“A young, devout Catholic woman discovers that she was accidentally artificially inseminated.”
IMDB’s one sentence description of the CW’s Jane the Virgin is accurate but ridiculously understated. This thoughtful, funny series first aired in 2014, and if you’re still not watching it, you need to hop on board. 
If you’re already a fan, no doubt you’ve witnessed the show’s careful commitment to explore women and people of color meaningfully. And you’ve likely noticed the growing undercurrent of feminism in its story arcs – both on and off screen with this talented collection of writers and actors.
So here’s why Jane the Virgin is your favorite feminist show of this decade….
(Season 1-3 mild spoilers included)
- It’s all about the women
Women firmly anchor this series. The slightly irresponsible teenage mom with more mature, best-friend-daughter could have hovered in Gilmore Girls rip-off territory. But the added grandmother relationship elevates JTV to even stronger female territory. Jane, her mom Xiomara, and grandmother Alba center the show with their complicated but loving relationships.
We even root quietly for the lovable villain Petra to find peace and love. Showrunner Jennie Snyder Urman created a character who transcends the one-dimensional scheming ex-wife spot with a character we all kinda want to be sometimes – at least in the business world.
- Her virginity isn’t just a ploy
Yes, the show is a little campy, with its tongue-in-cheek telenovela inspiration, complete with narrator. While the premise of the show – virgin accidentally inseminated with boss’s sperm by his sister – is far-fetched (gasp, a pregnant virgin?), Jane’s virginity isn’t her core identity. Her career, passions, and relationships are far more interesting than whether she’ll have sex or not.
Jane’s virginity doesn’t define her, but it also doesn’t erase her sexuality. Viewers understand it’s complicated – she loves her fiancee, but she made a promise to her religious Abuela. And of course, the pregnancy throws a wrench in everything.
- Diversity runs deep
Our screen isn’t only filled with women, but people of color, immigrants, same-sex relationships, and characters struggling with addiction and mental health issues. It’s a symphony of protected classes! Even supporting characters are diverse, from black and female police officers and professors of ranging ethnicities, to not just one lesbian, but several – the richness is constant.
In an amusing twist, it’s the white, hetero, cis characters who are closer to caracitatures. The late 20s book publisher with endless energy (Boo-yah! Bam!) and ridiculous “bro” phrases (I freakin’ inhaled it!) and the self-obsessed hipster boss, Chloe (she spins, goes to therapy, and craves green juice) make us chuckle and nod knowingly.
- Tropes, tropes, go away
The deep diversity helps JTV reject stereotypes in favor of deeper, more complicated characters. Jane is a hard-working, poetic, organization freak, with the tendency to butt in other people’s business – not a Latina stereotype. The female characters, too, own their sexuality without being oversexualized.
Refreshingly, it’s a man, Rogelio (Jane’s father) who is the most vain and image-obsessed – traits typically reserved for women – balanced out by his deep love and willingness to help others.
- The AARP crowd thrives
Women over 60 are all but erased from media unless it’s Judy Dench playing a queen. In television especially, the seasoned women are rarely explored, save for the occasional Frankie and Grace exception. In JTV, Jane’s grandmother, Alba is complex – she’s not just a sounding board for her beloved daughter and granddaughter, though her wisdom is deep. She struggles with grief after death, professional choices, dating, and sexuality.
- Jane feels like a friend
Unlike glamorous series leads like Nicole Kidman (Big Little Lies) and Kerry Washington (Scandal), Gina Rodriguez’s Jane is accessible, without the wackiness of a Liz Lemon or Kimmy Schmidt. Her figure is more common than what we usually see on screen, she rides the bus, and worries about her checking account balance. Who can’t identify with that?
- Gina Rodriguez rocks
Her Golden Globe victory in 2015 was well-deserved. She sagely described her win: “It represents a culture who wants to see themselves as heroes.” Her father taught her to say every morning, “Today’s going to be a great day. I can and I will.” What better daily inspiration for our children?
Not only does Gina rock the salsa dancing, she uses her platform for greater change, like talking about the wage gap and championing salary negotiation workshops with AAUW.
Gina takes to Instagram to highlight other women of color in the industry, posting a photo and bio of people of color who are activists or work in the media industry to her impressive following.
She inspires fans to use the power of their purse in Bust magazine. “If you do not see yourself and your community in the ways that you want, don’t purchase tickets. If you don’t purchase, they’ll stop making [something exclusive]. If you don’t purchase, they’ll start to include.”
Finally, Gina evolved her views on feminism in response to a fan question in 2014, showing her maturity in admitting that she didn’t quite understand what it meant, and openness to reassess her own positions.
- It highlights immigrants’ realities
In a time when the U.S. is frighteningly hostile toward immigrants, JTV has not shied away from the topic. Over time, we learn that Jane’s abuela is undocumented, which leads to her fear to report to police the assault against her, and her hesitancy to join in the Women’s March for fear of arrest. It sometimes prevents her from living life fully, even keeping her chained to a job she doesn’t like for fear of exposure.
- Parenthood is tough, y’all!
After the baby arrives, Jane is ponytailed and unshowered, deals with latching troubles, mastitis, and flat head. Postpartum depression and inadequacy fears confront Petra as a new mother. When Jane pumped in the bathroom of a bar during her best friend’s birthday, it reminds you of the ball and chain feeling that sometimes accompanies motherhood and breastfeeding.
As a mom, Jane doesn’t pretend to be perfect. “You learn on the job. Just when you think you’ve figured it out, something changes. Then you have to do it all over again.” True words, Jane!
- Working mother challenges
Like most mothers, Jane frequently weighs her professional goals with her baby’s best interests. When she’s accepted into grad school for writing (her dream!) baby Mateo is only three weeks old. During pregnancy, she somewhat naively told her mom “don’t let motherhood hijack my goals” but worries about missing “firsts” and struggles with her choices at Mommy and Me.
“Honor whatever choice is right for you,” the new mothers advise her. But Jane quickly learns these choices are not black and white. The privilege of that advice is revealed in Jane’s reluctant commitment to waitressing to pay the bills – a rare activity for a female lead.
- No cat fights
JTV rejects cattiness between women as the default. Yes, Jane and Petra sometimes love the same man and often disagree. And yes, conflict made them tumble into a pool fully-clothed, Dynasty-style. But they try, over and over, to be friends. Jane sometimes judges her, but mostly makes a conscious effort to respect Petra’s baggage (a devious mother, a violent ex) and give her the benefit of the doubt.
Underneath it all, they truly want each other to succeed.
- Justin Baldoni is changing masculinity
Justin Baldoni, who plays lead Rafael Solano, recently created Man Enough – an online series of conversations he explores with fellow celebrities, family, and doctors about masculinity. What does it mean to our society? How is it trapping and stifling men? His regular Instagram posts underscore his commitment to dissecting what this means for him and his family.
Man Enough even has a discussion guide for guys to get the conversation rolling with their friends. He’s asking questions that we should have been asking for years. Why don’t men actually talk to their friends? Why is it so hard to show vulnerability? I love what he’s doing to poke holes in the facade of traditional masculinity.
- More and more feminism
Despite the importance of religion to the Villanueva family and a relatively conservative Venezuelan grandmother, JTV embraces feminism more and more with each episode.
Jane’s memorable quotes include:
“The whole Madonna-whore paradigm is reductive.”
“The princess had her own fulfilling career outside of the monarchy.” (After realizing the misogyny of fairy tales mid-book).
“I want a child who looks up to Angelina Jolie and Michelle Obama.”
The characters even plan to attend the Women’s March together. I’m excited to see how Jane the Virgin incorporates more and more feminism into the plot as the series continues. Now excuse me while I go sit and wait for Season 4 to land on Netflix.
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