Wednesday, August 7, 2019

What I’m Watching: Jane the Virgin (Series Finale)

Jane the Virgin: Season 5, Episode 19 “Chapter One Hundred”

Now this was a wonderful finale. I was disappointed at first to learn that the ninety-ninth chapter was a retrospective hour rather than a scripted installment, but it turned out to be both a lot of fun and an endearing way to begin to say goodbye to these characters. Clip shows are a thing of the past, and interviewing the cast was a really nice opportunity to look back on all that’s happened over the years. I like how this final episode emphasized this show’s roots as a telenovela, with the narrator promising that this would be a fitting conclusion in the grand style of the format. After Rose showed up to hold Jane hostage before Luisa helped her fall to her death, it was nice that the drama here wasn’t all that excessive, with Rafael getting arrested and Jane commandeering a local bus to make sure they could make it to the wedding after all as the most outlandish plot points. It was generally just all sweet, and what a happy and tear-filled occasion the wedding was. I’ve been rooting for Petra and JR for a while, and her showing up to the wedding before the other Jane was perfect. Lena being pregnant and Esteban proposing to Darcy were nice moments too, and everyone really managed to get a happy ending. Rogelio blowing up on social media and achieving crossover celebrity status in America was fantastic, and I also liked the brief mention of how the show’s narrator was actually a grown-up Mateo. This show has been an involving delight from start to finish, and I’m eager to see what all these cast members do next. It would be fun to revisit this show at some point and review its many engaging arcs – it’s been a blast.

Series finale: A-
Series grade: A-
Season MVP: Gina Rodriguez as Jane
Season grade: B+
Series MVP: Gina Rodriguez
Best Season: Season 2
Best Episode: Pilot

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