I’d already figured out that telenovela fans (of which i am now, shamelessly, one) here in Brazil don’t seem to mind knowing plot twists several days in advance: there are about 5 magazines on prominent display at every newsstand that deal exclusively with novela predictions and I’d have to walk around blindfolded to avoid knowing what’s coming up in the series. What I didn’t realize at first, though, is that most of these spoilers actually come from the novela producer itself – I was blown away when I realized that episode summaries are posted on the show’s official website almost two weeks ahead of time.
It’s lucky that I love spoilers, because these are impressively detailed. In fact, I’m a little amazed that people who don’t like spoilers as much as I do (which I think is everyone in the known universe except maybe Dad) still watch the show. We’re not talking obsessive Lost fans trying to dig for clues about the show’s twists and turns (although a lot of the other stuff that my Midd advisor, Jason Mittell, mentions in his posts on the topic no doubt applies). No, we’re talking people deliberately reading, in advance, the details of a plot that many would argue is already prototypically predictable. You can put a gay couple in and have a prostitute as one of the main characters, but if Paraiso Tropical ever dared to pull a Sopranos, I think there would literally be riots.
But now that you know those spoilers are there, can’t wait to get started? The “episodes” page of the Globo website for Paraiso Tropical is here. And for those who don’t read Portuguese and have always wanted to experience the convoluted (but totally believable, of course) thrills of a Brazilian novela, here’s a rough translation of the episode that will air this coming Saturday, August 11:
Paula and Daniel figure out that Olavo is blackmailing Tais. Paula says that she needs to find out where Olavo opened the bank account in Daniel’s name. Dinorah invites Sergio Otavio out. Daniel and Paula carefully plan the meeting with Olavo. Dinorah obtains a photo from Carolina’s past, when she was a soccer player. Clemente gives Ze Luis a cellphone. Mateus creates a new ringtone for Ze Luis, which is an even bigger success. Neli is upset when Camila tells her about Fred’s debt. Ivan returns to the hotel to get the books. Herminia tells Lucia that she thinks Clemente is seeing another woman. Lucia confesses that she is afraid that Antenor might be cheating on her. Marion and Olavo find the books in Ivan’s backpack. Ivan lies and says that he is working for Cadelao. Daniel asks Lucia to invite Tais to dinner. Marion tells Olavo that he has to figure out an honest way for Ivan to earn money. Odete lets it slip to Lucia that Antenor once had an affair with Renata. Daniel swipes Tais’s cellphone. Iracema sets up a meeting with Carolina. Paula calls Olavo and sets up a meeting, pretending to be Tais. Daniel and Paula embrace and hope that their plan will work.
Whew. Now rinse, and repeat: can you believe that there are six of these episodes a week?
