Land of Women

Land of Women is a 6 episode series on Apple TV+, and after I finished the first episode I knew that 6 episodes wasn't going to be enough. I am embarrassed to admit that this show was the first I had seen that was almost entirely in Spanish. This was something I truly loved about this show, they didn't try to strip it of it's authenticity in an attempt to fit with a wider audience, especially since most people use subtitles anyway. I have seen Eva Longoria in many things ( I am a Gabrielle Solis defender until I die) and was not at all let down by her performance in this show. However, it did make me realize something I had not put much thought into before. I hadn't noticed how often they make Spanish-speaking Latina actresses play characters that can't speak Spanish. Eva Longoria has fell victim to this on many occasions- both in Desperate Housewives as well as Telenovela- and America Ferrera in Superstore. As a non-fluent Latina, at first I found this comforting. But, the more I think about it, I am starting to feel they didn't do it for me. I feel it is to broaden their audiences- a more commonly spoken language means more viewers, which means more money. I acknowledge the fact that it is a business, while simultaneously acknowledging the fact that by doing this they are trying to make Latinos more pleasant to closed-minded people.

An aspect of this show that I really admired was its ability to be inclusive without being overly-educational. One of the largest roles from this show was a queer trans Latina, which productions tend to stray away from since it's more diversity than they feel they can handle. But, this show handled every aspect of it in the best way possible. They talked about realistic struggles a trans-fem person would face in a less liberal society then they are used to in New York, without making her a one-dimensional character that is only there to get bonus inclusivity points. They also made her a lesbian, but never really treated her sexuality any differently than they would have if she was straight. LGBTQ people don't always want their plots to be to "spread awareness". Characters should be able to be gay without it being their entire plot, which Land of women did a great job with. One of my other favorite aspects of the show was that there was never much of a superiority complex amongst Gala (Eva Longoria) and Kate (Victoria Bazua) after coming to Spain, who obviously lived a much more "comfortable" lifestyle than the people they are encountering in Catalonia. But, the writers never made La Muga a laughingstock or less than, which is how most other places (or at least non-Eurocentric places) are depicted. It should be acknowledged, nevertheless, that this could be in correlation to it taking place in Spain, which some could argue that being a European first world country itself could be why it wasn't as looked down upon as other Latin countries might have been.

It is no secret that Latina-led shows are often ended much earlier than they should be, so I am really hoping this show gets a second season. As we all know I am partial to a 3-generation female led show, especially one of a Latina family. So, it's not at all surprising that I like this show, and I can't wait to see what happens WHEN this show gets renewed.

Side note- Hopefully we get to see Diana Maria Riva again! I was so excited to see her in the first episode, and was disappointed for her to be in only one episode. Maybe she'll end up in La Muga too! Fingers crossed!