‘Queen of the South’ is about Teresa Mendoza. She goes from rags in Mexico to ruling drug trade in southern Spain. Based on a book by Arturo Pérez-Reverte, this show is all about action, suspense and drama. Teresa fights through a wild world of crime, trying to survive and grab power. With a great cast and crazy plot twists, ‘Queen of the South’ is totally worth your time.

Meet the characters from Queen of the South

Teresa Mendoza

Teresa is the kind of lead you root for and then immediately panic about because she will absolutely do something reckless and somehow it works — or breaks everything, there’s no in-between. Fierce, brilliant, and built from street-scraps into an empress of trade, she runs on grit, instinct, and a suspiciously good sense of timing. She’s maternal and merciless in equal measures, will make you tea and then negotiate your disappearance, which is maybe a weird combo but also charming? Also, she collects little trinkets from places she conquers and hums old songs when she’s planning, which I swear is a thing she does sometimes.

Pote Galvez

Pote is Teresa’s right hand and the definition of quiet danger — gruff, loyal to a fault, and somehow also the weird uncle everyone likes at family dinners. He’ll crack a joke in the middle of a gunfight (terrifying) and then disappear for long stretches to eat tacos at 3 a.m., like a mythic night creature who prefers salsa. He’s got this soft spot for Teresa that’s basically carved in stone, but don’t test him because his patience has the lifespan of a match. Also, he keeps oddly neat notebooks? I don’t know why, but he does, and it makes him even more mysterious.

James

James is one of those characters who seems calm on the surface but is actually doing five complicated things in his head, all while smiling politely. Mysterious background, sharp suits, and the kind of charm used to open doors — and occasionally windows, probably for dramatic exits. He’s helpful when he wants to be, slippery when it suits him, and somehow you always wonder if you’ve met the real him yet. Oh and he drinks tea like an English spy sometimes, then brawls like he forgot to care about the tea, which is hilarious and confusing.

Camila Vargas

Camila is regal, ruthless, and honestly fashion-forward while dismantling entire power structures — she’s a terrifying elegance machine. She runs her world with an iron glove in a velvet hand, maternal to her children and merciless to her enemies; also collects orchids for reasons that are probably symbolic but also maybe just because she likes flowers. People talk about her cold eyes but she has these tiny moments of tenderness that make you wonder if she’s faking or if the ice is legitimately melting, for like a second. Also, she has an opera playlist she listens to before big moves, which is delightfully dramatic and very on-brand.

Kelly Anne Van Awken

Kelly Anne is this sly, media-savvy type who looks like she belongs at a cocktail party and then casually ruins someone’s plan over hors d’oeuvres, which is peak villain-hero ambiguity. Sharp, witty, and with an eyebrow that practically deserves its own zip code, she manipulates public opinion like it’s a board game — fun, right? She’s good at numbers and charm, and somewhere between PR spin and actual moral code there’s a slippery slope she walks in stilettos. Also, she bakes cupcakes once? Or tries to? I can’t remember, but it humanizes her slightly (and is probably a trap).

Boaz Jimenez

Boaz is the heavy-lifting, sometimes-too-honest muscle who can be terrifyingly efficient and also unexpectedly sentimental about tiny things, like old photographs or a beat-up chess set. He’s blunt, relentless, and has a loyalty algorithm that reads: Teresa > almost everyone, unless someone really deserves it. There’s a weirdly cozy vibe to him when he’s around the crew but you would not want to meet him in a dark alley, unless you’re into fast travel to the afterlife. Also, he hums really loud when nervous, which is adorable but also unsettling mid-mayhem.

Detective Alonzo Loya

Detective Loya is the cop who’s been chewing on this case like it’s a bitter candy he can’t spit out; persistent, morally complicated, and honestly the kind of dogged that heroes are boringly made of. He chases leads, makes deals with headache levels of legality, and has this old-school sense of right and wrong that clashes deliciously with the messier modern world. He drinks his coffee black and keeps a framed photo on his desk that he pretends doesn’t matter but obviously does, and I’m not crying, you are. He’s a pain in the ass sometimes but also the person you’d want to call at 2 a.m. when things go sideways.

Don Epifanio Vargas

Don Epifanio is the classic patriarch — enormous presence, older than sense sometimes, but with a mind like a chess grandmaster and the patience of someone who’s been burned and rebuilt. He doles out favors like currency and punishments like homework, and you get the sense he smells plots before people even form them, which is both impressive and terrifying. He’s family-first in a way that can be noble and also violently blinkered, and I’m always torn between respect and moral nausea. Also he apparently collects model trains or something domestic like that, which makes him oddly endearing?

Isabela Vargas

Isabela feels like a spark: flashy, impulsive, and prone to dramatic gestures that make everyone gasp and then clean up afterwards. She’s glamorous and dangerous, the sort who wears lipstick like a warning and laughs in the face of consequences — sometimes successfully, sometimes not. Her loyalties flicker (and annoy a lot of people), but there’s a core of real pain that explains a lot, if you’re paying attention — which most people aren’t, because her outfits are loud. Oh, and she’s equal parts fashionista and fighter, which is practically my aesthetic, so yes, I have feelings.