With so much TV available at our finger tips these days, it can be easy to totally miss the best shows on offer.
Netflix is one such streamer that is so packed with content, that it can be near impossible to find everything it has to offer. One show that appeared just before Christmas, and with a very low profile in English-speaking countries, is Mexican comedy-drama ‘The Manny’ aka ‘El Niñero’. Starring Sandra Echeverría (‘The Book of Life’) and Iván Amozurrutia (‘High Heat’), the 10-part series is a romantic comedy with a light mystery at the centre.
Jimena (Echeverría) juggles trying to keep her life in order. Between raising her three children, competing for the company’s presidency, and dealing with her (almost) ex-husband (José María Torre), she has her hands full. She then meets Gaby (Amozurrutia), a charming rancher who unexpectedly turns out to be the best nanny for her children. Unexpectedly, Gabriel and Jimena will fall in love without minding stereotypes about gender roles.
In the series single mother Jimena (Echeverría) tries her best to balance her high-powered job, where she’s battling against her cousin Rogelio (Moisés Arizmendi) to become company president, with raising her three kids – Santiago (Alexander Tavizon), Sofia (Cassandra Iturralde) and Leo (Anthony Giulietti). Unable to keep hold of a nanny, Jimena reluctantly hires Gaby (Amozurrutia), a charming rancher who quickly bonds with the kids. As Jimena starts to fall for her new manny, her ex-husband Joaquín (José María Torre) returns to the family home, and Jimena is unaware that Gaby is hiding a very big secret that’s tied to her family company.
‘The Manny’ is a heart-warming romantic comedy that perfectly balances drama with moments of light humour. Jimena is desperately trying to keep her life together and the arrival of Gaby throws her world into chaos. On the one hand, he’s brilliant with her kids but on the other she’s terrified of people finding out that she has a good-looking male nanny that she’s falling in love with. Much of the series sees Jimena oblivious to Gaby’s real reason for taking up the nanny job in the household – he’s trying to save his family’s ranch from being seized by the firm that Jimena works for, which is led by her father.
Inevitably secrets are revealed by the conclusion of the 10-episode series, but the romance that develops between Jimena and Gaby takes it time to breathe. The complication of Joaquín manipulating his way back into Jimena’s life provides one of many hurdles, but mostly Jimena is solar-focused on securing the job of company president and proving that her cousin Rogelio is corrupt.
What makes ‘The Manny’ so fantastic to watch is the chemistry and performances of Sandra Echeverría and Iván Amozurrutia. Echeverría is easy to root for as Jimena, a woman who has a good heart but has far too much on her plate. Her comedic timing is spot on and she’s simply wonderful in the lead role. The revelation for me though is Amozurrutia as the adorably charming Gaby. I’ve seen Amozurrutia is a handful of other Netflix shows including the steamy telenovela ‘High Heat’ and I had no idea he’s so adept at comedy. His turn here is absolutely superb and I hope this is the first of many forays into comedy we see him take.
‘The Manny’ is the kind of show that’s perfect for these winter months. There’s plenty more going on aside from the main storylines (Jimena’s kids frequently steal the spotlight – especially the wonderfully melodramatic youngster Leo) and it’s an easy watch the will make you laugh and warm your heart. It’s hardly reinventing the wheel, but it’s so entertaining that you won’t care. An almighty cliffhanger at the end of the season will have you hoping another season is on the way, and I really hope Netflix commits to this show and doesn’t can it quickly it does to so many others!
‘The Manny’ is available to watch on Netflix now.
