FTT Year 2017 in Review: The Hot or Not Stories That Define the Year in Media (Part III)

Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2018, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio. This article looks back at some of the Hot or Not moments that define the Philippine media this year.

If you missed out on Part I and Part II of this series, click on the highlighted link for more information.

Here is Part III of the four-part series. These stories are arranged in no particular order.

HOT: Ang Probinsyano

Year II of ‘Ang Probinsyano’ was no different from Year I. Despite questions surrounding its quality for a series that has run for two years and counting, ‘Ang Probinsyano’ continued to dominate the primetime landscape, often reaching 40% or better some nights.

Even as the likes of Maja Salvador, Bela Padilla and Albert Martinez depart, ‘Ang Probinsyano’ soldiered on with new additions such as former GMA stars Aljur Abrenica and Louise delos Reyes. The series was also rewarded with yet another extension that will last until an undetermined date in 2018 (barring another extension).

NOT: Ang Probinsyano’s Opponents

Meanwhile, four different opponents from the Kapuso network tried to take down ‘Ang Probinsyano’ and its lengthy run of excellence. Unfortunately, neither ‘Encantadia’, ‘Alyas Robin Hood’, ‘Mulawin vs. Ravena’ nor ‘Super Ma’am’ were able to take Coco Martin and company down.

None of the four teleseryes breached the 20% mark and worse, the disparity between ‘Ang Probinsyano’ and its opponent is around 20% or better. With such a large deficit GMA should start thinking of a new strategy this early or wait for ‘Ang Probinsyano’ to end in order to take advantage of this new opportunity (too bad there’s no end date yet).

HOT: 2016 Miss Universe

The 2016 Miss Universe was held in the Philippines last January 30 and was simulcast on ABS-CBN, TV5, GMA and Solar Entertainment channels. The collaboration marked just the second time that an event of national interest was aired in unison among the country’s broadcast giants; the last being the Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather boxing fight two years ago.

France’s Iris Mittenaere was crowned the 2016 Miss Universe while the host’s representative Maxine Medina finished among the top 6. However, she was unable to complete an entire year’s reign as this year’s Miss Universe was held last November 26 with South Africa’s Demi-Leigh Nel-Peters winning the said pageant.

NOT: Pacquiao vs. Horn and the sport of boxing

The declining interest in Manny Pacquiao continued as he fought Jeff Horn in July. The end result was a unanimous decision victory for Horn, some bloodshot eyes from Pacquiao and lukewarm reception from boxing fans in the country.

It was a poor year overall for boxing on Philippine television. Despite the efforts of ALA Promotions to promote the sport via its Pinoy Pride series, the year saw the end of ABS-CBN Sports’ partnership with Top Rank Boxing (coinciding with Nonito Donaire ending ties with Bob Arum’s promotion) and the expected cancellation of ‘Blow by Blow’ on TV5.

HOT: Magandang Buhay

2017 proved to be a coming-out party of sorts for ‘Magandang Buhay’ as the show became a ratings hit each and every morning. The news is an encouraging one for ABS-CBN despite the fact that the show airs at 8:00 a.m., which is typically ‘dead’ time for viewership.

With the trio of Melai Cantiveros, Jolina Magdangal and Karla Estrada, plus some impressive selection of guests, it is no secret that this talk show has become the talk of the town. With all due respect to Kris Aquino, the trio of Melai, Jolina and Karla should now inherit the ‘queens of talk’ mantra considering ‘Magandang Buhay”s success.

NOT: GMA’s Animes and The Lolas’ Beautiful Show

The traditional morning powerhouse that is GMA’s Astig Authority suddenly became vulnerable with the rise of ‘Magandang Buhay’. Even though the network redubbed ‘Voltes V’ and ‘Daimos’ this year with a host of celebrities from their stable, it failed to prevent the inevitable.

One talk show that would have helped is ‘The Lolas’ Beautiful Show’, hosted by Wally Bayola, Jose Manalo and Paolo Ballesteros in their alter-egos as Nidora, Tinidora and Tidora. However, the show’s status as a TAPE-produced show (TAPE programs are only allowed an 11:30-2:30 timeslot on GMA most afternoons) prevented it from seriously challenging ‘Magandang Buhay’.

It also didn’t help that ‘The Lolas’ Beautiful Show’ is losing to the morning drama ‘Ikaw Lang ang Iibigin’ on a regular basis. Perhaps GMA should loosen the reins a bit to give the lolas of ‘Eat Bulaga’ a chance to go up against the momshies of ‘Magandang Buhay’.

HOT: ABS-CBN Reality/Talent Shows

Reality and talent shows continue to give ABS-CBN plenty of reasons to celebrate. This year’s winners are:

Pinoy Big Brother Lucky 7 – Maymay Entrata

Your Face Sounds Familiar Kids – Awra Briguela

I Can Do That – Wacky Kiray

The Voice Teens Philippines – Jona Soquite

Currently on the network’s weekend primetime menu are ‘Little Big Shots’ and ‘I Can See Your Voice’, both of which continue to excel and trend among viewers. If 2018 is of any indication, then even more excitement awaits ABS-CBN as it introduces either new seasons of existing reality/talent shows or new programs.

NOT: All-Star Videoke

A poor man’s version of the popular ‘All-Star K’ was introduced to GMA last September. Unfortunately, ‘All-Star Videoke’ failed to live up to the standards of its more successful sibling.

GMA could have used this opportunity to bring back ‘Lip-Sync Battle Philippines’ or acquire ‘Killer Karaoke’. Instead, they rehashed an original Filipino concept that did not work out, and with all due respect to Betong Sumaya and Solenn Heussaff, they are no Allan K and Jaya in that regard.

Part IV of this four-part series is coming up tomorrow. Stay tuned.

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In 100 Words: Magandang Buhay to Premiere This Monday

It’s going to be a ‘Magandang Buhay’ this coming Monday.

Yes, that’s the name of the new talk show that will be hosted by Karla Estrada, Melai Cantiveros and Jolina Magdangal. And as expected, it will replace ‘Kris TV’ on its old 7:30 a.m. timeslot.

The premiere of ‘Magandang Buhay’ had been long overdue, as ‘Kris TV’ continued to air reruns despite its final broadcast last March 23. Nevertheless, for ABS-CBN and the show’s producers, it was finally worth the wait.

Over the next two weeks, ‘Magandang Buhay’ will be pitted against GMA’s animes. But if GMA decides to pit their own new talk show ‘Yan ang Morning’ opposite ‘Magandang Buhay’, it could make things a little more interesting.

New Talk Shows to Shine on ABS-CBN, GMA

Rival networks ABS-CBN and GMA are set to premiere new morning talk shows in the summer.

On the Kapamilya camp, the trio of Karla Estrada, Melai Cantiveros and Jolina Magdangal are busy preparing for a still-untitled talk show. A teaser for this program was aired recently, with its timeslot and premiere date yet to be determined.

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Dizizit! Very soon.🙏🏻

A post shared by 🍀🦋 Jolina Magdangal Escueta 🦋🍀 (@mariajolina_ig) on Apr 6, 2016 at 9:03pm PDT

This talk show is expected to replace ‘Kris TV’, whose run ended during the Holy Week but have continued to air reruns due to a lack of an immediate replacement. Kris Aquino herself admitted that she was saddened by the continuous replays of ‘Kris TV’ even though it had already been concluded.

Initially, a new talk show solely hosted by Karla Estrada was rumored to take over ‘Kris TV”s timeslot, but the Kapamilya actress denied the rumors. Just last week, however, she announced that she will indeed host the show alongside Melai and Jolina.

Over on the Kapuso side, Marian Rivera is also busy preparing for a new talk show of her own. Titled ‘Yan ang Morning!’, a teaser for it was aired recently, as part of GMA’s summer programs plug.

‘Yan ang Morning!’ will be GMA’s first morning talk show since ‘Basta Every Day Happy’ two years ago. Its timeslot is also yet to be determined, though it may be likely that GMA will air the program during the mid to late mornings, as it was the case with ‘Basta Every Day Happy’.

For Marian Rivera, it will be her third upcoming or ongoing project since returning from maternity leave. Her two other programs are the soon-to-air ‘Encantadia’ requel and ‘Sunday PinaSaya’.

Whether or not the two talk shows will face each other in the same timeslot or not remains to be seen. Still, it will be interesting to see how will they fare in a block that does not usually make an impact in the ratings.

No Replacement for Kris TV, For Now

Looks like ‘Kris TV’ is here to stay anew.

Even though Kris Aquino made it clear that last Wednesday’s episode of ‘Kris TV’ was to be their last (see video above), on Monday, March 28, ABS-CBN decided to continue airing the talk show as a series of ‘best of’ specials. ‘The Best of Kris TV’, as seen in the program plugs, airs on the very timeslot that ‘Kris TV’ once occupied, from 7:30-9:00 a.m. on weekdays.

The reason behind this decision is unclear, though it may be attributed to a lack of a suitable replacement. There were rumors that a talk show hosted by Karla Estrada would replace ‘Kris TV’, but the Kapamilya actress quickly shot it down.

With nearly five years and over 1,000 episodes to boot, ‘Kris TV’ ranks as one of the longest-running morning talk shows on Philippine television. While the show may not have been a ratings darling, its loyal following and Kris Aquino’s dedication to her craft helped ‘Kris TV’ stay on the air for as long as Kris’ body and mind allowed it to.

Still, with the show having closed shop, what’s next for ABS-CBN as far as its vacated timeslot is concerned? After all, they don’t want an already concluded show like ‘Kris TV’ to remain on the air, so they need to make a decision about it as soon as possible.

Hopefully the wait won’t be long. As for Kris Aquino, let’s just hope that she returns to prominence with her body and mind as strong as ever.