Maine Takes LOA from Eat Bulaga; Pastillas Girl Resurfaces on FHM

Remember the infamous yet short-lived rivalry between “Yaya Dub” Maine Mendoza and “Pastillas Girl” Angelica Yap?

Last week, the two noontime ladies were in the headlines anew for various reasons. First off, the most obvious one.

I got myself, I will catch myself, and I will pick myself up pic.twitter.com/VoU5kFuReQ

— Maine Mendoza (@mainedcm) November 26, 2017

‘Eat Bulaga’ co-host Maine Mendoza recently posted an open letter thanking her fans for all the support. She then clarified that she and on-screen partner Alden Richards were just friends in real life and not in a relationship.

The open letter elicited some negative responses from other netizens. Soon after, Maine posted this tweet.

You are all right. I deserve all the hate in the world because I am such a coward and a selfish little brat. I get it and I understand..

— Maine Mendoza (@mainedcm) November 27, 2017

Maine was last seen on ‘Eat Bulaga’ on November 27, and has apparently left the show in the wake of her social media outrage. Netizens were quick to speculate regarding her future in entertainment, with some even going as far as spreading rumors that she would transfer to ABS-CBN.

Regardless, some fans still kept the faith, and they showed that by staging a “white rally” outside Broadway Centrum last November 30. However, with ‘Eat Bulaga’ currently struggling behind ‘It’s Showtime’ in the ratings and support for the AlDub tandem continuing to wane, how will the show be affected by Maine’s absence?

Speaking of noontime, “Pastillas Girl” Angelica Yap resurfaces with a new name and a new image. The bubbly girl that was a fixture of ‘It’s Showtime”s ‘Nasaan Ka, Mr. Pastillas’ segment two years ago is now sexier and stronger than ever.

A little christmas gift to fire up your December and to end the year right with @itsmedebbiee and me 🔥 Grab your copies now! I'm 1/2 of the cover 😉 (then tag me & debbie who's naughty & nice 🙇🏻‍♀️) #fhmAngel #fhmDebbie pic.twitter.com/a6Eqr9w6ah

— Angelica Yap (@angelicaj__) December 2, 2017

FHM released its December 2017 issue featuring Yap and model Debbie Garcia. Like most FHM covers, these two women are photographed in lingerie and other revealing attire.

Yap first gained notoriety through the ‘Nasaan Ka, Mr. Pastillas’ segment (mostly forgotten now due to ‘Tawag ng Tanghalan’), where ‘It’s Showtime’ hosts tried to find a man that would help her move on from a break-up. She has since reconciled with the man who broke up with her and are now engaged.

In the years leading up to her FHM cover debut, Yap gradually shed her innocent image by posting sexy and provocative images on social media. Though out of the limelight for some time, Yap signed up with Viva Entertainment and she even started a YouTube account with her fiance.

Perhaps posing for FHM is just the tonic Angelica Yap needs to restart her career. One can only hope that the former “Pastillas Girl” will embrace the small screen and possibly the big screen in the near future.

It’s Showtime’s Fall and Rebirth Amid the AlDub Saga

What a difference a year makes.

Back on July 16, 2015, viewers of the then-hit noontime show ‘It’s Showtime’ were suddenly stunned to see the debut of the popular AlDub tandem on ‘Eat Bulaga”s ‘Kalyeserye’ segment. Thanks to the split-screen magic between Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza, ‘Eat Bulaga’ was able to win by just 0.2% in the national ratings that day.

The surprising love team took not only the nation, but the entire world by storm. Twitter went abuzz as Alden and Maine exchanged Dubsmash replies through song each and every day, while Lola Nidora (played by Wally Bayola) tried to play it as if it is only fictional in nature.

While the AlDub phenomenon was hitting its stride, ‘It’s Showtime’ tried its best to keep up. They answered the AlDub love team by trying to give Angelica Yap (a.k.a. Pastillas Girl) a new partner in the skit ‘Nasaan Ka Mr. Pastillas’, which did not work out.

The peak of the AlDub fever took place on October 24, when ‘Eat Bulaga”s ‘Sa Tamang Panahon’ charity concert at the Philippine Arena drew not only 50,000 or so fans, but also millions of viewers around the world. The national ratings reflected that success as well, as ‘Eat Bulaga’ scored a 40.1% rating over ‘It’s Showtime”s 10.2%.

The lopsided ratings could have ended ‘It’s Showtime’ as viewers know it. Instead, they persevered and finally came up with a segment that took the steam out of AlDub.

Enter ‘Tawag ng Tanghalan’, the 1950s classic singing competition that returned as a segment of ‘It’s Showtime’ on January 2. The premise of the segment was simple: singers must perform well to win, then defend the title the next day against other aspirants from around the country.

Thanks to the presence of the revived TNT, the show gradually rebounded, and by January 11, ‘It’s Showtime’ overtook ‘Eat Bulaga’ for good in the ratings. The aura that once enveloped AlDub on ‘Kalyeserye’ disappeared.

Many factors were given as to why ‘Kalyeserye’ suddenly fell flat. But perhaps the most notable of these was the fact that Maine Mendoza, whose real voice had been withheld from the public for months (except for an interview on ‘Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho’), was finally ‘given’ an ability to talk fluently during the ‘Sa Tamang Panahon’ concert.

Skits soon became predictable and repetitive, and as a result, viewers who were once part of the AlDub fever were switching back to ‘It’s Showtime’. Even after the July 16 episode in which Alden and Maine celebrated their first anniversary as a couple, ‘Eat Bulaga’ was unable to recapture past glory.

On the other hand, ‘It’s Showtime’ was back to its old entertaining self. They not only have the hit ‘Tawag ng Tanghalan’ segment, but also ‘TrabaHula’, a skit where players had to guess the real worker among the four in the audience.

Indeed, the recent dominance of ‘It’s Showtime’ in the first half of the decade is manifesting itself once again. And for Vice Ganda and company, they have no intention of letting it go.

So what’s next for this noontime rivalry? One can only hope that ‘Eat Bulaga’ can find a way to regroup their ‘Kalyeserye’ strategy, otherwise, ‘It’s Showtime’ and TNT will continue to assert their place atop the noontime charts.

FTT Year 2015 in Review: Television’s Worst

Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2016, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio. This article looks back at the 10 worst moments in Philippine television this year.

GMA Scraps Sunday TV Mass

On January 4, GMA decided to cease its broadcast of the Family TV Mass organized by the Society of Divine Word – Mission Communications Foundation, Inc. (SVD-MCFI), replacing it with the movie block ‘Kapuso Sine Klasika’. The Sunday Mass of SVD-MCFI returned to its old home in IBC-13 a week later.

Poor ratings of the Sunday Mass was among the reasons behind the cancellation. Despite the claims of many that GMA is promoting apathy and not favoring the Catholic religion, they still managed to cover (albeit not as dedicated as other stations) the visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines, as well as produce a religiously-themed teleserye ‘Pari ‘Koy’ starring Dingdong Dantes.

Gone Too Soon for KISPinoy and Misterless Misis

‘KISPinoy’ and ‘Misterless Misis’ aired for only three episodes each during the third quarter of 2015. The former was axed in late July, while the latter received a postponement (or possibly a cancellation) notice the following month.

Both events paved the way for VIVA to take over TV5’s entertainment department, with Vic del Rosario replacing Wilma Galvante.

PBB, It’s Showtime Summoned by MTRCB

‘Pinoy Big Brother: 737’ and ‘It’s Showtime’ were each summoned by the MTRCB for offending viewer sensibilities. The former was for the so-called ‘bromance’ involving teen housemates Bailey May and Kenzo Gutierrez, while the latter was for the alleged ‘pimping’ of ‘Pastillas Girl’ Angelica Yap in the ‘Nasaan Ka Mr. Pastillas’ skit.

Both shows eventually complied by imposing self-regulatory measures, among other rulings. MTRCB also summoned GMA’s ‘The Rich Man’s Daughter’ for strong language inappropriate to viewers.

GMA’s Finances Put Into Question

Despite an increase in revenue, GMA’s financial capabilities were on the hot seat anew this year. The increased revenue was done at the expense of the network’s ‘streamlining’ efforts which featured, among others, the closure of regional networks and programs, and the termination of long-time employees.

Felipe Gozon’s reluctance to sell a part of the network’s shares was also a major issue. Talks between him and Ramon Ang collapsed in August (with the latter later accusing Gozon of estafa), and a few months later, Gozon rejected offers from Chavit Singson and Manny Pacquiao to purchase a part of the network.

Pope Francis, SONA and APEC Coverage Issues

Not all news networks were able to cover the three biggest news events of the year. GMA News TV received major heat for their lack of coverage in both the visit of Pope Francis in the Philippines and the State of the Nation Address, while AksyonTV was criticized for their non-coverage of the APEC Summit.

The two embattled news networks deserved a lot of blame this year. Speaking of AksyonTV,…

AksyonTV’s Identity Crisis Continues

Admit it or not, AksyonTV really needs a makeover. No longer the 24/7 all-Filipino free TV news channel of years past, the network is now increasingly littered with sports coverage, ranging from major leagues like the PSL to more low-scale ones like the PCBL.

Perhaps the time is now for the network to bring back the AKTV name it once used as a blocktimer on IBC-13. After all, AksyonTV’s glory days are behind them.

StarStruck’s Disaster

The return of ‘StarStruck’ proved to be a glorified failure, as ratings and a questionable timeslot doomed the reality show’s sixth season. It was also long overdue, and it would have made a big difference for the network had it been placed opposite ‘Pinoy Big Brother: 737’.

That said, there may never be another season of ‘StarStruck’ after this. So much for hype gone wrong.

Goodbye Showbiz Talk Shows As We Know It

Easter Sunday of this year marked the final episode of the 16-year-old ‘The Buzz’. Seven months later, ‘Startalk’ took a bow as well after 20 years on air.

A change in viewer’s taste was a key reason behind the demise of both shows. Although ‘CelebriTV’ replaced ‘Startalk’, and ABS-CBN planned to revive ‘The Buzz’ in the future, it won’t be easy adapting to a new audience.

CNN Philippines Not Living Up to Expectations

Launched last March 15, CNN Philippines was supposed to be a local version of its parent network. However, a lot of issues surfaced from the beginning.

Whether it’s due to the revolving door of anchors and reporters, an overemphasis on Nancy Grace or the lack of round-the-clock news coverage, it is clear that CNN Philippines is still a work in progress. That said, Nine Media will need to make a lot of changes to ensure that this venture between them and CNN won’t end quickly.

NBA on ABS-CBN Demoted to the Studio

Since February, NBA coverage on ABS-CBN and ABS-CBN Sports+Action has been purely local, handled in-studio by Boom Gonzalez, TJ Manotoc, Ronnie Magsanoc and Benjie Paras. But to the surprise of many, only Manotoc traveled to the United States to cover the NBA Finals, and ABS-CBN opted to call the games in-studio rather than on location.

Delayed broadcast of the NBA games were a primary reason behind ABS-CBN’s questionable decision. Still, with digitization looming, and the migration to HD underway, it seems like this is a more logical solution for the network to save costs.

In tomorrow’s year-end special, From the Tube will look back at the 10 best moments in Philippine television this 2015.

Pastillas Girl Skit Gets MTRCB’s Attention

‘Pastillas Girl’ is in hot water.

A meeting between the MTRCB’s Gender and Development Committee and the show’s director Norbert Vidanes, executive producer Mark Rejano, and business unit head Reily Santiago is set to take place this October 13. This was in response to numerous complaints from concerned citizens regarding the ‘Nasaan Ka Mr. Pastillas’ segment.

Among those concerned were the women’s group Gabriela, who requested the MTRCB for an investigation regarding the skit’s alleged exploitation of women. They claim that ‘Pastillas Girl’ (Angelica Yap in real life) is being pimped by various interested men, something that Yap and her mother vehemently denied.

The letter, which was sent to the executives of ‘It’s Showtime’, as well as ABS-CBN TV Production Entertainment head Laurenti Dyogi and Gabriela Secretary General Joan Salvador, is as follows:

Further to the Memorandum of Understanding dated 28 March 2012 by and between our Agency and various television networks and entities, including ABS-CBN Corporation, as well as the official letter we received last week from the party-list alliance Gabriela, not to mention some feedback from the general public, we are impelled to invite your authorized representatives for the program ‘It’s Showtime’ to a dialogue with the Special Sub-Committee of our Gender And Development (GAD) Committee on 13 October 2015, at 10:00 a.m., at ground floor conference room.

‘Nasaan Ka Mr. Pastillas’ was supposed to be ‘It’s Showtime”s answer to the explosively popular ‘Kalyeserye’ of ‘Eat Bulaga’, starring Maine ‘Yaya Dub’ Mendoza and Alden Richards. Instead, it only worsened the gap between the two shows, while critics to the segment continued to increase.

That said, the ‘Magpasikat’ spirit that has epitomized ‘It’s Showtime’ for six years is now a thing of the past. What the viewers see at this point is a desperate and frustrated program that is offering skits with negative results.

It’s another big blow for ‘It’s Showtime’, and for a show that is losing its grip, this is a painful and difficult sight to see.

UAAP Cheerdance Expected To Be Overshadowed by AlDub-Pastillas Battle

The NU Cheering Squad will try to win their third consecutive title in tomorrow’s UAAP Cheerdance Competition. The beginning of the event will be up against the highly-trended AlDub and Pastillas Girl skits. (Photo credit: GMA News)

The ever-popular UAAP Cheerdance Competition will now face some tough odds this year.

The 22nd edition of the event will now be held in the middle of the men’s basketball tournament, unlike in previous years where it was held at its conclusion. In addition, the event will be held on a Saturday, as opposed to Sundays in past editions.

This means that the Cheerdance Competition will now have to take place on a day when some member schools still hold classes. But that’s not the only problem the event will face.

The early portion of the Cheerdance Competition will take place while noontime shows ‘It’s Showtime’ and ‘Eat Bulaga’ are still ongoing.  The highly-trending Pastillas Girl and AlDub skits are expected to make life tough for viewers of this year’s Cheerdance Competition, especially considering the combined 37 million tweets of both skits last Saturday.

This does not mean that this year’s UAAP Cheerdance Competition will no longer be a juggernaut for netizens everywhere. With the help of a livestreaming service provided by ABS-CBN, there is still a possibility that the event would end up in Twitter’s trending topics.

After all, whenever the Cheerdance Competition takes place, there are four things that the viewers will always point out in this event:

• courtside reporters in cheering attire
• elaborate props and risky maneuvers
• a beautiful guest host
• suspense and uncertainty of announcing the top three finishers

That said, a good challenge awaits the UAAP Cheerdance Competition this year. More than the performance of the eight cheering squads, the event is about making an impact amid all the odds stacked against it.

The 2015 UAAP Cheerdance Competition will take place at the Mall of Asia Arena. It will air on ABS-CBN Sports+Action, Balls HD 195, iWanTV and ABS-CBN Sports official website beginning at 1:00 p.m.

AlDub Phenomenon Continues to Grow, But Warning Signs Become Evident

The AlDub phenomenon reached fever pitch last Saturday.

‘Eat Bulaga”s so-called National Pabebe Wave Day featured a chance meeting between Alden Richards and Maine Mendoza (aka Yaya Dub) inside a mansion ‘owned’ by Lola Nidora (Wally Bayola). It marked the first selfie between the pair, the debut of the mansion’s maid Rianna, also portrayed by Bayola, and the first time that Yaya Dub spoke on national television.

That episode of ‘Eat Bulaga’ overwhelmed ‘It’s Showtime”s ANIMversary episode by a wide margin, both in tweets and in the ratings. A record 25 million tweets were confirmed during the episode, while ratings of 37.2 (NUTAM) and 30.8% (Kantar) helped ‘Eat Bulaga’ widen its gap over ‘It’s Showtime’.

Many were beginning to question ‘It’s Showtime”s increasingly immoral antics, such as what happened last Saturday with the on-air kiss between Viceral (Vice Ganda’s alter-ego) and Karylle (see video above). Even the infamous Pastillas Girl segments (which were criticized for its desperate and indecent nature) earned the ire of Gabriela for its exploitation of women.

However, the so-called Kalyeserye on ‘Eat Bulaga’ also has its fair share of detractors. This despite the fact that it entails a positive message to its viewers.

Since the AlDub phenomenon got underway, virtually every newscast on GMA and GMA News TV have always featured a short summary of the Kalyeserye (example video above). The overemphasis on AlDub continued even during Sundays, which is a rest day for the staff of ‘Eat Bulaga’.

Stories of the AlDub phenomenon have also become a regular occurrence on ‘Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho’. Features of AlDub fanatics are usually the point of emphasis on the said program.

GMA has also taken advantage of Alden Richards’ renewed fame, even though it was ‘Eat Bulaga”s parent company TAPE, Inc. who made the young actor a household name. Just recently, News TV reaired the obvious flop that is ‘Ilustrado’, while Alden’s life story on ‘Magpakailanman’ was also replayed.

It is clear that GMA is abusing the popularity of AlDub. The pair alone has loomed large over GMA’s own talents, and as a result, stunts their development and potential.

That said, finding a balance between AlDub and the rest of the network should be emphasized. AlDub can’t do it alone, and GMA needs its other talents and programs to step up in this urgent moment.

AlDub’s popularity should not be taken for granted. It is GMA’s responsibility to make things fair for everyone, otherwise it may alienate its viewers.