Everything you need to remember before watching Jane the Virgin season 2
Because there's an AWFUL lot going on and you've probably forgotten most of it...
Jane the Virgin is award-winning high drama with bag loads of heart. But it doesn't half move quickly. Even if, like me, you gulped down every episode of season one with gusto, it's been a while. And between heart-warming scenes of female friendship, telenovela interludes and melodramatic madness, it's easy to lose your way a little.
Never fear, we're here to recap the brilliantly fast-paced drama to make sure the first episode of season two makes perfect sense. Or as much sense as it possibly can, anyway...
Right, remember Jane? Of course you do. She's a 24-year-old graduate, living in Miami with her mother and grandmother, who dreams of being a writer. She's clever, hard-working and has always made sensible choices. In fact, her pious grandmother Alba taught her to protect her virtue (so as not to make the same mistake Jane's mother Xiomara did and end up a young single mum) so Jane vowed not to have sex until marriage. And she still hasn't (got married, or had sex) but she has had a baby. You see, Jane was artificially inseminated. By accident.
There Jane was at the doctors for a standard smear test, when Dr Luisa Alver, a recovering alcoholic struggling with a break-up, made an almighty mistake. To make matters more complicated, the sperm belonged to Luisa's brother, wealthy Rafael Solano (who Jane had a crush on a few years earlier) who owns a luxurious hotel (where Jane works as a waitress).
AND it was Rafael's last chance at a family of his own after having cancer a few years earlier. He was married to scheming, gold-digger Petra (also known as Natalia) at the time and Jane was engaged to police detective Michael Cordero. But that all went down the pan when Jane and Rafael fell in love...
More like this
The expectant parents were happy together for a while, but Rafael started spiraling out of control when he found out his father was killed by his step-mother Rose (who is actually a famous crime boss called Sin Rostro who ran a plastic surgery ring changing criminals' faces from the hotel. And Luisa's secret lover.) The pressure got too much so Rafael broke up with Jane, a choice he really regrets.
As if an accidental pregnancy and all this romantic drama wasn't enough, Jane also recently met her father, famous telenovela star Rogelio de la Vega, for the first time. He and her mother Xio fell for each other again. In fact, they literally JUST got married in Vegas, while incredibly, incredibly drunk. But no one knows yet...
Because Jane went into labour. Her beautiful baby boy Mateo was born in the final episode of season one. And then stolen. By someone pretending to be a nurse who might have been Rose (aka Sin Rostro) with a new face.
Oh and Rafael's very last sperm sample turned out not to be the last. Petra, who now owns a chunk of Rafael's hotel and is desperate to win him back, is currently in possession of the actual last sample which had gone missing. Tune into the first episode of season two to find out what she decides to do with it.
And also what's happened to Mateo. Tonight's episode picks up just 9 minutes after the end of season one, so not much has changed. In fact, Jane is yet to realise that baby Mateo is even missing...
Jane the Virgin continues on Wednesday at 7:30pm on E4