Caray, Caray!

Thank you cathyx for a great recap. I don't always like silly comedy but I love SN and think she is great at comedy. And JS being so strict and stiff is making this fun to watch. I can't not mention Rene as Bruno... I never realized that guy could pull off comedy so well. as I've only seen him in serious roles.

I don't get the "hashtag" either, but then I never fully understood Nicky in Amores Verdaderos and the insipid things she used to say before she became nice.
 

Cathyx, thanks for your wonderful recap. So much happened and you covered it with such detail.

It's interesting that one of the characters in QPTR mixes in Italian with her Spanish and here we have an ambassador from Italy speaking Italian. Is there and Italian connection in telenovelalandia?

I like Ana's rhyme that went something like : "botella de jeréz, todo al revés" (with a bottle of sherry, everything is reversed); her nickname (that she always says under her breath) for Fernando: " don Hielo"; and how she always says "Take it easy." twice.

Poor Nerdnando asking his dad (self described as intellectual and formal) and Bruno for advice about women. No good advice from those two.

Can't wait for Isabela to become more embroiled in the plot. Could not believe how she was hanging on Fernando in a very proprietary way already.


Jarifa


 

cathyx, excellent "in a jungle all sweaty and sexylike wearing only the tiniest of shorts" Now that is a word picture

Not real crazy with the over the top slapstick and wish they'd leave that to the three stooges or Dick Van Dyke.

I do like the attention paid to Fannys use of american slang in english. I travel to asia frequently and the young people there do too. Ah, the internet and social media.

The best part last night was Jonny's bungled serving of their drinks and subsequent collection of their empties. Just reaching in or standing in front of someone mid conversation, cute. It was not over done.

Ximena - yuck

Ana - no you Take it Easy

Diego - kinda boring at Fernando's so hurry back from your jungle romp

Isabela - smooth, like you've done this before

Jonny - golden goose on the loose

Nando - misplaced lust

Fanny - will you still love me tomorrow?

Manuela - guess you and Ana won't be bff's

Fernando - give an inch and they take a mile

 

By the way, they are using the same obnoxious wah-wah musical comedy theme they used in PEAM in some scenes. When PEAM ended I was hoping I would never hear it again. Too bad they couldn't use all fresh music.

Jarifa
 

Hi CathyX, I didn't know that you were recapping this show! I don't watch it, but I love reading the recaps. This was awesome.
 

Jarifa

They recycle clothes and props so why not music-sigh.

I hope they cut back on the slapstick. The Johnny as a server was hilarious but did Ana have to shriek and drop the tray of canapés, thereby calling negative attention to herself. In that bit we got the two sides of comedy and only one makes me laugh.

Poor Nando having a crush on his sister's
friend who supposedly is about two or three years older but the actress clearly looked at least ten and too old to be Fanny's friend. He'd be much better off asking for dating advice from Tio Diego than workaholic Papi
 

cathyx, it was great to read one of your recaps again.

Loved "Beefcake, it's whats for dinner". Very clever, as was the entire recap. Fantastic job.

"Back to boringville"; "Fannys comes in dressed as a sexpot (really wardrobe department?), Ana says she looks beautiful. (really wardrobe department?"; and "They go up stairs to discuss something important. I hope it’s birth control. (I don’t get the hashtag thing) (me either) were my favorites.

I like the Ana Fernando chemistry and am in love with Bruno/Rene who is elevating the character to a higher level. Like tofie, I could do without the slapstick.

Jarifa, I got the feeling Isabela has been quietly surveying the situation and is getting ready to pounce. She will be a formidable force I believe.

Thanks again Cathyx!

Diana
 

Thanks LoriLoo, I couldn't get into Amores Verdaderos, Nikki was one part of the problem.

Jarifa, she does always call Fernando, Don Hielo when she leaves the room, lol.

Tofie and Decie Girl, I'm not a fan of slapstick, and I think that Sylvia and Rene try too hard. The best slapstick is more subtle. And I agree, Jonny was much better at it.

But I do think that one of the things so great about Jorge Salinas is his facial expressions. He really shows his talent, even in humorous situations. He's so real acting, it's easy to forget he's acting. Watch his perfect pauses and eyebrow raises, swallows, just at the right time. Sigh!

Cynderella, hola Amiga, long time no hear from! I wish you would start watching this one. I miss your humor.


 

Thanks, Cathyx, for that snappy recap. At least this show is lighter than Robo which just gets increasingly darker and more depressing.

The hashtag thing is very annoying. I saw a skit about it on Jimmy Fallon. It seems to be a way of saying "in other words, or "this is what I am talking about." I am sick of it. My younger students love to use American slang , but they often use it in odd ways or they use slang that Americans have stopped using.
 

This novela is very funny, SN and JS are great but RC may be over the top.

The Yoga part was especially funny.

I'm hating Fernando's assistant, Isabela (?) already!
 

I get a kick out of Sylvia trying to use English phrases.
 

Susanlynn, thanks for the explanation. Do American teens use that? My 16 year old daughter never has, I never heard of it until now.
 

Cathyx..Since I teach foreign students, I am not around any American teens, but my guess is that they might. I guess it is part of the computer culture in the same way that texting has affected young people's spelling ...writing "u, instead of "you", in compositions.
 

It sort of mimics Twitter with the constant #this and # that.

Jarifa
 

Thank you for the recap, Cathyx. You capture the antic nature of this along with the plot development very well.

Does anyone remember seeing Lola, erase una vez?
(I think I have that right, a vehicle for Eiza gonzalez, broadcast probably ten or fifteen years ago on Uni.) Anyway, this feels like a cross between that novela and the Sound of Music! The children are a unit, independent of their father, with lots of crazy stuff going on. But you know that Ana/Maria will set it all right, though in this case they won't have to scale the Alps. Also, can't quite see Julie Andrews (one of my favorites of all time) as a pole dancer.





 

''Cae más pronto un hablador que un cojo''

I know I said that I would watch this TN just to make fun of it but I give up. One week is more than enough.

I know the plot needs stupid antics to make the TN 180+ episodes long, but nobody in her right mind would apply ANY KIND of drops riding on top of anybody and the other person wouldn't have to hug her and pant. Did I mention the black dental floss underwear?

Anyway, the final nail in the coffin was seeing Memela the cook branding that huge yellow knife in Bruno and Anacasia's faces...

I get off here.
 

180 episodes!

I'll never make it to the end. Televisa is losing its viewers because of this ridiculous desire to produce such long......Novelas.
 

Jajaja!

I really don't know how long it is going to be, but PEAM lasted 181 episodes and was being paid for by AVON. Since this one is being paid for by LA COSTEÑA, obviously, the longer the better, right?

Who cares for plot or anything when there's money to make?
 

You're not going to make money if nobody watches. Somebody has to understand that excessively long and stupid novelas will be what kills the Golden Goose and they will go the way of Soaps. All Televisa has to do is check out the snapyy short well acted, original stories on Telemundo to see where they are going wrong.
 

Second your comment Decie G about Telemundo. Though there were things I didn't like about La Impostora it moved along quicker and needed lest silly filler
 

Good work, Cathyx!

My feeling is that Ana is going to have all those kids dancing sooner or later. Nernando (poor boy) will have to get advice about girls from Tio Diego, and probably there will be a four-way issue between him, Fernando, Ana, and Isabel (BBB).

And Fanny better not get knocked up. I can just see Fernando having fits over that.
 

Thanks Cathyx for your fun recap. So far, the show seems to be ok for me. I enjoy Ana's interactions with the kids, and trying to be the bridge between them and their father. Like many of you, I don't like the exaggerated slapstick, which I saw a lot of on PEAM, including stomach rumbles and zipper sounds when zipping lips. The medicine scene seemed a little over the top but not too bad. What bugs me is every time the doorbell rings Ana screams "yo abro, yo abro" and runs to the door like one of the kids. How old is she supposed to be?

On a positive note, I thought Johnny was hilarious as he was serving drinks, interrupting and taking away drinks before people were finished. Not over the top but everyone's facial expresssions conveyed a lot.

Let's see how next week goes.

Maricruz
 

Hi guys!
Just had to stop in and say that even though the plot is so cliche and the gags are ridiculous, I am having a blast watching Silvia! She's definitely my favorite novela actress... so versatile and effortless no matter the story. I spend a lot of time trying to figure out what she's saying, especially when she's in one of her 100-miles-a-minute monologues (and I'm watching online so I don't have closed captions!), but I just love watching her do this character.

Btw, thanks LatinaInMD for the translation of the "box of babies" comment a couple nights ago... I think someone should make a list of all the Ana-isms for those of us that can't keep up :)

I won't be commenting much... I'm in Honduras and watching online, so I'm about 15 episodes ahead and don't want to accidentally mention something I shouldn't. But I just had to stop in and give props to Ms. Navarro!!
 

UA, I can't wait until uncle Diego comes home. Sparks will fly all around. I'm guessing that he will flirt no end with Ana, make fun of Isabel in the process, and turn Nando into a cool dude.

Did someone say 180 episodes? Yikes! What did I commit to?
 

I'm hoping he's in tomorrow's episode, but I'm also hoping he'll shave. I'm really annoyed with Pablo Montero having 5 o'clock shadow all the time lately.
 

Urban

What is it with all these stud guys and their hairdos? Pablo's hair looks terrible in the credits, Eduardo Yanez shaved his gorgeous locks off to become almost bald, and all this grease or gell, yucks! Don't guys know most woman love to run their fingers through their guy's hair. At least I do!
 

I don't know. Sometimes I think it's a male conspiracy to tell women "This is how it is, girls. Take it or leave it."

Pablo's hair looked wonderful in the first part of QBA. He also shaved for that. Here is how he looks best.
 

Urban:
Pablo looks great and sings great too!

I have about a dozen or so of his songs in my Spotify playlist!

I loved him, Eduardo, and Jorge in FELS. Just looking at these gorgeous hunks (especially Eduardo with the bread making) made watching the 200+ episodes worth it!
 

Thank you, Cathyx, for your very entertaining recap.
This will be the second tn that we recap together; let's hope that it's more enjoyable than you know what...

Like someone else already explained, hashtag is a reference to the way things are being labeled on Twitter; if someone wants to find all the comments on a certain subject, they just search for the # and find the list of all the things that have been said on the matter - pretty much like we use tags for recaps. It's basically a way to give importance to every little thing that we say, when in reality said thing is mundane at best.
Teens and early twenties around me use them sometimes, just like Fanny does. They are kind of funny when used with moderation, which is NOT what Fanny is doing. I think her constant "hashtagging" means that she's trying to be cool, but in reality she's just a scared little girl who misses her mom - and that is what we will find out down the line.
 

Great recap, cathyx!! loved from the title (brilliant!) to every word.
I had two fav moments friday night.
one was Adrian Uribe's body language skid serving the wine glasses and then basically yanking them off the hands of Fernando, Isabel and the guests, after faking some italian until Fernando showed up... (the body language and facial expresion of Jorge Salinas added the subtle teamwork to the great comic relief).
Also when the kids went in one at a time to say good night to Fernando, after they were done we see Fernando actually look up from his work, smile and say 'good night, kids'. That shows that Ana has come a long way already to break the shell of Fernando's ...
I don't think this novela is the best comedy out there... I think I agree that Rene C and Sylvia are trying too hard a bit... but they will get there, they are just starting to work together... lets give them a little while longer.
The scenes with Fanny confused me... i know at first Fanny was trying to make Ana believe she had had relations with boyfriends before but from how Fanny described her 'first time' Ana could tell Fanny was lying... but I think if Ana just gives Fanny free rides out of the house, that will eventually come to bite her, it is too much too fast for Fanny.
Nando... well, like we said before, a makeover and some spark of personality by Ana breaking his shell too would go a long way.
 

"we’re gonna get" PSA’d with this (Yup! till we gag on it--Ana's discussion of "protection", etc. for one thing....)

"dressed as a sexpot (really wardrobe department?)" ITAAAAA!

"(I don’t get the hashtag thing)". --That makes two of us!

"He's [JS] so real acting, it's easy to forget he's acting. Watch his perfect pauses and eyebrow raises, swallows, just at the right time." --He is the ultimate professional that way and yeah, he does always make it look so real you do forget he is acting.
================

Maricruz/Jarifa:

I "Johnny was hilarious as he was serving drinks, interrupting and taking away drinks before people were finished. Not over the top but everyone's facial expresssions conveyed a lot." ITA and that was the funniest of the slapstick bits in this episodio.
 

Rene Casados is really overacting and it's not pleasant to watch. And SN and her friend (played by Fabiola C) are not far behind. It is very obvious that these actors are not used to doing comedy, so they're overcompensating and end up looking ridiculous instead of comedic. I'll give it a couple more episodes to see if they tone it down before I pull the plug, but only because JS and Mayrin are doing a good job. Well, JS is actually doing a great job!
 

The HPLP list is back. I’m very excited about this TN. SN is my fav. The list will be a bit scatty since I’m watching three TNs at the moment and can’t focus all my attention on this one yet.

Week of July 21,2014:

Highpoints:

Ana’s dancing is way better than Esme’s over on Robo.
Fernando’s voiceover of what he wants in a nanny while Ana is pole dancing.
Ana stands up to Johnny.
Ana trying to find the book in the library that opens the secret passage.
Ana and Nic re: Chicago.
Ana and Luz (love that she calls her “mi corazon”).
Ana’s and Fernando’s first meet.
The electricity FX.
Ana telling Fanny that not all people are as lucky as them and she’s here to stay.
Fanny kisses the twins as they sleep on the couch.
Ana and the twin hugs.
Ana bonds with Alicia and Sebastian.
Ana shares her story.
Ana tells Luz a story.
Luz speaks.
Kids band together to force their dad to get Ana back.
Ana gets her job back.
Ana and Fanny become friends.
Ana helps Nando with some bullies.
Luz talks to Ana.
Fer rushes home when he realizes Luz is talking to him on the phone.
Fer trying to NOT look at Ana as they talk with her only in her slip.
Ana charms Fer as she falls asleep on his shoulder.
We almost have the first kiss.
Ana getting the kids to say goodnight to their dad.
Love how Jennifer’s wigs match her outfit.
Conservative Fer’s striped socks.
Ana’s trying to stay awake.
Luz confronting her dad after he yells at Ana.
Ana’s under breath comments to Fer whenever she leaves the office.
Johnny as a waiter.

Low Points:

Ana and Jennifer have a seriously bad day.
Isabella’s snow job.
Johnny.
The paint (was hoping Ana would smear some on Fanny).
The constant tricks the kids play on Ana.
Fanny threatens Ana.
Luz found her dead mother.
Luz’s anguish as she searches for Ana.
Ana is heartbroken.
Ana has to dance.
Fanny inadvertently destroys all the good Ana did with Nando’s bullies.
Ana and Fer have conflicts regarding the kids.
Doro henchmen overhear Ana telling Jennifer she’s going to quit.
Animal cruelty. Seriously, who was that b***h who was holding that poor fish out of water as it gasped for air?
Nando trying to get dating advice.
Ximena being rude to Nando (she’s not good enough for you, dude).

Nanette
 

American expressions are really popular with upper middle class Latinos or "fresas" in Mexico (a.k.a. preppy, rich people). Many teens/young adults in Mexico learn English informally from American media.

Wealthier ones go to private school or get tutored to learn English fluently, so mixing it in with everyday speech is not uncommon. I think Fanny's constant use of English phrases is meant to highlight her family's upper class status. It's probably not uncommon to have rich characters in telenovelas also travel abroad and have some knowledge of more than one language beside English too.


This is not the best acting I've seen in a telenovela or comedy, but I think Ana is supposed to be over-the-top. I think the show's writers are playing up the stereotype in telenovelas about poorer characters being loud and uncultured.
 

Thanks, cathyx! Fantastic title.

I so did not get that Diego scene. It was so out of nowhere...Bruno just happens to think of his brother...so we must jump to some beefcake in the jungle making out with some fish-torturer model? Either I missed something or that was a very awkward character introduction. I thought maybe someone pushed the wrong button at HQ and we were getting a scene from a different show. Anyway...when will he drop by to shake up the household?

Nerdando does need someone to help him out a bit in the social sphere. I was disappointed in his dad. Sure, studying is all well and good, but social skills are also very good to help one's career. I'm surprised he wouldn't see that from a future earnings perspective at least, if not out of concern for Nerdy's happiness. But I guess that's what Ana is for...once he gets over being mad at her.

Weird that Fannie had to sneak to wear the black outfit to the party, considering what she wears every other day.

Would it be too optimistic to hope that we're only going to hear a few brief references to that Osorio kid's love of hip-hop? Given how PEAM went, I am a bit afraid it's going to become A Whole Big Thing. Because why wouldn't millions of people want to watch some kid's little amateur dance recital when they aren't even the parents, who have to...
 

Cathyx- Great recap, amiga! I still haven't had a chance to watch, but look forward to seeing the dinner scenes.

I just spend much of the weekend with teenagers and they do indeed say the hashtag thing. Adriana explained perfectly what it is. In one case, one of the teens said to an audience of mostly teens something a bit disparaging about someone else. Someone yelled out "hashtag SHADE" (meaning it was a shady comment) AND everyone made a hand motion like a tree waving in the breeze (get it, shade). I learn something new every year with these kids. :)
 

I understood that Diego is Fernando's brother not Bruno's. That little segue came about because Ana asked Bruno if Fernando was always that "stiff" and Bruno said yes, but then thought to himself, "unlike his brother, who ..." and then the Diego scene came on.
 

Yes, I meant Fernando's brother, not Bruno's. But the setup of the scene was so brief and the scene itself so random. I guess the writers were like what's the opposite of our stiff guy in a suit working all day and "nekkid and wet, with a dame and a fish" was what they thought of?
 

Nanette, great lists!
i definitely like how colorful this novela is... bright colors against an almost totally white background all around the house... how can you keep those walls white with 7 kids, 5 of them under 14 in the house?? MAJOR Mr Clean job!!
I also like the fact that Jennifer matches her wig hair color to her outfits. sort of reminds me of the 'Tia Pelucas' character in Papa Corazon/Mundo de Juguete, et all (several remakes)...

 

Martaivett: Thanks!
 

Thanks cathyx, this is such an excellent and entertaining recap. Well done. Sorry to be joining in so late.

I was a little jarred to suddenly find myself watching Pablo Montero and the lady with the fish. What the heck? Isn't that fish abuse? I don't think that goldfish was gasping like that because he was excited to be in the arms of a sexy girl. Where's PETA?

I'm really enjoying this show but does anyone really think that Gus and Fanny are ready for sex? Sounded more like she's working on a list of things to do next.

Carlos