TV Review: ‘Jane the Virgin’ Midseason Premiere

Note: Welcome to The Young Folks’ Jane the Virgin coverage! This is the first of our reviews for the rest of season one of The CW’s wonderfully dramatic and delightful new show.

You can’t ever say that an episode of The CW’s Jane the Virgin is ever short on drama. But tonight’s midseason premiere makes that a complete understatement.

The winter finale left us wondering if Jane’s abuela (Ivonne Coll) had survived her fall after Petra’s mother pushed her down a flight of stairs. Thankfully, Abuela is in stable condition, but poor Jane (Golden Globe winner (!!) Gina Rodriguez) and her mother, Xiomara (Andrea Navedo) are besides themselves. There’s no doubt in the flashbacks we’ve seen throughout the season, and especially the one in tonight’s episode, that Abuela is the glue that holds their family together.

Therefore, Jane heads back to the Marbella Hotel in search of her grandmother’s rosary to pray for a miracle. She quickly finds it, thanks to a friendly co-worker, but is soon whisked into all of the drama going down at the hotel. For one, there’s a rumor that layoffs are imminent, and Jane’s friends/co-workers convince her to find out who will be losing their jobs from Rafael (Justin Baldoni).

Michael (Brett Dier) is also at the hotel. If you remember from the last episode, while he and Nadine were getting busy (pervs!), they found a hidden tunnel in the hotel. It leads to a surgery room, and just like Michael, a big “WTF?” goes off in our minds. Yes, it’s probably related to Sin Rostro, but how?

With a hurricane raging outside, the hotel goes on lock down, which insures more drama will go down. Michael openly accuses Rafael of being Sin Rostro, which Rafael quickly shuts down, as does Jane. And as do I. It seems like this show’s core couple is Jane and Rafael (Sorry, Team Michael!), and it would be hard to imagine Jane reconciling with Rafael being someone like Sin Rostro. It just wouldn’t happen; so I highly doubt Rafael is him. However, his father is a different story.

When Rafael’s father high-tails it out of the hotel, Rose (Bridget Regan) overhears him having a sketchy conversation on the phone. In order to get answers, she visits Luisa (Yara Martinez) at the mental institution to apologize for her betrayal and seduce her. Luisa resists at first, but eventually falls back into Rose’s trap. (Or so we think… Luisa manages to secure a pick from an unknowing Rose to use to break out.)

Rose gets her answers that her husband is escaping to Croatia to possibly go into hiding. She reports this to Rafael and adds that she believes his father is up to something illegal. Rafael’s reaction is somewhere between stunned and unsurprised. I can’t quite tell what he’s thinking, and I get this weird vibe that he may know more about Sin Rostro than he lets on. Still, I don’t think he’s all that involved with the mysterious crime lord. His father though? Definitely.

All the while, Xiomara receives bad news at the hospital. They found out that Abuela doesn’t have her papers, and the government plans to deport her. Quoting the episode’s footnotes, “Yes, this really happens. Look it up. #ImmigrationReform.”

It was such a brilliant way to bring a real issue to the forefront of the episode, even though Abuela might not be appreciating that all too much. Luckily, Rogelio (Jaime Camil) arrives to the hospital armed with a swag bag, concealer, and contacts like the U.N. Ambassador and Gloria Estefan.

Miraculously, it isn’t Estefan who delays Abuela’s deportation, but Michael. After getting stuck in an elevator with him, Jane vents on what happened earlier that night with her grandmother. Michael is one of the most complex characters on this show because he’s so incredibly sweet and loving, but has this unexplainable dark side. As much as I love Jane and Rafael together, Michael just has a lot going on that makes me want to see more of him in the show. Major props to Brett Dier for confusing me every week on my feelings for his character.

Oh, I almost forgot about Petra (Yael Groblgas). Not much went down with them, only that their hostage managed to escape. Petra/Natalia/Whatever Her Name isn’t getting anything from her pre-nup, and you know her mother isn’t happy about that. Sounds like those two will continue to be scheming their way into more trouble.

The end of the storm brings back the normal. Jane and Rafael are on good terms again, after fighting about the layoffs. Nothing like” baby talk” to get those two all giggly. After praying and making a vow of chastity, Xiomara sees that Abuela woke from her coma. In excitement, she lays one on Rogelio, only to remember her promise to remain chaste. Abuela’s smirk at that is priceless!

Finally, Michael and his team discover a huge revelation. The secret surgery room they found is being used to change the faces of criminals. Sin Rostro, the Man Without a Face, has just been taken to a whole new level.

Gaby’s Crazy (But it COULD happen!) Jane the Virgin Theory of the Week:

Michael is actually Sin Rostro, but he doesn’t remember because while giving him a new face, they also erased his memory.

Rating: 9/10

“It should be noted that…”Jane the Virgin airs Mondays at 9/8c on The CW.