Las Juanas

This Colombian telenovela (Spanish soap opera) is about five sisters - all named "Juana" (the English equivalent to the name would be "Joan") - Juana Valentina, Juana Bautista, Juana Manny, Juana Caridad and Juana Matilde. The sisters are products of extra-marital affairs that their father, Don Calisto, had with different women. As further proof of the sisters' connection, each girl has a birthmark in the shape of a fish on her buttock.

Each sister has a different personality. The first is feisty and a leader; the second is sports-like; the third is spiritual; the fourth is shy and caring; the last sister is lively and loves to dance and sing.

The presence of the sisters in the small town of Corazol, where their father lives, creates havoc. It also horrifies their father's wife (a high-society snob). She enlists the help of a relative, Manuel Effe, to try to run the sisters out of town. All their plans backfires, as the Juanas outsmart them everytime.

During all the funny drama, a strong attraction develops between the father's son, Ruben and his stepsister, Juana Valentina. Since they are supposed to be related they try to fight their forbidden feelings.

The theme of magic realism, a concept where unusual things suddenly seem normal, are a big part of this story. For example, one of the characters cries crystal tears.

LAS JUANAS (The Joans) was partly filmed on the Colombian coast, an area where author Gabriel Garcia Marquez based his popular book, "One Hundred Years of Solitude."

There's a lot to enjoy in this telenovela.