João, an idealist, eventually joins the armed struggle, while Maria Lúcia is an individualist who has little tolerance for the risks attached to the leftist social fight against the dictator's regime.
Other Characters include: Following the coup d'état of the Brazilian Armed Forces over left-wing President João Goulart in 1964, Brazil was governed by a military dictatorship until 1985.
Rede Globo, the popular Brazilian television network launched in 1965, was a staunch supporter of the authoritarian military regime in Brazil during its first two decades of existence.
Nonetheless, Globo's allegiance to the military governments allowed them to conduct an illegal joint business opportunity with the Time-Life Corporation, which provided them with financial benefits and advantages over other networks.
According to Atencio, the network used the show to promote messages and issues (as opposed to commercial products) in order to bolster its public image, a process she refers to as social merchandising.