The show Devious Maids has received a lot of flack since it was announced by creator Eva Longoria. Many have said the show exploits the stereotypes associated with Latinas and is a not a good portrayal of women in the Hispanic community.
Tanisha Ramirez of the Huffington Post wrote in May, “"The minute-long trailer manages to efficiently portray Latinas as hypersexual, nosy, scheming and, at times, totally invisible domestic servants, one set of pushed-up breasts, devilishly squinted eyes and sassy hair flip at a time.” "What the trailer doesn't do, however, is allude to the supposed actual premise of the show."
Longoria would respond, "'Devious Maids' is a show that centers on five count 'em) five Latinas who are bonded together by their jobs, their ambitions, their dreams and their life struggles," "The five women are maids by occupations only; it is what they do, not who they are."
I have watched the first three episodes of the show and decided to review it. I will admit I am an African-American male so I am not Hispanic or a women. I am also not refuting or agreeing with any of the arguments made by either side. I am simply reviewing this as a show. So here goes.
“Devious Maids” includes the separate storylines of five women but seems to have a major plot that the show begins with and continues with.
We have Marisol Duarte—an Hispanic-American woman who is undercover as a maid while she looks to find evidence that will prove her son did not kill Flora, a former Maid for the Powells.
Then there’s Rosie Falta. She is fighting to bring her son from Mexico and gets help from her boss who is actually in love with her.
Next is Zolia and Valentina Diaz. Zolia is trying to keep her daughter Valentina from falling in love with her boss’ son since she herself made the same mistake years ago and had her heart broken. However, at the end of Episode 3 we find Zolia may be trying to reconnect with her former lover.
Finally there’s Carmen Luna. She becomes a maid in the house of famous singer Alejandro Rubio in an effort to also become a singing sensation. We soon learn that after she gets her big break, her producer may require more from her than just good songs. While one man is looking to exploit her, another man—her co-worker Sam Alexander—has genuine feelings for her. (Although after great amounts of rejection those feelings may have disappeared in Episode 3.)
This show has many attributes that make a great show.
Four of the five women have possible love interests, which provide an immense amount of drama. Also, there are four different side stories that continue as Marisol is trying to solve the murder—which seems to be the mains story.
Also, each episode ends with a bit of suspense. At the end of Episode three we learn that Adrian Powell is involved in a prostitution ring of which Flora may have been a part. Also, Powell likes to watch as his clients—who are usually his friends—have sex with his girls….and we don’t know why.
Devious Maids airs Sundays on Lifetime at 10 p.m.
*These are the opnions of Robert Christie and do not reflect the opinions of HNGN.com.
