computers available in each of two stories. So I went there and watched the episode with earbuds.

It never fails! Adela is on the verge of telling Carlos the truth when, brrrring, he answers his cell phone. Why would he even do that? Anyway he races to meet Mr. Jacob, giving Willy a chance to try to carry her off. I loved her pursuit of the pusillanimous Willy!

Carlos lost some points with me when he didn't seem to notice how crazed Felicia seemed shrieking in the street about Adela having a lover named Matías. He was far too kind to her when he said he needed to speak to Adela about this alone.

Fire tells the idiot Greicy that he didn't know what she was bringing in. Please. I'm sure she's going to go for it and be back as his accomplice.
 

GENERAL

Novelera, I happen to agree with Jane. It's one thing to say that you prefer short recaps; it's quite another to refer dismissively to the work of others as "epic sagas" that are more time-consuming than watching the show. I see nothing wrong in reminding us to be careful with one another's feelings around here.

I was objecting to Diva's attempt to ban innocent language. There's nothing offensive about discussing "the Telemundo side" or "the Univision side." Many of us – myself included – enjoy toggling between Uni and T-Mundo. Besides, some of the longest recaps in recent history appeared right here "on the Telemundo side" when we were covering Reina de Corazones in loving – some might say excruciating – detail.

Personally, I've felt the sting of the criticism-disguised-as-a-compliment quite often in comments on Univision novelas. It is certainly not a Telemundo thing.
 

Bajo. Hi, Novelera! Good observations! Carlos may be feeling mildly guilty about stringing Felicia along when he didn't really love her enough to marry her. And Greicy is in love--she's willing to cut Rodrigo way more slack than he deserves. :)
 

Bajo,

and as Carlos still thinks of Rodrigo as the young boy he carried across the border, Adela doesn't want to hear what her mother is saying, that the gardener sooner or later will drop her name, and his son will put 2 and 2 together, and the Colonia will find you, and kill you.

and Adela has just given Carlos her real name...

 

Bajo. But what will Rodrigo do when it becomes a question not just of killing someone who may or may not have harmed a gang member (she didn't kill Noemí or even steal the drugs Matías was marketing for the Alacranes), but of killing the woman his father loves and with whom his younger brother has bonded as a friend/mother figure? Possibly even gang leaders can have the occasional moral dilemma? Particularly one with as high an iq as Rodrigo?
 

The moral dilemma Rodrigo will face will be his redeeming moment. After he discovers the truth, will he follow his orders of killing Adela or will he pardon her? Anyways, she was being punished for the betrayal of her brother. Matias already paid with his life. She watched him die, isn't that price enough? Noemi met her death for her drug habits and evil intentions.
Rodrigo does have a high iq, probably why he has risen to where he is. But will Rodrigo have the smarts to play both sides. It's his only way out,he must continue the charade that he loves the gang life while helping Adela stay alive. If he continues to be the colonia's puppet, he will have a meaningless existence. He will end up in jail for life if he continues in this path. Speculation: Rodrigo mentioned he went to jail on purpose: Maybe Rodrigo committed a petty crime and got caught on purpose in order to avoid getting charged with a larger crime. Since the gang members must follow orders mindlessly: if he was being ordered to do illegal things he would have eventually gotten caught and sentenced for a long time in jail. Therefore, he volunteered to be incarcerated to rise in rank and to avoid living his life in prison. In his current role in the gang,he orders other members to commit crimes in his name.
 

Bajo. Well observed, marvybaby!
 

Bajo,

hmm, I was thinking Rodrigo went to prison to get close to / in contact with, Colmillo the leader of the Colonias, who is being held in isolation, and as a result is his number 1 guy.

 

TELEMUNDO...

currently on chapter...

"Avenida Brazil" 92
"Bajo el mismo cielo" 14
"El Señor de los Cielos 3" 78

"Avenida Brazil" (it seems to me this has turned the corner and is headed for the finish as Telemundo has been doing some cutting) may be followed by "¿Quién es quién?" which is still sorting out the cast (Laura Flores-the dragons mom- is the last rumored to have signed on) will be filmed in Miami, but rumored to debut first in Mexico on Galavision in September.


"El Señor de los Cielos 3" is in capitulos culminantes / últimas semanas, depending on the promo you see and should be followed by "Senora Acero 2" and maybe later by "La querida del Centauro".

and then there is,
"Celia" "has been in the works since last September, the series will be 80 episodes long, going through all of the diva’s life, from when she was young to the height of her fame."

 

Just saw the promo for La querida del Centauro. Its one of the super series novelas so its probably coming after senora acero 2. I'm not sure if I am going to watch it, but I am happy to see Michel Brown in a telemundo novela. I haven't watch a novela he is in since Pasion de Gavilanes.
 

General

Thanks, deb, for this info about what's upcoming. I hope that Quién es Quién doesn't come to US television too soon. I had decided I might want to watch that, but I would prefer not to watch two novelas at the same time. I was thus happy to hear that Quién might be shown first in Mexico. Perhaps by the time it comes to the US, Bajo el Mismo Cielo will be just about over.
 

Deb,

Thanks so much for the two-part recap. I'm taking it all in, and you filled in
all the gaps.

I have a difference of opinion with you on the toy truck incident.
I did not think it was humorous at all, but rather extremely touching.
One of my three sons was very attached to tiny cars and very small trucks.
He played with them at length in his room tapping into his imagination. It was
independent play where he was alone--away from the rest of his siblings, and it
was very soothing. Curiously enough, he is a defense attorney where he attempts
to saved alleged murderers from the death penalty, stressing the harsh effects
of a childhood fraught with emotional problems and non existent or incompetent parents.

I noticed that Rodrigo melted for an incident when he saw that truck, but then
he quickly recovered and put on his chilling facade. This incident was the
highlight of the episode for me.


 

BAJO

Hi, again, Deb

Rephrasing -- I should have said I had a different interpretation.
on the toy truck scene --

Thanks for understanding.
 

Bajo

I like your interpretation Elsa!

 

I am enjoying El Senior de los Cielos very much and am hooked on it. Not only because of the acting, the drama and the fabulous costumes. Especially on the damas y senoritas. Just awesome. I am also recouping my second language, Spanish. I find it a fascinating way to re learn my spanish. I have one question.....what is the model of the hand gun that most of the characters use in this series. Does anyone know por favor?