TV Blog: The Selena Series

 Hi friends! How have you been?

I will be up front, I have not been doing well these last two weeks. I have been down on myself because my productivity and overall mental wellbeing have been absolute crud. I kind of wanted to do a blog post about how even though this year has been unimaginably painful for literally everyone, there was still something good in the world that happened maybe in 2020. I was gonna write about how dope 2020 was as a music year, but who am I kidding---no one cares about my music opinions, and I already have an embarrassing amount of Taylor Swift posts on this blog.

So I'm choosing to write about the Selena series instead, because why the hell not.

I have already blogged about Selena Quintanilla Perez on this site previously, and how important she is to me. The bigger picture is that she means a lot to many people, and she has grown to become a Latin@ icon.

I have eagerly awaited the Selena series since Netflix dropped that first trailer last year with a mystery release date. I thought that maybe Netflix would choose to release the series on a significant day, like Selena Day maybe, but instead Netflix released the series like a week or so ago. And myself and also many many many other people watched the show as soon as it was released.

I suppose there will be some spoilers contained here, so if you don't want spoilers, turn around now. Also, everyone knows the story of Selena, so I'm not too sure how spoilery the spoilers would be. It's kinda of like if people went into the Titanic movie and were like "Damn I wonder what's gonna happen to that ship".

Everyone on the ship gets rich and famous right? No old lady drops anything into the bottom of the ocean?

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Ok so what even was this show and why did it have the budget of a Lifetime Original Movie?

I ask, after canceling One Day At A Time and releasing this series, does Netflix hate Latin@people? (I'm only half joking hahaha).

Friendly reminder that Rita Moreno is an EGOT, a Latinx legend, and dated Marlon Brando back in the day.

I didn't quite know what to expect from the show when it was announced. I have watched the Selena movie repeatedly throughout the years, and I've tried to stay current about news of Los Dinos and the greater Selena universe through the interwebs as well. And I just thought like, if I've seen the movie repeatedly for years, then is there going to be anything else in the show for me?

The answer is not really. This series is basically the exact same story and point of view as the movie. If you're a die hard Selena fan, you probably won't learn much from the series. I did however enjoy some of the plot about Pete and the other band mates trying to make it big and write music.

Aside from the show being just a retread of the movie basically, the show is just kind of bad, and that's the worst part.

It seriously looks, sounds and feels like a low budget CW show (think Roswell New Mexico), but with the sound mixing and sometime campy tone of a less good Disney Channel Original Series from like 2005, and the character development of the Big Bang Theory. Maybe that's unfair, I mean the CW does have some sort of production quality. This show is bad, compare it to other Netflix original series. It's comparatively bad.

I really wanted to like the show. I really did. I've been a Selena fan for basically my entire life, and I couldn't even finish the series initially. I made it to episode six where they did this to Chris Perez:

Why did they do this to Chris Perez? Hasn't the man been through enough?

For context, this is what he looked like in the movie:

In the movie he was portrayed, as we in the biz would say, as fine.

And this is what he looks like in real life:

Please put some respect back on this man's name. I did finish the series for this blog, and I do think that the latter half of the series is better than the first half.

In this series we get more of Abraham, A.B., and one token Suzette episode. (I did tear up a bit when Suzette gave the little girl her drum sticks :') ). But we only get like a one dimensional Selena character. People on twitter have said that the show should have been called Los Dinos instead of Selena, and also that Christian Serratos seems like she's playing J.Lo in the Selena movie, instead of Selena Quintanilla herself. I agree with both sentiments. 

Aside from all of the very petty and shallow views that I have expressed above, many people smarter than me have already commented about how the show has cast an actress with very European features to play Selena, a woman with mestiza features, and about the dangers of white washing in Hollywood even in 2020. I encourage you to read about this as well, from folks who are smarter and much more articulate than me.

Above: On the left is the actress, on the right is the real.

Sorry, but European beauty standards could never. I can't get over how beautiful Selena was in like every single picture, with any kind of hair style, and any kind of makeup/look. Selena would have ate up these instagram baddies nowadays.

And I guess that brings me to my final bullet point: Abraham Quintanilla.

I mean where to begin?

For the beginners here, Abraham Quintanilla is the patriarch of the family band. He was also a pretty notorious stage dad. He was Selena's manager, and he played a big big big part in the behind the scene stuff of the band.

In the years since Selena's death, Abraham has continued to be the spokesman for the family and all things that are officially Selena. He and the Quintanilla family gave their blessing for and were involved in the creation of this series.

I want to digress a bit. In the landmark Lemonade visual album, Beyonce takes us on a journey. I remember watching the album when it was surprise released on HBO. I was laying on my couch, home alone, trying to break a fever. I think often of the spoken word interludes between the songs in Lemonade. And now I think of this one:

From Chapter 6: Accountability

Mother dearest let me inherit the Earth. Teach me how to make him beg. Let me make up for the years he made you wait. Did he bend your reflection? Did he make you forget your own name? Did he convince you he was a god? Did you get on your knees daily? Do his eyes close like doors? Are you a slave to the back of his hand? Am I talking about your husband or your father?

In the Selena Cinematic Universe, Abraham is god. He is an all knowing god, and he is infallible.

In the movies and show, he aggressively pushes his children to form a band even when they don't want to, he dictates the kind of music they play, and which instruments. He declines steady work opportunities so that be a manager for his kids' band, which results in the family being homeless!!! He takes Selena out of high school so that she can tour. He forces his kids and wife to make their entire life about the band (Selena can't go out with girl friends from school and AB cries at one point because he is 20 without a job and a girlfriend and friends!). HE BUYS THREE HOUSES WITHOUT CONSULTING HIS WIFE FIRST! HE DOESNT ALLOW SELENA TO DATE AND WHEN SHE DOES HE STRANDS THE BOYFRIEND HUNDREDS OF MILES FROM HIS HOME!!!!

How do you buy three houses without talking to your wife first brother???? When you have been notoriously bad with money in the past bro???????

BROOOOOOOOOOO

And the way it's portrayed in the show, we're supposed to side with Abraham!!!!! He's portrayed as some sort of sage, all knowing musical genius/legal contract specialist! He tells his kids like "Whats the rule?" for ANY situation and they're like "mmm you're right dad, I can't have friends, it'll interfere with the band". BRUHHHHHHHHHHH

BROOOOOOOOOO

I thought that Abraham looked toxic in the movie, but the series was a whole nother thing!!! Why did the show think that he would look sympathetic here???????

Now seems like a good time to bring up the idea of exploitation.

Abraham Quintanilla has been known on the interwebs to be someone who has tight tight control over Selena's image even in death. Abraham has famously continued to have struggles with Selena's husband/widower Chris Perez (look into the circumstances surrounding Chris Perez's book, To Selena With Love). It seems like at some point, Chris was shopping around his book/perspective for a series, and Abraham found out and sued him. Abraham is also notoriously litigious (Mr. Quintanilla, if you are reading this blog, please don't sue me bro, I am poor).

Because Chris was prevented from telling his story in a series, we are stuck with the same old story/perspective about Selena from the Quintanilla family. And now I guess we come to: is the purpose of the series, which is basically just a meatier retread of the movie, to spread the good word about Selena and her music, or is it to make another buck?

I don't know the answer to that question. I'm not a Quintanilla right? Maybe it's a little bit of both. But I wish that Abraham would allow Chris to tell his story, so that we could get to know another side of Selena.

Overall rating for the show:

If 1 is Emily in Paris, and 5 is King of the Hill:

I give this a 2.5

Apparently there is going to be a season 2, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯