Back to the Serious Stuff: Halik Premieres Monday

It is back to the more serious and daring stuff on ABS-CBN’s Primetime Bida this Monday.

After not getting the much-needed results with the light-hearted romantic series ‘Since I Found You’, ABS-CBN will use the fourth slot for an intense and more tantalizing drama. But can ‘Halik’ recapture the magic of prior daring teleseryes?

‘Halik’ stars Jericho Rosales and Yen Santos as Lino and Jacky respectively. Once childhood lovers, they were separated when Jacky’s parents disapprove of Lino who is a son of one of their workers, only to renew acquaintances years later.

At this point, however, Lino is married to Jade (Yam Concepcion), an ambitious and headstrong woman, while Jacky lives together with Ace (Sam Milby), a rich man whose sweetness hides a secret. Neither Jade nor Ace are committed and trusty spouses, so it will be up to Lino and Jacky to rekindle their love that was once lost.

‘Halik’ also stars Amy Austria, Alan Paule, Precious Lara Quigaman, Romnick Sarmenta, Cris Villanueva, Almira Muhlach, Christian Bables, Hero Angeles, Chai Fonacier, JC Alcantara, Jane De Leon, and Gab Lagman. The series will be directed by Cathy Camarillo and Carlo Po Artillaga, and is under the Ruel S. Bayani (RSB) drama unit.

Traditionally speaking, the fourth slot of Primetime Bida has long been the domain of mature and daring dramas. This is the slot where ‘The Legal Wife’ became a huge hit, and more recently, this is where ‘The Good Son’ thrived and kept viewers’ senses awake with each captivating scene.

But as ‘Halik’ enters the fray, it remains to be seen if they will be able to follow the footsteps of its more serious predecessors. The series may have the star power bar none, but a rarely-used commodity like Yen Santos could set viewers back a bit.

That said, it will take some time for ‘Halik’ to make its presence felt. Realistically, the opening few weeks of this series should hover within the 17-19% range as far as ratings go, but if they are lucky enough, they might as well surpass the 20% mark.

‘Halik’ airs weeknights after ‘Bagani’ on ABS-CBN Primetime Bida.

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Tubig at Langis Premieres Today

Zanjoe Marudo and Cristine Reyes are back together, on-screen that is.

Their newest project, ‘Tubig at Langis’, will mark the most serious project for the pair. Airing later today on ABS-CBN’s Kapamilya Gold, the new series will feature a plot that would test not only the limits of marriage, but also devotion to family and loved ones.

In ‘Tubig at Langis’, Irene (Cristine) was a young woman and a family breadwinner, having been abandoned by her mother as a child. At first, she fell in love with Jaime (Victor Silayan), only to find out that he had already been married to another woman.

A few years later, Irene’s childhood friend Natoy (Zanjoe) returned, and the two fell in love and eventually got married. Unknown to Irene, Natoy soon met and fell in love with Clara (Isabelle Daza), after which things became complicated between the three of them.

‘Tubig at Langis’ also stars Vivian Velez, Lito Pimentel, Nadia Montenegro, Marco Gumabao, Ingrid Dela Paz, Dionne Monsanto, Archie Alemania, and Miguel Vergara. It will be directed by FM Reyes, and produced by the drama unit of Ruel S. Bayani.

The new series will take over the timeslot of ‘All of Me’, whose finale aired last Friday. By all accounts, ‘Tubig at Langis’ should perform respectably like its predecessor, considering the recent streak of good fortune for Kapamilya Gold.

Still, with Cristine Reyes’ marriage to Ali Khatibi taking place days before the series premiere, ‘Tubig at Langis’ may only end up as a short-run series. ABS-CBN can only hope that ‘Tubig at Langis’ can last as long as their creative staff desires, and that Cristine Reyes can stick around while adjusting to life as a married mother.

‘Tubig at Langis’ airs weekdays after ‘Doble Kara’ on ABS-CBN’s Kapamilya Gold.