Netflix's 'Siempre Bruja' is problematic but that could have been avoided By Nicky Idika Siempre Bruja (Always A Witch) isn't a complete disaster, but it does fall down in some pretty crucial places. Here are a few of the ways Siempre Bruja could have avoided some of its more problematic elements. The long awaited Spanish language series Siempre Bruja (Always A Witch) landed on Netflix just in time for Black History Month but the show has failed to live up to many people's expectations. The series follows Carmen Eguiluz, a Colombian afro latina slave who is burned as a witch in the 1600s. Carmen does not die, though, and she is transported to modern Cartagenia, Colombia to fulfil a mission for a wizard from her time. While many felt that the series had promise, elements of Siempre Bruja proved problematic or, at the very least, reductive. From the unfortunate slave romance storyline to Carmen's own character development, here are a few of the ways Siempre Bruja could have avoided some of its more problematic elements. Siempre Bruja has the perfect opportunity to properly address slavery and, yet, it mostly glosses over the topic. In Siempre Bruja slavery is mentioned the same way a person might mention their profession or their summer internship. In one scene, Carmen is reminded of her mother, Paula, who introduces herself as a "slave, a mother, and a wife". Unfortunately, the institution of slavery is never discussed in any meaningful way. We don't even have an understanding of what it is about Carmen's specific circumstances as a slave (beyond her relationship with Cristobal) that make her so eager to return to the 1600s. Carmen is burned alive, forbidden to read or write, and persecuted for loving Cristobal because she is black and a slave. Slavery, as an institution is inherently cruel and yet Carmen is more than happy to return–despite all she has seen and experienced in the modern world. At one point, one of Carmen's friends asks why she would return to the 1600s just to be a slave again, to which Carmen replies: "No. I am no longer the same woman," as if a lack of confidence is what made her a slave in the first place. The fix: Slavery is cruel and immoral and Carmen being happy to return to a time where this practice is commonplace effectively creates a barrier between the character and potential black viewers. Either do the due diligence on the topic or leave it alone. Slavery being used as a plot device in this superficial way is more than unfortunate. Carmen being sold on the auction block again in 'Siempre Bruja'. Picture: Netflix/Screenshot Carmen feels like a supporting character in her own story. Carmen arrives in 2019 and immediately begins solving other people's problems. She helps a ghost send a message to their living relative. She helps her friend stop a vengeful ex from passing around a sex tape. She even helps wake another friend from a coma. Carmen's character props up so many dramatic subplots that the framing of the young witch as a lead character feels... not entirely accurate. While Carmen is portrayed as a naive outsider, her peers are seen as savvy and knowledgeable, despite constantly needing Carmen's help. For the first few episodes of Siempre Bruja Carmen's entire personality is "confused witch". The fix: Giving this character more agency could have gone a long way toward crafting a true lead. Angely Gaviria brings a great deal to the role but Carmen should have been allowed to focus on developing her identity as a witch separate to Cristobal and her friends' problems. Carmen listens as another character explains their problems . Picture: Netflix/Screenshot Carmen's powers aren't explored more. Much of the witchcraft Carmen performs in Siempre Bruja is largely in the service of others, which is not necessarily a bad thing. However, her witchcraft journey is never explained or detailed. The specifics of her powers are never explored. Carmen has abilities but it's unclear how or when they develop. The original Charmed series, for instance, spent a great deal of time and effort showing the three sisters studying witchcraft (traditional herbs, potion-making, writing spells etc) and developing their powers. Siempre Bruja does none of that and this huge part of Carmen's identity is never really expanded upon. The fix: Ground Carmen's magic in something that isn't so ambiguous. Her witch "lineage" is mentioned multiple times and yet is never detailed. This could be easily explained with a few flashback scenes and lines of dialogue. Yet everything about Carmen's magic is one dimensional and situational. Carmen performs magic by her friend's hospital bed. Picture: Netflix/Screenshot The series bends over backwards to make Cristobal a "good guy". Why does Siempre Bruja portray Cristobal as a good guy, as if falling for Carmen is a character defining achievement? The rehabilitation of Cristobal's mother, a woman who effectively condemned Carmen to death, is hard to to reconcile as well. Siempre Bruja falls into the trap of trying to humanise slave owners and their progeny in a way that is incredibly problematic for a modern audience. It is not necessary for viewers to identify with Cristobal and his family in order to understand Carmen as a character. So, why must we endure this tired narrative? The fix: Scrap the slave owner's son romance plot entirely. Cristobal anchors Carmen to the 1600s, but that same strong bond could have easily been established with a coven, a child, or other strong familial ties. Cristobal and his mother look on in Siempre Bruja . Picture: Netflix/Screenshot Siempre Bruja isn't a complete disaster, but it does fall down in some pretty crucial places. The series serves up more unnecessary slave owner/slave romance and doesn't give the lead character space to grow in her magic. Siempre Bruja might have been released in time for Black History Month but it's probably a Netflix original you can afford to skip.<doc-sep>If you can't get enough supernatural content in your TV habits, then feast your eyes on Siempre Bruja. The new Netflix series features an Afro-Latina leading actress named Angely Gaviria as its titular time-traveling witch, but since the American version is dubbed, fans may be wondering: where is Siempre Bruja set? The series was developed and made in Colombia. Siempre Bruja, listed in English as Always a Witch to American Netflix viewers, takes place in picturesque Cartagena, which is port city on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. It opens on Carmen, a 19-year-old Afro-Colombian slave and witch who is about to be burned at the stake for falling in love with a white man named Cristobál. The time period is 17th century colonial Colombia, but an old wizard steps in and asks Carmen if, to spare her from her fate, she'd like to travel to a time when no one believes in witches. She agrees (obviously, because flames), and instead of burning, she's transported to present-day Colombia. The catch is, in exchange for walking away with her life, she's not allowed to use her powers ever again. But, of course, she's a young witch and doesn't exactly have control over them just yet. She tries her best but her present day friends still find her, among other things, levitating in her sleep. Carmen realizes that her promise turns out to be harder to keep than anticipated. Once a witch — well, you know where this is going. Despite her cruel punishment, Carmen really was in love with Cristobál and is determined to find her way back to him through time. If her powers turn out to be the only way to do it, well, so be it. Unfortunately, she has some very modern obstacles in her way, like, uh, WTF is an "app," and also: cars? And kitchen sinks? Of course, Carmen does find loyal friends to help her out and she eventually figures out that there's a powerful but sinister figure named Lucien who can get her back to her lost love. The ten episode first season is inspired by the 2015 novel Yo, Bruja, by Isidora Chacon, according to Netflix. While the Spanish language trailer is fitted with English subtitles, the full series on Netflix is entirely dubbed in English for the non-Spanish speaking among us. But the story is exactly the same as what Spanish speaking audiences are hearing. In addition to coming from a Colombian production team, the series also has some formidable Latinas at the helm. Juan Pablo Gutiérrez/Netflix Liliana Bocanegra (La Esclava Blanca, Made in Cartagena, Celia) is one-half of Season 1's directing duo and Ana Maria Parra (Cuando Vivas Conmigo, La Nocturna) is the series' head writer, according to Netflix. The series also boasts Maria Cervera and Juliana Barrera as producers, so it seems like Netflix is committed to not only developing a series with strong Latinx influences, but also actually placing Latina women in positions of power. Siempre Bruja: Always a Witch is currently streaming on Netflix.<doc-sep>When the trailer of Siempre Bruja was released in January, Netflix fans were thrilled at the idea of a new series centered around an Afro-Latina woman. The show promised us an exploration of a witch who time travels from the 1600s to present-day Cartagena on a mission. The trailer did not divulge much about that mission. Starring Angely Gaviria (as Carmen), the ten-episode series focuses on Carmen’s relationship with her slave master’s son. Her goal: to return to her old life with Cristóbal as a slave, despite being an unrestrained woman in the present-day. In the first episode, Carmen is auctioned off as a “sweet virgin.” Her providential buyer, the son of a slave master. Cristóbal and Carmen begin their love affair. Carmen has secret encounters with her lover, and even deliberately places a flower in her hair, as her life insinuates no worries. Cristóbal’s mother incriminates Carmen. Cristóbal is shot. While awaiting sentencing, Carmen agrees to travel to the future to help a wizard, in exchange for the one thing she desires, going back to Cristóbal. Carmen is not concerned with her freedom. As we delve deeper into the series, we recognize that Carmen’s story arc is not the only one reliant on her relationship. Her friends, Alicia and Mayte, also have storylines that mostly revolve around the men in their lives. Newcomer, Dylan Fuentes is one of the few redemptive characters of the series. Johnny Ki (Fuentes) is charming and appends a vulnerability that is refreshing in the midst of this thoughtless storyline. He desperately wants to help Carmen. She, however, is so focused on recouping her old life that she never addresses the reality of those circumstances. There’s hardly any discussion about the pain and trauma black men and women endured in the 1600s. Noticeably, there are also many Afro-Latino male characters missing from the narrative. While we certainly want to see more opportunities for Afro-Latinos, we have to challenge how these projects impact us long-term and accept when we just don’t get it right. Siempre Bruja presented an opportunity to educate and enlighten audiences of the history connecting Latin American communities to our African history. However, the series managed to do quite the opposite. The initiative to increase representation for Afro-Latinas took an unfortunate step back with this slave romance. –Jaleesa Lashay Diaz<doc-sep>As her friend lies comatose in a hospital bed, Carmen Eguiluz orders the young woman to wake up, her voice louder with each command. Eyes closed and face clenched, Carmen rises toward the ceiling, hovering in the air until her incantation rouses her friend. The other visitors in the room look on in stunned silence: They’ve never witnessed such a scene before. And while viewers of Netflix’s new series Siempre Bruja (Always a Witch) have surely seen lots of cinematic magic, watching a black woman perform it may be a novel experience for them too. Witchcraft is a well that Hollywood keeps returning to, whether it’s for movies or TV shows. Last month, news broke that Anne Hathaway would star in a remake of 1990’s The Witches. The fall television season saw the debuts of The CW’s Charmed reboot and Netflix’s The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. On FX’s American Horror Story, Sarah Paulson and her coven returned to battle the Antichrist in Apocalypse. Except for Charmed, however, none of these vehicles star women of color as leads. With Dago García (Pedro el escamoso, El Paseo) as executive producer, Siempre Bruja stands out for centering, and humanizing, a black witch. Inspired by Isidora Chacón’s 2015 novel Yo, Bruja, the series kicks off in 17th-century Cartagena, Colombia, with an enslaved Carmen (Angely Gaviria) time-traveling to the city in the present to avoid being burned at the stake for practicing magic. The hoverboards, mobile phones, and cars of the modern world baffle her, but she doesn’t plan to stick around for long. The 19-year-old witch is in 2019 Cartagena to fulfill a promise to Aldemar (Luis Fernando Hoyos), the wizard who gave her the time-bending spell. In exchange for him helping her escape to the future, she’s agreed to deliver an enchanted stone to a witch working as a college professor. Although Carmen gets the job done, the professor disappears before performing the ritual that will send her back to 1646. Despite the threat to her own life in the past, Carmen desperately wants to return to save her boyfriend Cristóbal (Lenard Vanderaa), who was shot by his father for trying to stop her would-be execution. Cristóbal’s parents own Carmen, and his mother accused the enslaved woman of bewitching him. This is a complicated start to a show that’s equal parts fantasy and telenovela. But Siempre Bruja is unique in that the black witch doesn’t sow discord or merely exist on the margins; she’s the main attraction — the most powerful witch in a long line of them. Actress Angely Gaviria deftly inhabits the role of Carmen, and she’s surrounded by a capable cast of supporting characters who, for the most part, aren’t threatened by her practice of brujeria. Filmed in lush locations around Colombia, Siempre Bruja reframes Hollywood’s often limited takes on the occult in which the heroines are white, magic is alienating, and witchcraft clashes with other faith traditions. Siempre Bruja’s Carmen departs from Hollywood’s depictions of black witches Carmen Eguiluz is one of the most complicated black witches to grace the screen. She’s a young woman, still growing accustomed to her powers, but she’s also formidable. She has a strong sense of integrity but sometimes interferes in other people’s lives in ways that worsen their problems. In short, Carmen may be a powerful witch, but she’s still a human being. Many of the black witches in Hollywood who’ve preceded her, however, haven’t been quite so three-dimensional. They’re either on the sidelines, helping white witches fulfill their destinies, or evil voodoo queens straight from central casting. Dinah Stevens (Adina Porter), a voodoo priestess on American Horror Story: Apocalypse is an example of this trope. Wicked and self-serving, she’s willing to do the Antichrist’s bidding, despite his mission to destroy the world. Although Prudence Night (Tati Gabrielle) of the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is given far more complexity than Dinah, she spends several episodes being a mean girl for the hell of it. And neither Prudence nor Dinah is as powerful as the white woman she challenges. Discussing the (mis)representation of black witches in popular culture in 2017, Vulture critic Angelica Jade Bastién wrote, “The lack of powerful black witches in film and TV is a symptom of a larger problem that has existed in America since its very beginning: the fear of black women’s autonomy and prowess.” Siempre Bruja shifts this pattern by making Carmen Eguiluz extraordinary but imperfect. It’s thrilling to see her exert her power by literally scaring the piss out of her friend’s toxic ex or levitating in a scene that recalls 1996’s The Craft. Rochelle, the black witch in that classic, needs her friends to levitate, but Carmen does so on her own — simply by sleeping. In addition to The Craft, you’ll see hints of 1992’s Like Water for Chocolate during a lunch scene and 2006’s The Lake House as letters are exchanged in Siempre Bruja. Witchcraft looks different through a nonwhite, non-American lens Produced by Colombia’s Caracol TV and created by Ana María Parra (Cuando Vivas Conmigo, La Nocturna), Siempre Bruja sets itself apart from white American productions about witchcraft in that most characters embrace Carmen’s magical abilities. They aren’t put off because she’s a witch. The opposite happens in shows like the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, about a teenage witch of the same name. When Sabrina’s friends find out she practices magic, they’re unsettled by her ties to the occult and unsure how to behave around her. Her boyfriend, Harvey, struggles with having a witch girlfriend, and magic ultimately separates the couple. Compare Harvey’s discomfort with witchcraft to how Galvin, an Afro-Latino scientist on the Charmed reboot, reacts when he discovers his girlfriend Macy is a witch. Because his culture has already exposed him to brujeria — his family members have told him about the occult — Galvin takes the news about Macy in stride. The Siempre Bruja characters have similar reactions upon discovering Carmen’s powers. “Carmen, are we going to do a ritual?” a friend inquires as she prepares them to do just that.<doc-sep>
Netflix's 'Siempre Bruja’ is being criticised for its controversial slave romance storyline By Nicky Idika Netflix viewers are calling out the problematic love story at the heart of the Spanish language drama 'Siempre Bruja' aka 'Always A Witch'. The highly anticipated Spanish language drama Siempre Bruja (Always A Witch) dropped on Netflix at the beginning of February and fans have expressed concern over one of its major plot points. In Siempre Bruja, Carmen, an afro-latina witch, is sent forward in time after being burnt at the stake in the 1600s. The element that has fans feeling uneasy is Carmen's relationship with her slave master's son, Cristobal, and her illogical desire return to life as a slave, despite being a free woman in the modern world. Netflix's 'Siempre Bruja'. Picture: Netflix Warning spoilers ahead: At the beginning of episode 1, fans are introduced to Carmen who is shown being sold on a slave auction block. After sharing a flirtatious gaze, Cristobal convinces his father to buy Carmen so he can be with her. When they are caught together, Carmen is sentenced to death and Cristobal is shot. While awaiting her death sentence, Carmen agrees to be sent to the future with the help of a powerful wizard and does so with the express hope that she will be able to return to a time where Cristobal is still alive and they are together. Any relationship that begins with someone being bought and sold feels problematic and the internet has major thoughts about Siempre Bruja. It's hard for a lot of people to fathom Carmen doing all this to return to slavery. Carmen is doing all of this to go back to being a slave... #SiempreBruja pic.twitter.com/Nm0wvLviT2 — Sistah of House Stark (@lynjaimeee) February 2, 2019 So in netflix series Siempre bruja, the woman is sent in the future where she is not a slave anymore but only thinks of going back to slavery time to save her white slave owner boyfriend?🤣 nonsense #siemprebruja — Nzinga Bandida (@VoodooPussy69) February 1, 2019 Me seeing Carmen trying to go back and be a slave again #SiempreBruja pic.twitter.com/jjhgi9Gg5a — ワン (@Juanito29434) February 2, 2019 The idea that slavery would be something anyone would choose to return to shows a fundamental misrepresentation of an institution whose harmful effects can still be felt today. Many thought there was a missed opportunity with Siempre Bruja. Netflix: So we got this cool new show called #SiempreBruja Me: Okay I'm in Netflix: It's about an enslaved black woman who time-travels to the present but wants to go back to the past because she's in love with the son of the man who purchased her -- Me: pic.twitter.com/p3IHGUmTE5 — Eric Haywood (@EricHaywood) February 2, 2019 What Netflix promised us for #SiempreBruja #AlwaysAWitch vs what we actually got 😩😩😩 pic.twitter.com/eDBn2vIpPV — Tamra (@tamrasutra) February 3, 2019 Many people hadn't realised that Carmen's mission would revolve around her voluntarily sending herself back into slavery. Funnily enough, the story of a witch sent to the present could have actually worked well without anchoring Carmen to the son of a slave owner. And, of course, the timing was... not ideal. Netflix having the AUDACITY to drop a series about a black slave in love with her white slavemaster during #BlackHistoryMonth2019 #SiempreBruja pic.twitter.com/jVkEeADUPb — Mihrimah Irena |🙅🏻‍♀️Wakanda Zindabad🙅🏻‍♀️| (@Mihrimah_Irena) February 2, 2019 Black History Month? Really? We're doing this during Black History Month? However, there were some people who were willing to give the show a chance despite these plot points. Cristobal isn’t a slave master, he’s the son of one. Anyways the show is great and it’s a more original concept than is usually written for dark skin women so let’s not get it cancelled #SiempreBruja #AlwaysAWitch pic.twitter.com/KlDFGjoVR9 — C. (@dayadream_) February 2, 2019 Truthfully, Siempre Bruja has a strong lead, a fascinating overall premise, and a global audience that was ready to support the representation of an afro-latina witch. Unfortunately, there is very little that is empowering in 2019 about the portrayal of a woman dying to return to slavery because of a man. What do you guys think? Have you been enjoying Siempre Bruja aka Always A Witch?