The Last Week of Since I Found You

Glad that’s over.

In many ways, ‘Since I Found You”s final week is a merciful end to a series that has never found its footing from day one. And while this romantic comedy series outplayed its competition, it failed to impress viewers left and right.

#SinceIFoundYou the FINALE week❤️ pic.twitter.com/F0q3cBrP7p

— Dreamscape (@DreamscapePH) August 4, 2018

‘Since I Found You’ first set foot on April 16, 2018 replacing the tearjerking family drama ‘The Good Son’. The series marked the first television project for the ‘Kita Kita’ tandem of Empoy Marquez and Alessandra de Rossi, and they were joined by Piolo Pascual, Arci Muñoz and JC de Vera.

While ‘Since I Found You’ came out firing by averaging in the 20s its first two weeks, it failed to sustain its magical start the rest of the way. Since then, ‘Since I Found You’ hovered between 16 and 19%, and ABS-CBN management wondered if a romantic comedy on primetime is indeed a curse.

But despite its unimpressive ratings, ‘Since I Found You”s opponent failed to take advantage of its lukewarm audience reception. Neither ‘The One That Got Away’ nor ‘Inday Will Always Love You’ provided the necessary impact that should have given ‘Since I Found You’ a scare, even though the latter came within 1% in one of its episodes.

Notwithstanding the lack of recognition by the audience, ‘Since I Found You’ was still good enough to produce 85 episodes, which is close to the norm of a typical teleserye. Still, it was clear that viewers yawned over a primetime romantic comedy that felt out of place.

With all due respect to Dreamscape, the producer of ‘Since I Found You’, this is one of the weakest efforts that this entertainment division has ever made. For all its success and appeal (see ‘Asintado’, ‘Ang Probinsyano’), not all of their creations are destined to give audiences something worth watching.

In the end, ‘Since I Found You’ is a waste of time for ABS-CBN. Romantic comedies have no place on Primetime Bida and this series is one of a few mistakes that ABS-CBN ever made.

One can only hope that ‘Since I Found You’ will end with a lasting impression. But for a series that is boring from the start, expect a silent treatment from the audience.

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Inday Will Always Love You to Give Since I Found You a Run for Its Money

Talk about a lethargic follow-up.

After a strong premiere week, harsh reality hits the ABS-CBN primetime romantic comedy series ‘Since I Found You’. From averaging in the 20s its first week, its ratings are now down to around 18%.

To make matters worse, its closest competitor (in this instance GMA’s ‘The One That Got Away’) made an inspiring rally to pull to within 3%. Although it may not be enough to overcome the deficit by the time the series ends tonight, it should give ABS-CBN plenty of concern when it comes to the fourth teleserye in Primetime Bida’s lineup.

Starting Monday night, a new headache for ‘Since I Found You’ will come in the form of Barbie Forteza and Derrick Monasterio. Their new series ‘Inday Will Always Love You’ is set in Cebu and will feature the culture and the sights and sounds of this popular Visayan city.

In ‘Inday Will Always Love You’, Happylou (Barbie) is a Manileña lechon store assistant who decides to return to Cebu in search of her father and to help her impoverished family who lives near the train tracks. Encountering the rich and kind Sir Philip (Ricky Davao), she begins to take care of him after the latter suffered a heart attack, and in turn, he helps Happylou search for her father.

Sir Philip also introduces Happylou to Patrick (Derrick), his nephew, and the two begin to forge a healthy relationship. But Patrick’s mother Amanda (Gladys Reyes) and his girlfriend Ericka (Kim Rodriguez) will look to put a wrench in their plans, and when Sir Philip dies, they look to make Happylou’s life a living hell.

Also part of the cast are Juancho Trivino, Manilyn Reynes, Nova Villa, Tina Paner, Super Tekla, the “Lumen Twins” Charisse and Charlotte Hermoso, Kimpoy Feliciano, Buboy Villar and Fliptop artists Mzhayt and Price Tagg. It will be directed by Monti Parungao and Rember Gelera.

If the premise of ‘Inday Will Always Love You’ sounds familiar, then one should remember another locally-themed romantic comedy in ‘I Heart Davao’. Both series were produced by GMA Public Affairs and the setting was based on a popular tourist destination in the Philippines.

But if ‘I Heart Davao”s brief run is any indication, then ‘Inday Will Always Love You’ is in for a reality check. Still, with its incoming competitor ‘Since I Found You’ not doing exactly well in spite of its ratings, one can expect ‘Inday Will Always Love You’ will enjoy a longer tenure and perhaps steal some victories from its rival.

It will be interesting to see how ‘Inday Will Always Love You’ can change the primetime romcom arms race. With that, best of luck to this series.

‘Inday Will Always Love You’ airs weeknights after ‘Kambal Karibal’ on GMA Telebabad.

Close But No Cigar: The One That Got Away’s Final Week

Who’s the ex that Liam is looking for?

Indeed, GMA’s ‘The One That Got Away’ had quite a journey. Its run of 88 episodes suggests that it performed well, but on the contrary, it still fell short.

‘The One That Got Away’ first premiered on January 15, 2018 as a replacement to ‘My Korean Jagiya’. The series starred Dennis Trillo, Max Collins, Solenn Heussaff and Rhian Ramos, and it featured a storyline of one man’s near-death experience coupled with a difficult decision of choosing among his three exes who he feels the most connected.

Unfortunately for ‘The One That Got Away’, it struggled right out of the gate, only getting around 12% in its first few months on the air. On the other hand, ABS-CBN’s more serious primetime drama ‘The Good Son’ earned 6% more than its rival.

Ratings for ‘The One That Got Away’ somewhat improved as the calendar turned to April, and by May, it rallied to average around 14-15%. Despite that, it was not enough to beat both ‘The Good Son’ and ‘Since I Found You’ in its timeslot, although lately the series is starting to close the gap.

Such is the cruel fate of GMA’s primetime romantic dramas. Just as ‘The One That Got Away’ began to find its stride, the series was down to its last few episodes, thus giving them no chance of catching up to ‘Since I Found You’ which has faltered of late.

But to the series’ credit, it still gave a good account of itself. Notwithstanding the huge odds, it was clear that ‘The One That Got Away’ was one of GMA’s better romantic comedy series, one that is well-written and had a stellar cast that connected well with the audience.

Come this Friday, one ex-girlfriend’s life will change while two others will have to ponder about their future. Find out who really is the ‘one that got away’.

The Good Son: One Last Time

‘Who killed Victor?’

For several months, ‘The Good Son’ has been trying to solve the mystery behind the gruesome murder of Victor, played by Albert Martinez. Now it has come down to which one of Victor’s four sons and their immediate family will be proven innocent of the crime.

Since its premiere on September 25, 2017, ABS-CBN’s ‘The Good Son’ became one of the network’s top-rated programs. During its run, the series averaged around 20% in the ratings, besting more light-hearted competition in GMA’s ‘My Korean Jagiya’ and ‘The One That Got Away’.

The return to a more serious formula and the emphasis towards young stars have helped ‘The Good Son’ achieve tremendous success throughout its run. In past years, lighter dramas dominated Primetime Bida’s fourth slot, but after ‘On the Wings of Love’ the approach wore thin.

Reverting back to a darker atmosphere reminiscent of series such as ‘The Legal Wife’ may have been the most daring decision that ABS-CBN ever did, but ‘The Good Son”s unexpected surge has brought new life to Primetime Bida’s fourth slot. However, this was not the only reason behind its popularity.

Continuing ABS-CBN’s commitment towards youth, the series gave rising artists Nash Aguas, Jerome Ponce, Joshua Garcia, McCoy de Leon, Loisa Andallo, Alexa Ilacad and Elisse Joson the green light to show their acting prowess. It was a formula that somehow worked to ‘The Good Son”s favor, helping the series outpace its GMA counterparts who continued to rely on older stars.

More importantly, these artists gained a new legion of followers, both on television and on social media. For Joshua Garcia, starring in a series without frequent on-screen partner Julia Barretto may be a risky choice, but it proved to be a blessing in disguise as he was able to thrive alongside his contemporaries.

In many ways, ‘The Good Son’ became a series that ABS-CBN should be proud of. More than just the young stars that thrived in a starring role, it was the series’ themes of innocence, guilt and doubt that helped ‘The Good Son’ become a top-ten program in the country.

Friday will mark ‘The Good Son”s 143rd and final episode. On its last night, the innocent one will be revealed, but who will be rightfully called ‘The Good Son?’

Staying Loose: GMA Premieres The One That Got Away Tonight

Three ladies, one guy, all for the promise of rekindling one’s love.

This theme will be premise of GMA’s newest romantic comedy series ‘The One That Got Away’. Premiering later tonight, the series will be led by four of GMA’s most sought-after lead stars, namely Rhian Ramos, Max Collins, Lovi Poe and Dennis Trillo.

The central character behind ‘The One That Got Away’ will be Liam (Dennis), the owner of an organic farm and the ideal boyfriend. Soon after, however, he meets a fatal accident and when he wakes up from a coma, his three ex-girlfriends are inside the hospital room to meet him.

These three ex-girlfriends are as follows:

• Alex (Lovi) – her relationship with Liam was approved by both family and friends, but they broke up as soon as her personal goals got in the way.
• Darcy (Max) – met and fell in love with Liam as soon as he broke up with Alex; however, she later ended her relationship with him to pursue opportunities abroad.
• Zoe (Rhian) – after her parents separated, she and Liam fell in love with each other, but they broke up due to Zoe’s insistence to stick with Liam amid his busy schedule.

All three, as it seems, are still in love with Liam even after going their separate ways. But it will be up to Liam to choose his one true love.

Rounding out the cast of ‘The One That Got Away’ are Ivan Dorschner, Migo Adecer, Jason Abalos, Bembol Roco, Snooky Serna, Luz Valdez, Ervic Vijandre, Ayra Mariano, Nar Cabico, Ashley Rivera, Sophie Albert, Jason Francisco, Patricia Ismael, Dea Formilleza, and Euwenn Aleta. It will be directed by Mark dela Cruz and Conrado Peru.

‘The One That Got Away’ will be the latest in a series of romantic comedies that GMA will offer in the third slot of Telebabad. But despite the premise of ‘good vibes’ and ‘light-heartedness’, GMA has yet to figure out a way to make their romantic comedies succeed every night.

Going up against ‘The Good Son’, a more serious and mature drama that ABS-CBN currently offers, will be a huge test for the veteran foursome of Dennis Trillo, Lovi Poe, Max Collins and Rhian Ramos. One can only hope that ‘The One That Got Away’ will put up a good fight and give Kapuso viewers something to enjoy and love.

‘The One That Got Away’ airs weeknights after ‘Kambal Karibal’ on GMA Telebabad.