The Cultural Value of "Jane the Virgin" and "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"

In this essay, I focus on the narrative strategies and content that make The CW's "Jane the Virgin" and "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" culturally valuable, as they upend genres, conventions, and tropes to create something new that is both recognized by critics and supported by the network. Through sophisticated storytelling, inter- and meta-textuality, diverse representations, contemporary social and political issues, critical appraisal, and auteur discourses, The CW is entering a conversation about quality television by supporting series that are not necessarily commercially viable but are critically-acclaimed in order to eventually capitalize on them through reputation and cultural economies.