Faith Restored: Halik’s High Ratings a Godsend for ABS-CBN Primetime Bida

ABS-CBN finally got it right.

It turns out ‘Halik’ was the series ABS-CBN needed to resuscitate the fortunes of its much-maligned fourth slot on Primetime Bida. The October 25 episode of ‘Halik’ garnered a series-high 27.1% rating according to Kantar, besting rival series ‘Pamilya Roces’ by 16.5%.

The episode in question featured an intense confrontation between Lino (Jericho Rosales) and Ace (Sam Milby) over the latter’s act of cheating. During that scene, Lino caught Ace and Jade (Yam Concepcion) cheating on him and Jacky (Yen Santos), leading to a fight between Lino and Ace.

‘Halik’ also became the most-viewed program on iWant TV, reaching over two million views per week. Thursday’s episode also trended on Twitter and memes related to the aforementioned confrontation scene also spread on social media.

In many ways, this episode of ‘Halik’ encapsulates what the fourth slot of Primetime Bida is all about. For Kapamilya audiences here and abroad, this timeslot always tingle their senses whenever they see scenes of confrontation, jealousy, anger, sensuality and desire.

No offense to the lighter-themed dramas that were aired on the fourth slot (e.g. ‘On the Wings of Love’, ‘A Love to Last’), but it is obvious that viewers wanted something that will keep them awake and tense deep into the night. And if ‘Halik”s ratings are of any indication, they are probably right in their assessment.

First aired on August 13, ‘Halik”s ratings have been on a gradual upswing from the start. The series started with an 18.2% rating during its debut, reached 20% by the end of August, and peaked at 27.1% last Thursday.

That said, it will not be a surprise to see ‘Halik’ reach 30% in the near future. This series has been by far ABS-CBN’s best offering in the fourth slot and if it continues to please audiences, it might as well enjoy a long and fruitful run.

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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.

My Faithful Husband Down to Last Three Weeks

The series that premiered on the same night as ‘On the Wings of Love’ is down to its last three weeks.

‘My Faithful Husband’, the GMA teleserye starring Jennylyn Mercado and Dennis Trillo, will air its final episode on November 13. The series’ replacement is yet to be determined, but there is talk that ‘Little Nanay’, and not ‘Wish I May’, would replace ‘My Faithful Husband’.

Premiering on August 10, ‘My Faithful Husband’ was supposed to be Jen’s small-screen comeback following her blockbuster film success with ‘English Only, Please’. Unfortunately, the series premiered alongside ABS-CBN’s ‘On the Wings of Love, which starred an equally successful but younger big-screen duo in James Reid and Nadine Lustre.

The entry of JaDine was bad timing for the Kapuso network. The timeslot that ‘On the Wings of Love’ occupied was previously reserved for more mature and sexually-oriented teleseryes, which ‘My Faithful Husband’ typifies.

As expected, ‘My Faithful Husband’ proved to be no match for ‘On the Wings of Love’ in the ratings. Caught in a mismatch, GMA then decided to release some teasers for the upcoming ‘kilig’-oriented drama, ‘Wish I May’, only to hold off the project for the foreseeable future.

Perhaps Jen would be better off focusing on the big screen first, since her recent movie ‘The Pre-Nup’ became a box-office hit, and a teaser for her Metro Manila Film Festival entry ‘Walang Forever’ is also going viral on social media. Pairing with talents from other networks (Derek Ramsey, Sam Milby, Jericho Rosales) may be an even better idea for her.

In any event, ‘My Faithful Husband’ has officially conceded defeat to ‘On the Wings of Love’. And with the latter now extended to early 2016, GMA needs to find another way to halt the momentum of ‘On the Wings of Love’.

New Projects for Former Pinoy Big Brother: All In Housemates

Upcoming projects on ABS-CBN await the likes of Jane Oineza and the other ‘Pinoy Big Brother: All In’ housemates. (Photo credit: ABS-CBN)

Sam Milby, Kim Chiu, Gerald Anderson, Jason Gainza, Melai Cantiveros, and Jason Francisco.

These are just some of the former ‘Pinoy Big Brother’ housemates that went on to become established players in the Star Magic roster. And just like in previous years, there are new opportunities that await the latest batch of PBB housemates.

Immediately after ‘Pinoy Big Brother: All In’, ABS-CBN decided to give several of its housemates acting projects. These projects were first unveiled in a recent Kapamilya All Out trade concert.

Jane Oineza, ‘All In”s third-placer, is given a lead role on the upcoming teleserye ‘Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita’. The ‘Goin’ Bulilit’ alum is no stranger to lead acting roles, having been nominated in the 2013 New York Festival for her portrayal of a rape victim in an episode of ‘Maalaala Mo Kaya’.

Fellow housemates Joshua Garcia (‘All In’ sixth-placer) and Loisa Andalo (‘All In’ fifth placer) will join Jane in the upcoming series.

Twins Fourth (‘All In’ ninth-placer) and Fifth Pagotan (‘All In’ eighth-placer) were also given an upcoming project via the series ‘Nathaniel’. The twins will play supporting roles to the series’ up-and-coming child actor, whose name is yet to be determined.

As for grand winner Daniel Matsunaga, he has yet to commit to a long-term deal with ABS-CBN’s Star Magic. However, a lineup of projects outside ABS-CBN await the long-time freelancer.

In a recent interview, Matsunaga indicated that he will star in two upcoming films, one of which will be the latest sequel to the Metro Manila Film Festival mainstay ‘Shake, Rattle & Roll’.

And for the rest of the ‘All In’ housemates, there are other opportunities to explore. In fact, the doors of GMA Network will always be open to former housemates who look to become the next Tom Rodriguez and Sam Pinto.

That said, there will be always be life after ‘Pinoy Big Brother’. And who knows what will happen next.

Kambal Sirena, Dyesebel Won’t Begin Simultaneously

GMA’s Kambal Sirena begins its run a week ahead of ABS-CBN’s Dyesebel. (Photo courtesy of Bida Kapamilya)

The so-called ‘Sirena Wars’ on Philippine television will have to wait for another two weeks, as both GMA and ABS-CBN set their final episode dates for ‘Adarna’ and ‘Honesto’.

‘Adarna’, the fantaserye starring Kylie Padilla, airs its final episode tomorrow. Airing since November 18, 2013, ‘Adarna’ was supposed to revive GMA’s tried and tested fantaserye genre that has worked for them in the mid-2000s. Unfortunately, the show failed to surpass expectations, due to the fact that a rival teleserye is superbly dominant in its timeslot.

That teleserye happened to be ‘Honesto’, which has been consistently atop the primetime ratings since its debut. Its superior ratings also translated into high trending figures in social media, with hashtags related to the show leading Twitter’s trending topics. The Raikko Mateo-starred series first aired on October 28, and will air its final episode on March 14.

The two series will be replaced by ‘Kambal Sirena’ and ‘Dyesebel’ respectively. The former, an original concept of the Kapuso network, will star Louise delos Reyes, while the latter, acquired by the Kapamilya network from Mars Ravelo’s estate, will star Anne Curtis.

Hype between the two series began last December, as both networks revealed the initial teasers for their respective mermaids. But while GMA began to heavily promote ‘Kambal Sirena’ during the months of January and February, ABS-CBN was slow to promote ‘Dyesebel’ as it continued to focus on its highly-rated programs ‘Honesto’ and ‘Got to Believe’. Nevertheless, viewers were salivating at the prospect of two mermaid-based series facing each other on primetime.

Both ‘Kambal Sirena’ and ‘Dyesebel’ will feature an equally stellar supporting cast. In ‘Kambal Sirena’, Aljur Abrenica will star as the leading man, while Wynwyn Marquez serves as the main villain. The series will also star Mickey Ferriols, Angelika dela Cruz, Gladys Reyes, Tessie Tomas, Mike Tan, Pancho Magno, Polo Ravales, Lotlot de Leon, Rich Asuncion, and Chanda Romero.

In ‘Dyesebel’, Sam Milby and Gerald Anderson will play the leading men, while Andi Eigenmann takes on a villainous role. Portraying supporting roles in the series will be Dawn Zulueta, Eula Valdes, Gabby Concepcion, Zsa Zsa Padilla, Bangs Garcia, David Chua, Ai Ai delas Alas, Neil Coleta, Young JV and Ogie Diaz.

While ‘Kambal Sirena’ and ‘Dyesebel’ won’t begin at the same time, the rivalry between the two mermaid-based series will be something to look forward to. And it should add spice to what has been an already heated rivalry between the two major networks.

Anne Curtis Plays Dyesebel

Anne Curtis will play the role of ‘Dyesebel’ in ABS-CBN’s newest incarnation of Mars Ravelo’s famous komiks character.

Social media made a big noise last night when Anne Curtis was revealed as the next Dyesebel. The news was made official on ABS-CBN’s news programs ‘TV Patrol’ and ‘Bandila’, and on ABS-CBN’s news website.

The highly talked-about announcement of Curtis as Dyesebel was in sharp contrast to the lack of social media reaction that GMA received in their announcement of Louise delos Reyes as ‘Kambal Sirena’. It was also clear that despite the heavy promotion of ‘Kambal Sirena’ on the Kapuso network, ABS-CBN still had the last laugh even though ‘Dyesebel’ has yet to air another teaser.

Advantage-wise, Curtis is no stranger to more provocative roles; her roles in films such as ‘No Other Woman’ and ‘A Secret Affair’ attest to that. In contrast, ‘Kambal Sirena’ will be the first ‘sexy’ role for delos Reyes, eight years Curtis’ junior. And while ABS-CBN is about to break a recent trend of starring younger and less-experienced lead stars by bringing in Curtis (and Angel Locsin in ‘The Legal Wife’), the social media reaction of the announcement should remains a cause of concern to GMA.

In addition, it was also announced that Gerald Anderson and Sam Milby will play leading men roles in the series. Anderson will play Dyesebel’s partner Fredo, while Milby will play a new character in Lirio.

The rivalry between ‘Dyesebel’ and ‘Kambal Sirena’ should be interesting. Perhaps the only thing left to do is for both shows to launch simultaneously in the same timeslot, and to gauge how will fans react to two contrasting series featuring mermaids.