PURE GENIUS
Jane the Virgin NETWORK The CW AIR DATE March 27th, 9 p.m. 4
Midway through the fifth and final season premiere of the warmhearted telenovela, the eponymous heroine (Gina Rodriguez) spends a seven-minute-plus scene gradually freaking out over the apparent resurrection of her late husband, Michael (Brett Dier), and what it may mean for her and her family. The scene is impressive in small part because it was shot as a continuous take, but mainly because it does that thing that has always made Jane special: Use the craziest of soap-opera tropes (evil twins, amnesia, kidnapped babies) while letting Jane and her loved ones react to them like the very human beings they are. Michael’s return is wild yet emotionally grounded. Like so much of what creator Jennie Snyder Urman has done thus far, the development functions simultaneously as a parody of a telenovela and the genuine article, self-aware (thanks to the joyous work of narrator Anthony Mendez) but also sincere. All of the new episodes are similarly deft. The show seamlessly juggles the antics of criminal mastermind Rose (Bridget Regan) with Jane and frenemy Petra (Yael Grobglas) passive-aggressively texting each other parenting articles, or lets the comic feud between Jane’s narcissistic father, Rogelio (Jaime Camil, always a delight), and his show-within-ashow co-star (Brooke Shields) turn into a serious commentary on both the gender pay gap and this precarious moment to be brown in America. This series is a miracle. Enjoy it while it’s still here.