TV5’s New Weekend Schedule

It will be a brand-new weekend slate on TV5 starting this week, highlighted by the premiere of ‘Born to Be a Star’. (Logo courtesy of TV5 and VIVA Entertainment)

New shows mean a new schedule for TV5 this weekend.

As previously announced, the first wave of shows under the co-production of TV5 and VIVA Entertainment will make their debut this month. Not only that, a few returnees will air new episodes as well.

The Saturday night lineup on TV5 will be as follows:

7:00 p.m. – Born to Be a Star

8:00 p.m. – Tasya Fantasya

9:00 p.m. – Wattpad Presents

10:30 p.m. – MTV Top 20 Pilipinas

On Sunday nights, the lineup looks like this:

7:00 p.m. – Born to Be a Star

8:00 p.m. – #ParangNormal Activity

9:00 p.m. – Barangay Utakan

10:00 p.m. – Sports 360/UFC on TV5

If there’s one thing in common about the schedules, it is that ‘Born to Be a Star’ will be aired on both Saturdays and Sundays, which is now typical of other reality talent shows in the country. It is likely that they will adopt the format of one performance and one results episode per weekend, with the auditions possibly the focus of the first episodes.

‘Born to Be a Star’ will take over the timeslots of both ‘LolaBasyang.com’ (Saturdays) and ‘Barangay Utakan’ (Sundays). The former, a co-production of TV5 and IdeaFirst Company, is currently on hiatus, while the latter, a News5 production, will now be moved to a new timeslot at 9:00 p.m.

Occupying the previous timeslot of ‘#ParangNormal Activity’ will be ‘Tasya Fantasya’, the upcoming fantasy series starring Shy Carlos and Mark Neumann. While the former initially announced that last Saturday’s episode was to be their finale, due to insistent public demand, new episodes of ‘#ParangNormal Activity’ will now be seen every Sunday at 8:00 p.m.

Aside from ‘Born to Be a Star’ and ‘Tasya Fantasya’, the TV5/VIVA consortium will also join forces in airing MTV Pinoy’s ‘Top 20 Pilipinas’ on Channel 5. This will mark the first time in nearly a decade that an MTV program will be aired on free TV.

MTV Pinoy’s ‘Top 20 Pilipinas’ will replace ‘History with Lourd’ and ‘Kaya’. While the former is expected to move to a new timeslot, the latter’s status remains unknown.

Meanwhile, ‘Wattpad Presents’ will have a new format with their move to Saturday nights. As part of the change, one story will be presented in a 90-minute made-for-TV movie.

And as for ‘Sports 360’, this week’s episode will be preempted anew in favor of TV5’s broadcast of UFC 196. Perhaps it’s about time for the said show to move to AksyonTV so as to prevent any further interruptions.

An interesting weekend awaits for both TV5 and VIVA. As for changes in the weekday slot, stay tuned.

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FTT Year 2015 in Review: Television’s Best

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 best moments in Philippine television this year.

AlDub Invades Eat Bulaga and the World

The now-popular Kalyeserye segment of ‘Eat Bulaga’ began on July 16, as a then-unknown Maine Mendoza (under the Yaya Dub character) caught the eye of rising Kapuso star Alden Richards. Since then, AlDub grew into a social media phenomenon, and it culminated into a slew of advertisements, magazine covers, a supporting role in ‘My Bebe Love: #KiligPaMore’, and a sold-out ‘Sa Tamang Panahon’ live episode at the Philippine Arena.

While the popularity of AlDub had some negative effects on GMA and its rivals, there is no denying that the duo became the key ingredient that introduced ‘Eat Bulaga’ into a new generation. The 36-year-old variety show is now enjoying its best ratings in years, thanks largely to AlDub.

LizQuen, KathNiel and JaDine Dominate Primetime Ratings

While AlDub dominated noontime, primetime belonged to ABS-CBN’s three hottest love teams.  The year began with LizQuen (Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil) of ‘Forevermore’ continuing their winning run, before handing it over to KathNiel (Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla) of ‘Pangako Sa ‘Yo’, and JaDine (James Reid and Nadine Lustre) of ‘On the Wings of Love’.

The success of LizQuen, KathNiel and JaDine were crucial in Primetime Bida’s thorough domination of Telebabad in the national ratings. Although GMA responded with BiGuel (Bianca Umali and Miguel Tanfelix) in ‘Once Upon a Kiss’, and GabRu (Gabbi Garcia and Ruru Madrid) of ‘Let the Love Begin’, they were unable to make an impact.

A New Sunday Afternoon Habit

August 9 saw a new rival for the 20-year-old ‘ASAP’, but they did not expect it to be different. In came ‘Sunday PinaSaya’, GMA’s newest variety show that emphasized more on comedy than musical performances.

The presence of ‘Eat Bulaga’ hosts Jose Manalo, Wally Bayola and Alden RicRhards (with Maine Mendoza later added) helped ‘Sunday PinaSaya’ defeat ‘ASAP’ on a consistent basis. In response, ABS-CBN moved ‘Banana Split: Extra Scoop’ to Sunday afternoons as ‘Banana Sundae’, but it still failed to reverse the trend.

Willie Revillame Returns 

Speaking of Sunday afternoons, May 10 saw the return of Willie Revillame to the small screen with ‘Wowowin’. Initially airing every mid-Sunday afternoons, it later moved to an earlier timeslot after ‘Sunday PinaSaya’, where it has since flourished.

Even though Willie faced an arrest warrant over the ‘Willing Willie’ macho dancer kid case, this didn’t stop him from receiving accolades for ‘Wowowin’. The rebirth of the controversial host was capped off with a pair of awards for best game show and host in the PMPC Star Awards.

Wattpad Presents Turns 1

The teleserye dominance of ABS-CBN and GMA did not deter TV5. Following the cancellation of ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’ in early November, ‘Wattpad Presents’ became the network’s longest-running active entertainment program, having been on the air for over a year.

Under-appreciated by most television viewers, ‘Wattpad Presents’ was able to make it over a year thanks to an endless supply of new stories and a dedicated fanbase. It is considered a perfect alternative to the long and dragging storylines that a teleserye usually provides.

ABS-CBN Goes Digital and HD

February 11 saw the much-awaited launch of ABS-CBN TVPlus, the first-ever digital terrestrial television service in the country. The so-called ‘mahiwagang black box’ quickly became popular, selling nearly a million units.

Then on October 3, ABS-CBN HD was launched, bringing virtually every program on Channel 2 into crystal clear high definition. And finally, ABS-CBN announced that they will replace Balls HD with ABS-CBN Sports+Action HD starting January 1, ending a six-year run for the network’s first-ever HD channel.

Kapamilya Gold Reloaded

Teleseryes made their return to Kapamilya Gold on January 13, as ‘Flordeliza’ and ‘Nasaan Ka Nang Kailangan Kita’ premiered on the afternoon block. This was followed by four other series: ‘Doble Kara’, ‘All of Me’, ‘Walang Iwanan’ and ‘And I Love You So’.

Since then, the battle between Kapamilya Gold and Afternoon Prime dramas became a tight one, both in ratings and momentum. However, it didn’t stop ‘The Half-Sisters’ from achieving the one-year milestone in June.

NCAA Returns to Channel 23; UAAP Extended

After a fruitless three-year tenure with Sports5, the NCAA returned to ABS-CBN Sports in late June. The renewed partnership featured new innovations, such as social media interaction and high-definition broadcasts.

ABS-CBN Sports also signed a fresh five-year deal with the UAAP, following another successful season. The network now plans to extend its coverage to other UAAP tournaments, in addition to full coverage of men’s basketball and women’s volleyball.

The Big Two-0

November 27 saw ‘Bubble Gang’ celebrate its 20th anniversary with a documentary special. The 20-year-old gag show continues to defy time, maintaining its status as a Friday night habit despite an evolving cast of talents and advancements in technology.

Also reaching its 20th year is ‘Saksi’, the second longest-running active free TV newscast in the country. So is ‘ASAP’, who despite fading ratings with the entry of ‘Sunday PinaSaya’, remains a fixture on Sunday noontime.

Janella, Jana Shine on Lunchtime

Following up the success of ‘Be Careful with My Heart’ was a difficult task, but Janella Salvador and Jana Agoncillo proved that they were able to thrive with this challenge. Janella’s ‘Oh My G’ and Jana’s ‘Ningning’ flourished as one the country’s top-rated programs on weekdays, despite a stiff competitor in ‘The Ryzza Mae Show’.

In response, the TAPE-produced talk show starring Ryzza Mae Dizon was rebooted into a drama series as ‘Princess in the Palace’. However, the reformat did not produce the desired results.

2015 was another year to remember for television viewers. Although ABS-CBN continued to reign this year, GMA and TV5 enjoyed their own share of moments as well, and with digitization now underway, the preparation for a full-digitized television signal in the Philippines is on.

So what is in store for 2016? Find out as From the Tube continues to look at events and changes that shape Philippine media.

Thoughts on Drama Remakes Airing on Different Stations

‘Baker King’ premieres on TV5 this Monday. The said series is a rare example of a remake that aired on a different station from the original. (Photo credit: PEP.ph)

Not all remakes of drama series ended up airing on the same station as the original.

Such was the case for three telenovelas starring Thalia: ‘MariMar’, ‘Maria la del Barrio’ and ‘Rosalinda’. The first two originally aired on RPN-9 in the mid-90s, briefly giving the struggling station a ratings boost.

GMA then re-aired ‘MariMar’ in the late 2000s, while creating two local remakes of it: one starring Marian Rivera in 2007, and another still under pre-production this year. ABS-CBN never re-aired the original ‘Maria la del Barrio’, but was able to produce a remake in 2011 starring Erich Gonzales.

The Kapamilya network also aired ‘Maria Mercedes’ and ‘Rosalinda’ later in the 90s. But while they managed to create a local version of the former with Jessy Mendiola two years ago, the latter wound up in the hands of the Kapuso network, not only re-airing the original, but also producing a remake starring Carla Abellana in 2009.

This phenomenon is not restricted to telenovelas alone. It also happens to local dramas as well.

For instance, GMA aired the original ‘Anna Liza’ starring Julie Vega in the early 80s. Then over two decades later, ABS-CBN remade the series (retitled ‘Annaliza’) with Andrea Brillantes, running for nearly a year.

Another example was ‘Dyesebel’, which was remade into a GMA teleserye in 2009, only to be rehashed again by ABS-CBN last year. The former starred Marian Rivera while the latter starred Anne Curtis.

Now TV5 is doing something unprecedented, as a remake of the popular GMA Koreanovela ‘The Baker King’ is expected to premiere on the network starting this Monday. That said, even Asianovelas are not safe in the said phenomenon.

The original version of ‘The Baker King’ aired on the Kapuso network in 2011, and starred Yoon Shi-yoon, Eugene and Joo Won. The series earned decently good ratings for GMA that year.

Despite the success, GMA chose not to hold on to ‘The Baker King’, let alone create a local version of it. Instead, TV5 acquired the rights for the possible remake last year.

The remake of ‘The Baker King’ will star Mark Neumann, Shaira Mae and Akihiro Blanco, and will air on weeknights starting May 18 after the ‘Wattpad Presents’ series.

It is rare for a drama series to have a remake air on a different station. Whether it is due to lack of revenue, loss of desire or motivation, or declining ratings, keeping the rights to a particular drama is a something TV stations cannot avoid at times.

That said, it is one station’s loss and another’s gain when these things fall into place. Regardless of the result, these stations should be proud to have tried their hand at remaking these classics.

After all, Philippine television is always a cautionary tale for a station’s decisions.

‘Showbiz Konek na Konek’ Premieres, Plus TV5’s Revamped Schedule

‘Showbiz Konek na Konek’ premiered last Monday, leading to some changes in TV5’s programming lineup. (Photo credit: TV5 via Interaksyon.com)

A brand new weekday showbiz talk show paved the way for a revamped programming lineup on TV5.

The new show in question, ‘Showbiz Konek na Konek’, premiered last Monday morning. The show is hosted by IC Mendoza, Bianca King and MJ Marfori, and covers the latest showbiz news in a more interactive and upbeat manner through the use of social media.

With ‘Showbiz Konek na Konek’ making its debut, TV5 decided to make some changes to their programming lineup. The new weekday lineup is as follows:

5:00 am – Aksyon sa Umaga
6:30 am – Higglytown Heroes
7:30 am – Doc McStuffins
8:00 am – Teacher’s Pet
8:30 am – Hi-5
9:00 am – Transformers: Animated
9:30 am – Rockman.Exe Beast
10:00 am – Happy Wife, Happy Life
10:30 am – Healing Galing sa TV5 (M & F)/Solved na Solved (T-TH)
11:00 am – Showbiz Konek na Konek
11:30 am – Aksyon sa Tanghali
12:00 pm – Movie Max 5 (x2)
3:45 pm – Hi-5
4:15 pm – PSL/PBA/Movie Max 5
6:15 pm – Aksyon
7:00 pm – PBA/Movie Max 5
9:00 pm – Wattpad Presents
9:30 pm – The Vampire Diaries (last day tonight)/Supernatural (starting tomorrow)
10:15 pm – Extreme Series
10:45 pm – Aksyon Tonite
11:15 pm – ReAksyon
11:30 pm – KBO block reruns
12:00 am – Shop Japan

Programs written in bold were the ones whose schedules changed from last week.

Notice the absence of ‘T3: Enforced’ on the weekday lineup? It turns out that the Tulfo brothers’ public service program will now compete against ABS-CBN’s ‘Failon Ngayon’ and GMA’s ‘Imbestigador’ starting this Saturday at 4:30 p.m, and is expected to morph into an investigative documentary in the mold of prior Tulfo brothers’ programs.

As for the rest of Saturday’s lineup, here they are as follows:

4:30 am – Shop Japan
5:30 am – Family Matters
6:30 am – Kakaibang Lunas
7:00 am – Kim Possible
7:30 am – Little Einsteins
8:00 am – Powerpuff Girls
8:30 am – Ben 10 Omniverse
9:00 am – Magical Doremi
9:30 am – Sword Art Online
10:00 am – Fushigi Yuugi
10:30 am – Street Fighter
11:00 am – Movie Max 5 (x2)
2:00 pm – YHTube
2:30 pm – PSL/Movie Max 5
4:30 pm – T3: Enforced
5:00 pm – PBA/Movie Max 5
7:00 pm – Tropa Mo Ko Unli Spoof
8:00 pm – 2 1/2 Daddies
9:00 pm – Everybody Hapi
10:00 pm – Rising Stars
11:00 pm – Kaya/Yaman ng Bayan
12:00 am – Shop Japan

TV5’s Sunday lineup will remain unchanged. However, as part of a shared agreement with ABS-CBN, GMA and Solar Sports in the upcoming Mayweather-Pacquiao fight, TV5 will air a weekly special showcasing the best fights of Floyd Mayweather, Jr. at 12:30 p.m., leading up to the main bout on May 3.

As for ‘Showbiz Konek na Konek’, its entry was timely, as ABS-CBN’s ‘The Buzz’ went on hiatus the day before. Viewers can only hope that ‘Showbiz Konek na Konek’ will fill the void and attract younger and more socially conscious individuals with its fresh and upbeat approach.

‘Showbiz Konek na Konek’ airs weekdays at 11:00 a.m. on TV5.

TV5’s New Shows Premiere This Quarter of 2015

The Padilla brothers may have taken different paths acting-wise, but on ‘2 1/2 Daddies’, they will join forces on TV5’s newest sitcom, one of several upcoming programs gracing the Kapatid network this week. (Photo credit: TV5)

The blanks have been filled once again on TV5.

Two brand new shows premiered on the Kapatid network today. ‘Happy Wife, Happy Life’, hosted by RR Enriquez, LJ Moreno-Alapag, Danica Sotto-Pingris and Jeck Maierhofer, and ‘Solved na Solved’, hosted by Arnell Ignacio, Gelli de Belen and TV5 legal expert Atty. Mel Sta. Maria, debuted following the conclusion of the network’s coverage of Pope Francis in Manila earlier this morning.

Tomorrow will see two other shows make their way into the TV5 lineup. The local version of the Australian kids’ show ‘Hi-5’ premieres at 8:30 a.m., while ‘Healing Galing’, a spinoff of the Radyo5 program hosted by Dr. Edinell Calvario, will air at 10:00 a.m. with Hayden Kho as co-host.

The Padilla brothers (Robin, Rommel and BB Gandanghari) will join forces on the sitcom ‘2 1/2 Daddies’, which will air starting this Saturday at 8:00 p.m.. Another sitcom, this time starring Derek Ramsay and Empoy Marquez, will be titled ‘Mac and Chiz’ and will air starting this Sunday at 8:00 p.m.

A pair of talent shows will also spice up TV5’s weekend programming. ‘Move It’, a dance show hosted by Jasmine Curtis-Smith and Tom Taus, premieres this Sunday at 7:00 p.m., while ‘Rising Stars’, a singing competition show hosted by Ogie Alcasid and Venus Raj, will be aired next month.

A new season of ‘Wattpad Presents’ will also see the light of day, as new love stories featuring television’s rising young talents will be featured starting tonight at 9:00 p.m. And for those in need of love advice, call Papa Jack and his new show ‘Call Me Papa Jack’, which airs starting this Saturday at 10:00 p.m.

Still to come for the Kapatid network are:

• ‘E5’, a showbiz, lifestyle and fashion show hosted by KC Montero, Grace Lee, Tim Yap, IC Mendoza and Divine Lee
• ‘Extreme Challenge: Kaya Mo Ba ‘To’, an adventure reality show hosted by Derek Ramsay and features select teams of ‘The Amazing Race Philippines 2’
• ‘No Harm No Foul’, a sitcom starring Ogie Alcasid, Ritz Azul and several PBA players
• ‘Kontrabando’, a news satire show hosted by Ramon Bautista, Lourd de Veyra, Jun Sabayton and RA Rivera
• ‘Last School Standing’, a game show featuring the top high schools in the country

This is definitely a good start for TV5 in 2015. That said, expect the network to plug in more holes as the weeks go on, as they look to stabilize their programming lineup for this year.

FTT Year 2014 in Review: TV5

Another year is about to end. But before the calendar flips to 2015, here is a look back at the year that was in television and radio. This article will focus on TV5, who made the transition from a mainstream to an alternative station this year.

The Positives

2014 was a year of change for TV5. And some changes were for the better.

A heavily-criticized coverage of the previous PBA season led to several tweaks in TV5’s current schedule. Initially made to benefit the NCAA, the FIBA World Cup, the Youth Olympics and the Asian Games, this was then implemented for the PBA, which was welcomed by fans after expressing their disgust with last season’s coverage.

The year also saw TV5 broadcast other major sporting events, such as the Super Bowl, the U.S. NCAA men’s basketball tournament, and the Winter Olympics. Furthermore, they aired the games of the ‘Batang Gilas’ in the 2014 FIBA Under-17 World Championship, keeping in step with the moves made by ABS-CBN Sports.

TV5 viewers also witnessed the premieres of highly-praised weekly series ‘JasMine’ and ‘Trenderas’, as well as a new game show in ‘Quiet Please! Bawal ang Maingay’. TV5 also collaborated with both E! and Wattpad to broadcast ‘It Takes Gutz to Be a Gutierrez’ and ‘Wattpad Presents’, respectively, to good reviews.

And finally, News5 garnered some awards from various bodies, particularly in the programs ‘T3: Enforced’, ‘History with Lourd’, ‘Yaman ng Bayan’ and ‘Bigtime’. ‘It Takes Gutz to Be a Gutierrez’, ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?’ and ‘Celebrity Dance Battle’ were also honored.

The Negatives

The transformation of TV5 was not without some obstacles, however.

When TV5 revealed its programming lineup for 2014, one of the upcoming programs mentioned was a Philippine adaptation of ‘Pretty Little Liars’. Unfortunately for the network, the project never materialized, even as they denied rumors that it was ‘shelved’.

Not all of TV5’s programs under Noel Lorenzana’s new initiative paid off. The programs that were cancelled in his first full year in charge include the likes of ‘SpinNation’, ‘What’s Up, Doods’, ‘The Mega and the Songwriter’, ‘Killer Karaoke Pinoy Naman’, ‘Face the People’ and ‘Let’s Ask Pilipinas’.

TV5’s sports coverage was also not spared. Early this year, the Kapatid network introduced ‘Moneyball: Dribol op da Pipol’ to its PBA and NCAA coverage, much to the dismay of the more informative and knowledgeable viewers; eventually TV5 relented by moving ‘Sports5 Center’ to the livestream format (as ‘Sports 360’).

AksyonTV, TV5’s sister network, was severely crippled by News5’s programming changes, particularly after the cancellation of its original programs and newscasts ‘Andar ng mga Balita’ and ‘Balitang 60’. As a result, the network became overly dependent on TV5’s programming, which is not a good sign for a news/sports channel like AksyonTV.

The sex scandal involving News5 anchor and Rescue5 leader Paolo Bediones in September also demoralized the network. While he left ‘Aksyon Tonite’ in the midst of the controversy (he was later replaced by Ed Lingao), he did return to host ‘Demolition Job’ and Rescue5 short videos once the impact of his scandal dissipated.

But perhaps the biggest news coming out of TV5’s camp was the departure of Sharon Cuneta. A P1 billion signee of the network a few years ago, Sharon joined TV5 with high expectations, but shows such as ‘Sharon: Kasama Mo Kapatid’, ‘The Mega and the Songwriter’ and ‘Madam Chairman’ failed to deliver.

And finally, there is the annual issue of TV5’s overreliance on Tagalized foreign movies, as well as reruns of local programs.

Outlook

TV5 has already unveiled a list of new and returning programs for 2015, which will be discussed in detail very soon.

It was not a bad year for TV5, even with all the changes that took place. With a new year looming, Lorenzana and company now hope to build on these gains even further, though changes are still to be made as the year progresses.