Hay, Bahay! Ends, All-Star Videoke to Premiere This Sunday

It turns out ‘Hay, Bahay!’ did not exceed expectations.

Last Sunday, the final episode of ‘Hay, Bahay!’ was aired on GMA. But like all previous episodes, the sitcom made little noise among its viewers.

First aired on June 19, 2016, ‘Hay, Bahay!’ succeeded another Vic Sotto-starred sitcom in ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’. The latter’s stars Vic and son Oyo were joined by Oyo’s wife Kristine Hermosa, Ai-ai delas Alas, Jose Manalo and Wally Bayola.

Unlike ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’ which lasted for over three years, ‘Hay, Bahay!’ was only able to air for over a year as it had to contend with the long-running ABS-CBN gag show ‘Goin’ Bulilit’. Overall, the sitcom aired 61 episodes, joining a list of more recent Vic Sotto sitcoms that had a short run (e.g. ‘My Darling Aswang’, ‘The Jose and Wally Show Starring Vic Sotto’).

So what’s next for Vic Sotto? According to GMA, a new sitcom starring Vic and Ai-ai delas Alas is in the works, but the premiere date and the show’s title is yet to be determined.

Meanwhile, a replacement for ‘Hay, Bahay!’ is set to premiere this Sunday night. The new show will be called ‘All-Star Videoke’, and it will be hosted by Solenn Heussaff and Betong Sumaya.

The game play of ‘All-Star Videoke’ is as follows:

“The game features six celebrity contestants or Videoke stars vying to outwit one another by filling in the missing words on a song in a videoke-type of presentation.

In the event that every player correctly answered the words in each song, a pair of celebrity ‘laglagers’ will choose one player who will be out of the competition.

The two remaining contenders will proceed in the semi-final round for a chance to play in the jackpot round. The winning contestant becomes the All-Star Videoke Champ! and may bring home a cash prize of up to 100,000 pesos.

A “Super Oke” prize is also up for the win if the winner decides to continuously play in the succeeding weeks.”

In short, ‘All-Star Videoke’ shares some similarities with another long-running videoke game show ‘All-Star K’. But whether or not the former will enjoy the same success as the latter remains to be seen.

In the age of foreign franchised programs, it is good to see networks such as GMA maintain a more local approach. Still, the success of a particular program will only depend on the response of the viewers, and for ‘All-Star Videoke’, it will not be an easy task.

‘All-Star Videoke’ airs Sundays after ’24 Oras Weekend’ on GMA.

Advertisement

A History of Vic Sotto Sitcoms (Part 2)

Vic Sotto’s eighth solo sitcom, ‘Hay, Bahay!’, will mark his second collaboration with Ai-ai delas Alas. (Photo credit: GMA Network/Hay, Bahay! Official Facebook)

It has been nearly 30 years since Vic Sotto left the shadows of TVJ and became a star himself.

On Sunday, June 19, his newest sitcom ‘Hay, Bahay’ will officially premiere on GMA. This will mark Vic Sotto’s eighth sitcom as a solo artist, and ninth overall.

While he was better known as 1/3 of the fabled trio TVJ alongside Tito Sotto and Joey de Leon, and the host of ‘Eat Bulaga’, it was his individual comedic brilliance on television and film that cemented his legacy. Without further ado, let’s look back at his solo sitcoms over the years (in chronological order), concluding with the final four on the list.

5. My Darling Aswang (2010-11)

Aired on: TV5

Notable co-stars: Daiana Menezes, Tetchie Agbayani, Ces Quesada, Sugar Mercado, Jose Manalo, Wally Bayola, Ritchie d’Horsie, Miguel Faustmann, Kakai Bautista, Rhea Nakpil

Based on the movie ‘Ang Darling Kong Aswang’, ‘My Darling Aswang’ was the first Vic Sotto-starred sitcom in 15 years to not air on GMA. Instead, it aired on TV5, where Vic also happened to be the host of the game show ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’.

6. The Jose and Wally Show Starring Vic Sotto (2011-12)

Aired on: TV5

Notable co-stars: Jose Manalo, Wally Bayola, Jimmy Santos, Mcoy Fundales, Erika Padilla, Dianne Medina, Buboy Garovillo, Miriam Quiambao, Niña Jose

While Jose and Wally were the headliners of this variety show within a sitcom, Vic was also added to the mix as its ‘director’. Like ‘My Darling Aswang’, ‘The Jose and Wally Show’ was aired concurrently with Vic’s other show on TV5, ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’.

7. Vampire ang Daddy Ko (2013-16)

Aired on: GMA

Notable co-stars: Oyo Boy Sotto, Pilita Corrales, Jackie Lou Blanco, Anjo Yllana, Jimmy Santos, Ryzza Mae Dizon, Bea Binene, Derrick Monasterio, Glaiza de Castro, Jin-ri Park, Allan K, Jinky Oda

‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’ was the third Vic Sotto-starred sitcom to feature a mystical theme. It was also his first project alongside son Oyo Boy, and the first comedic role for young child star Ryzza Mae Dizon.

8. Hay, Bahay! (2016-present)

Aired on: GMA

Notable co-stars: Oyo Boy Sotto, Kristine Hermosa, Ai-ai delas Alas, Jose Manalo, Wally Bayola, Ruby Rodriguez

The premise of ‘Hay, Bahay’ is similar to ‘1 For 3’, in which the characters share the same house owned by a landlord. The sitcom marks the television comeback of Kristine Hermosa, and it will be her first show outside of ABS-CBN.

Indeed, Vic Sotto has come a long way since he was introduced as the iconic Enteng Kabisote in ‘Okay Ka, Fairy Ko’. After nearly 30 years as the ‘Bossing’ of Philippine sitcoms, he is still going strong.

For Part 1 of A History of Vic Sotto sitcoms, click here.

Note: ‘Hay, Bahay!’ will air every Sunday after ’24 Oras Weekend’ on GMA. All of his sitcoms are property of M-Zet Productions.

The Unexpected and Quiet Cancellation of Sabado-Badoo

‘Sabado-Badoo’ last aired on July 25, with GMA quietly pulling out the show from its lineup. (Photo credit: GMA Network)

It was a cancellation that no one saw coming.

The GMA comedy program ‘Sabado-Badoo’ was last seen on July 25. The show, hosted by Sef Cadayona and Betong Sumaya, featured a wide variety of videos that were variously presented in a humorous manner; most of which contained scenes from classic GMA shows.

When it premiered last March 14, ‘Sabado-Badoo’ was supposed to be GMA’s answer to ABS-CBN’s ‘Mga Kwento ni Marc Logan’. But it failed to even make a dent in the national ratings, as viewers find Marc Logan’s presentation style to be even funnier and quirkier than Sef and Betong’s.

‘Sabado-Badoo”s most recent episode came on July 25. After that, however, no further episodes were aired, and instead, ‘Pepito Manaloto: Ang Tunay na Kwento’ was moved to an earlier timeslot.

GMA did not officially announce the cancellation; instead they quietly pulled out ‘Sabado-Badoo’ from its Sabado Star Power lineup. Meanwhile, Sef was given a lead role in ‘Juan Tamad’, which began airing on August 23 (this should also explain why Sef left ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’ in order to concentrate on this project).

‘Sabado-Badoo’ could have been a good show had GMA chose a more experienced presenter. Too bad they don’t have a match for humor-oriented journalist Marc Logan, who is a regular on TV Patrol’s closing segments and a host on DZMM’s ‘Sakto’ with Amy Perez.

It was an unfortunate ending to a promising show. Let’s just hope that GMA learns from this latest ordeal.

Another Lineup Change on GMA, Thanks to The Voice Kids

The season finale of ‘The Voice Kids’, won by Lyca Gairanod, blasted GMA’s rival programs during the weekend of July 28. (Photo credit: ABS-CBN News)

Blame ‘The Voice Kids’ for forcing GMA into another programming change this past weekend.

The final weekend of ABS-CBN’s ‘The Voice Kids’ Season 1 saw Lyca Gairanod win the cash prize of P1-million, a recording contract, a house and lot, and various other prizes. Rounding out the top four are Darren Espanto, Juan Karlos Labajo, and Darlene Vibares, all of whom finished behind Gairanod in percentage of votes.

‘The Voice Kids’ season finale, held at the Newport Performing Arts Theater at Resorts World Manila, was also a ratings winner. Saturday’s performance episode registered a series-high 37.7% national rating, while Sunday’s results episode ended with an equally impressive 37.7%. In Metro Manila, ‘The Voice Kids’ ended their first season with respectably high numbers of 31.8% on Saturday, and 29.2% on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the never-ending timeslot changes on GMA’s weekend lineup continued. In an attempt to counter the expected lengthy performance episode of ‘The Voice Kids’, GMA hastily added ‘GMA Blockbusters’ to its Saturday lineup, weeks after it was replaced by ‘Marian’. As a result, GMA now has five movie blocks on its weekend slate.

Unfortunately, the last-minute change did little to stem the tide. ‘Marian’ only managed ratings of 18.9% (national) and 15% (Metro Manila), while the ‘GMA Blockbusters’ feature film ‘Snakes on a Plane’ ended with a mediocre 22% (national) and 16.1% (Metro Manila).

Against the results episode of ‘The Voice Kids’, GMA’s sitcoms ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’ and ‘Ismol Family’ did not fare well either. ‘Vampire’ finished at 10.6% (national) and 11.6% (Metro Manila), while ‘Ismol Family’ mustered ratings of 11.2% (national) and 14.6% (Metro Manila).

Contrary to a recent article written on GMA’s website, this was simply not a fun weekend for the folks inside Timog Avenue. Now the question is, what’s next?

GMA’s soon-to-be-launched reality talent search show, ‘Bet ng Bayan’, is currently on the pre-production stage, with auditions ongoing in various parts of the country. There is a possibility that ‘Bet ng Bayan’ will air every weekend, with the target date for its pilot still unknown.

With ‘Bet ng Bayan’, GMA hopes that they can reverse the course with their latest talent program. Unfortunately, ‘Bet ng Bayan’ will be facing an uphill climb, considering the tremendous strength and consistency of ABS-CBN’s weekend lineup.

For GMA, the saga of weekend changes continues. Sooner or later, they’ll make another change or two. But the truth is, they are slumping, and not even the slightest of changes will help them.

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.

Another Weekend Shuffle on GMA

Sen. Bong Revilla’s ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’ is moving to the Sunday morning slot, one of several changes that GMA implemented on its weekend lineup.

GMA’s ‘Startalk’, the longest-running showbiz talk show, returns to the Saturday slot at 3:30 p.m. today. However, the move of ‘Startalk’ is just one of several lineup changes made to GMA’s weekend slate of programs.

Suspense series ‘Tales of Horror’ will air every Saturday and Sunday. The series is basically similar to another GMA program in ‘Asian Horror Stories’ (formerly ‘True Horror Stories’), in which horror flicks are featured. ‘Tales of Horror’ airs every Saturday after ‘Eat Bulaga’ and before ‘Startalk’, and every Sunday after ‘Asian Horror Stories’ and before ’24 Oras Weekend’.

Sitcom ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’ will now air after ’24 Oras Weekend’, as the game show ‘Picture Picture’ moves to Sunday nights following the said newscast. An earlier timeslot for ‘Vampire’ means that the ABS-CBN sitcom ‘Home Sweetie Home’ will now face the Vic Sotto-starred sitcom every night, while ‘Picture Picture’ will be up against ‘Goin’ Bulilit’.

Movie block ‘GMA Blockbusters’ moves from Saturday afternoons to replace both ‘Picture Picture’ and ‘Reporters’ Notebook’. The movie block airs after ‘Vampire ang Daddy Ko’ and before ‘Magpakailanman’. Meanwhile, ‘Reporters’ Notebook’ was moved to Thursday afternoons in GMA’s ‘Afternoon Prime’ block, leaving ‘I-Witness’ as the sole Saturday night public affairs program.

And finally, the educational program ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’ has found a new timeslot. The Bong Revilla-hosted program will now be seen on Sunday mornings, as part of a quartet of educational programs that include ‘Aha!’, ‘Born to Be Wild’, and ‘I-Bilib’.

Looking at GMA’s weekend programming lineup, there are some strong and weak points to consider. Moving ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’ to Sunday mornings will be a huge boost for the program, as it will now attract young and informative viewers. And with ‘Aha!’, ‘Born to Be Wild’ and ‘I-Bilib’ preceding it, viewership of ‘Kap’s’ will definitely help its cause.

Over at the nighttime slot, an additional hour of ‘Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho’, while not favorable to some, will benefit a portion of the viewers who are in need of more intelligent programming. ‘KMJS’, one of GMA’s stronger programs, is up against ABS-CBN’s ‘The Voice Kids’, ‘Rated K’, and ‘Pinoy Big Brother: All In’.

Meanwhile, ‘GMA Blockbusters’ and ‘Tales of Horror’ are intended to by the network as ‘stopgap programs’, meaning they currently air on a short-term basis while a new program is in the works. In the case of Sunday’s edition of ‘Tales of Horror’, its possible replacement may be an upcoming dance program featuring Marian Rivera.

And then there is ‘Sunday All-Stars’, now relegated to 1:50 p.m. after the transfer of ‘Kap’s Amazing Stories’. Having reduced its airtime and crew, it is clear that ‘Sunday All-Stars’ is nowhere close to the level that ‘ASAP’ currently enjoys. And a later timeslot only makes the situation even worse.

In what has become a recurring theme in the last few years, GMA restructures its weekend lineup in hopes of gaining viewers’ interest. And again, will this new lineup pay off? Only time will tell.