Back to Zero: Kapag Nahati ang Puso Exits with No Replacement in Sight

Consider this yet another epic series of failures for GMA in the late-morning slot.

On All Souls’ Day, ‘Kapag Nahati ang Puso’ will air its final episode. But without a replacement in sight, all signs point to ‘Kapuso Movie Festival’ taking over its soon-to-be-vacated timeslot.

‘Kapag Nahati ang Puso’, which starred Bea Binene, Benjamin Alves, Sunshine Cruz, Zoren Legaspi and Bing Loyzaga, first premiered on July 16, 2018. Unlike its predecessors ‘Ang Forever Ko’y Ikaw’ and ‘My Guitar Princess’, ‘Kapag Nahati ang Puso’ had a more serious and darker tone.

While it enjoyed a decent 80-episode run, ‘Kapag Nahati ang Puso”s overall performance did not inspire confidence from its audience. ‘Kapag Nahati ang Puso’ averaged a mere 10% in the ratings, even though it came close on a few occasions to beat ‘Sana Dalawa ang Puso’ and ‘Playhouse’.

Suffice to say, the change of strategy did not affect GMA’s fortunes in the late-morning slot. Once again, GMA management has to wonder why this timeslot continues to frustrate them at every turn.

Looking back at the three previous attempts at unseating the likes of ‘Sana Dalawa ang Puso’ and ‘Playhouse’, it was clear that GMA was scared to compete from the start. Let’s face it, both ‘Ang Forever Ko’y Ikaw’ and ‘My Guitar Princess’ were epic failures just by looking at its respective number of episodes.

If a drama series only finished at 38 and 50 episodes, then it is obvious that something is wrong. Either that GMA is not convinced enough that both are compelling or is not satisfied with the production.

Then again both series were produced by GMA Public Affairs which is infamous for short-run dramas. Still, its intent to air for a brief period is inexcusable considering the circumstances.

In fairness, ‘Kapag Nahati ang Puso’ ended with 80 episodes which is a slight improvement. Then again, its ratings were not that impressive and GMA realized that late-morning dramas are not their bread and butter.

Perhaps GMA should just stop this charade and go back to airing ‘Kapuso Movie Festival’ in that timeslot. The network simply had no chance there; not even blocktimer TAPE can help them.

This Friday, ‘Kapag Nahati ang Puso’ will conclude its run. But don’t expect GMA to give it a proper farewell because they are in no mood to do so.

Update: The Koreanovela ‘Woman of Dignity’ will replace ‘Kapag Nahati ang Puso’ starting Monday. Still, this is a clear sign of GMA once again conceding to ABS-CBN when it comes to the late-morning slot.

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Be Careful’s Rivals Revisited (Part III)

Since debuting in April 2013, ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’ gave ‘Be Careful with My Heart’ an even tougher challenge. (Photo credit: Eat Bulaga official Twitter)

‘Be Careful with My Heart’, ABS-CBN’s long-running ‘kiligserye’ series, ends this Friday, November 28. As a tribute to its unexpected success and longevity, From the Tube will look back at ‘Be Careful”s rivals and their performance against the said late morning drama series.

After vanquishing rivals ‘Kusina Master’ and ‘Cielo de Angelina’, it seems like no one can stop the reign of ‘Be Careful with My Heart’ in the late-morning slot.

And for much of February and March 2013, it appeared that GMA has already given up facing ‘Be Careful’, as old movies via the ‘Kapuso Movie Festival’ took over the timeslot opposite the aforementioned ‘kilig-serye’.

But on April 1, an episode of ‘Eat Bulaga’ gave GMA some glimmer of hope.

On that episode, host Vic Sotto gave child star Ryzza Mae Dizon a memorable and extremely special gift. That reward came in the form of a microphone and a new show called ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’.

A week later, then seven-year-old Ryzza and her eponymous talk show would make its much-awaited debut on the Kapuso network, opposite none other than ‘Be Careful with My Heart’.

As expected, the pilot episode of ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’ had a shaky start, posting ratings of 11.7 and 17.5% according to Kantar and AGB Nielsen, respectively. On the other hand, ‘Be Careful’ posted numbers of 24.4 and 23.4%.

Despite the slow start, it was clear that ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’ was holding its own against ‘Be Careful with My Heart’. Even though ratings of 10% or better remain a regular occurrence, the show was able to last longer than either ‘Kusina Master’ or ‘Cielo de Angelina’, simply because GMA and producer TAPE, Inc. kept its faith on Ryzza and her growing talents.

With ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’ providing a tougher-than-expected challenge, ‘Be Careful with My Heart’ tried to find new ways to increase their ratings. In November 2013, the wedding of Maya (Jodi Sta. Maria) and Ser Chief (Richard Yap) gave ‘Be Careful’ an impressive 27.2% rating, but the show’s ratings soon declined below 20% as audiences grew tired of its slow and dragging storyline.

While ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’ was unable to beat ‘Be Careful with My Heart’, it did give the latter fits. The fact that viewers grew uninterested on the latter may have provided a bit of a spark on the former, as evidenced by the shrinking gap in the ratings of both programs.

Having said that, it was a big achievement for ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’ to last over a year. The talk show may have not been victorious, but at least it gave audiences a new reason to watch.

As for ‘Be Careful with My Heart’, the two-year ride ends this Friday. With that, From the Tube wishes the show the best of luck.

‘Give Love on Christmas’, a three-week Christmas special, premieres on December 1 on the soon-to-be vacated timeslot of ‘Be Careful with My Heart’.

Be Careful’s Rivals Revisited (Part II)

In October 2012, GMA responded to ‘Be Careful with My Heart”s success with ‘Cielo de Angelina’, but it failed to even make a dent in the ratings. (Title card courtesy of GMA Network)

‘Be Careful with My Heart’, ABS-CBN’s long-running ‘kiligserye’ series, ends this Friday, November 28. As a tribute to its unexpected success and longevity, From the Tube will look back at ‘Be Careful”s rivals and their performance against the said late morning drama series.

In just its third month on the air, ‘Be Careful with My Heart’ emerged as the most-watched morning program in the Philippines, with consistent ratings of over 20%. The surprising success of the series left rival GMA, in particular ‘Be Careful”s then-opponent ‘Kusina Master’, stunned.

As a result, GMA decided to counter with a morning drama of their own. Their response came in the form of a drama series starring emerging teen stars Bea Binene and Jake Vargas.

That series became known as ‘Cielo de Angelina’, and it made its debut on October 22, 2012.

On its pilot episode, ‘Cielo de Angelina’ registered a decent 10.2 and 11.8%, according to Kantar and AGB Nielsen, respectively. On the other hand, ‘Be Careful with My Heart’ earned monster ratings of 23.1 and 22.9%.

From the beginning, it was clear that ‘Cielo de Angelina’ would be no match for ‘Be Careful with My Heart. Soon after, single-digit ratings became a regular occurrence for the former, and by November 12, GMA has had enough.

After registering paltry ratings of 8 and 8.8% on the November 9 episode, GMA decided to demote ‘Cielo de Angelina’ to an earlier timeslot in favor of ‘Kusina Master’. However, the change of schedule failed to turn the tide for the struggling show, thanks in large part to the entry of ‘Masterchef Pinoy Edition’.

With ‘Cielo de Angelina”s struggles taking its toll on GMA’s morale, the Kapuso network decided to pull the plug, and on January 4, 2013, the series was finally cancelled.

In fairness to the Kapuso network, ‘Cielo de Angelina’ was not a bad attempt, in a way that it further exposes Bea Binene and Jake Vargas to a more serious type of acting. But it was a series that GMA should have never done in the morning slot, not against a more light-hearted ‘Be Careful with My Heart’.

Meanwhile, ‘Be Careful with My Heart’ continued to dominate its timeslot, leading to another demotion on the part of ‘Kusina Master’. After that, from February 18 to April 5, the series would find itself without an opponent, as GMA aired old movies via its ‘Kapuso Movie Festival’ block.

It didn’t take long for GMA to find another rival for ‘Be Careful with My Heart’. This time around, they enlisted the help of TAPE, Inc. boss Malou Choa-Fagar in creating their latest late-morning program, one that is unlike any other in television history.

Tomorrow on Part III, From the Tube will look back at ‘Be Careful with My Heart”s final, and by far its most formidable rival, ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’.