The small screen is booming like never before. Ever since streaming platforms like Netflix, HBO Max, Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV have emerged, a golden age for TV series has dawned. Little by little these platforms have gained ground on feature-length films. This trend was amplified during the pandemic. Those few months stuck at home became the perfect time to sit in front of the TV and binge series after series.
Collider reported that in 2021 alone, more than 550 original series were created in the United States. Telenovelas became a very trendy genre, one which has traditionally been dominated by Latin American or North American productions with a Hispanic accent. We have prepared a list with a few series to enjoy:
'Narcos'
Narcos is undoubtedly the most popular Latin American series in recent years and was a big hit for Netflix. It tells the story of the rise and fall of Colombian Pablo Escobar, leader of the Medellin Cartel. Released in 2015, it features Wagner Moura and Pedro Pascal playing Escobar and DEA Agent Javier Peña, respectively.
The series has three seasons with ten episodes each and is based primarily on events from the 1990s. The first two seasons focus on the DEA's fight against the Medellín Cartel, while the third season narrates the struggle between Escobar and his main rival, the Cali Cartel.
In 2018, Netflix announced that it would renew the series for a fourth season. However, shortly thereafter, they had to go back on their word and a spin-off titled Narcos: Mexico was created. The series, starring Diego Luna, is set in the 1980s and tells the story of how the Guadalajara Cartel emerged.
'Café con aroma de mujer'
Café con aroma de mujer is a remake of the popular 1994 series, which lasted only one season. Telemundo brought the series to the small screen in 2021. Shortly thereafter, Netflix made it available to the rest of the world where, like its predecessor, it became a hit.
The series tells the love story between Teresa Suárez 'La Gaviota' (Laura Londoño) and Sebastián (William Levy). She is a humble farmer, while he is the son of the family that controls coffee production. This theme of love breaking down the borders of class is abundant in Latin fiction, especially telenovelas.
'Teresa'
Televisa's 1989 fictional series Teresa had a short run of success before ending just a year later. Starring Salma Hayek as Teresa, it tells the story of a beautiful young woman and how she desperately tries to escape her poverty-stricken neighborhood.
In 2010, similar to Café con aroma de mujer, a new adaptation was released and is available on Amazon Prime Video. It stars Angelique Boyer and also features Ana Brenda Contreras, the actress who played the role of Cristal Carrington in Netflix's new series Dynasty.
'Pasión de gavilanes'
Pasión de gavilanes became a a mass phenomenon when it premiered on Telemundo in 2003, and it is now available on Netflix. The love story of the Reyes brothers and the Elizondo sisters captivated audiences worldwide. They were two families that crossed paths following a tragic event. The Reyes brothers begin to work as caretakers of the horses on the estate owned by the Elizondo family.
The series created a few household names, like: Norma (Danna García), Sara (Natasha Klaus), Jimena (Paola Rey), Juan (Mario Cimerro), Franco (Michel Brown) and Oscar (Juan Alfonso Baptista). In fact, its success led to a second season of Pasión de gavilanes, which Telemundo premiered in 2022. Despite not having the same success as the first season almost twenty years ago, viewership has increased since the series became available on Netflix. It was not, however, renewed for a third season.
'Rebelde Way' and 'Rebelde'.
Both Rebelde Way and Rebelde are almost twenty years old, but they were a phenomenon among young audiences of the time. They told the story of two marching bands in elite schools. The Elite Way School was attended by mostly privileged children but also by some scholarship students who had to fight against social barriers to achieve success. Rebelde Way (the Argentine series available on Netflix) was the original and aired from 2002 to 2003. Rebelde (the Mexican version) came out a year later in 2004 and ended in 2006. Both series featured music from the bands that starred in the series, Erreway and RBD. These groups went on to perform concerts around the world.
In 2022 it was announced that the Mexican series Rebelde would be returning on Netflix. The new version is a sequel starring Jana, the daughter of Pilar (one of the students of the original series and daughter of the director of the Élite Way School). The theme remains the same: an elitist school that, after the success of RBD, decides to focus on music studies programs. Jana, a successful singer, arrives at the school and puts together her own group to pay tribute to the group that started it all.
'The House of Flowers' ('La Casa de las Flores')
The Netflix series is a Mexican dark comedy that features several Spanish actors. Created by Manolo Caro, The House of Flowers follows the De La Mora family, owners of one of the most important flower shops in Mexico. Things take a turn when the patriarch's mistress decides to let of the whole family's secrets out.
Mexican actress Cecilia Suárez plays Paulina de la Mora, the family's eldest daughter. Her performance stands out especially for the accent and personality she created for her character.
The series has three seasons, and a feature-length movie was made to cap the series. The film, titled The House of Flowers the Movie is also directed by Manolo Caro and features the entire cast from the series.
'The Kingdom' ('El Reino')
The Kingdom is a Netflix original drama with political overtones starring Diego Peretti and Chino Darín. It tells the story of a pastor, Emilio Vázquez Pena (Peretti) whose life changes radically when he decides to run for vice-president in Argentina's elections. He goes on to win the election, but his running mate is assassinated, so he must assume the presidency of Argentina.
The series only has one eight-episode season, so it is ideal to binge on a rainy fall weekend. There is good news for fans, Netflix announced that it will renew the series for a second season, though the premiere date has not yet been announced.
'100 Days to Fall in Love' ('100 días para enamorarnos')
100 Days to Fall in Love is an American sitcom made by Telemundo and available on Peacock and Netflix. The series premiered at the height of the pandemic and became an instant hit. The series tells the parallel love stories of Constanza Franco (Ilse Salas) and Remedios Rivera (Mariana Treviño). They are two great friends who, by chance, both decide to end 20 years of marriage with their respective spouses. However, the separations affect them both in different ways. Remedios feels conflicted between staying with her current husband, Max (Andrés Almeida) or her first love, Emiliano (David Chocarro), who reappears after years without contact. In turn, Constanza agrees to take a 100-day-long break with her husband Plutarco (Erick Elías). Once the 100 days have passed, they will have to decide whether to continue their marriage or divorce.
With only two seasons and almost 100 episodes, the series won the award for Best Telenovela at the Produ awards for excellence in Latin and Spanish-language production. Mariaña Treviño won the Produ's Best Actress award for her performance as Remedios Rivera.
'The Queen of the South' ('La Reina del Sur')
Similar to Narcos, La Reina del Sur is a crime based drama that tells the story of Teresa Mendoza (Kate del Castillo). After the death of her boyfriend, "Güero" Dávila (Rafael Amaya), she becomes involved in drug trafficking and must find a way to survive.
The series has three seasons on Netflix and Telemundo, which is made up of 141 episodes and was filmed in Spain, Mexico, Colombia, Morocco and the United States between 2011 and 2017. It is worth noting that it is an adaptation of the book by Spanish writer Arturo Pérez Reverte, La Reina del Sur.
In addition, its first season, produced by the then president of Telemundo Global Studios, Patricio Willis, became the most expensive telenovela produced by Telemundo having a budget of $10 million.
'Modern Family'
Modern Family is one of the great American comedies. The Dunphy, Pritchett and Tucker families won the hearts of American audiences from the show's premiere in 2009 until its final episode on April 8, 2020. Perhaps the most emblematic Modern Family character was Colombian-American actress Sofia Vergara. She played Gloria, Jay Pritchett's wife and mother of Manny Delgado, played by Mexican-born actor Rico Rodriguez.
After 11 seasons on ABC, the series is now available on Hulu. It is a must-see comedy. It had very good ratings and won 22 Emmy Awards, the Golden Globe for Best Series in 2012 and more than 30 other awards. The episodes are only 20 minutes long, so they can even be watched on the commute to work.
'On Death Row' ('En el corredor de la muerte')
On Death Row is a Spanish series produced by Movistar Plus. In the United States, it is available on Fubo and Pantaya. It narrates the life of Pablo Ibar, a Spaniard who has been in prison for more than 25 years for a murder he claims he did not commit. It is based on a true story. The series only has four episodes (plus a fifth in the form of a podcast).
The series stars Miguel Ángel Silvestre and Marisé Álvarez in the roles of married couple Pablo and Tayna Ibar. It was adapted from Nacho Carretero's book by the same name and tells the story of Pablo, the Spanish-American who spent sixteen years of his life on death row until a new trial sentenced him to life in prison.
'Money Heist' ('La casa de papel')
Money Heist is the most successful Spanish series in recent years. After a discrete premiere, Netflix bought it and helped share it with the rest of the world. The show has become a massive success, so much so that the Netflix agreed to create three more seasons which are already out.
The series tells the story of the robbery that a gang carries out at the Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre (National Mint) of Spain. The crime, against all odds, turns out well thanks to the brilliant plan of "The Professor" (Álvaro Morte). The case is a huge headache for Raquel (Itziar Ituño), the inspector in charge of the case.
Personally, I wish the show ended after the second season, as was originally planned. However, it is undeniable that Money Heist was a massive hit and that each of its seasons was a real ratings success for Netflix. The series clearly demonstrates the rise of Hispanic fiction, whether Spanish or Latin American.
'Velvet' and 'Velvet Collection' ('Velvet' and 'Velvet Colección')
These are some of the most iconic stories of Bambú Producciones. The series Velvet, produced by Antena 3 and available on Netflix, tells the love story between the son of the owner of Velvet Galleries, Alberto Márquez (Miguel Ángel Silvestre) and a seamstress, Ana Rivera (Paula Echevarria) and is set in one of the most important galleries in Spain in the 1960s.
The period drama ran for four seasons and was a great success not only in Spain, but also in Italy and the United States. The last episode of the series was the first in Spain to broadcast part of its episode live, a resource that has not been used since in the country and one that got 4,348,000 viewers to gather in front of the TV to watch the outcome of the love story between Ana Rivera and Alberto Márquez.
As a result of its success, the Spanish subscription platform Movistar Plus bought the rights and made Velvet Colección, a spin-off starring Clara Montesinos (Marta Hazas), Alberto's personal secretary and one of Ana's great friends. The series, which has three seasons also available on Netflix, tells how Clara becomes the director of the Barcelona headquarters of Galerías Velvet and is set in the 1970s.
'Grand Hotel' ('Gran Hotel')
Also from Bambú Producciones, Gran Hotel (Grand Hotel) was the company's first big hit and can be seen on Fubo and Pantaya. Set in 1905, it tells the story of Julio Olmedo (Yon González). He arrives at the hotel with the intention of seeing his sister, Cristina (Paula Prendes). However, she disappears the night before and he sneaks in dressed up like an employee of the hotel in order to find out what happened to her. While investigating he meets Alicia, the daughter of the hotel owner played by Amaia Salamanca. The series premiered in 2011 on Antena 3 and wrapped up in 2013 on the same network after three seasons on the air.
Given its worldwide success, actress Eva Longoria bought the rights to it and decided to make the American adaptation, which she produced. The series aired on ABC. Under the same name, this time the series was set in the present day and starred the Mendoza family, the family that owns one of the best hotels in Miami Beach. However, this new version was not as successful as expected and was cancelled after only one season on the air. However, it is still on Disney Plus.
'Cable Girls' ('Las chicas del cable')
Netflix decided to enlist Bambú Producciones to produce what was its first original production in Spain, Las chicas del cable (Cable Girls). The series premiered worldwide in April 2017 and ended in February 2020 after five seasons on the air making it one of the most watched series on the platform.
The series, a product of Bambú Producciones, is once again a period drama. However, it does not tell the story of a gallery or a hotel, but sets its plot in the first telephone company that operated in Spain and begins in 1928. Lidia (Blanca Suárez) arrives at the company and soon becomes friends with the rest of the "cable girls": Ángeles Vidal (Maggie Civantos), Carlota Rodríguez de Senillosa (Ana Fernández), Marga Suárez (Nadia de Santiago) and Elisa Millán (Ana Polvorosa).
All of them will be involved in various plots of mystery, murder and intrigue while witnessing some of the most innovative social and technological advances of the time not only for society, but specifically for women.
