Jezebel: Soap Opera

Bat For Lashes

Anna Holmes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:10:00 EST

[Kabul, November 20. Image via Getty]

Spanish-Language Soap Is Bloody Good Fun

Dodai Stewart — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 12:30:00 EDT

Even if you don't speak Spanish, you'll understand the glare in the eyes of the women on controversial soap opera Mujeres Asesinas. The series — a hit in Argentina, Colombia and Mexico — features a different story each week. Long-suffering, mild-mannered women are wronged by a man (husband, lover, father, john) and are transformed into "hellions" with nicknames like Patricia "Avenger," Martha "Suffocator" and Margarita "Poisonous." Cue the vengeance! While viewers are gleefully cheering these women on, the press (of course) has a bit of a problem with the show. Writes Reed Johnson for the L.A. Times, "Mujeres Asesinas has stirred talk in the Latin American media about whether it might incite women to commit more acts of revenge-fueled violence. Advertisements for the show have played up that titillating idea with tag lines such as, 'Cuidado! No permitas que tu mujer vea esta nueva serie.' (Take care! Don't let your woman see this new series.)" Oh yes, the poor, poor hombres. More »

Fly The Friendly Skies

dodai — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 11:45:00 EST

Flight attendants in Thailand are demanding that a new soap opera, The Air Hostess Wars, be taken off the air after three episodes because they find the show offensive and demeaning. After watching a clip, one can see their point, though the show appears to be, in a word, awesome. Noppadol Thaungthong, a Thai Airways flight attendant leading the protest says, "It's all about sex and air hostesses beating each other up in the cabin because of love and jealousy. This kind of thing never happens." But it certainly makes for must-see TV! Click the picture for a video clip; it's in Thai but hot pilots, face-slapping and catfights need no subtitles. [Guardian] More »