Daily Spotlight: America Ferrera As Ugly Betty

by Julie Zied
Apr 24th, 2008 | 12:40 PM | Comments 0

Ugly Betty returns to prime time tonight with its first original episode since the 100-day writers strike, and it’s like a breath of fresh and funny air thanks mostly to the way the title role is handled by America Ferrera. She’s able to capture and communicate nuances that span the silly status-conscious world of fashion magazine to the heavier subplots having to do with femininity, love, family and of course being a person of color today in the U.S. And Ferrera, who turned 24 on April 18, does this from within the too-cruel-to-be-true makeover that hides her radiant natural beauty. So even though Chicago Daily Herald TV critic Ted Cox calls tonight’s episode “too much soap, and not enough satire,” we say God bless America — and welcome back.