As anyone does before they start a new book, they read the back cover first, to figure out what exactly they are about to get themselves into. This is not any different from when you are about to start a new show. You research, read reviews, and luckily for me, Rebelde is nearly a 5-star show. Here is what I have gathered about this famous telenovela.
I have heard of Rebelde before, and seen snippets of it in my childhood, yet I never really took a deep look into the show. After doing my research on Rebelde, I can say with certainty that it is definitely not your typical telenovela. Of course, it has the love and the drama, but usually telenovelas only remain on screen. On the contrary, Rebelde became a successful real life band (RBD). Before I go on into the history, I will give a small overview of what the show is really about and where it originated.
The Mexican version of Rebelde actually came from an earlier version produced in Argentina, Rebelde Way (Guimaraes). Their plot was a bit different, with only 4 protagonists and the bands name being Erreway (Guimaraes). This version of Rebelde was also extremely successful in selling its music, however the fame definitely did go more towards the Mexican version.
Rebelde follows the story of 6 teenagers, all with wild different stories. A rich rebellious girl with a singer mom, a boy searching for revenge for his fathers murder, heiress to fashion empire, son of a politician, poor aspiring doctor, and another rich boy all attend the same elite school (Guimaraes). The school, Elite Way is where our protagonists meet and form a band, and the rest is history!
The band jumped from on screen to off, and not only did the telenovela do well, but so did the band. It became one of the most famous Latin American band groups, and even secured 2 Latin Grammy nominations (Guimaraes). It is insane to believe the strength of the bands fanbase, and their popularity despite the band's life being so short lived. Their success not only was in Latin America, but it spread throughout the rest of the world. The show even had famous stars like Hillary Duff make appearances on the show (Villas). It brings up the question of, why did this show become so popular?
My theory is simple, teenagers love seeing themselves on screen doing outlandish, non-teenager-y things. This trope of random teens coming together and uniting is a common one. It's seen in other shows/movies like Lemonade Mouth, Riverdale, and even Elite. Rebelde honestly did remind of Elite when I first saw the uniforms. A bunch of kids going to an ultra prestigious school, what could go wrong? However, Elite is far more darker than the lighthearted Rebelde. It still goes to show that teenagers LOVE shows in which their aspects of their own life are amplified and go beyond what they have ever imagined.
The show definitely also connected many young Latinos with pop culture. While American children had shows at home showing the popular style of that time (Y2K) and more of a punk style, Latin America was the complete opposite (Escalante). Being predominantly Catholic and traditional, these fashion trends were way too weird for those communities. Naturally, teenagers are eager to rebel against their conservative society, and Rebelde gave them that outlet. The characters are shown with mini skirts, chunky jewlery, a more punk style. The women did not wear revealing clothing to be categorized as the prostitute character, but to show off how she is confident and that society cannot tell her what to wear! This is something that is extremely frowned down upon in Latin American culture, yet Rebelde rebelled (ha!) against these norms. It gave "indie" or "alternative" Latinos to see themselves on the big screen and identify themselves with some who looks like them.
Not only did Rebelde shake Latin America, but it also did to the entire world. Its legacy lives on even now, with a sequel now airing on Netflix. This iconic show will live on and continue to impact teenage culture for decades to come.
SITES USED:
Escalante, Ana. “How the Fashion of 'Rebelde' Inspired a Latinx Pop-Punk Generation.” Harper's BAZAAR, 6 Oct. 2021, https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/film-tv/a37867102/looking-at-rebeldes-pop-punk-style-influence/.
Guimaraes, Elisa. “A Brief History of 'Rebelde', from Argentinian Television to Netflix.” Collider, 16 Dec. 2021, https://collider.com/rebelde-history-from-argentinian-television-to-netflix-reboot/.
Villa, Lucas. “Here's How Cult Band RBD Impacted the Gen Z Generation.” Remezcla, 8 Aug. 2020, https://remezcla.com/lists/music/heres-how-cult-band-rbd-impacted-the-gen-z-generation/.
Hi Giselle,
ReplyDeleteLike "Rebelde", the novela I'm watching, "Juana la Virgen", features a teenage protagonist, but only one. It's interesting how "Rebelde" focuses on a group of teens, and I think that make it different from a lot of telenovelas because it makes it more geared towards a teenage audience. In "Juana", it's almost incidental that Juana is a teenager because almost immediately she is catapulted into adulthood because she gets pregnant and has to manage adult relationships. In sounds like "Rebelde" is more about the drama of youth, and therefore more relevant to teenagers.
Another thing that I believe makes "Rebelde" a teen novela is the fact that it focuses on a group. Teenagers tend to see themselves in the context of their friend groups because they're still forming their identities while adults are more likely to see themselves as individuals. This is exemplified in American TV as well: "Riverdale", "Stranger Things", "Euphoria" and more are aimed at teenage audiences and feature a friend group as the protagonists while adult shows tend to focus more on individuals or individual relationships, with other characters' relationships as subplots. That's why a novela like "Juana" is more adult even though the protagonist is a teenager: it's about Juana and Mauricio with other characters also having relationships around them, not about how all of the characters feel about each other as a group.