Jane the Virgin returned with “Chapter Forty-Five” written by Jennie Synder Urman and directed by Gina Lamar. The show retains its charm even into its third season. This is in part a tribute to the writers and in part a factor of the regulars who continue to deliver excellent performances every week. What’s really impressive about the acting is that the entire core cast deliver both comedic and dramatic performances in almost every episode. The writers also continue to deliver new magic realism elements – such as the flipping pages that echo the romance novel of Jane’s (Gina Rodriguez) life and my personal favorite – the Petra-turkey that needs basting!
The episode begins with our traditional flashback. Xo (Andrea Navedo) has brought young Jane (Jenna Ortega) to a reading by one of her favorite romance novelists – Layla Vane (Lizz Carter). Jane may believe completely in a happily ever after, but that doesn’t mean she’s a completely uncritical consumer! She’s had some issues with this novel and has brought a list of questions. She’s determined after being disappointed with the ending of the novel that from then on she’d read the ending first. I have to admit that I have been known to peek at the last page of a book if I’m concerned something bad may happen to my favorite character – it’s one of the things that made waiting to know Michael’s (Brett Dier) fate so hard! But then the question becomes how does knowing the ending affect the journey?
We get a look back at Jane and Michael’s epic romance – beginning with their meeting at Jane’s 21st birthday. But then moving to the next day we learn that Jane was in another love triangle with Michael and some guy called Sam (Miles Gaston Villanueva)! It turns out that Jane had a crush on Sam for some time before meeting Michael. Sam turns up with a book for Jane for her birthday. He knows her foibles and tells her the ending. He then invites her to a reading, and tells her the ending of their evening – he’s going to try to kiss her! The only problem is that she’s already told Michael she’ll go out with him that night.
In the present, Michael is alive but in critical condition. Dr Lewis (Lisagaye Tomlinson) doesn’t know if Michael is going to make it just yet and gives Jane his wedding ring for safe-keeping. Jane has a list of questions for the doctor but she is clearly distraught and then Michael’s overbearing mother – Patricia (Molly Hagan) – arrives and takes over. Alba (Ivonne Coll) tries to comfort Jane by telling her that she has to have faith – which Michael’s mother is also horrible about. Hagan really does a great job making me hate her – even while I’m sure most of her attitude is simply because she’s afraid for her son.
In the past, Xo convinces Jane to lie to Michael and tell him that she’s sick and therefore can’t go on their date. What they totally don’t expect is for Michael to make her chicken soup and bring it over! Unfortunately, he sees her leaving with Sam and pulls him over! He asks Jane to step out of the vehicle and then gives her the soup.
Anezka (Yael Grobglas) continues to impersonate Petra who is still paralyzed. Grobglas is fantastic both as Anezka and Anezka pretending to be Petra and as paralyzed Petra. However, Magda (Priscilla Barnes) tells her that she has to keep drugging Petra every few hours! Petra is about to head back to the hospital when one of the police officers investigating Michael’s shooting asks her to review some surveillance video. Meanwhile, Petra sees that Michael has been shot and hopes that there’s some way that she can get to Jane – and she gets so, so close!
Everyone is waiting for news of Michael and to support Jane. When Rogelio (Jaime Camil) has his picture taken by a couple of fanboys, he’s frantic to keep the picture off of social media because of what happened after he tweeted about Mateus being kidnapped. He actually agrees to give the two idiots his urine so that they can pass a drug test.
When Michael’s mother continues to be insufferable, Xo is about to lose it on her. Jane just wants to try to maintain the peace and asks Xo to take a walk. Xo catches Rogelio giving his urine to the tweakers. He tells her that he has to do something to help his best friend. Once again, I really love the friendship that exists between Michael and Rogelio. It also seems like they are going to give Camil a bit more to do dramatically this year, and I can’t wait to see him flex those acting muscles. Xo offers to help by substituting her urine until she realizes that she can’t. She confesses to Rogelio that she’s pregnant.
Rogelio is, not surprisingly, pretty upset at first. How can she be having a baby with his biggest rival and enemy?!? But in the end, he proves his love again by telling Xo that he’ll stand by her and would even be willing to raise the baby. Even more surprisingly, for me, was that Xo insisted that she’s not having the baby. She wouldn’t have a baby with Rogelio whom she still loves, so not having Esteban’s. Of course, right after this, Rogelio is taken away in handcuffs for admitting his part in the tweakers’ urine scam after they call him Eric Estrada!
In another flashback, Jane tells Xo that her date with Sam was weird because of Michael – but his soup is really, really good! She discovers on Michael’s Facebook page that he’s a cat person. She feels badly about lying about being sick, so Jane goes to the police station to apologize to Michael. She tells him that she’s just like to go back to the kiss and when his Lieutenant overhears, she almost gets him in trouble. She tells him that she’d like to see him again but that she’s also going to explore her relationship with Sam. Things go downhill from there until she calls him on his Facebook cat pictures and he tells her that his cat just died! He tells her that he doesn’t want to be in a love triangle.
In the present, Jane is overwhelmed and can’t face going back to the waiting room with Michael’s mother. Instead, she goes upstairs to another waiting room and breaks down. Once again, Rodriguez proves what a terrific dramatic actor she is in this scene as it’s impossible not to have your heart break for her here. It’s also hard not to feel really badly for Petra who is slowly coming out of the paralysis just a few feet away!
Anezka is still watching video footage with the police. They notice white powder on the carpet and think it may be a drug thing. While they are distracted by that, Anezka tries to make her getaway but gets locked in the stairwell! Rafael (Justin Baldoni) is a bit suspicious, but in true Petra fashion Anezka blusters her way out of it. She manages to convince them that she’s just that upset about her sister and they let her go to the hospital – but now the Officer Knapp (Patrick Cage II) is also suspicious. Anezka still manages to give Petra the shot just as she is coming out of the paralysis.
Anezka makes her life easier by telling Rafael that she wants to bring Petra back to the hotel – to take better care of her. Rafael tells Petra he’s glad that they slept together because it showed him that there is nothing left between them except friendship – the old spark just wasn’t there. And isn’t that what every woman wants to hear after you’ve just made love to a guy!?! And Anezka really, really didn’t want to hear that! She tells Magda that the “plan” for Rafael is now back on the table! Uh oh! That can’t be good!
At the hospital, Dr Lewis tells Jane that Michael isn’t out of the woods. They have two options. They can wait and see and risk loss of function or they can operate to remove the bullet. There are always risks associated with surgery too. Patricia jumps in to say no, but Dr Lewis tells Jane that she’s his wife – it’s her decision to make, not his mother’s. Jane wants to think about it and gets the support she needs from Alba who gives her a hug and tells her to think of what Michael would do. She knows that Jane just has to trust that she knows Michael well enough.
And then the flashbacks tie in perfectly. Michael shows back up and tells Jane that Sam can come on their dates with them if that’s what she wants. He refuses to walk away because the kiss they shared was magic. Jane asks him why he won’t give up, and he tells her, “I’m a fighter.” And that decides it for Jane. Michael would want the surgery. Patricia shows back up and concedes that’s what Michael’s father said too. She’s made peace with it.
Jane gets a few minutes with Michael before the surgery and tells him that this is NOT the end of their story! I loved her telling him the story of their future – she even promises him a cat! Dr Lewis eventually returns to the waiting room to tell them that the surgery went well. Ironically, that’s the distraction that Anezka uses to drug Petra again.
As Michael wakes up, Jane has an aura around her – still a virgin mother remember! I loved how cute the two of them were in this scene. Michael pretends to have amnesia – and of course, it IS a telenovela and that IS a favorite trope, so I really thought they were going to go there! But he’s kidding! Michael remembers the shooting and tells the other officers that it was Susanna. It’s clear as the officers leave that neither Patricia nor Jane want Michael to go back to being a cop… And I think we all know what Michael’s thoughts are on that!
Finally, the police discover that the white powder is actually sugar. Rafael immediately suspects Rose (Bridget Regan). The final scene is Rose with Luisa (Yara Martinez) in a submarine? Rose promises Luisa their own happily ever after!
I thought this was a terrific premiere that set a lot of balls in motion for all of our characters. What is Anezka and Magda’s ultimate plot? Will Michael go back to work? Where is Rose taking Luisa? What will Xo do about the baby? The episode also had all the elements that make this show so special – humor, romance, and drama. And of course the special Jane touch – from our narrator (Anthony Mendez) to our magic realism. What did you think of the episode? Let me know 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, 12 Monkeys, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, The X-Files, Designated Survivor, Timeless, Killjoys, and a few others! I'm active on the Con scene when I have the time. 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.
