The Best Reason to Save “Privileged"

Since its very early season finale aired on February 24, (note: early finales are never a good sign in TV-land), the fate of the CW 11 freshman series Privileged—which stars Cuban actress JoAnna Garcia—has been as up-in-the-air as Elvis Crespo on that fateful flight from Houston to Miami (Translation: Privileged is holding on for dear life)! Low ratings have plagued this charming dramedy since its September premier, which is perhaps why Privileged is one of the only shows that CW President Dawn Ostroff hasn’t renewed for another season (Smallville, Supernatural, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill, and 90210 were all renewed as far back as February)! That same month, Entertainment Weekly came up with 5 reasons to save Privileged. I only have one reason, but I think it's a pretty darn good one: her name is JoAnna Garcia.

I've been a fan of JoAnna's since she starred as Reba Mcyntyre's daughter on the family comedy Reba, so when I saw she joined Privileged as the lead—becoming one of the only Latina leads on television!— I immediately checked out her new show. The best thing about it, you ask? Her! As Megan Smith, a live-in-tutor to two spoiled rich girls by day- and a 23-year-old woman with a very busy romantic life by night (will she pick Charlie or stay with Will?), JoAnna plays one of TV's most versatile, most well drawn out female characters, and she makes it look effortless. In her scenes as tutor to the young girls, Joanna is convincing as a strict and responsible moral authority figure who genuinely cares about the girls' futures, and when she's making out with Palm Beach hotties and rolling out of bed after a night of hanky-panky, she's equally believable as a mature woman who's slowly figuring out what kind of relationship she wants to have. On both levels, JoAnna manages to make Megan likeable. For that reason, she deserves to continue having her own show!

But if the CW doesn’t feel that’s enough reason to renew the series, perhaps they should consider renewing Privileged so that young Latinas (and girls in general) can grow up with more realistic goals for their self-image. This show—unlike 90210 and Gossip Girl—is the only CW show that doesn't favor scary thin actresses. And when I interviewed Garcia for Vivo Por TiVo in November, JoAnna—who admitted she once struggled with an eating disorder—told me she liked the fact that she has a Latina “booty,” and added: “I’m a curvy girl; I’m a real girl.” She's also a funny girl both on camera and off. Hopefully, we’ll get to see JoAnna curve our enthusiasm for a few more seasons!

What do you think? Should the CW stick with Privileged, or are you happy with just one season?