TV5’s ‘Weekend Do It Better’ Revisited

‘Wow Mali’, now under the ‘Lakas ng Tama’ tagline, is one of three ‘Weekend Do It Better’ programs on TV5 that are still on the air today. (Title card courtesy of TV5)

It’s been over a year since TV5 decided to change the network’s programming approach.

Under the leadership of president Noel Lorenzana, the Kapatid network overhauled its programming lineup in a way that it would favor a younger and a more active audience. These initiatives resulted in the ‘Weekend Do It Better’, ‘Everyday All the Way’ and ‘KBO: Karunungan, Balita at Opinyon’ blocks.

The first of these blocks debuted in September of last year. The first block, ‘Weekend Do It Better’, initially consisted of the following programs:

1. ‘Showbiz Police’
2. ‘Tropa Mo Ko Unli’
3. ‘Killer Karaoke: Pinoy Naman’
4. ‘What’s Up Doods?’
5. ‘Pinoy Explorer’
6. ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’
7. ‘Wow Mali Pa Rin’
8. ‘The Mega and the Songwriter’

Of the eight, only ‘Tropa Mo Ko Unli’ (now ‘Tropa Mo Ko Nice Di Ba’), ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’ and ‘Wow Mali Pa Rin’ (now ‘Wow Mali Lakas ng Tama’) remain on the air. The three shows were the only ‘Weekend Do It Better’ stalwarts to survive TV5’s most recent transformation, that of the ‘Happy Ka Dito’ era, and their success and viewer loyalty were a testament to that.

On the other hand, ‘What’s Up Doods?’ and ‘The Mega and the Songwriter’ were cancelled just before the end of last year due to low viewership numbers. Then in the first half of this year, ‘Showbiz Police’, ‘Pinoy Explorer’ and ‘Killer Karaoke: Pinoy Naman’ were also cancelled, with the first two having moved to new timeslots in the middle of their run.

The ‘Weekend Do It Better’ title would be deemphasized by February 2014, but in the minds of the Kapatid network, it was only the beginning of further experimentation and constant rebuilding. New programs would be unveiled within the next few months, with the hope of making TV5’s weekend lineup even more formidable.

Today, the experiment continues, but for TV5, ‘Weekend Do It Better’ marked the start of bigger and brighter things for the still-No. 3 network, one that would carry them for the next few years.

‘What’s Up Doods’ Preempted for Bieber Documentary

Pop musician Justin Bieber is in Tacloban recently to give cheers to the victims of Typhoon Haiyan. TV5 will air the documentary tonight.

Tonight’s lineup of TV5’s ‘Weekend Do It Better’ will not see Edu Manzano interview various guests on his talk show ‘What’s Up Doods?’. Instead the Kapatid network will air a special documentary as part of its continuing relief efforts for the victims of Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda).

Titled ‘Give Love, Give Back Philippines‘, the documentary centers on a surprise visit by pop singer Justin Bieber to Tacloban in order to provide donations and relief goods to the typhoon victims. The one-hour documentary will feature Bieber in a different light, as he tries to remain humble amid his fame and give a more positive outlook to the victims. Also included is the exclusive full-length interview with Raymond Gutierrez that first aired on ‘Showbiz Police’ last week, along with a mini-concert for the victims.

Bieber’s #GiveBackPhilippines campaign raised over $1M in cash, and has also produced a limited edition t-shirt with the proceeds being given to TV5’s Alagang Kapatid Foundation. The campaign donations were raised during his ongoing tour promoting his latest album ‘Believe’.

‘What’s Up Doods?’ aired a ‘Best of’ episode last week featuring interviews from Georgina Wilson, Jinri Park and Ramon Bautista, and with the program on hiatus for the holidays, it is only logical to have the Bieber documentary air tonight.

In the meantime, here is today’s late afternoon and evening schedule on TV5:

3:30 – PBA: Barangay Ginebra San Miguel vs. Alaska Aces

5:45 – Aksyon Weekend

6:15 – Showbiz Police

6:45 – Pinoy Explorer

7:45 – Tropa Mo Ko Unli

8:45 – Killer Karaoke Pinoy Naman

9:45 – Give Love, Give Back Philippines: A Justin Bieber Special

10:45 – Juan Direction

11:15 – SpinNation

TV5’s Adjusted Weekend Do It Better Schedule This Week

Last week, the Saturday ‘Weekend Do It Better’ lineup on TV5 was moved an hour later due to the final episode of the controversial noontime variety show ‘Wowowillie‘. For this week, ‘Pinoy Explorer‘ will occupy the Saturday night lineup for one night only, while ‘Juan Direction’ makes its debut.

With the PBA Governors’ Cup Finals in progress, ‘Pinoy Explorer’ was preempted last Sunday to make way for Game 2 of that series. For this week, the program will be slotted to the Saturday night lineup, after ‘Showbiz Police’, and before ‘Tropa Mo Ko Unli’. Meanwhile, the new reality series ‘Juan Direction’ will make its long-awaited debut tonight at 10:00 p.m. The program will feature YouTube sensations and Fil-Brits Henry Edwards, Michael McDonnell, Charlie Sutcliffe, Daniel Marsh and Brian Wilson in a journey around the country, as they attempt to adjust and experience Filipino culture and society.

Here is how TV5’s ‘Weekend Do It Better’ will look this week:

Saturday, October 19

6:00 p.m. – ‘Showbiz Police’

7:00 p.m. – ‘Pinoy Explorer’

8:00 p.m. – ‘Tropa Mo Ko Unli’

9:00 p.m. – ‘Killer Karaoke‘

10:00 p.m. – ‘Juan Direction’

10:30 p.m. – ‘What’s Up, Doods?’

Sunday, October 20

4:30 p.m. – PBA Governors’ Cup Finals Game 5: San Mig Coffee Mixers vs. Petron Blaze Boosters

7:00 p.m. – ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’

8:00 p.m. – ‘Wow Mali Pa Rin’

9:00 p.m. – ‘The Mega and the Songwriter’

TV5’s ‘Weekend Do It Better’ slot will return to its normal lineup for the week of October 26.

UPDATE: ‘Pinoy Explorer’ will now be seen every Saturday at 7:00 p.m., while ‘Juan Direction’ and ‘What’s Up, Doods?’ air starting at 10:00 p.m. As of now the vacated Sunday afternoon slot has yet to be filled, although it may appear that PBA games will air on this timeslot beginning this 2013-14 Philippine Cup.

Broadcasting Notes for the PBA, UAAP and NBA Global Games

The PBA Governors Cup Finals is set tomorrow, with the San Mig Coffee Mixers and Petron Blaze Boosters fighting for the tournament championship. The Finals will be seen live on TV5, a sign that with the network’s new programming shift comes the possibility of the PBA returning to the Kapatid network.

The start times for the Finals will be at 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday, and at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday. The earlier Sunday start time was made in order to not clash with TV5’s ‘Weekend Do It Better’ block which features ‘Pinoy Explorer‘, ‘Who Wants to be a Millionaire?‘, ‘Wow Mali Pa Rin’, and ‘The Mega and the Songwriter’. The games will be held at either the Mall of Asia Arena or the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Meanwhile, Game 3 of the UAAP Men’s Basketball Final between La Salle and UST will be seen this Saturday on ABS-CBN. The one-week break was initiated by ABS-CBN themselves, who felt that every potential clincher must be seen on the main Channel 2. Had the series ended on Wednesday, it would only be seen on Studio 23 due to Channel 2’s loaded afternoon lineup. And both the UAAP and ABS-CBN feel it’s the right call, after two of the last three clinchers were broadcast by UHF network Studio 23, with the 2011 clincher of Ateneo over FEU the only such game seen on ABS-CBN.

Game 3 will be at the Mall of Asia Arena, and SM management has placed stricter measures regarding ticket sales after the scalping issue that haunted Game 2. SM announced that limited SRO tickets will only be sold on game day at the MOA’s Marina booth, and only one person per ticket will be issued. The other tickets were taken care of by DLSU and UST.

And finally, the NBA Global Games in Manila tonight will be seen live on Basketball TV, NBA Premium TV and Studio 23. Replay times on BTV and NBA Premium TV can be seen on btv.com.ph.

New and Returning Shows on TV5

Changes are in the air once more for TV5, this time in hopes of attracting a younger audience.

As early as July TV5 has hinted of the changes in their programming lineup, in hopes of attracting a younger audience. With shrinking revenue threatening TV5’s long-term plans, it was revealed that the Kapatid network will cut back costs and focus on a younger viewership in an effort to gain revenue profits within three years. With that in mind, here are several new and returning programs that TV5 will unveil within the next few weeks.

As previously reported, Ogie Alcasid signed a new deal with TV5, not only as a Kapatid talent, but also as the head of the music business unit. Alcasid will headline two shows on TV5: ‘The Mega and the Songwriter’, and ‘Tropa Moko Unli’. On the former, Alcasid will join forces with Sharon Cuneta in the upcoming variety show, and on the latter he will be paired with old ‘Tropang Trumpo‘ castmate Gelli de Belen and young stars Vin Abrenica, Ritz Azul, Eula Caballero, Empoy, Jasmine Curtis-Smith, Alwyn Uytingco, Edgar Allan Guzman, Valeen Montenegro,  and Tuesday Vargas. Cuneta will also star in her own teleserye ‘Madam Chairman’.

Alcasid’s former ‘Bubble Gang’ castmate Michael V will likewise have a new show on the Kapatid network. The current Kapuso mainstay will host the Filipino version of ‘Killer Karaoke’, a game show that test the contestant’s ability to sing while overcoming various obstacle courses. Other new programs expecting to debut soon include the showbiz talk show ‘Showbiz Police’ and the midnight musical/talk show ‘What’s Up Doods?’.

The ‘Pinoy Henyo’ duo on GMA’s ‘Eat Bulaga’ will also make their return to TV5. Joey de Leon will once again play host to a new version of ‘Wow Mali‘, titled ‘Wow Mali Pa Rin’. Like its prior incarnations, the returning show will again feature practical jokes, bloopers, and other forms of accidental comedy starring people from all walks of life. And Vic Sotto returns with a brand new season of ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’, this time featuring new lifelines and game strategies that will bring new life to a long-running game show. And finally, the adventure show ‘Pinoy Explorer‘ returns for its second season, with host Aga Muhlach again travelling around the world in hopes of educating people regarding a variety of global cultures.

Meanwhile, it looks like TV5 has not found a replacement for ‘Face to Face’. Reruns of the program have been airing for nearly two months now and it seems that no effort was given to either tape new episodes or cancel altogether. I have written about the possible axing of ‘Face to Face’ before, but it appears that TV5 is not giving up on the said program. As it stands, there were still no reports at the moment regarding the status of ‘Face to Face’.

TV5’s September shakeup was just the beginning of the needed changes that the network will adopt for the next few months. Expect more news regarding the programming situation within the Kapatid network.