I can’t believe it’s been a full year since I first fell in love with Vida. When it premiered on Starz last May, I told you it was “super sexy and unapologetic in its queerness.” It delivered on every level! Written by an entirely Latinx (and majorly queer) writers’ room, and brought to us by a queer Latina showrunner, everything about Vida was built with queer women and non-binary folks, especially Latinxs and Chicanxs, in mind.
Not only did the first season provide without a doubt the hottest and most important lesbian sex scene on television by mile, it also took time to thoughtfully explore the complications of internalized homophobia, racism, gentrification in Chicanx communities, and the scars that are left behind by our family. Here’s a quick refresher: Emma Hernandez (Michel Prada) – the queer protagonist at the heart of the show – and her sister Lyn (Melissa Barrera) returned home to their Boyle Heights, East Los Angeles neighborhood following the death of their mother. Things got immediately more complicated when the two sisters met Eddy, their mother’s handsome, shy, butch lesbian “roommate” who they find out at the funeral was actually her wife.
Vida’s story is delicious and complicated, sultry and heart-wrenching – and dammit, I want more! In the second season, we’ll follow Emma and Lyn as they continue learning how to trust each other and begin the enormous task of rebuilding their mother’s bar. They aren’t finished being haunted by the lessons of her legacy quite yet. Completing their family will once again be Eddy (non-binary queer actor Ser Anzoategui), who broke my heart wide open in Season One.
Without any doubt, Vida puts forth some of the best acting and writing in queer television. It raises the bar. This year, they’re adding queer actor and Autostraddle heartthrob Roberta Colindrez (Broadway’s Fun Home, I Love Dick, The Deuce) to the mix as Nico, a new bartender who promises to have a “will-they-won’t-they thing going on” with Emma. It seems that Vida won’t be letting go of its gold standard anytime soon.
Seriously, I cannot wait. Now we don’t have to hold our breath another second longer – thanks to this look at the Vida’s second season trailer given to us by Starz (I’ve already watched it a dozen times. Yeah, it’s that good):
Vida Season two premieres May 26th, but you can watch the first three episodes FOR FREE on Starz dot com right now! Season two will air weekly on Starz at 8pm. All ten episodes of the second season will be available on the Starz app and streaming platforms beginning May 23.
