If you’re a Hispanic kid, chances are these telenovelas were a huge part of your life when you were growing up. Sitting down every night to watch the latest episode of our favorite telenovelas was a family ritual in my home. In some extreme cases, like my own, we watched the entire three-telenovela lineup on Telemundo from 7pm to 10pm while VHS taping the lineup on Univisión. Here are some of those iconic hits that made an everlasting impact on my childhood:
1. La Usurpadora
Starring Gaby Spanic and Fernando Colunga, this telenovela centers on Paola Bracho, the unfaithful and manipulative wife of Carlos Daniel Bracho, and her schemes to force her newly found twin sister, Paulina, to take her place while she travels the world with her many lovers. However, things take a turn when Paulina, posing as Paola, falls in love with Carlos Daniel, and the real Paola returns to claim her place.
2. Teresa
Betrayal, manipulation, and ambition take the human form of Teresa Chávez, a woman who’s willing to use her beauty as a weapon to get out of poverty. Her main goal is to seduce her law professor while working as his assistant to leave the vecindad. She leaves once and for all, and gets revenge on those who bullied her for being poor. In the end, she’s torn between the love of her life and her ambition and thirst for revenge.
3. Rubí
Similar to Teresa, Rubí Pérez Ochoa is a woman born into poverty who uses her beauty to get ahead in life. Filled with envy towards her rich best friend, Marisol, she plots to steal her fiancée, Héctor, and leave poverty behind, which she eventually accomplishes when Héctor leaves Marisol waiting at the altar on their wedding day and flees with Rubí. However, life has a lesson in store for Rubí, that beauty and money aren’t everything in life.
4. Pasión de Gavilanes
Seeking to avenge their little sister’s death, three brothers manage to infiltrate the family of the people responsible. Much to their surprise, they end up falling in love with the daughters of those who caused their sister’s tragic decision to commit suicide. If the drama in this story wasn’t enough to hook you, I bet the theme song did (*cough* I still know it by heart to this day).
5. Mi Gorda Bella
Valentina Villanueva returns home after spending years abroad in boarding school. However, her return is tarnished by her mother’s death. She’s now going to have to deal with prejudice from her own family due to her weight and her evil aunt, Olimpia Mercouri, who’s going to do everything in her power to steal her fortune and keep Valentina away from her son, Orestes. This telenovela was so popular in Puerto Rico that even dolls of Valentina came out and everybody had one.
6. La Madrastra
After spending 20 years in prison for a crime she didn’t commit, María returns to claim her place in the San Román family and clear her name. She’ll do whatever it takes to accomplish her biggest mission, which is to recover the love of her children who believe their mother is dead, even if it means she has to pose as their step-mother. This story had the perfect combination of your typical soapy drama, suspense, thriller, and as most telenovelas starring Victoria Ruffo, A LOT of tears.
7. Cómplices al Rescate
All I’m going to say is that I’m still not over the fact that Televisa decided to replace Belinda with Daniela Luján halfway through the telenovela. So yep, this is where my trust issues stem from.
8. Carita de Ángel
This adorable story focuses on a 5-year-old girl and her machinations to drive away her father’s evil fiancée and make him fall in love with the nun who looked after her when she was in boarding school.
9. Lola, Érase Una Vez
Lola is a young dreamer who starts working at the Von Ferdinand mansion as a nanny. She immediately falls for Alexander Von Ferdinand, the oldest of the Von Ferdinand siblings and who’s the head of the family. Lola is caught in a fairytale as she has to deal with the schemes of Alexander’s fiancée and his future mother-in-law who will do anything to get their hands on his fortune.
10. María la del Barrio
What can I say? This classic centers on María, a poverty-stricken girl who moves to De La Vega mansion as Fernando De La Vega’s protégée after her godmother suddenly dies. This telenovela gave us the most iconic, Emmy-worthy scene in TV history with Soraya Montenegro’s infamous line: “¿QUÉ HACES BESANDO A LA LISIADA?”
11. Rebelde
A group of hyper-privileged kids are entangled in drama, love triangles, and their passion for music. This telenovela gave birth to one of the most popular bands in Latin America, RBD, which blessed us with timeless hits. You weren’t cool enough if you didn’t have the libro de estampillas (sticker-collecting book) or their school uniforms. Even dolls of the main characters came out on sale. Everyday, I rushed home from school to tune in to the latest episode of this telenovela. I’m still not over the fact that my parents didn’t take me to their concert back in 2006.
12. Gata Salvaje
If you didn’t watch this hit, are you sure you’re even Hispanic? This is the typical story of a poor girl who falls for a rich guy and the rich guy uses her for his own selfish motives. Luis Mario, a rich ranch owner, marries Rosaura, nicknamed Gata Salvaje, to spite his sister Eduarda. This sets off a chain of events and over 200 drama-filled episodes, as Rosaura, fed-up with all the pain she was put through, returns to seek revenge after she finds out she’s the heiress to a fortune.