Netflix has a new show about a Latinx STEM princess. Unlike Black Panther‘s Shuri, Ashley Garcia is not an actual royal princess. But who is she?
Who is Ashley Garcia? She’s a teenage genius of hispanic heritage who started college at the age of 9, and at 15 has two Ph.D.s and lands a robotics job with JPL, designing technology for NASA. She moves cross-country to take up her new job, and moves in with her uncle, Tio Victor, a football coach.
Paulina Chávez (Carmen in Day 5) plays Ashley, who must combine being a STEM role model with teenage comedy and angst (boys, clothes, BFF’s). Her Uncle Tio Victor (played by Jencarlos Canela) is both inexperienced at being a teenage girl’s guardian and unwilling to shoulder the responsibility, which will likely be a source of both comedy and angst. Ashley’s best friend Brooke is played by Bella Podaras.
The whole thing has the flavor of one of Disney Channels’ teenage sitcoms, and to our eyes it appears to have been made as part of Netflix’s new drive to backfill the content that Disney pulled to create their own streaming service Disney+.
The first season is sixteen episodes, which Netflix ordered as a straight-to-series production from series creator Mario Lopez. It made its premiere on Netflix on February 17, 2020, which means there’s no waiting to see it. You can binge watch the whole thing now.
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Susan Macdonald is the author of the children’s book “R is for Renaissance Faire”, as well as 26 short stories, mostly fantasy in “Alternative Truths”, “Swords and Sorceress #30”, Swords &Sorceries Vols. 1, 2, & 5, “Cat Tails” “Under Western Stars”, and “Knee-High Drummond and the Durango Kid”. Her articles have appeared on SCIFI.radio’s web site, in The Inquisitr, and in The Millington Star. She enjoys Renaissance Faires (see book above), science fiction conventions, Highland Games, and Native American pow-wows.
