I could probably spend a hundred years just talking about how much I love One Day At A Time. One Day At A Time is a Netflix show that recently released its second season. Premiering in 2017, it only has twenty-six episodes, which is far from enough. I binged the whole show in three days, on top of going to class, completing homework, participating in extracurriculars and sleeping. Regardless, I would've spent months watching this show, forwards, backwards, out of order, in multiple languages, it is just that good.
The show is loosely based on the 70's sitcom of the same name that tells the story of a single mother trying to make it on her own. However, in this version, the single mother is Penelope Alvarez, played by Justina Machado. Penelope is an army veteran who now works as a nurse in LA and has two children, Elena, played by Isabella Gomez who is around fifteen at the start of the show and is the definition of a teenage social justice warrior, and Alex, played by Marcel Ruiz, who is about twelve and has the comedic timing of a seasoned pro. The best character, though, is Lydia, Penelope's mother, played by the one and only Rita Moreno, the EGOT winner, the Latina icon and the queen of the Universe.
Penelope is recently separated and struggles with Post-Traumatic Stress, Elena struggles with feeling out of touch with her Cuban heritage because she doesn't speak Spanish, Alex struggles with being the only man of the house, and Lydia struggles with being a widow in a new country. Although Machado, Moreno and Ruiz are Puerto Rican, and Gomez is Colombian, the Alvarez's are Cuban. The choice to make them a Cuban family probably has something to do with the recent changes in the relationship between Cuba and the US, but it also shines a light on the large population of Cubans in Los Angeles.
I personally loved the fact that the Alvarez's are Cuban, probably because I grew up in Miami so I catch all the references and relate to a lot of the Cuban American tropes. I also genuinely enjoy how effortlessly they incorporate Spanish into the dialogue, making it sound normal instead of forced.
I'll be honest, the show is incredibly political, touching upon topics like immigration, deportation, drug abuse, mental illness, homosexuality, war, the treatment of veterans, the gender binary, climate change and religion. But the way these topics are approached is respectful, both sides of the issue are often presented and there is a clear disparity between the generations.
What I love most about this show is how relatable it is. Obviously, as a first generation immigrant who spent her whole life in the US, I relate the most to Elena and even Penelope, but I see my parent's struggles more in Lydia and the flashbacks to Berto. Not to mention, Lydia is the perfect embodiment of both of my grandmothers, the one who lives in Miami, and the one who lives back in Colombia. Everything Lydia says is something I've heard come out of either of my grandma's mouths, and her relationship with Penelope reflects my mom's relationship with her mother.
The show teaches the audience various life lessons about acceptance and change, but it is also incredibly funny, like the laugh track serves no purpose, I can laugh on my own, funny. I promise you I have had to pause and rewind an episode because I was laughing so hard. The show is heartfelt and real above anything. It doesn't seem like it tries too hard to be a hit, it does so naturally.
Above all, the cast is incredibly talented and representative of the Latinx community. Between first generation, second generation and third generation characters, they all give us a different point of view about what is like to be Latin-American. Whether it be knowing Spanish or not knowing Spanish, you grew up here or in Cuba, you're religious or not, you're dark skinned or white passing. Latino's of all shapes, sizes, and ideals are portrayed on this screen, providing the audience with the representation that is long overdue.
Growing up watching Full House or Fresh Prince in Belair, as much as I laughed, it all seemed foreign to me. It was a family dynamic I understood but never related to. I love seeing my family, while not exactly portrayed (my parents are still together and we live in Miami, not LA), on my laptop screen.
