Pensamientos Acerca de Televisión

Cristela: "Mexican Mona Lisa"

I wish I had liked this show a lot more than I did. I really wanted to like it because of Cristela Alonzo's character but it just didn't seem as imaginative as I'd hoped. As cartoonish as Ugly Betty was, it at least aspired to portray something close to modern-day reality by acknowledging the fact that most of us work in a predominantly white yet still multiracial environment. Cristela, on the other hand, still prefers a world of--ahem--black and white, if not brown and white. I don't want to blame this all on Alonzo; after all, I have no idea how much control she had over her material nor how much of the show was influenced by non-Hispanic studio executives. But I still felt the show could have been more promising than it was.

I wanted to root for Alonzo's character but I kept wishing the writing was better, the characterization sharper, the family conflicts not so banal. I would love to see her get a second chance but knowing Hollywood, I doubt that's very likely. But maybe some executive will prove me wrong. I certainly hope so.