Spoilers ahead for the series finale of Jane the Virgin on The CW.
Jane the Virgin brought an end to its five-season run with a 100th episode that tied off loose ends, answered a long-standing question, and delivered happily-ever-afters all around. Jane and Rafael tied the knot despite obstacles -- such as an arrest, a marathon, and a late start to the wedding -- while Xo and Rogelio made a big decision to move to New York despite Xo's fears about leaving her mom and daughter. And that's not all!
An adult Mateo was revealed as the narrator of Jane the Virgin, and even Petra was lucky in love thanks to the return of Rosario Dawson to reprise her role. Lina revealed she was pregnant after getting a donor egg, and everything was wonderful. Now that's how you end a series on a high note!
That said, there was a definite low note regarding the finale before it aired. Well before it aired, in fact! Way back in April, when Jane was still torn between Michael (who came back with a very bizarre twist) and Rafael, TMZ released photos of Jane and Rafael's wedding. Jane the Virgin creator Jennie Snyder Urman shared her reaction to the wedding spoiler as well as what solved the problem for her:
I was pretty bummed! Then again, everyone has to make a living. And Justin Baldoni solved it for me by posting a picture of Rafael sitting in the audience at the wedding, so I thought that was a great fake-out.
All things considered, Jennie Snyder Urman's comments to Deadline about the finale spoilers were pretty mild. Remarking that everyone "has to make a living" doesn't reflect an attitude many people would probably have after the big secret climax of a five-year project was revealed three months too early! Of course, any Jane the Virgin viewers who were still hanging on were probably tuning into the finale no matter what, but who can blame the series creator for being bummed?
The good news is that Justin Baldoni, who played Rafael on Jane the Virgin, sneakily stepped in to throw viewers off the scent. How? Well, by posting an image from the day of the wedding scene himself! Take a look:
That right there looks like Rafael as part of the audience at the wedding rather than the groom. Although the spoiler pics did make it look an awful lot like Jane and Rafael were tying the knot, this is a telenovela-esque TV show that has pulled off bonkers twists in the past. There was just enough room for doubt that it didn't feel 100% settled that Jane and Rafael would get married.
Justin Baldoni's caption really seems like nothing more than a goodbye to the show, so his attempt to take the heat off the spoiled ending comes across as sneaky in the best way. I would honestly believe the picture as an official promo pic rather than something that was staged to "solve" the problem. Well done, Justin Baldoni!
Jane the Virgin is one of two CW shows to air a series finale this week, and the network is losing two long-running series in the 2019-2020 TV season as well. Plenty of series will be coming back in the fall, though, so you'll have no shortage of viewing options.
