Welcome back to The Young Folks’ Jane the Virgin Season 2 coverage! Click here to read our previous coverage of the series.
Jane is told by her smart (and super attractive) advisor that sometimes you need to break the rules to create a great story. Jane the Virgin does that with every episode, and “Chapter Thirty” is no exception.
This week, we learn that when Jane is mad, she’s maaaaaaaad. Her fuming anger is set off when she found out in the last episode that Rafael set up Michael to be fired. Not even Abuela’s signature calming technique can stop the steam coming out of Jane’s ears.
Knowing that Rafael had lied to her for months, Jane cuts him off, and things get heated between the two. Talk of custody and lawyers come up. Other things in Jane’s life adds to her frustrations. She learns that her scholarship was fake (It was Rogelio’s sneaky way of paying for her tuition), and that her next semester isn’t paid (because Rogelio is broke now). Jane is hurt by a former friend’s betrayal, who used her to publish a scandalous exposé on the Solano family. Finally, she can’t shake her feelings for Michael.
There is a lot being juggled in this midseason finale. It’s not odd for a Jane episode to handle so much, but this episode did it all better than usual. The first ten minutes is pure gold, a masterclass in setting up a full hour of captivating storytelling. It balances all those genres and executes them brilliantly throughout. It’s the type of Christmas episode that I wish we had more of, the kind that isn’t heavy-handed with its message, but slyly shows how powerful perspective can be, and how that in turn can greatly strengthen your connection to those you care for and love.
There’s one particular scene that–maybe didn’t move me the most–but surprised me. It’s when Rogelio shares his feelings with Xiomara about how he can often feel angry because Xiomara lied to him about Jane’s existence for so many years. It’s one thing that I never stopped to think about because Rogelio is so silly and ego-centric (but still lovable!) all the time. It got me thinking again when Jane and Rafael were in therapy, and how Jane finally understood Rafael’s feelings for Michael. It’s all about perspective, and that’s what made this episode so interesting. It took our usual players and forced them to think and act differently (the voiceover scenarios were strokes of brilliance). It turned the viewer’s perspectives around. It wasn’t just another Jane the Virgin episode full of plot, but one that showcased a series that isn’t afraid to break the rules, go beyond its limits and be as ambitiously wonderful as it wants to be.
Jane may be as conflicted as ever about her feelings for Rafael and Michael. Really, after that thoughtful move on Michael’s part for sending them their fixed broken angel treetopper, how can Jane just let go of her feelings for him? Yet, it’s easy to sympathize with Rafael, who has lost a lot and is in the unfortunate position of not knowing Jane for years, like Michael has. I have to hand it to the writers for putting together one of the most complicated love triangles ever.
However, we should truly be feeling sorry for Petra, who despite her best efforts, is constantly the victim of her evil mother’s antics. At the end of the episode after she tells Rafael the truth about her mother killing Ivan and all of the bad antics leading up to it, Petra is arrested after her mother lies and tells the police that it was Petra who killed Ivan. Jane the Virgin has many villains, but now, Petra’s mother is the worst of them all.
Rating: 10/10
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Gaby’s Crazy (But it COULD happen!) Jane the Virgin Theory of the Week:
MUTTER is… Britney Spears! I’m joking. I have no crazy theories this week. Let’s just feel bad for Petra, and be happy that Mateo’s first Christmas is a sweet one.
“It should be noted that…”Jane the Virgin returns Monday, January 25th at 9/8c on The CW.
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