Case Solved Adds to GMA’s Saturday Afternoon Madness

It is safe to say that GMA’s Saturday afternoon lineup is an absolute mess.

Since ‘Startalk’ left the airwaves nearly two years ago, three successor shows have tried to fill the void that the former left. Unfortunately, neither ‘CelebriTV’, ‘Laff Camera Action’ nor ‘#Like’ were able to make an impact.

To make matters worse, the block now features three shows that appear indistinguishable from one another. ‘Karelasyon’, ‘Wish Ko Lang’ and ‘Imbestigador’ may be different shows in name, but their formats are way too similar to each other, especially now that the latter two employ greater amounts of dramatization than before.

Now add a fourth show with a similar premise. Starting this Saturday, GMA will introduce the docu-drama series ‘Case Solved’, to be hosted by Dingdong Dantes.

Here is an excerpt from the GMA Network Public Relations Department:

Case Solved features sensational and controversial real-life cases ranging from nonaggressive to violent circumstance derived from Philippines’ Supreme Court Reports Annotated (SCRA) handled by the country’s National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Philippine National Police (PNP), International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), judicial agencies like the Department of Justice (DOJ), Supreme Court and Bureau of Corrections. More than presenting how the crime is committed, it further explains how the crime is solved.

Hosted by none other than Kapuso Primetime King Dingdong Dantes, this program presents solved cases that will empower and educate the viewers in predicting the probability of a crime before it occurs.

Let’s face it, does GMA need another ‘Imbestigador’ at this point? Because based on the description, ‘Case Solved’ is just another crime-solving program that GMA concocted, even though they already have one in ‘Imbestigador’.

That said, the addition of ‘Case Solved’ does not solve anything as far as their Saturday afternoon lineup goes. The lack of diversity in the block is something that might concern viewers, especially now that ABS-CBN is pulling away in the ratings with ‘Ipaglaban Mo’, ‘SOCO’, ‘Mga Kwento ni Marc Logan’ and ‘Family Feud’.

A moral victory or disaster awaits ‘Case Solved’. GMA can only hope that the show can defy the odds and at least make their block more interesting than ever.

‘Case Solved’ airs starting this Saturday after ‘Eat Bulaga’ on GMA.

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Kris Aquino Leaves ABS-CBN, to Join APT Entertainment

The fate of Kris Aquino’s entertainment future has been confirmed.

‘The Queen of All Media’ announced on her Instagram yesterday that she is officially done as an ABS-CBN talent. In addition, Kris announced that she will work on a new project with ‘Eat Bulaga’ producer Tony Tuviera.

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In response, ABS-CBN issued this statement:

“We thank Kris for the many years that she has been a Kapamilya bringing joy, hope, and inspiration to our viewers worldwide. She will always be a Kapamilya and we wish her well in her new journey.”

Kris Aquino had been a part of ABS-CBN for 20 years, having hosted numerous talk shows (e.g. ‘The Buzz’, ‘Kris TV’) and game shows (e.g. ‘Game KNB’, ‘Kapamilya Deal or No Deal’), played the role of judge in ‘Pilipinas Got Talent’, and acted on several dramas (e.g. ‘Hiram’, ‘Kung Tayo’y Magkakalayo’) and movies (e.g. ‘Sukob’, ‘Feng Shui’). Her long and distinguished service on the said network attracted not only fans, but also critics alike.

Kris’ most recent project with ABS-CBN, ‘Kris TV’, ended last April, as she struggled with health issues in the show’s final months. After that, Kris went on a well-deserved vacation, before returning home to decide her fate as a talent.

On July 1, Kris made an unexpected appearance on GMA’s now-defunct talk show ‘Yan ang Morning’. Despite the guesting, she remained mum over her next move.

Initially, Kris talked to ABS-CBN with regards to a possible new project. But in the end, she decided to hook up with Tony Tuviera for a different TV project, which could be her first outside ABS-CBN since GMA’s ‘Startalk’ 21 years ago.

It remains to be seen, however, if the said new project will indeed air on GMA (APT’s current shows ‘Calle Siete’, ‘Eat Bulaga’ and ‘Sunday PinaSaya’ all currently air on GMA). Regardless, let’s just hope that Kris can stay healthy while continuing to do what she loves best: entertaining the viewers.

The End of CelebriTV?

Tomorrow afternoon could be the last time ‘CelebriTV’ will ever air on GMA.

The official teaser released today (see below) gave no indication that it will be the final episode for the GMA talk show. But as GMA announced the premiere date and timeslot for ‘Laff, Camera, Action’ (May 28, every Saturday afternoon), it was clear that the network has no choice but to close the curtain on ‘CelebriTV’.

‘CelebriTV’ first premiered on September 19, 2015, with Joey de Leon, Lolit Solis and Ai-ai de las Alas as hosts. It replaced ‘Startalk’, who had been on the air for 20 years but whose ratings were on the decline due to changing preferences in showbiz news reporting.

Originally, ‘CelebriTV’ was tagged as the weekly ‘trend-tertainment news’ and ‘comedy talk show’. Soon after, however, game show elements were added, possibly in an attempt to curb the increasing ratings of ABS-CBN game shows ‘Celebrity Playtime’ and ‘Family Feud’.

It backfired, and ‘CelebriTV’, like the final few years of ‘Startalk’, stumbled in the ratings. Not even a brief timeslot switch with ‘Imbestigador’ helped matters.

Overall, ‘CelebriTV’ will have a total of 35 episodes and eight months to its resume. Considering its performance, it was not bad, but it was not impressive either.

The truth is, showbiz talk shows are no longer viable. ABS-CBN knew what was coming when they finally pulled the plug on ‘The Buzz’ last year, however, GMA insisted that they are still worth watching, which is why they decided to create ‘CelebriTV’ in an attempt to revive its declining appeal.

Unfortunately, it didn’t, and GMA painfully realized it. Now they have no choice but to say goodbye to the format that once infiltrated the airwaves for several decades.

So come this Saturday, sit back, watch and enjoy what could be the curtain call for ‘CelebriTV’. It’s going to be a fun farewell, even if it will not make an impact in the ratings.

FTT Year 2015 in Review: Television’s Worst

Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2016, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio. This article looks back at the 10 worst moments in Philippine television this year.

GMA Scraps Sunday TV Mass

On January 4, GMA decided to cease its broadcast of the Family TV Mass organized by the Society of Divine Word – Mission Communications Foundation, Inc. (SVD-MCFI), replacing it with the movie block ‘Kapuso Sine Klasika’. The Sunday Mass of SVD-MCFI returned to its old home in IBC-13 a week later.

Poor ratings of the Sunday Mass was among the reasons behind the cancellation. Despite the claims of many that GMA is promoting apathy and not favoring the Catholic religion, they still managed to cover (albeit not as dedicated as other stations) the visit of Pope Francis to the Philippines, as well as produce a religiously-themed teleserye ‘Pari ‘Koy’ starring Dingdong Dantes.

Gone Too Soon for KISPinoy and Misterless Misis

‘KISPinoy’ and ‘Misterless Misis’ aired for only three episodes each during the third quarter of 2015. The former was axed in late July, while the latter received a postponement (or possibly a cancellation) notice the following month.

Both events paved the way for VIVA to take over TV5’s entertainment department, with Vic del Rosario replacing Wilma Galvante.

PBB, It’s Showtime Summoned by MTRCB

‘Pinoy Big Brother: 737’ and ‘It’s Showtime’ were each summoned by the MTRCB for offending viewer sensibilities. The former was for the so-called ‘bromance’ involving teen housemates Bailey May and Kenzo Gutierrez, while the latter was for the alleged ‘pimping’ of ‘Pastillas Girl’ Angelica Yap in the ‘Nasaan Ka Mr. Pastillas’ skit.

Both shows eventually complied by imposing self-regulatory measures, among other rulings. MTRCB also summoned GMA’s ‘The Rich Man’s Daughter’ for strong language inappropriate to viewers.

GMA’s Finances Put Into Question

Despite an increase in revenue, GMA’s financial capabilities were on the hot seat anew this year. The increased revenue was done at the expense of the network’s ‘streamlining’ efforts which featured, among others, the closure of regional networks and programs, and the termination of long-time employees.

Felipe Gozon’s reluctance to sell a part of the network’s shares was also a major issue. Talks between him and Ramon Ang collapsed in August (with the latter later accusing Gozon of estafa), and a few months later, Gozon rejected offers from Chavit Singson and Manny Pacquiao to purchase a part of the network.

Pope Francis, SONA and APEC Coverage Issues

Not all news networks were able to cover the three biggest news events of the year. GMA News TV received major heat for their lack of coverage in both the visit of Pope Francis in the Philippines and the State of the Nation Address, while AksyonTV was criticized for their non-coverage of the APEC Summit.

The two embattled news networks deserved a lot of blame this year. Speaking of AksyonTV,…

AksyonTV’s Identity Crisis Continues

Admit it or not, AksyonTV really needs a makeover. No longer the 24/7 all-Filipino free TV news channel of years past, the network is now increasingly littered with sports coverage, ranging from major leagues like the PSL to more low-scale ones like the PCBL.

Perhaps the time is now for the network to bring back the AKTV name it once used as a blocktimer on IBC-13. After all, AksyonTV’s glory days are behind them.

StarStruck’s Disaster

The return of ‘StarStruck’ proved to be a glorified failure, as ratings and a questionable timeslot doomed the reality show’s sixth season. It was also long overdue, and it would have made a big difference for the network had it been placed opposite ‘Pinoy Big Brother: 737’.

That said, there may never be another season of ‘StarStruck’ after this. So much for hype gone wrong.

Goodbye Showbiz Talk Shows As We Know It

Easter Sunday of this year marked the final episode of the 16-year-old ‘The Buzz’. Seven months later, ‘Startalk’ took a bow as well after 20 years on air.

A change in viewer’s taste was a key reason behind the demise of both shows. Although ‘CelebriTV’ replaced ‘Startalk’, and ABS-CBN planned to revive ‘The Buzz’ in the future, it won’t be easy adapting to a new audience.

CNN Philippines Not Living Up to Expectations

Launched last March 15, CNN Philippines was supposed to be a local version of its parent network. However, a lot of issues surfaced from the beginning.

Whether it’s due to the revolving door of anchors and reporters, an overemphasis on Nancy Grace or the lack of round-the-clock news coverage, it is clear that CNN Philippines is still a work in progress. That said, Nine Media will need to make a lot of changes to ensure that this venture between them and CNN won’t end quickly.

NBA on ABS-CBN Demoted to the Studio

Since February, NBA coverage on ABS-CBN and ABS-CBN Sports+Action has been purely local, handled in-studio by Boom Gonzalez, TJ Manotoc, Ronnie Magsanoc and Benjie Paras. But to the surprise of many, only Manotoc traveled to the United States to cover the NBA Finals, and ABS-CBN opted to call the games in-studio rather than on location.

Delayed broadcast of the NBA games were a primary reason behind ABS-CBN’s questionable decision. Still, with digitization looming, and the migration to HD underway, it seems like this is a more logical solution for the network to save costs.

In tomorrow’s year-end special, From the Tube will look back at the 10 best moments in Philippine television this 2015.

CelebriTV premiere is Kapuso Network’s another desperate move

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CelebriTV will premiere tomorrow afternoon on GMA 7.

ASIDE FROMIlustrado’s rerun on GMA News TV this Monday, another litany of desperate strategy comes from the main channel in Timog Avenue that will premiere tomorrow.

Enter CelebriTV.

CelebriTV is said to be the weekly “trend-tertainment news” and “comedy talk show” replacing the nearly two-decade-old Startalk (with 1,024 episodes). The end of Startalk was mainly due to the shift of preference of providing local entertainment news online rather than on television.

Unlike Startalk, Butch Francisco will no longer be part of the new show but will be replaced by Ai-Ai de lasAlasfor her second TV project (also, her first in weekend and in afternoon) as an exclusive talent this year. Secondly, Ricky Lo will be demoted from host to a correspondent. Lastly, Heart Evangelista will not be seen on the new program, in order not to show…

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1995 Flashback: Startalk Takes a Bow

1995 was a memorable year in Philippine television. As part of a year-long special, From the Tube will look back at a year full of historical debuts, unforgettable moments, and celebrated feats in the history of television in the country.

The final episode of ‘Startalk’ will air tomorrow afternoon.

After nearly 20 years of leading the showbiz talk show circuit, GMA realized that the time has come. Like ABS-CBN did when ‘The Buzz’ went off the air last April, GMA knows that the changing needs of its audience (e.g. social media, internet) would become a huge factor, and as result, they finally decided to let go of an institution that has served them well.

‘Startalk’ debuted on October 8, 1995 as a Sunday afternoon talk show, with Boy Abunda, Lolit Solis and Kris Aquino as its hosts. For the next three years, the show competed against ‘Showbiz Lingo’, but it became clear that ‘Startalk’ would never make its presence felt if it were to face another showbiz talk show.

Thus, in June 1998, ‘Startalk’ moved to Saturday afternoons (after ‘Eat Bulaga’), and it would remain that way for nearly 16 years. By then Kris Aquino left for ABS-CBN, and after Dawn Zulueta briefly filled in, ‘Startalk’ hired sexy star Rosanna Roces, and with her controversial antics, the show finally won the hearts of viewers nationwide.

‘Startalk’ suffered a slight dip in its audience when, in May 1999, Boy Abunda joined Kris Aquino at ABS-CBN to host another long-running showbiz talk show in ‘The Buzz’. They quickly recovered, however, when Butch Francisco replaced Boy, and for the next five years, the trio of Butch, Lolit and Osang would lead ‘Startalk’ to unprecedented heights.

Osang’s tenure came to an end in June 2004 after a series of controversies that culminated in a well-publicized feud with co-host Lolit Solis and Dra. Vicki Belo. After that, Butch and Lolit would be joined by the likes of Lorna Tolentino, Joey de Leon, Ricky Lo and Heart Evangelista for the remainder of the show’s run.

At almost the same time, ABS-CBN tried to counter ‘Startalk’ with a variety of showbiz talk shows on Saturday afternoons, none of which were able to win. It became clear that a rivalry between ‘Startalk’ and ‘The Buzz’ was something viewers would like to see, and in January 2014, ‘Startalk’ moved back to Sunday afternoons in order to face ‘The Buzz’ (albeit under the name of ‘Buzz ng Bayan’).

The experiment was a disaster, however, and after ‘Buzz ng Bayan’ reverted to ‘The Buzz’ name in May 2014, ‘Startalk’ moved back to Saturday afternoons, this time cutting the show’s duration by 45 minutes.. The declining ratings would only continue from there, and GMA realized the end was near.

On September 12, GMA announced that ‘Startalk’ will air its final episode. The said episode will feature a list of 20 questions submitted by netizens on ‘Startalk”s official Facebook, during which the hosts will answer each of them throughout the show.

‘Startalk’ will always be remembered as ‘The Only Showbiz Authority’, as well as the longest-running showbiz talk show in the country. But with the show finally taking a bow, it marked the end of an era, for ‘Startalk’ was the benchmark in which all other showbiz talk shows were measured.

A new era beckons in the showbiz industry. Thanks for the memories, ‘Startalk’.