Ismol Family Gives Way to Tsuperhero on GMA’s Sunday Grande

‘Ismol Family’ is officially done.

After a run that began on June 22, 2014, the GMA-produced sitcom aired its final episode last Sunday, November 6. ‘Ismol Family’, which starred Ryan Agoncillo, Carla Abellana, Carmi Martin, Mike ‘Pekto’ Nacua, Bianca Umali, Miguel Tanfelix and Marc Justine Alvarez among others, aired a total of 125 episodes that spanned over two years.

When ‘Ismol Family’ premiered over two years ago, it was supposed to replace the game show ‘Picture Picture’ and go up against another family-oriented sitcom in ABS-CBN’s ‘Home Sweetie Home’. Instead, the sitcom was placed on Sunday nights, while ‘Pepito Manaloto’ was moved to Saturday nights to counter ‘Home Sweetie Home”s move.

The unexpected timeslot change proved to be a hindrance to ‘Ismol Family’ once it began its run. Pitted against shows such as ‘Wansapanatym’, ‘The Voice Kids’ and more recently ‘Goin’ Bulilit’, the sitcom failed to find its footing in a crowded Sunday night field.

While ‘Ismol Family’ was not bad, it was clear that GMA made a mistake by placing the show on Sundays. Had it aired against ‘Home Sweetie Home’, it would have given the latter a run for its money.

Still, a run of over two years was a good accomplishment for ‘Ismol Family’. For the viewers who have tuned in for all 125 episodes, let that sink in.

Moving on, a new show is slated to replace ‘Ismol Family’. The newest entry, ‘Tsuperhero’, is a superhero comedy-adventure series that stars Derrick Monasterio and Bea Binene.

In ‘Tsuperhero’, Nonoy (Derrick) is a jeepney driver who transforms into a superhero thanks to a mysterious object from a distant planet. Along the way, he developed feelings for Eva (Bea), a barker who found his kalye attitude both irritating and enduring.

The upcoming weekly series will also star Gabby Concepcion, Alma Moreno, Betong Sumaya, Philip Lazaro, Miggs Cuaderno, Valentin, Annalyn Barro, Jemwell Ventenilla, and Kuhol. ‘Tsuperhero’ is an original concept by Michael V, and will be directed by LA Madridejos.

It remains to be seen if ‘Tsuperhero’ can give the long-running ‘Goin’ Bulilit’ a tough challenge. Hopefully the series can stick just as long as its predecessor did.

‘Tsuperhero’ premieres this Sunday after ’24 Oras Weekend’ on GMA’s Sunday Grande sa Gabi.

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Kalyeserye Returns After One-Month Absence

The apparent end of ‘Eat Bulaga”s Kalyeserye segment last September proved to be a premature proclamation.

Last Saturday, ‘Eat Bulaga’ decided to revive the long-running ‘reality’ skit, with a new arc that focuses on the ‘engagement’ of main stars Maine Mendoza (formerly known as Yaya Dub) and Alden Richards. The episode also marked the return of Paolo Ballesteros’ Tidora character, which had been absent since March.

Also present on the skit were Lola Nidora and Tinidora, the famous alter egos of Wally Bayola and Jose Manalo respectively, along with their bodyguards known as the Rogelios. During the segment’s hiatus, they were said to be ‘residing’ in Massachusetts alongside Tidora, who had long been on vacation.

To spice things up further, Ai-Ai delas Alas reprised her role as Lola Babah in a special guest appearance. Babah was said to be the ‘landlord’ of the mansion now owned by Lola Nidora during her recurring appearances in the skit.

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Talagang isinilang kami para sa tabi este sa TV. Ang TVJ may TV. Our producer Tony TuViera!

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All of that took place while Sen. Tito Sotto, Vic Sotto and Joey de Leon were on vacation to celebrate the latter’s 70th birthday (see above). With the celebrated trio off for the weekend, it was up to the other main hosts (notably Allan K, Ruby Rodriguez, Ryan Agoncillo, Pia Guanio, Ryzza Mae Dizon and Patricia Tumulak) to pick up the slack.

The return of Kalyeserye on ‘Eat Bulaga’ couldn’t have come at a better time. This week will mark the first anniversary of the immensely successful ” live event at the Philippine Arena, which by all accounts marked the pinnacle of the skit’s success.

But even if ‘Eat Bulaga’ decides to bring back the celebrated segment on a full-time basis, it may no longer have the hype of episodes past. Still, for loyal viewers of the show, the return of Kalyeserye should be memorable in more ways than one.

Carla Abellana Renews Ties with GMA

A new contract with GMA and a new teleserye await Carla Abellana. (Photo credit: GMA Network)

Amid the declining population of GMA’s roster of artists, there are some who stayed loyal with the network despite its declining fortunes.

One such talent was Carla Abellana, who opted to remain a Kapuso for another three years. An upcoming teleserye produced by GMA News and Public Affairs awaits her, in addition to existing roles in ‘Ismol Family’ and recurring appearances in ‘Sunday All-Stars’.

Best known of late for her team-ups with Tom Rodriguez and Dennis Trillo in ‘My Husband’s Lover’, Carla first earned a major role in 2009’s ‘Rosalinda’, alongside former on-screen partner Geoff Eigenmann. While more famous for dramatic roles, she did dabble into comedy via ‘Bubble Gang’, and is currently part of ‘Ismol Family’ alongside Ryan Agoncillo.

Now GMA must hope that Carla remains a valuable asset moving forward. GMA cannot afford any losses at this point, so keeping Carla and other artists, along with improving the aspect of talent development, is a must.

The Return of Talentadong Pinoy

‘Talentadong Pinoy’, now hosted by Robin Padilla and Mariel Rodriguez, returns to TV5 this Saturday. (Logo courtesy of ABC Development Corporation)

One of TV5’s most beloved programs returns for a new season.

‘Talentadong Pinoy’, TV5’s premier talent show, will make its much-awaited comeback this Saturday. The program, which was one of the few remnants of TV5’s ‘Shake Mo TV Mo’ era, appeared to have been cancelled after airing the Worldwide Battle Royale last year. But hints of a return began to surface early this year, which was later confirmed by TV5.

The revived ‘Talentadong Pinoy’, however, will not have the services of original host Ryan Agoncillo , who signed a non-exclusive contract with GMA and is currently appearing on ‘Ismol Family’ and TAPE’s ‘Eat Bulaga’. When asked about the return of ‘Talentadong Pinoy’ and the possibility of him returning as host, Agoncillo indicated that he has no intention of returning to ‘Talentadong Pinoy’ anytime soon.

Instead, the hosting duties for ‘Talentadong Pinoy’ now fall into the hands of Robin Padilla and Mariel Rodriguez. The recently married showbiz couple were no strangers to hosting, having been a part of Willie Revillame’s noontime programs in the past.

With a new host comes a new cast of talented individuals who will try to impress the judges and the television audience. Auditions for ‘Talentadong Pinoy’ were held throughout the months of May and June, and the aforementioned talents will be revealed in the coming episodes.

That said, the expectations are high for the new hosts to deliver ‘Talentadong Pinoy’ to the similar, if not higher levels of succees enjoyed in the Ryan Agoncillo era. Whether or not they can take the show to the next level remains to be seen.

‘Talentadong Pinoy’ returns this Saturday at 7:00 p.m. on TV5.

Bossing, Bitoy Get New Timeslots; Juan Direction Goes Everyday

‘Pepito Manaloto’ now moves to Saturday nights after several years delighting viewers on Sundays.

After several years of giving viewers laughs every Sunday, ‘Pepito Manaloto’ is moving on. But in order for that to happen, they have to trade with another sitcom.

It was announced that Michael V’s long-time reality sitcom will be leaving its old Sunday timeslot and move into the Saturday slot, just before the premiere of Marian Rivera’s dance show ‘Marian’. Its vacated slot will now be filled by the upcoming sitcom ‘Ismol Family’, starring Ryan Agoncillo and Carla Abellana.

‘Pepito Manaloto’ will also trade timeslots with Vic Sotto’s sitcom ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’. The MZET-produced series will retain the same timeslot after ’24 Oras Weekend’, except that it will now be seen every Sunday evenings.

The change in timeslots came after ABS-CBN’s ‘Home Sweetie Home’ moved to Saturday evenings in late May.  The sitcom received a new life as it outrated ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’ on its new timeslot, but with ‘Pepito Manaloto’ back to challenge the program, its newfound supremacy will now be tested again by its old adversary.

Meanwhile, GMA’s movie block ‘GMA Blockbusters’ will move to Sunday nights, giving the network either one or two movies to air every Sunday, with ‘Sunday Night Box Office’ the other block. Their intentions are very clear, despite the fact that airing ‘GMA Blockbusters’ on Sunday nights is deemed unnecessary.

In their defense, they want ‘Sunday Night Box Office’ to go up against ABS-CBN’s ‘Sunday’s Best’. But because ABS-CBN’s Sunday programming runs a little late thanks to ‘The Voice Kids’, ‘Pinoy Big Brother: All In’, and ‘Gandang Gabi Vice’, GMA decided to intentionally run their programming late as well, thus the addition of another movie block.

Whether or not these moves will translate to better ratings remain to be seen. All in all, it was another serious attempt by the Kapuso network to turn things around. But then again, there is still the possibility of another tweak or two in a few weeks’ time if it fails.

Over at TV5, ‘Juan Direction’ will now be seen every weeknights, beginning June 23. ‘Juan Direction’ will replace ‘Confessions of a Torpe’, which airs its final episode tonight. In addition, teasers for the second season of ‘Let’s Ask Pilipinas’ began to air, with its season premiere yet to be determined.

And finally, ‘JasMine’ will now be seen four hours earlier on Sundays. The already unpredictable series, which returned following the stalking incident that halted taping of the second episode two weeks earlier, will now air right before the PBA games.

With that, good luck to both stations in their programming schedules this weekend.

‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’ in a Crisis; ‘Ismol Family’ and ‘Marian’ Debuts

Senator Bong Revilla’s educational show ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’ is now facing a crisis after the senator was accused of graft and plunder in relation to the PDAF scam.

After airing for several years, GMA’s educational program ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’ is now facing a huge crisis. This is because the show’s host, Senator Bong Revilla, is currently being linked to the controversial Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) scam.

Just recently, Senator Revilla, along with fellow senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Jinggoy Estrada, PDAF mastermind Janet Lim-Napoles, and numerous other co-accused, were issued hold departure orders by the Sandiganbayan in relation to the scam. Senator Revilla, in a recent interview, has said that he will face the plunder and graft charges brought against him.

As Senator Revilla faces the prospect of arrest and jail time, the status of ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’ has now become uncertain. Given that the show has been on the air for several years, and with numerous educational stories along the way, it will not be easy for the network to give up on ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’.

But with Senator Revilla currently involved in a controversy of national interest, it is time for GMA to make a difficult decision. Either they replace ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’ with a similar program for the sake of credibility, or keep the show, but with a new host, for the sake of loyalty. It is up to the braintrust of the Kapuso network to decide the show’s fate.

Meanwhile, ‘Ismol Family’ will make its debut on the said network this Sunday, replacing ‘Picture! Picture!’ on its timeslot. The new sitcom will star Ryan Agoncillo and Carla Abellana, with supporting roles from Carmi Martin, Mikael Daez, Mike ‘Pekto’ Nacua, Miguel Tanfelix, Kevin Santos, Bianca Umali, Marc Justine Alvarez, and Natalia Moon.

The series, directed by Dominic Zapata, will now be GMA’s third sitcom in its current lineup. The others are ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’ and ‘Pepito Manaloto’, both of which star preeminent comedians in Vic Sotto and Michael V.

And finally, ‘Marian’, the self-titled dance show hosted by Marian Rivera, premieres this Saturday after ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’. Marian’s first guests on the program will be Maricel Soriano and Vilma Santos, both of which had their own self-titled dance shows in the late 1980s.

Joining Marian on the show are Paolo Ballesteros, Christian Bautista, Mark Bautista, and Julie Anne San Jose. Louie Ignacio will direct the show.