Martinez Documentary, New ‘Kaya’ on TV5 and Other News

The Olympic journey of Michael Christian Martinez will be featured in the documentary ‘Hero on Ice’ tonight on TV5.

Tonight after ‘Aksyon Weekend’, TV5 will air a special 30-minute documentary called ‘Hero on Ice’. The documentary will focus on Michael Christian Martinez’s life, career, and journey that took him from the small SM rinks to the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Along the way, viewers will be treated to an all-access look at Martinez’s trip to Sochi and his preparations for the event. Interviews with family and friends, as well as highlights of his Winter Olympics ice skating routines will also be featured.

As a bonus treat to viewers, the documentary will also look back at Martinez’s triumphant homecoming, followed by the press conference and a skating exhibition at the Mall of Asia rink. ‘Hero on Ice’ is hosted by Chiqui Roa-Puno, and will pre-empt ‘Magic Gimik Revealed’ in its timeslot.

Also on TV5, the documentary series ‘Kaya’ returns with a brand new episode, after giving way to ‘Yaman ng Bayan’ last week. In this episode entitled ‘Tindog’, DJ Sta. Ana will take a look at the rebuilding of Tacloban following its destruction from Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda). The series airs after ‘Juan Direction’.

With regards to ‘SpinNation’ which is currently airing on repeats, the second season premiere of the program is currently being delayed by Jasmine Curtis-Smith’s taping schedule for her upcoming self-titled suspense/drama series ‘JasMINE’. The series is scheduled to begin this March 25 at 8 p.m., and will also star the likes of Alwyn Uytingco, Matt Padilla, and Vin Abrenica. Along with the weeknight comedy/drama series ‘Confessions of a Torpe’, the two series will highlight another busy month for the Kapatid network, which will also include the PBA Commissioner’s Cup and the US NCAA March Madness.

Speaking of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup, the conference begins on March 5, a week after the end of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals. But contrary to what Commissioner Chito Salud had assured, and despite the recent high ratings of the recently concluded Philippine Cup playoffs, the airing schedule from the Philippine Cup eliminations will continue in the upcoming conference, with only the second game of the weekday doubleheaders, first game of Saturday doubleheaders, and both games of Sunday doubleheaders airing live on TV5. However all of the games will be shown live on AksyonTV.

And finally, the US NCAA March Madness will begin in mid-March, and like the preceding Winter Olympics, coverage of the games will be shared by TV5, AksyonTV, Hyper and Cignal HD. With that, good luck to TV5 and its affiliate stations on a busy month to come.

Why is SM a Better Fit for GMA?

GMA should benefit more from Henry Sy and his SM chain of malls and condominiums.

GMA has been on the selling block for several months now. Several names crop up, such as Manny V. Pangilinan, owner of PLDT, Smart and TV5, and Ramon S. Ang, lead executive of San Miguel Corporation and shareholder of Philippine Airlines and Solar Entertainment. However, no one mentions Henry Sy of SM Group and his deep pockets.

For some reason, I looked forward to SM acquiring GMA. Why? Because Henry Sy is the richest man in the Philippines, and SM is an emerging conglomerate. SM, best known for its malls, has stepped up financially by building the Mall of Asia Arena and various high-rise condominiums, along with acquiring a stake in National University and revitalizing its athletics and educational program. By purchasing GMA from Felipe Gozon and Gilberto Duavit, SM should help rebuild a slumping broadcast giant, which is already suffering due to poor ratings, critically panned programming choices, and declining revenue.

Both ABS-CBN and TV5 are owned by conglomerates, and because of that, they are able to expand beyond the usual entertainment fare. In order to be at par with the other two networks, GMA needs a bigger company to thrive, and SM Group should be a good fit. But for now, it’s only a dream.