La Rosa de Guadalupe (English title: The Rose of Guadalupe) is a Mexican anthologydramatelevision series created by Carlos Mercado Orduña and produced by Miguel Ángel Herros. The series centers on Mexican Catholic religiosity, specifically to the Virgin of Guadalupe. It is set in modern times and mostly takes place in Mexico City, although location varies in some episodes. The series premiered on Las Estrellas on 5 February 2008. In the United States, the series debuted on Univision on 26 June 2008.[1][2]
Plot
There are two types of beginnings for the episodes: a happy beginning, or a more melodramatic one where the main character undergoes a calamitous event that kickstarts their development. In the latter, the editor, cast, and director's credits roll during the second scene.
Main characters, portrayed as extremely devout to the Virgin of Guadalupe, almost always ask her to protect them.[3] At the same time, a white rose appears before an altar or statue of the Virgin that belongs to the person who prayed or is in trouble, and remains there during the development of the story, which usually sees an escalation of the problem. The rose's appearance means that the petition has been heard by the Virgin.
At the climax of the story, the closest person asked by the Virgin intercedes for the main character and tries to help. When the issue is resolved, the main character is "touched" by a wind that represents the act of the Virgin of Guadalupe, and at the end of the episode, the white rose disappears as a character narrates the message of the episode.
History
"Las mil rosas" ("The Thousand Roses")
On 5 July 2017, the series began its 1,000th episode celebration. Remastered versions of the earliest episodes from 2008 to 2016 were aired beginning 10 July 2017. On 22 July 2017, the 1,000th episode, "The Bastard Sister", was aired. Alejandra Barros and Alexis Ayala starred in the episode.[4]
Impact stories
Starting in May 2017, "La rosa de Guadalupe" began broadcasting episodes with more serious, social issue-driven "impact" stories on Saturdays at 9:30 pm. These stories featured more explicit topics such as rape, incest, sexual harassment, murder, and drug addiction. The content rating given to these Saturday night episodes is B-15, whereas the content rating of episodes broadcast during the business week is B.[5]
Reception
The series' features are a staple of modern Mexican television, due to its popularity among Catholics.[6] Some have criticized the show since its first broadcasts for its poor acting, writing, and directing.[7] Some reviewers have criticized the low-fidelity effects, as well as lack of research dealing with certain social groups and issues such as addiction, bullying, family violence and sexual abuse.[8]
In 2009, a similar program, A cada quien su santo, began airing on TV Azteca; during an hour, a case in some regions of the country is presented praising the faith of a particular saint, while in Televisa, there are narrative cases about miracles performed by the Virgin of Guadalupe.
"Adiós Inocencia" controversial episode
"Adiós Inocencia" ("Goodbye Innocence") is an episode that was inspired by the El Campamento Colibrí attacks involving 12 people attacking 90 people, with 7 teens being sexually assaulted, tortured, and robbed. When a sneak peek of the episode was made on 10 August 2012, parents of the victims complained about the airing, and the episode never aired. There are rumors that the episode aired on a later date around 2013 to 2014, but this hasn't been confirmed. Since the episode hasn't aired since and the only fragments revolving the episode that exist online are sneak peaks, the episode is considered lost.
Adaptations
In November 2018, América Televisión announced that a Peruvian adaptation of the series was in production titled La Rosa de Guadalupe: Perú.[11] On 20 March 2020, two years after the announcement, the series premiered.[12]La Rosa de Guadalupe: Perú consisted of 20 episodes and is considered as a spiritual sequel to Solamente Milagros.[11][13]
In August 2021, Romanian channel Antena 1 adapted the series as Povești de familie, having the same anthologic format as the original.
^"Yo escribo 'La Rosa de Guadalupe'" (in Spanish). Chilango. 5 September 2015. Retrieved 5 July 2017. Ha sido una serie muy criticada desde que empezó, sobre todo por el uso de los elementos mágicos de la rosa y el viento.
