Before I talk about “Chapter Eight” of Jane the Virgin, I have to congratulate the show and Gina Rodriguez (Jane) on their Golden Globe nominations! This is a first for the CW, and the show has been nominated for best comedy and best actress in a comedy. I’ve been saying since “Chapter One” that this is a fantastic show, and it’s really great to see it get this recognition. Now. If it’s still your dark little secret because it’s kind of a telenovela or because it’s on the CW, it’s time to out yourself! Spread the word because this show deserves to be more than a critical darling – it deserves to be everybody’s favorite show!
“Chapter Eight” was written by the team of Josh Reims and Caroline Rivera and was directed by Norman Buckley. Reims last wrote “Chapter Five,” and Rivera’s credits include
Devious Maids. Buckley’s credits include
Rizzoli & Isles,
Pretty Little Liars, and
Gossip Girl. If you thought the plot was complicated before, things really heat up in this episode with more mysteries, hidden agendas, lies, and secrets! Rodriguez demonstrates why she got that nomination, and there are great performances from Justin Baldoni (Rafael), Andrea Navedo (Xo), and Jaime Camil (Rogelio). Another thing that I love about this show is the talent that it draws from Latin America – multiple Grammy winner Juanes as Elliot Lantana – and from telenovelas and soap operas – Julie Marie Berman (Candyce) who has one three Emmys for her role on
General Hospital.
We learn in this week’s flashbacks that Alba (Ivonne Coll) is an illegal immigrant who came to North America with Jane’s Grandfather after he had a falling out with his rich family. She tells Jane, “That is love. To give up money – like it’s nothing.” While this works into the present plot, it also raises the question of who Jane’s extended family is and whether they may still have money. The moral of the episode, however, seems to be that the course of true love is never an easy one, especially when there’s money involved.
Rafael has had to go to Mexico to try to find his sister, Luisa (Yara Martinez), to avoid a default judgment to Jane in the malpractice suit. Rafael is still keeping the secret that he’s used his shares of the hotel to pay for his sister’s malpractice insurance and if she loses, he’ll lose the hotel. Rafael notices immediately upon seeing Jane that she’s showing! Their reunion is sweet, but Jane also fails to tell Rafael that she’s a virgin – both are keeping secrets. In fact, as Rafael tells Jane later in the episode, they are doing everything backwards – having the baby before even going on a real date. Of course, their real first date is a disaster.
Jane is clearly appalled by Rafael’s story of how he and Petra (Yael Grobglas) ended up married. In his defense, he does look pretty ashamed about it too. Rodriguez is adorable as she explains why the couple sent the food to their table. I loved the look on her face when she tells him she can’t perform miracles – “Just to be clear!” I also loved how they mirrored each other by saying, “I’m reacting. I’m allowed to react!” Of course, the problem for Jane is that she can compare Rafael’s reaction to Michael’s (Brett Dier). Of course, both Jane and Rafael’s reactions highlight how different they are – Jane is saving herself for marriage, while Rafael slept with someone he never even loved and married her just to get back at Lachlan (Michael Rady).
We see another contrast between Michael and Rafael when Jane texts Rafael and he doesn’t text back – as we’ve seen, Michael always texted back. Of course, Rafael has a good reason for not texting back as he’s in the middle of being roofied! It’s not surprising that Petra uses sex as a weapon – it’s what she’s doing with Lachlan too after all. Jane fully believes that Rafael would run off and have sex with the first available woman after learning she was a virgin, and that says a lot about where their relationship is. In her heart, she believes what Xo has been saying about him being a playboy.
I thought it was a terrific twist to have Candyce wearing the Jane pendant, and go to her to confess. I loved her thinking Rafael was looking at her chest – “They’re fake if that’s what you’re wondering.” Rafael, of course, is wondering why his girlfriend’s face is sitting between them! It’s a really touching scene between Candyce and Jane as Jane once again shows how big her heart is. I also loved that Jane doesn’t give anyone false hope, she explains she’s not a messiah, just a medical anomaly. I like that the show doesn’t stereotype her as an escort – she’s religious. Naturally, the story of having lost her son would touch Jane who has had such a rollercoaster with her own baby. After all, it’s her lawyer saying the baby is “unwanted” that spurs Jane to action. Berman is terrific in both the comedic and dramatic scene, so I hope that we’ll see her again – but I suspect the show may just continue to give us these terrific cameos!
Even though Jane realizes that Rafael didn’t sleep with Candyce, she’s come to realize how different they are. Petra points out to Rafael that he and Jane are just too different – Jane’s a good girl. Jane’s used to fighting for what she wants, and he’s simply used to getting it. He tries to tell her to cut him some slack because losing his job and learning she was a virgin were tough moments for him. Jane points out that life is full of tough moments, and you have to fight for what you want. She tells him that maybe they were reading too much into what was between them. And just as Xo made Rogelio back off, Jane tells Rafael that they should just concentrate on the baby for now.
Once again, we see Jane is the one to consider everyone else around her. She realizes that the court case is making Alba very uncomfortable, and then she realizes that the baby isn’t unwanted as her lawyer said. She tells Rafael, “So why was I doing it? For the money, and that just felt ugly. Especially since you are absolutely going to look after your child financially.” Rafael is quick to reassure her that he is and he’s happy to put it in writing, It’s only after all this that Rafael finally tells Jane the truth, explaining that he never wanted his involvement to influence her decision to sue. I loved this final scene as Jane realizes that Rafael is the guy she thinks he is – he tells her he’s going to fight for his job, even if it means working for Lachlan and Petra and he’s going to fight for her too.
In his own way, we see that Rogelio is fighting for Xo too. She is desperately trying to make it work with Marco (Nicholas Gonzalez), but there’s an undeniable spark with Rogelio – and thanks to magic realism and special effects that’s a literal spark! We see the first when Rogelio finds a sad Xo drinking lemonade at the hotel. It says something that he remembers from high school that she drinks lemonade when she’s sad – perhaps he’s not as shallow as everyone assumes! He finds out that she’s sad because her singing career seems to be at a halt again and she couldn’t get a spot singing at the lounge.
Xo is angry at first when she goes to Rogelio to ask if he arranged the demo with Elliot Lantana. Juanes is hilarious, and it’s easy to see how self-involved Elliot would be a close friend of Rogelio! My fingers are crossed for a scene between Juanes and Camil. Rogelio admits that he asked for the favor, but says, “It was a nice thing I did, wasn’t it?” He’s adorable, and Xo has another spark here.
Xo does the honorable thing and doesn’t keep Marco hanging on. She desperately wants to feel the spark – so the Narrator (Anthony Medez) tells us – but when she doesn’t, she tells him the truth. She’s definitely starting to give in to her feelings for Rogelio. She invites him to the “world premiere” of her song, and they are adorable together. Rogelio assumes (rightly!) that she broke it off with Marco because of him. Camil is simply adorable again in this scene as he has eyes only for Xo. Though, to his credit, Rogelio is always attentive and polite to Alba. But it’s clear now that he really is in love with Xo.
The final spark in the episode, however, is between Rafael and Jane, and Xo sees it from across the lobby. She looks upset and is clearly still not convinced that Rafael is the one for Jane. She tries to be on board for Jane, but she’s not surprised at Rafael’s initial reaction to Jane’s virginity. Xo is the one to point out how different Jane and Rafael are. However, Alba and Xo’s father were also from different worlds. Xo and Rogelio may have gone to the same high school but they are now from different worlds too – but sometimes the heart wants what the heart wants, right?
This doesn’t help Luisa in her quest to get Rose (Bridge Regan) back, however. Luisa returns, having been to a retreat. At the retreat she took some psychedelic root that had her vomiting up all her problems. The Narrator jumps in to say, “Full disclosure? I tried it. Did nothing for me.” I love Mendez as the Narrator. I’ve had the occasional screener in which the narrator was temporarily played by someone else – trust me when I tell you, that he’s knocking it out of the park as the Narrator!
Luisa’s decided that money is the root of all her problems. And indeed, it would seem to be behind Rose turning on her to save her marriage to Solano (Carlo Rota) by telling first Rafael and then Solano that Luisa is crazy. We also learn that Luisa’s mother had mental health issues – though it’s only implied. Does this mean that Rafael and Luisa are only half-siblings? Did we know this?
Lachlan accuses Petra of being all about the money. She is clearly using him, but then he’s also clearly using her. We know that Lachlan is definitely a bad guy because he doesn’t like or appreciate the telenovela! Petra explains that you can’t base your opinion on just one scene – there’s a larger story! And of course, we can’t base our opinion of the characters on just one action – there’s always a larger story – like Petra’s hostage! We also see that while Lachlan says he is deleting Petra’s sex tape, he’s saved it on his computer. It’s sex for money/insurance again.
Finally, there is little development on Michael and Nadine’s (Azie Tesfai) investigation. Their relationship is just about the sex. I did find myself wondering why they were still based out of the hotel though. The shipping container comes in, but it only contains a man, who checks in to the hotel only to disappear. The man turns out to be a Serbian war criminal. This of course has to make you wonder about a connection to Petra. The plots thicken!
All in all, another thoroughly enjoyable episode. The show is consistently well written as evidenced by how nicely the theme is woven throughout the various plotlines. I’m still loving the little touches of magic realism, the Narrator, and the glosses – WHO THE HELL IS HE?! None of this would work, of course, if the cast wasn’t uniformly excellent. What did you think of the episode? Is Xo making a mistake in giving in to her feelings for Rogelio? Do you think that Rafael and Jane are too different? Do you think that Petra can stay one step ahead of Lachlan? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
About the Author - Lisa Macklem
I do interviews and write articles for the site in addition to reviewing a number of shows, including Supernatural, Arrow, Agents of Shield, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, Forever, Defiance, Bitten, Glee, and a few others! Highlights of this past year include covering San Diego Comic Con as press and a set visit to Bitten. When I'm not writing about television shows, I'm often writing about entertainment and media law in my capacity as a legal scholar. I also work in theatre when the opportunity arises. I'm an avid runner and rider, currently training in dressage.
