#sofia andres

So after Enca I decided to take a long break because, updating five times a week for ten months straight wasn’t easy as ABC, and I wasn’t really interested in any of the upcoming shows although I did consider following Mulawin vs Ravena but Mulawin is not really my thing eversince so I passed, La Luna Sangre was pretty interesting too but I was reluctant since it was a sequel to Lobo and Imortal and I never watched any of those, so baka hindi ko ma-gets ‘yung story, and the rest were either too pabebe for my liking or too cliche and overly dramatic af (in short, boring) so I just went back to binge-watching Kdramas UNTIL @9ri sent me a photo about an upcoming LizQuen show called ‘Bagani,’ and even before ABS dropped it’s trailer the show was already receiving a lot of backlash because: 1. Bagani allegedly copied the story of Enca, and 2. the cast were too mestizo/mestiza and do not look “very Filipino” at all, now here’s what I have to say:

Bagani and Encantadia are two DIFFERENT stories, although I have to admit when @9ri sent me the photo of LizQuen’s new show/Bagani’s launch, I did sense some Encantadia vibes in there because who wouldn’t? The concept is quite similar but it’s not entirely the same you know what I mean? When someone writes a fantasy story inspired by Filipino folklore and myths, expect to meet gods, giants, etc. and it [almost] always involves the elements of nature so what’s the big deal? Surely a lot of stories in this world do have some similarities but that doesn’t mean they copied each other’s ideas, at the end of the day sa story-telling ‘yan nagkakatalo mga bes! I watched Bagani’s first set of episodes and it’s completely different from Encantadia, trust me. So please stop ranting about who’s copying who, just enjoy the show and appreciate the fact the Filipino show’s are really bringing their A-games to give the viewers the kind of entertainment we deserve.

Now with the cast ensemble, I have to say when it comes to honing their artists, ABS-CBN does it waaaaaay better which is why when a new show comes out especially in Primetime, I’m not worried about the actors messing up. They always, ALWAYS cast the best of the best, and the newbies CAN keep up with the veteran actors (in general) which is why I admire a lot of actors from ABS. There’s no questioning about the performances of Bagani’s cast, everyone is doing great so far even the newbie Sofia BUT the fact they fake tanned the actors just to make them look more “Filipino” or “Tribal-looking” or whatevah is not cool, some actors like Quen and Rayver look orange-y and sometimes yellowish, like…wtf? I know people from the desert region are supposed to have dark skin, but hey they don’t look brown or tanned, I don’t know if it’s the lighting that’s making them look orange, but it’s not cute. I personally prefer an actor who’s much more Filipino-looking than LizQuen, Matteo and Sofia (excluding Makisig of course). But then again, take Amaya for example, the main character was portrayed by Marian Rivera who’s by the way half-Spanish, but why wasn’t that a big deal back then considering that it was clearly inspired by the Philippine history specifically during the pre-Spanish era? Surely there weren’t any Filipino mestizo during that time. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not bashing Amaya, I just used the show as an example and I hope everyone gets the point. What I’m trying to say is, I would rather go for someone who’s features do not fit the character description but can deliver so well and give justice to the character than someone who looks perfect for the role but fucks up in the end, remember: a bad make-up is easier to fix than a bad performance.

Now for Bagani’s pilot week:

So the story opens with a young man fighting a dragon and from a distance was a boy telling the viewers the story of his “pinaka petmalung lodi” Lakas and the story of Bagani unfolds.

The Petmalu:

-The cinematography, like I said in the trailer was A-MAZING, it was breath-taking, each region has their own unique feels to it which I really really like, my favorite so far is the Patag region what’s yours?

-The backstory is fast-paced without neglecting every details that we need to know, a lot of shows usually fuck up in this area but I must say they nailed it.

-Great performance from the stellar cast, as expected, they did not disappoint. It’s only the first week and they already set the bar high, there wasn’t anyone who showed a ‘waley’ performance, even their extras can act quite well.

-The fact that they did a legit outdoor taping is more than enough to show the viewers that they are dead serious about this show, and they are really working hard to make this show an epic one. It’s not easy to film under the scorching heat of the sun but, they did it! And for that, I have such high respect to each and everyone, hands down! Definitely A+ for efforts.

The Waley:

-Please fix Enrique’s fake tan because I cannot stand it, oh wait, not just Quen’s but the rest of the Disyerto tribe. Thanks!

Lodi of the Week: Christian Vasquez

~I couldn’t say much about the show yet because it just started, and I haven’t really fallen in-love with Bagani…yet, but I’m really, really liking it so far.