Jane the Virgin centres around a young woman obsessed with writing, thinking about, and living out romance novels. As the title indicates, the series initially centres around Jane saving her virginity until marriage—a commitment which is complicated when she’s accidentally artificially inseminated. 

 

If you haven’t seen the show, it’s a charming telenovela with intriguing characters that touches on the most loved clichés of the genre without taking itself too seriously. For those of you who have, I wanted to take a moment before midterms to justify my binge-watching by ranking all eight of Jane’s love interests throughout the series. Of course, there are spoilers ahead.

 

 

After Michael’s death, Jane finally puts her commitment to keeping sex within marriage to rest, and she does it with her dad’s hot co-star, Fabian.

 

Fabian, like many of the love interests I’m about to mention, doesn’t seem to have much chemistry with Jane outside of their sexual relationship. He’s a forgettable part of the series and seems to bring out a not-so-savoury side of Jane—one that leaves her willing to lie about her feelings just to get into bed with someone. 

 

 

Dennis appears as Michael’s partner on the police force throughout the first three seasons and, shortly after Michael’s death is revealed, he’s shown developing an interest in Jane. The two only go on one date to signal that Jane is ready for love again after being widowed. 

 

It feels disrespectful to have Jane go for one of Michael’s best friends following his death. Their chemistry isn’t compelling enough to justify their short-lived romance and, overall, the plotline seems like it’s stalling for something better. 

 

 

Dax appears briefly in season two and presents the possibility that Jane doesn’t have to end up with either Rafael or Michael. He doesn’t stick around very long, but is mostly pleasant—sarcastic, charming, and warm enough to bring out Jane’s fun side.

 

Unfortunately, we find out at the end of his episode that he has a girlfriend, despite acting on his romantic interest for Jane. We do not redeem cheaters (or almost-cheaters) in this house.  

 

 

Sam is the snobby academic who Jane was hung up on when she first met Michael. We only see him through flashbacks, and we don’t know much about him or his relationship with Jane, which is why he falls in this arbitrary place on this list. 

 

 

Professor Chavez is Jane’s advisor while she’s completing her master’s. He’s every girl’s dream professor, and the writers do their best to keep the relationship as appropriate as possible, but it’s later revealed that Jane is not the first nor last student whom the professor is chasing. 

 

The Professor Chavez plotline brings out passionate moments and his storyline reveals the real guilt and anxiety that can be attached to losing your virginity, but that doesn’t make up for the fact that the guy is a creep. 

 

 

There are hot bad boys, and then there’s Rafael. 

 

Despite the continued sacrifice and patience Jane has for her baby daddy, Rafael constantly puts himself above everyone around him. A borderline abusive partner the first time they start dating, it takes very little throughout the rest of the series for him to completely abandon Jane, entirely uncaring about her feelings when they’re at odds. 

 

Obviously, and heartbreakingly, Jane ends up with Rafael. 

 

It feels reductive of the otherwise empowered and strong-willed heroine we know. Having Rafael be Jane’s be-all-end-all enforces troubling ideals: one, that biological parents should always be in relationships with each other and, two, that women should put up with toxicity if it means being with their child’s father. 

 

 

Oh—Adam. 

 

Adam’s a refreshing blast from Jane’s past. A passionate artist she almost married in her teen years, he’s the creative we all dream about, even if he’s definitely not dad material.  

 

Adam is kind, accommodating, and firm. Though it often disrupts his otherwise dream bachelor life, he’s always willing to make compromises for Jane and Mateo. Ultimately, a career change brings an end to their relationship. But, other than his immaturity, Adam is a bright spot on Jane’s romantic record. He wrote her love cue, for god’s sake.

 

 

Michael is proof that the good guy can still be the bad boy. He can go from comforting a distraught Jane to telling his own mother off in order to protect his fiancée in no time flat. 

 

While Rafael proves time and again that he only cares about himself, Michael is always willing to sacrifice his own happiness for others, especially Jane. 

 

It still makes me angry that the showrunners use Michael as a roadblock to Jane finding her way back to Rafael, but it’s nice that they keep him true to his character. While Rafael is cursing and tormenting Jane for being confused about her ‘dead’ husband coming back into her life, a former-amnesiac Michael is telling her, as always, that all he wants is for her to be happy.

 

Jane should have ended up with Michael. Period. But, honestly, this might be one of those few cases when the woman isn’t good enough for the man.