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The ultimate “Venice: The Series” refresher course

Venice: The Series season 4 kicks off on August 7th, and if you haven’t seen the previous episodes of this smart and sexy websoap, now is your chance. You can watch seasons 1-3 for free, right now for a limited time on YouTube.

Here is a little primer for you viewers, a break down if you will, of the major players and plotlines of Venice: The Series so far. Also be sure to check out our interviews with Jessica Leccia and Nadia Bjorlin. Later this week we’ll have an interview with creator and star Crystal Chappell.

Gina, Ani and Lara : The Triangle

While Venice has quite a few terrific characters and storylines, the focus of the show is arguably the love triangle between Gina (Crystal Chappell), Ani (Jessica Leccia) and Lara (Nadia Bjorlin).

In season 1, Gina and Ani are former (and sometimes current) lovers, torn apart by distance, Gina’s inability to commit and Ani’s insecurities. The actresses who first lit up the screen together as Olivia and Natalia (Otalia) in Guiding Light, also bring their scorching chemistry to Venice. Ani, a professional photographer, is back in town and the two women try to find a place in each other’s lives, while still being very much a part of each other’s hearts.

Navigating the waters of friendship when you are still in love can be a challenge. Both Gina and Ani end up dating other people. For Gina, it’s more of a band-aid for her broken heart. For Ani, it turns out to be much more serious. Enter Lara, the young adult author, who meets cute with Ani near the latter half of S1 and ends up sweeping her off her feet.

Season 2 begins with Ani and Lara growing closer, while Gina deals with some major family issues. (i.e. her father and a dead prostitute, his subsequent stroke). At the same time, cracks in Lara’s otherwise smooth persona begin to show, and a pattern of alcohol abuse becomes apparent.

Ani tries to downplay it at first, but when a drunken quarrel results in Lara pushing Ani and giving her a black eye, Lara’s drinking and reckless behavior can no longer be ignored. Ani is forced to face the truth. Gina, still in love with Ani, writes a letter (one she doesn’t intend to mail) where she confesses her true feelings. She reads it aloud, thinking she’s alone in her thoughts. It turns out her father hears her, and mails the letter to Ani.

The opening of Season 3 deals with the aftermath of Lara pushing Ani, and its effect on everyone. Ani, eventually forgives her, but their relationship is strained and tenuous. Lara intercepts the letter from Gina to Ani and reads it. When Gina finds out about Ani’s black eye, she storms over to Lara’s to confront her.

Lara lashes back, accusing Gina of emotionally abusing Ani. She quotes a line from the letter and a shocked Gina realizes that someone mailed it unbeknownst to her. Gina assumes Ani showed the letter to Lara, and Lara goes with it, telling Gina that Ani was upset and has moved on. Lara attempts to give up drinking, but struggles and tries to hide it from Ani. Gina and Ani have become each other’s confidants and their gravitational pull toward one another keeps getting stronger. Lara, falling further into her addiction and further away from Ani, burns Gina’s letter. She plans a romantic evening and proposes to Ani in the final episode.

So. Much. Lesbian. Drama! Oh and speaking of drama…

Family Drama-rama

Gina’s got 99 problems and her family is 97 of them. In the tradition of the great soaps, there is a focus on family dynamic in Venice. Gina, a successful designer, has major daddy issues. She even calls her dad The Colonel (Jordan Clarke). He’s an ornery son-of-a-bitch who questions his daughter at every turn, but when disaster strikes, it’s Gina he reaches out too. And by disaster, I mean a dead hooker in his laundry room. While he recovers from a stroke, it’s Gina who moves in and takes care of him. After a few come-to-Jesus moments, they begin to grow closer.

Gina’s brother Owen (Galen Gering) is a lovable fuckup. He’s an actor always looking for his big break, and has the absolute worst luck with the ladies. (Attention soap guys and gals: Stay away from characters named Sammie. Just trust me.) He and Gina are very close and look out for each other. Gina and Owen’s aunt Guya (Hillary B. Smith), is a martini-loving, ghost-seeing, younger men-dating spiritual guide. The scenes between the Owen, Gina and Guya are by far the funniest and tender of the series. Add Gina’s ex boyfriend Richard (Peter Reckell) into the mix and the revelation that Gina gave away their child for adoption twenty-one years prior. Time to clutch those pearls!

Soapy? Yes. Super gay? Absolutely.

Soap operas have struggled with audience retention and changing viewing habits in recent years and Crystal Chappell and the Venice team forged into uncharted territory with very positive results. Venice remains very true to its soap roots, but with a very modern feel and aesthetic. Plus, it’s super-duper gay. Steamy lady love scenes, passionate kisses, processing. Venice has something for all audiences, but it’s nice to know it pays special attention and care to complex, adult lesbian relationships. Forget what you know (or don’t know) about soaps. Venice: The Series is one of a kind.

Need More Convincing?

Here are a few more reasons to fall in love with Venice.

1. It’s chock full of veteran soap stars! Peter Reckell played one of the most beloved daytime hunks of all time, Bo Brady on Days of Our Lives. Galen Gering is of Passions and Days of Our Lives fame. Hilary B Smith, Nadia Bjorlin, Liz Keifer, and Jessica Leccia have all starred in popular soaps over the years. And the list goes on and on.

2. Awesome guest stars. Last season, Dot-Marie Jones guested as The Colonel’s tough yet sensitive physical therapist. This season welcomes stunt-woman and actress Zoe Bell.

3. The music! In addition to having one of the best opening credit songs (Jen Foster‘s “Venice Beach”) the show features a lot of independent artists and actively seeks out submissions.

4. They’ve given us great characters. Depth and complexity aren’t exactly associated with soap opera characters. Venice once again turns convention on its head to give us some really meaty characters, flaws and all.

5. Loads of ladies behind the scenes. Venice is produced, written, and directed (mostly) by women. How badass is that? Crystal Chappell and her team created a space for us as viewers unlike any other. It’s a well-crafted labor of love and you can feel that in every scene.

Are you ready to dive into Venice? Season 4 begins on August 7th, and you can purchase a subscription to the show on venicetheseries.com. Be sure to check in later this week for Afterellen’s interview with lead actress, creator and executive producer, Crystal Chappell. Are you excited for the return of Venice: The Series?

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