If you’ve read my previous post, Farewell Amor Bravío, you know that I loved Amor Bravío and was heartbroken when it ended. I had hoped La Tempestad would fill the void left by Amor Bravío, but it is not Amor Bravío.

Amor Bravío had a slow build up. With every episode, I watched Camila and Daniel’s relationship grow until they fell in love with each other. In La Tempestad, Marina and Captain Damián Fabre fell in love within a month of the novela’s premiere. Because it happened so fast, the writers had to come up with some way to keep Marina and Damián apart. Their solution was to have Damián marry Esthercita who is infatuated with him and just happens to be Mayor Fulgencio Salazar’s daughter. Supposedly, Damián married Esthercita to protect her reputation. While there have been some musical montages showing Damián’s kindness (e.g., he buys a bunch of toys for children in one of the montages), marrying Esthercita seems overly generous, especially when it is quite clear that he can’t stand her. His facial expressions crack me up.

Of course, Damián’s marriage isn’t enough to keep Marina and Damián apart. That’s where Hernan comes into the picture. He’s obsessed with Marina and attempts to kill Damián just so he can have Marina to himself. Hernan blows up Damián’s boat while Damián and Esthercita are on their honeymoon, which puts Damián into a coma that he’s not in for very long. For me, this story line is the most entertaining because I keep wondering how long it’s going to take Marina to figure out Hernan is a complete psycho. What’s odd about this part of the story is that while Hernan appears to be obsessed with Marina, he also has parties with women clad in nothing more than bikinis and makes out with all of them. I guess his obsession only goes so far.

There’s more to La Tempestad. Briefly, Mayuya, who is supposed to be Esthercita’s friend, wants Esthercita and Marina out of the way so she can have Damián. Mayuya is a fool because Damián only wants one woman — Marina. Mercedes is looking for her missing daughter who just happens to be Marina’s twin sister and Beatriz who Marina believes is her mother (even though its Mercedes) has an inoperable tumor on her lung. I’m sure there will be more in the coming months.

Despite its flaws, I’ll keep watching for several reasons. First, William Levy plays the role of Captain Damián Fabre. I don’t think I need to elaborate on this point. Second, César Évora plays the role of Mayor Fulgencio Salazar and is excellent as always as one of the villains. I became a fan of Mr. Évora’s work when he played Dionisio in Amor Bravío. Third, La Tempestad is worth watching just for the rivalry between Damián and Hernan. Some of my favorite scenes are when Damián and Hernan go at it. Again, William Levy nails the facial expressions. He always has a disgusted look when he’s talking to or about Hernan – if only Marina could see what Damián sees.  

Finally, I’m hoping that the story will get better and that Damián and Marina will have the epic love story that Daniel and Camila had in Amor Bravío. I know I may be asking for a lot, but I can dream.

What do you think of La Tempestad? Will you keep watching?