How Did Encantadia and Other Fantaseryes Hurt GMA in the Long Term?

GMA’s big investment on fantaseryes took its toll on the network’s long-term plans. (Photo credit: GMA Network)

The upcoming requel of ‘Encantadia’ is worth watching, that is, if you’re really a die-hard Kapuso fan.

But while anticipation is high on the new ‘Encantadia’, the broadcasting and financial aspect of GMA leaves a lot to be desired. It’s already 2016, and yet GMA is still way behind its competitors as far as their broadcast standards are concerned.

Much of the blame was due to the numerous big-budget primetime fantaseryes that GMA produced in the mid to late 2000s. With so much money invested on these projects, their ability to spend on updated equipment, facilities and other production and talent matters was compromised in the long term.

From 2004 to 2011, GMA produced big-budget fantaseryes such as ‘Mulawin’, ‘Darna’, the ‘Encantadia’ trilogy, ‘Captain Barbell’ and ‘Dyesebel’, among others. They were able to succeed in the ratings, but the high costs of making these series soon took its toll on GMA.

Looking at how GMA currently stacks up with ABS-CBN and TV5, it is clear that they have a lot of catching up to do. In fact, there were some key factors present on ABS-CBN and TV5 that were absent on GMA, such as:

• An independent sports division (Shakey’s V-League and Manny Pacquiao fights, among others, were co-produced by other outfits)
• Experimental 16:9 HD broadcasts (GMA still airs its programs in 4:3 standard definition, save for recent imported programs and TAPE-produced ‘Princess in the Palace; GMA also lacks an HD channel of its own)
• Sister digital TV channels (ABS-CBN has CineMo and Yey!, while TV5 has Catsup)
• Cable and satellite TV subscription service (ABS-CBN has SkyCable, while TV5 has Cignal)
• Video-on-demand, livestream and digital-exclusive online service (ABS-CBN has iWanTV, while TV5 has News5Everywhere and Digital5)

Factor in the ongoing problems within the Artist Center, GMA’s regional networks, sister station GMA News TV, GMA Films and the public relationship department, and you have a network that is now standing on just one leg. Poor GMA.

It’s a pity to see GMA struggle at almost everything in recent years, and now that they’ll produce a requel of ‘Encantadia’, more problems lie ahead. That said, if GMA continues its ongoing slide, they will be in for a rude awakening.

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With Impending Encantadia Requel, GMA Goes for Broke

It’s official: ‘Encantadia’ is returning to GMA.

The announcement was made last night during the evening newscast ’24 Oras’. Throughout the newscast, the upcoming ‘requel’ (portmanteau of reboot and prequel) revealed its main cast members, which are as follows:

• Glaiza de Castro (as Sang’gre Pirena, originally portrayed by Sunshine Dizon)
• Kylie Padilla (as Sang’gre Amihan, originally portrayed by Iza Calzado)
• Gabbi Garcia (as Sang’gre Alena, originally portrayed by Karylle)
• Sanya Lopez (as Sang’gre Danaya, originally portrayed by Diana Zubiri)
• Ruru Madrid (as Ybarro/Ybrahim, originally portrayed by Dingdong Dantes)
• Rocco Nacino (as Aquil, originally portrayed by Alfred Vargas)

They will be joined by Marian Rivera, who will play Dawn Zulueta’s original role as the Inang Reyna.

In addition, the press conference announced the names of the supporting cast members. They are:

•  John Arcilla (as Hagorn)
• Rochelle Pangilinan (as Agane)
• Vaness del Moral (as Gurna)
• Pancho Magno (as Hitano)
• Christian Bautista (as Apitong)
• Carlo Gonzales (as Muros)
• Kate Valdez (as Mira)
• Mikee Quintos (as Lira)
• Klea Pineda (as Muyak)
• Migo Adecer (as Anthony)
• Solenn Heussaff (as Cassiopeia)

Mark Reyes will be the director of the new ‘Encantadia’, and he revealed that a few changes will be made on the ‘requel’ without sacrificing the main story of the original series. That said, expect a fresher and more modern ‘Encantadia’ for the new generation.

The original ‘Encantadia’ aired on GMA during the mid-2000s, and spawned two sequels in ‘Etheria: Ang Ikalimang Kaharian ng Encantadia’ and ‘Encantadia: Pag-Ibig Hanggang Wakas’. A planned reboot of ‘Encantadia’ (titled ‘Encantadia: The Second Saga’) was announced in 2010, but was never materialized.

When it first aired, ‘Encantadia’ became one of GMA’s highly-rated series, thanks in large part to the popularity of the fantaserye during that time. But the production of ‘Encantadia’ and its two sequels took its toll on GMA financially, and they have never recovered since.

With the Kapuso network in a crisis of confidence, what chances will they have with the ‘requel’ of ‘Encantadia’? And how will this series be able to thrive amidst a more conservative approach in teleserye production?

Only time will tell.

In 100 Words: Encantadia to Return Soon

The original ‘Encantadia’ became a hit for GMA a decade ago, helping popularize the fantaserye genre. (Photo credit: GMA Network)

The fantaserye that briefly put GMA on top is about to return.

GMA recently announced that ‘Encantadia’ will be among the few new shows that will premiere next year. It is yet to be determined whether or not it will be reboot or a continuation of the original series.

For much of the late 2000s, ‘Encantadia’ and its sister series ‘Etheria’ and ‘Encantadia: Pag-Ibig Hanggang Wakas’ helped GMA take the lead over ABS-CBN in the ratings. But the cost of making such an elaborate series took its toll on the network’s finances.

A fourth sister series, ‘Encantadia: The Second Saga’, was supposed to premiere in 2010 but was scrapped even before production began. That said, it is still a question of if and when with regards to the latest version of ‘Encantadia’.