Postscript: Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka; Preview: My Special Tatay

From one advoca-serye to another.

Friday marked the final episode of ‘Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka’, an AIDS-themed drama that starred Yasmien Kurdi, Martin del Rosario, Jackie Rice and Mike Tan. The series ran for 132 episodes and posted decent ratings despite airing against ‘Hanggang Saan’ and ‘Araw Gabi’.

Even though ‘Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka’ had a rather up-and-down run, its 132 episodes suggest that it was a success. The show fulfilled its purpose of showing one’s struggles of living with AIDS, a deadly disease that remains virtually incurable.

Still, with that kind of inconsistency in the ratings it is clear that GMA is still finding a cure for its afternoon mood swings. Which leads to the next series that will replace ‘Hindi Ko Kayang Iwan Ka’.

‘My Special Tatay’, to be led by Ken Chan, will focus on mental illnesses. As the intellectually challenged father Boyet, Ken will portray a man who suffers from Mild Intellectual Disability with Mild Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Despite his mental shortcomings and other people’s doubts, Boyet grew up as a kind-hearted man with a positive outlook. However, his life would turn upside down once he finds out that he has a child.

Also part of ‘My Special Tatay’ are Jestoni Alarcon, Teresa Loyzaga, Carmen Soriano, Lilet, Candy Pangilinan, Arra San Agustin, Rita Daniela, Jillian Ward, Bruno Gabriel, and JK Giducos. Initial episodes of the series will feature special guest appearances from Matt Evans, Empress Schuck, Valeen Montenegro, and Ashley Rivera.

Once again, GMA will use the power of advocacy as a weapon to send a message to its viewers. This time, the focus is on mental health problems and ‘My Special Tatay’ will take a look at how a person deals with intellectual disabilities.

However, it remains to be seen if ‘My Special Tatay’ will be more consistent in overcoming ‘Araw Gabi’. While GMA is working on a good cause, high viewer support remains a must and unless ‘My Special Tatay’ proves a point their hard work will go for nothing.

Directed by LA Madridejos and Conrado Peru, ‘My Special Tatay’ airs weekdays after ‘The Stepdaughters’ on GMA Afternoon Prime.

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Alyas Robin Hood Back to Original Timeslot as Super Ma’am Premieres Tonight

The truth really hurts.

Frustration within GMA’s Telebabad block reaches a new high as they once again made a timeslot change at the top of the order. The reason: they still cannot beat the Philippines’ top two programs in ‘Ang Probinsyano’ and ‘La Luna Sangre’.

It can be recalled that on August 14, GMA brought back ‘Alyas Robin Hood’ for its second season. Hoping to give ‘Ang Probinsyano’ a run for its money, GMA decided to place ‘Alyas Robin Hood’ opposite the long-running ABS-CBN action series while ‘Mulawin vs. Ravena’ was placed at the second slot against ‘La Luna Sangre’.

After only a month, it was clear to GMA that Pepe (Dingdong Dantes) was no match for Cardo (Coco Martin). And it was not even close as ‘Ang Probinsyano’ climbed 20% higher in the ratings than that of ‘Alyas Robin Hood’.

As a result, GMA decided to once again shake things up. Beginning tonight, ‘Alyas Robin Hood’ will return to its original timeslot (as intended to by this writer), where they will finally butt heads with Malia (Kathryn Bernardo) and Tristan (Daniel Padilla) of ‘La Luna Sangre’.

In the meantime, ‘Ang Probinsyano’ will receive a new opponent. After dispatching ‘MariMar’, ‘Little Nanay’, ‘Poor Señorita’, ‘Encantadia’, ‘Mulawin vs. Ravena’ and ‘Alyas Robin Hood’, Cardo will now have to deal with Minerva (Marian Rivera) of the upcoming GMA fantasy action series ‘Super Ma’am’.

‘Super Ma’am’ features the story of Minerva, a teacher with a soft spot for students. But an encounter with the Tamawo, a clan of mythical creatures who abduct children for the sake of gaining energy, changed Minerva’s life as she became the superhero known as Super Ma’am, one who is determined to protect the world from the Tamawo.

The cast of ‘Super Ma’am’ also includes the following:

• Helen Gamboa
• Matthias Rhoads
• Joyce Ching
• Kristoffer Martin
• Kevin Santos
• Isabelle de Leon
• Andrew Gan
• Jackie Lou Blanco
• Jillian Ward
• Enrico Cuenca
• Ash Ortega
• Marika Sasaki
• Vincent Magbanua
• Meg Imperial
• Ashley Rivera
• Jerald Napoles
• Shyr Valdez
• Al Tantay
• Julius Miguel
• Kim Domingo
• Carmina Villarroel
• Dina Bonnevie
• Aiai delas Alas

The series will be under the direction of LA Madridejos.

Despite possessing the power couple of Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes, both ‘Super Ma’am’ and ‘Alyas Robin Hood’ will have their hands full in trying to defeat ‘Ang Probinsyano’ and ‘La Luna Sangre’. That said, the imposing shadow of both Coco Martin and KathNiel will be on GMA’s minds this week as they look to overcome Primetime Bida’s top two shows.

The task will once again not be easy for GMA Telebabad. Oh well, best of luck in hurdling over these foes anew.

Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko Brings Fantasy Back to GMA

GMA will once again go the fantasy route this Sunday night.

After fusing comedy and adventure with ‘Tsuperhero’, the network decided to take a more magical approach. This led to a new program called ‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’, starring Ms. Gloria Romero, Jillian Ward, David Remo, Julius Miguel and Chlaui Malayao.

In ‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’, Lola Goreng (Ms. Gloria) acts as the narrator alongside her grandchildren Alice (Jillian) and Elvis (David), an orphan named Moira (Chlaui) and another child named Jorrel (Julius). Each episode will feature value-filled and playful stories that people of all ages will enjoy.

‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’ will also feature special celebrity guests during each episode. For the pilot, Marian Rivera will appear as a guest for the week.

GMA is no stranger to the world of primetime fantasy programs, with shows such as ‘Okay Ka Fairy Ko’, ‘Mga Mahiwagang Baul’ and ‘One Day Isang Araw’ among the most notable examples. If ‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’ seems familiar to the average viewer, it is that they are once again using the power of an elderly woman to tell a story.

But while GMA has produced some memorable fantasy programs, the network has not been able to replicate the success of ABS-CBN’s long-running fantasy anthology ‘Wansapanatym’. After all, this show has long dominated Sunday nights for over a decade.

Even worse for GMA is the fact that they have not figured out a way to win during Sunday primetime. In the case of ‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’, their potential opponents ‘The Voice Teens’ and ‘Wansapanatym’ are considered top-raters every Sunday night, thus adding to the endless expectations that the show is about to experience.

That said, GMA can only hope that ‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’ will give their viewers something more relevant and enthusiastic to offer. The onus is now on this show to make an impact.

‘Daig Kayo ng Lola Ko’ airs every Sunday starting April 30 on GMA.

Poor Señorita to Challenge Ang Probinsyano Starting Tonight

Regine Velasquez-Alcasid, meet Coco Martin.

After easily disposing both ‘MariMar’ and ‘Little Nanay’, ‘FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano’ now awaits a new opponent. This time, young stars will not be the focus of this new GMA teleserye, but rather, a still-relevant 40-year-old Asia’s Songbird

Yes, Regine Velasquez-Alcasid remains a visible figure after nearly three decades in the industry. Although she earned her stripes as a singer, she also had major success as an actress, and starting tonight, the latter aspect of her talents will be shown on the upcoming series ‘Poor Señorita’.

In ‘Poor Señorita’, Regine plays Rita, a successful yet obsessive-compulsive owner of a perfume company. After suddenly losing her wealth, she stumbled upon five children who would try to help her get back on her feet, and in the process, show her the true meaning of love and happiness.

Joining Regine on ‘Poor Señorita’ are Mikael Daez, Sheena Halili, Kevin Santos, Valeen Montenegro, Jaya, Ervic Vijandre, Jillian Ward, Miggs Cuaderno, Zymic Jaranilla, Caprice Cayetano, Ralph Noriega, Snooky Serna, Ayra Mariano and Elyson de Dios. For Ayra and Elyson, it will be their first project after winning ‘StarStruck’ season 6.

Playing special roles on ‘Poor Señorita’ are Ricky Davao and Dingdong Dantes. Dominic Zapata will be the series’ director.

‘Poor Señorita’ is the latest in a series of attempts by GMA Telebabad to make their dramas lighter and more family-friendly. Unfortunately, it hasn’t worked out, and the fact that ABS-CBN (with the help of Dreamscape and Star Creatives) succeeded with dramas that appeal to the everyday Filipino made it more difficult for GMA to thrive.

That said, a daunting challenge awaits ‘Poor Señorita’ on its very first week. With ‘FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano’ on a roll, the former needs to prove that they can also keep up and make lighter series just as appealing to viewers.

‘Poor Señorita’ airs starting tonight after ’24 Oras’ on GMA Telebabad.

More Than Words Concludes, Pari ‘Koy Commences This Monday

Fresh from his marriage to Marian Rivera, Dingdong Dantes makes his return to the small screen.

His new project, ‘Pari ‘Koy’, will star ‘Dong in a role of a priest with an unconventional preaching approach. The main plot of the story will focus on Dingdong’s character being sent to Barangay Pinagpala in order to put his unorthodox style to the test in a seemingly pessimistic and corrupt community.

Joining ‘Dong on ‘Pari ‘Koy’ are Sunshine Dizon, Gabby Eigenmann, Chanda Romero, Luz Valdez, Dexter Doria, Rap Fernandez, JC Tiuseco, Carlo Gonzales, Jillian Ward, Jeric Gonzales, Lindsay de Vera, Hiro Peralta, and David Remo.

In the initial teaser to the upcoming teleserye, Dingdong’s priest character was portrayed as a drummer, not knowing he was actually a priest with the vestments under his jacket. Later teasers showed the antagonists doing corrupt practices in Barangay Pinagpala, and more recently, ‘Bubble Gang’ cast members were shown giving their thoughts on ‘Pari ‘Koy’.

‘Pari ‘Koy’ premieres this Monday on GMA Telebabad, replacing this teleserye.

Yes, ‘More Than Words’ will air its final episode tomorrow. The love story of Hiro (Elmo Magalona) and Ikay/Katy (Janine Gutierrez) has seen its ups and downs throughout the series’ run, and as it enters its final two episodes, an emotional ending is in store for both of them.

Premiering on November 17, 2014, ‘More Than Words’ went up against ABS-CBN’s ‘Dream Dad’, coincidentally featuring Elmo’s sister Maxene Magalona, for a majority of its run. The series enjoyed mixed success according to AGB Nielsen, but struggled against its opponent as far as Kantar’s ratings were concerned.

As it turned out, the pairing of Zanjoe Marudo and Jana Agoncillo proved to be stronger and more compelling than the duo of Elmo and Janine.

Now ‘Dream Dad’ will await the challenge of ‘Pari ‘Koy’, GMA’s latest attempt in the value-oriented teleserye. It will be interesting to see how a series with a radical priest will go up against another featuring a single father and his adopted daughter in the ratings game.

GMA Tries to Take Advantage with My BFF

 

‘My BFF’ hopes to sustain the momentum that its predecessor ‘My Love from the Star’ generated during its run.

The last time GMA aired a local teleserye before ’24 Oras’, they were rocked in the ratings. But with ABS-CBN’s ‘Mirabella’ not living up to expectations, GMA has decided to take advantage.

Starting June 30, ‘My BFF’ will take on ‘Mirabella’ on the timeslot preceding the news. The series, starring Jillian Ward, Mona Louise Rey, Janno Gibbs and Manilyn Reynes, will replace the highly successful and competitive ‘My Love from the Star’.

This will be GMA’s first local teleserye in the 5:45-6:30 p.m. slot since ‘Paraiso Ko’y Ikaw’. The series, starring Kristoffer Martin and Kim Rodriguez, performed poorly in the midst of ‘Annaliza”s dominance. As a result, GMA shied away from producing a local series in that timeslot for over two months.

During that span, two programs were aired: ‘GMA Sinebabad’ and ‘My Love from the Star’. The latter series was a success, outplaying ‘Mirabella’ in the AGB Nielsen ratings while staying competitive in the TNS Kantar ratings. The popularity of ‘My Love from the Star’ prompted the network to re-air the program every Sunday.

Meanwhile, ‘Mirabella’ is struggling to sustain the momentum that ‘Annaliza’ gained throughout its run. The 20% rating of ‘Mirabella’ is less than the 25-30% ratings that ‘Annaliza’ managed in its 10 months on air. The low ratings of ‘Mirabella’ is uncharacteristic of ABS-CBN’s recent string of dominance on primetime, where ‘Dyesebel’, ‘Ikaw Lamang’ and ‘Sana Bukas Pa ang Kahapon’ became their strongest suits.

Simply put, ‘My Love from the Star”s success gave GMA some momentum, and now they hope to capitalize with ‘My BFF’. The latter, with its light-hearted story and emphasis on family and friendship, should give ‘Mirabella’ a difficult time attracting viewers. And if ‘My BFF’ wins, it will be a huge victory for the Kapuso network.