Pressure On for Second MariMar Remake

Don’t expect the second remake of ‘MariMar’ to be as successful as the first one.

The 2015 version of ‘MariMar’, starring Megan Young as the titular character and Tom Rodriguez as Sergio Santibañez, will officially air later tonight on the timeslot vacated by ‘Pari ‘Koy’. But unlike the 2007 version starring Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes, the new ‘MariMar’ will face tougher competition this time around.

When the 2007 adaptation hit the small screen, GMA was at the peak of its powers then, led by their successful mix of fantaseryes and Koreanovelas. The DongYan-led ‘MariMar’ topped the ratings in almost all of its episodes, eventually peaking with a 52.6% rating during its two-hour finale in March 2008.

The first remake of ‘MariMar’ skyrocketed the careers of Marian Rivera and Dingdong Dantes as a love team. It eventually led to an off-screen relationship, culminated by their wedding late last year (mirroring the ‘live’ marriage of MariMar and Sergio in 2008).

Fast forward to this year, and a very different scenario awaits the new ‘MariMar’. ABS-CBN had overtaken GMA in the ratings, thanks in large part to the discovery of new talents, and stories that pay tribute to the Filipinos’ admirable qualities and values.

One such story is ‘Nathaniel’, ‘MariMar”s upcoming opponent. The value-oriented teleserye has been a consistent winner in its timeslot, even though it had to play a supporting role to both KathNiel (Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla) and JaDine (James Reid and Nadine Lustre) in the Primetime Bida lineup.

That said, the new ‘MariMar’ will be under tremendous pressure to succeed against more formidable competition. The series has proven its charm in the past (both the original and 2007 adaptation earned high ratings), so it’s up to the viewers to decide if this is worth a second chance.

‘MariMar’ premieres starting today, August 24, and airs weeknights at 7:45 p.m. on GMA Telebabad.

Note: The first remake of ‘MariMar’ and the upcoming second remake had an eight-year gap between them. No stranger to producing a second teleserye remake within a short period of time, GMA has also produced second remakes of ‘Darna’ and ‘Captain Barbell’ within four and five years of the first adaptation, respectively.

This does not count another Mars Ravelo creation, ‘Dyesebel’, which aired on GMA in 2008 and later remade by ABS-CBN six years later.

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‘Dyesebel’ Stands Tall as ‘Kambal Sirena’ Ends This Week

‘Kambal Sirena”s final episode will be this Friday on GMA.

GMA’s ‘Kambal Sirena’ is now down to only five episodes. The series, once an arch-rival to ABS-CBN’s ‘Dyesebel’, will bid farewell this Friday.

‘Kambal Sirena’, starring Louise delos Reyes and Aljur Abrenica, debuted last March 10. However, the series made little noise throughout its run. ‘Kambal Sirena’ was defeated by the departing ‘Honesto’ in its first week’, then got spanked in the subsequent weeks thanks to ‘Dyesebel’, starring Anne Curtis.

On May 26, GMA decided to demote ‘Kambal Sirena’ in favor of ‘Nino’, but the results remained the same despite airing at a later timeslot. Rival ‘Ikaw Lamang’, starring Kim Chiu, Coco Martin, Julia Montes and Jake Cuenca, proved too much to handle for ‘Kambal Sirena’, as the former series dominated the latter in both Kantar and AGB Nielsen ratings.

To be honest, ‘Kambal Sirena’ was worth the try for budding star Louise delos Reyes. After all, she was one of GMA’s emerging young stars, and a bankable talent for years to come. Accepting a role that involves wearing a man-made fin and swimming topless is no easy task, but for delos Reyes, it is a huge step forward in her development as an actress.

In the end, however, it was ‘Dyesebel’ who won the hearts of viewers more than its younger counterpart in ‘Kambal Sirena’. The former is simply too hard to ignore, thanks to an established actress, an accomplished production company, and a legendary Mars Ravelo creation to boot. But that doesn’t mean GMA did not do well in producing ‘Kambal Sirena’. They made the story their own, and they picked an actress whose star is about to shine. Too bad viewers did not respond to a newbie in the sea.

‘Kambal Sirena’ was a good project, but it failed to reverse GMA Telebabad’s slumping fortunes. Now the pressure is on ‘My Destiny’, and GMA hopes that the chemistry of Tom Rodriguez and Carla Abellana will be the key for turning things around.

But for now, ‘Kambal Sirena’ takes a bow. As for Louise delos Reyes, there is still a lot more to improve.

Marian Rivera Returns to Primetime

Marian Rivera (left, with Alden Richards) will return to the primetime scene with ‘Carmela’. (Courtesy GMA Network)

Marian Rivera is making a long-awaited television comeback. After winning FHM Philippines’ ‘Sexiest Woman’ title and announcing herself as the calendar girl for Ginebra, the long-time GMA contract artist will resume her leading lady role in a teleserye that will take her career to another level.

The project will be called ‘Carmela’. Originally named ‘Catarina’, the title was changed to ‘Carmela’ because Rivera thought the latter sounded sweeter than the former. The series, currently in the pre-production stage, will be Rivera’s first teleserye since ‘Temptation of Wife‘, and Alden Richards, nine years her junior, will be her leading man.

In a related report, Louise delos Reyes is now undergoing rigid training sessions to prepare for her role as a mermaid. Delos Reyes will play a more supporting role in ‘Carmela’ as opposed to her lead role in ‘Mundo Mo’y Akin’. Other stars confirmed to play supporting roles in the series include Agot Isidro, Roi Vinzon, Rochelle Pangilinan, Ina Feleo, Max Collins, and Jennica Garcia.

The upcoming drama series will be released in the first quarter of 2014. Given that GMA’s primetime television ratings have been in the red of late thanks to ABS-CBN’s younger stable of talents, the re-entry of Marian Rivera to the primetime scene should give the Kapuso network a boost they desperately need.

‘Dyesebel’ Teaser on ABS-CBN

Many posts ago, I wrote about my thoughts on ABS-CBN and GMA trading their own shows. It stemmed from the fact that several former ABS-CBN programs were picked up by GMA and later made it their own. But on this example, ABS-CBN returned the favor.

A trailer for the new version of ‘Dyesebel‘ recently aired during the ‘Primetime Bida’ block. The teaser for the new ‘Dyesebel’ came in months after ABS-CBN and the estate of Mars Ravelo signed a contract to produce and air the beloved mermaid heroine, along with other Ravelo classics ‘Darna‘ and ‘Captain Barbell‘. Previously all three were aired on GMA, with ‘Darna’ and ‘Captain Barbell’ being produced on two separate occasions.

The teaser for the new ‘Dyesebel’ can be seen on the video below.

Immediately after the release of the teaser, questions were raised as to who will play the role of ‘Dyesebel’. Some of the candidates mentioned for the role were Kapamilya veterans Bea Alonzo, KC Concepcion, Anne Curtis, Kristine Hermosa, Erich Gonzales, Julia Montes and Julia Barretto. Based on the aforementioned candidates, I think the producers of the upcoming teleserye will be selecting a veteran who is willing and able to show some skin during the series.

The previous version of ‘Dyesebel’ was a big hit for GMA, catapaulting the Kapuso network atop the primetime ladder during its run. With ABS-CBN turning the tables of late thanks to emerging stars such as Jessy Mendiola and the KathNiel tandem (Kathryn Bernardo & Daniel Padilla), it is no doubt that their version of ‘Dyesebel’ will pull the network’s primetime dominance to even greater heights, and perhaps surpass the ratings generated by GMA’s own adaptation.