Genre: Biopic, Crime, Drama
Created by Doug Miro, Eric Newman, Carlo Bernard, Ingrid Escajeda
Directed by Andrés Baiz
Starring: Sofia Vergara
Music by Carlos Rafael Rivera
Producers: Eric Newman, Sofía Vergara, Andrés Baiz, Luis Balaguer, Carlo Bernard, Ingrid Escajeda, Doug Miro
Production companies: Latin World Entertainment, Willfully Obtuse, Grand Electric
Plot: The story follows Griselda Blanco, a powerful crime boss, and her rise in the Miami drug scene and pursuit of power and wealth. Paranoia and betrayal lead to her downfall, with her actions resulting in multiple deaths, including that of a child. To escape retaliation, Griselda turns herself in but faces unexpected consequences. Despite serving time in prison, tragedy strikes when most of her children are murdered. The series ends with Griselda imagining a peaceful beach scene with her children. The show serves as a cautionary tale about the destructive pursuit of power. Griselda, portrayed by Sofía Vergara, was assassinated in 2012 in Medellín, Colombia.
I didn’t like this series that much.
Pros: I like listening to the music played in the series. Sofia Vergara was pretty solid as Griselda Blanco and there’s a lot of blood & violence to be had.
Cons: I didn’t get that much invested in the drama. Having this series dialogue all in Spanish was difficult to understand. The plotline with the police wasn’t that engaging and I find the story not all that impressive.
Casts & Characters:
Main:
- Sofía Vergara as Griselda Blanco, a prominent Colombian drug lord in the cocaine-based drug trade and underworld of Miami, Florida, in the 1980s, also known as the “Godmother of Cocaine”
- Alberto Guerra as Dario Sepúlveda, Griselda’s third husband.
- Martin Rodriguez as Jorge “Rivi” Ayala-Rivera, Griselda’s top hitman.
- Juliana Aidén Martinez as June Hawkins
- Vanessa Ferlito as Carmen Gutiérrez, Griselda’s friend who provides her a place to stay in Miami.
- Christian Tappan as Arturo Mesa
Recurring:
- José Zúñiga as Amilcar, a prominent drug lord in Miami.
- José Velázquez as Uber, Griselda’s second son.
- Orlando Pineda as Dixon, Griselda’s oldest son.
- Martín Fajardo as Ozzy, Griselda’s third son.
- Fredy Yate as Chucho Castro, a worker at a diner in Miami, hired by Griselda as her bodyguard.
- Camilo Jiménez Varón as Rafa Salazar
- Diego Trujillo as German Panesso
- Maximiliano Hernández as Papo Mejía, Griselda’s rival Colombian trafficker.
- Michael Reilly Burke as Captain Sweetwater
- Carolina Giraldo as Carla, a Medellín sex worker, and Griselda’s friend and confidante who helps her smuggle product into the U.S.
- Paulina Dávila as Isabel, Griselda’s close friend from Medellín.
- Alejandro Barrios as Horatio, Papo’s bodyguard.
- Gabriel Sloyer as Raúl Díaz, Hawkins’ partner.
- Julieth Restrepo as Marta Ochoa, cousin of the Ochoa brothers (who are both high-ranking members of the Medellín cartel).
Guest:
- Alberto Ammann as Alberto Bravo, Griselda’s second husband, who introduced her to the cocaine business.
- Ernesto Alterio as Fernando, Alberto’s brother.
- Wilmer Calderon as Johnny
- Alberto Mateo as Eddie “The Bird” Rancón
- Kayla Eva as Frida
- Julian Obradors as Eric
- Taylor Handley as Billy Jensen
- Edgardo González as Emilio
- David Piggott as Max Mermelstein
- David Zaldivar as Rigo
- Christian Gnecco-Quintero as Fabio Ochoa
- Oscar Camacho as Miguelito
- Goya Robles as Monkey Morales
- Marlene Forte as Esmeralda, Rigo’s mother.
- Carter MacIntyre as Al Singleton
- Jeffrey Vincent Parise as John Roberts
- Natalie Masini as Sheila
- Michael Andrew Baker as Rodney
I would skip this series.
Rating: 4 out of 10 Stars
Ryan Balkwill:
Resident TV reviewer,
Level Best Art Cafe