Jane the Virgin recap: Jane finally decides between Michael and Rafael
The last we saw Jane, she was sitting with Michael, agreeing to go to Montana for a few days so they could see if the new versions of themselves have a shot of working outside of Miami. Of course, after making the decision to take the leap, Jane immediately starts to doubt herself.
She can’t be away from Mateo for three days. What about Rafael? He’s in a dark place. And more importantly, what will she wear? Jane’s wardrobe does not scream “ranch-friendly.”
It’s Xo and Rogelio to the rescue! Jane’s mom promises to watch after Mateo and Rafael, and Rogelio cleans out the wardrobe closet on set for all his daughter’s cowgirl needs. Once she purges all of the Little House on the Prairie garb, Jane settles for some sensible jeans and white sparkly boots. Montana, here she comes!
Michael swings by to pick Jane up and is surprised to see so much luggage for one small trip. When she assures him there is nothing she can leave behind, Michael happily carries all her luggage to the car before heading off to the airport.
One flight, one taxi, and nine hours later, Jane sheepishly apologizes to Michael. She can tell he’s upset that they missed their bus because they had to wait for all of Jane’s luggage. Michael chalks it up to a “bump in the road,” but is further annoyed when Jane refuses to get into a stranger’s truck and hitchhike to the ranch.
Three hours and four counties later, Jane and Michael are well on their way to civilization. Or so Jane thought. It’s her turn to be upset because Michael never told her that there wasn’t any cell phone service where they were going. How many bumps in the road is this? Three?
Oh wait, that last literal bump in the road was a possum and Jane does not think it’s funny that Michael wants to turn back and scrape it up for some good ole possum stew.
They finally arrive. Jane scans Michael’s one-bedroom abode. The tiny twin bed, couch, and fireplace feel very primitive. Maybe she should have packed her Little House on the Prairie bonnet. Where’s Pa and Ma?
Jane goes to bed troubled, especially after she tries to send Xo a text message that doesn’t go through. She wakes up three hours later with the roosters. Thanks to the roadkill, the near death by hitchhiker, and the mouse that just skittered across the floor, Jane is ready to tell Michael that she’s made a big mistake.
She walks out of the cabin into a wilderness wonderland. The scenery takes her breath away and she changes her tune when Michael hands her a tin cup full of coffee. Perhaps living for a few days in a picturesque postcard won’t be that bad.
Michael suggests they have a picnic. On the way to a ranch version of paradise, Michael takes an out-of-the-way alternative route in order to bypass the neighboring ranch. It seems Charlie is not a fan of Michael. Jane finds this hilarious. Rivaling ranchers! It’s like she’s living in a telenovela! Well, more than usual.
Before they can settle down to eat their (I assume) possum casserole, grizzled ranch foreman Rick rides up, surprised to see Michael back in town. He demands that Michael get back to work immediately if he wants to earn his keep. Michael graciously tells Jane that she can go back to the cabin to write, but Jane is here to see Michael in his new natural habitat. She is here to help.
I assume Jane’s answer would have been different if she knew that Michael’s chores included mucking stalls. That’s raking up horse poop for those of you who didn’t grow up around barns. Naturally a whimsical “straw fight” breaks out that concludes with Jane landing in a wheelbarrow of manure. Fun times.
Obviously, Jane needs to take a shower. Obviously, the only shower is an outdoor one. And obviously, by “shower” I mean a pull rope with a bucket of water.
Unfortunately, Jane is too short to both pull the rope and stand under the stream of cold water. So she has to enlist the help of her former dead husband to help out. Although he doesn’t look, you can tell there are some sparks. Also, Jane barely washed herself, but if you’re roughing it on the ranch, I guess good hygiene is optional.
Everyone gathers around the campfire and Jane meets Keith, Michael’s right-hand man. Spoiler: Keith is hot and I support the CW letting him star in a cowboy show. I’ll start a letter writing campaign today.
Around the fire, Jane shares character traits of the old Michael. The guys were surprised to hear that he was a cop, had a sense of humor, and actually spoke more than two sentences at a time. When one of the cowboys asks Jane when she’s going to come out to Montana to be a ranch wife, Jane zones out and thinks about how she would ever tell Rafael if she chose to move away. She snaps out of it and rushes off to the woods which is code for “the bathroom.” She tries to call Xo, but alas, no service.
Meanwhile, Rick gives Michael an ultimatum. He has to choose to stay here without Jane or live with her in Miami. Rick can clearly see that there’s no way Jane is going to stay in Montana. He has 48-hours to decide.
The next morning, Jane and Michael head out to mend a fence. Before Jane hops up onto her horse (comically of course,) she runs into Keith who asks if Michael has made a decision about Rick’s deadline. Uh oh.
Later, Michael notices that Jane’s horse is skittish, which means that the rider is agitated. Now that her horse has outed her, Jane comes clean. She wants to know why Michael didn’t tell her about the ultimatum?
Michael didn’t want to add any pressure to the weekend. He knows that this isn’t going to be easy, but he also feels there are more than two solutions. What if they do some long distance dating? Michael is certainly willing to figure out that new fangled FaceTime thing. The jury’s still out if he’s willing to spring for the Internet connection he’ll need to actually use it.
Jane zones out for a second time, thinking about how happy Mateo would be with his own horse. When Michael calls her name, she shakes her head, knowing that what she’s feeling is guilt. She hates what she’s doing to Rafael. Michael totally understands. He came back from the dead. There is no instruction manual on this. The best way to get through the awkwardness is to mend a fence.
Michael is super impressed with Jane’s ability to manipulate barbed wire. His admiration is short-lived when Rick’s very expensive bull waltzes through the open part of the fence. Michael flawlessly hops up onto his horse to collect the bull. Jane follows behind on her own horse, holding on for dear life.
As telenovela luck would have it, Rocky the Bull has wandered over onto Charlie’s land and is too far away for Michael to lasso him. This is when Jane offers to lasso the bull. Michael gives her a few pointers, lets her practice roping Bo the dog, then watches as she trots off into the sunset to collect the prize-winning bull.
Jane finds Rocky behind a bush and is pleasantly surprised when she lassos him on her first try. Regrettably, she finds a woman sitting on top of a horse at the other end of her rope. Guess whose name is Charlie? This girl.
Jane tries to talk her way out of Charlie shooting her while insisting that Michael isn’t a terrible person. She begs Charlie to let her go and help her catch Rocky so Michael won’t lose his job. PS: This is a last-ditch effort at their love story. She doesn’t want to ruin true romance, does she?
In the next scene, we see Jane riding up to Michael, holding the rope with Rocky on the other end. Jane doesn’t take credit for roping the bull. She praises Charlie, adding that she was happy to help Jane. Michael smiles and begins setting up camp. It’s too dark to head back to the cabins now. They will have to sleep on the ground.
While the two lay down on their backs gazing at the stars, Jane and Michael finally get real. Jane wants to know if Michael could ever call Miami home after living in Montana. Michael deflects by telling Jane he’s happy to be there with her.
Jane wonders out loud if this is who Michael really is underneath it all. Instead of a detective, was he always a cowboy down deep who liked the quiet? Michael answers by saying, “It’s hard to figure out who I am now.”
Michael makes a joke, pretending to remember that Jane always loved camping. When Jane playfully smacks him on the shoulder, he adds, “Oh that must have been another lady.”
They laugh and Jane puts her hand on his chest. Michael grabs her hand in his and then they share a very soft, sweet kiss. And I am done.
The next morning, Jane and Michael wake up to an angry Charlie pointing a gun at them. She calls Michael a thief and threatens to shoot him. Here’s what we know: Charlie needs therapy.
Jane talks her off the ledge by spouting off all of Michael’s amazing attributes. When she agrees to replace the chickens Charlie thinks Michael stole in exchange for Charlie not shooting them. Done. Charlie leaves to, presumably, go buy some more bullets.
Michael is overwhelmed that Jane said so many nice things. He realizes at that moment that he doesn’t want to stay in Montana without Jane. He doesn’t want to do long distance. He vows that he will move to Miami, even while Jane reminds him how much he gave up for her before.
That night, Jane gets a text from Xo that says, “Rafael is fragile but he will be okay.” And standing there in the silence of Montana, Jane knows what she had to do.
She goes inside the cabin and tells Michael that the guilt she’s been feeling toward Rafael is actually love. The biggest change that happened to her while Michael was gone is that she fell in love with a wonderful man. She’s still in love with him and that’s not going to change. The moment with Michael has passed.
Michael cries. Jane cries. I cry. Michael takes her to the bench in the middle of nowhere known as a “bus stop” and we watch as Jane makes her way back to Miami. As she makes her way back to Rafael’s house. As she makes her way back into his life.
I don’t know what to feel.
Rafael answers the door and Jane launches into an apology spiel. She explains that she said good-bye to Michael and to their past. But Rafael is Jane’s now, her tomorrow, and her always. What a line! Let’s cross-stitch that on a pillow.
Rafael looks at her with sad eyes. He shakes his head and tells Jane that he can never trust her again. It’s too late. The moment has passed.
Does our heroine meltdown into a puddle of tears in true Jane fashion? Not at all. As she sits on the front porch, unmoving swing with her mother and grandmother, she vows that she will fight for Rafael. And she will win.
Their moment has not passed. It has only begun. And at this moment, I’ve decided to embrace this love story.
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