Verdades secretas

It's probably the hottest TV series I've ever seen. Compared to Verdades Secretas II the Spanish series Elite is for children. I don't understand neither Spanish nor Portuguese but Verdades Secretas II is visually so addictive and the acting so passionate that you get into their dramatic storylines which are sometimes funny too. Lots of erotic scenes (hetero-, homo- and bisexual) with a diverse cast offer enough eye candy for any open-minded viewers.

What I don't understand is that Globo who distribute Verdades Secretas II only on their web app isn't selling the series worldwide via a deal with Netflix or Amazon Prime - and with English subtitles. I've seen some German, British and US daily and weekly soaps. This telenovela from Brazil has very high production values.

I've spotted only two weak points: the pop music is used too often ("Fade to Grey", "Heart of Glass" or "Smalltown Boy"), maybe they saved licence money if every title is played at least six times? I have no idea... And the establishment shots of the skycraper views appear too often. It's not needed since the apartments and offices look different enough that you don't need to see them from outside.

Holed up at home during the deep, dark early days of the pandemic, I stumbled onto the first season of Verdades Secretas. At that time, full episodes were easily accessed at various websites. While I don't speak Portuguese at all, it was clear from the very first episode that this show was one of high quality - a quality beyond what you'll find from North American telenovelas or prime time soap operas. The visual production was artistic and engaging. And it was clear that the cast was top notch. So I watched all the episodes I could find and filled in my understanding by reading English written recaps and reviews.

When I read that the second season was finally a reality, I knew I had to subscribe to Globoplay and watch it. Subscribing wasn't the easiest task, however, as I couldn't figure out how to do it on my laptop. I had to use my Globoplay phone app and subscribe via Google Play (Apple store for iphone users). Some instructions were written in Portuguese, but I got through it OK. Everything works fine and I can watch on my laptop.

Season 2 (through the first 20 episodes) has been great. Whereas Season 1 was a tragedy, Season 2 is more of an erotic thriller. Characters Angel, Giovanna, and Visky return to my delight (Honestly, I couldn't get enough of Agatha Moreira's Giovanna in Season 1) -- the three most important returnees in my opinion. And newcomer characters Cristiano, Blanche, Betty, Laila, Chiara, and Lara have been great additions (and several others)! Lara just arrived in Sao Paulo in Episode 20, to escape her dysfunctional family life, with dreams of modeling. Model-in-real-life Rhay Polster, playing Chiara, has a smoking hot erotic scene in the same episode.

Season 2 is also different in its art form. In many scenes, it's similar to theatrical art. For example, the fashion shows don't have a 100 or more extras herded in to fill the seats. They use a cast ensemble like one might see in a live play. Also, the erotic scenes are artfully choreographed with great selections of music to match the mood. One example of this is an erotic scene with one of the models, Liara, who is on diet pills trying to keep her weight down. They play "Fade to Grey" to match the mood and actions of a speed freak in a love making scene.

Globoplay indicated they had ten episodes with English subtitles, but I can't yet get them to work. The Portuguese subtitles work just fine and come in handy if I need to translate.

I think Globoplay has just now figured out how much demand there would be for this production and others, if they added English subtitles and pushed for worldwide subscriptions like Netflix does.

And thank you Creator Walcyr Carrasco and Director Amora Mautner for making Season 2 happen!

UPDATE: The first 30 episodes of Season 2 all have English subtitle options!!!

Second season is awfully disjointed.

Awfully crafted scenes, with poor light, Pointless change in direction.

What a tragedy

Second season is awfully disjointed.

Awfully crafted scenes, with poor light, pointless change in direction.

What a tragedy.