Marinara vs It Baluga?

Starting tonight at 7, GMA 7 is introducing what it calls a kwela-novela called Marinara (airing Monday through Friday) which is obviously a spoof "inspired" by the hit fantaserye Marina of rival channel ABS-CBN.

Like Claudine Barretto in Marina, Rufa Mae Quinto in Marinara also plays a mermaid (and two other characters), with a menagerie of other colorful sea creatures around her. Just like in Marina, you know. The all-star cast includes Melanie Marquez as Rufa Mae’s mother and Wendell Ramos as the love interest of Rufa Mae’s two human characters.

Yes, you’re right: The never-ending network war has just been demoted to the lowest level, with one station glaringly spoof-copying a hit show of the rival channel. Easy does it, you know: "Create" a storyline just like "that show," fill up the plot with offbeat characters like "in that show" and, for effect, schedule it on the same timeslot as "that show."

Now, is the rival station shrinking from this kind of "competition"?

Nope!

According to Funfare’s Bohol Avenue DPA, ABS-CBN’s "think tanks" are toying with the idea of coming up with its own "spoof " kwela-novela to be called – hold on to your seats! – It Baluga, "inspired" by you know what noontime show on GMA.

The plot, a reinvention of Cinderella, goes something like this: Baluga plays an ugly duckling, dark as midnight, who turns into a swan at the stroke of midnight. A reverse of the Cinderella, see?

Baluga will have three fairy godmothers – fairy as in gay, presumably to be clad in outlandish costumes – to be named Tita, Victa and Justa, and two evil stepsisters named Wilhelmina and Edita. The Funfare DPA failed to catch the names of, among other characters, the Prince Charming and the wicked stepmother.

"There. It proves that you don’t have to use too much brains to create a spoof," said the Funfare DPA. "But it’s fun! And I’m sure the televiewers will love it!"

He added that being eyed to play the Baluga character is Whitney Tyson, with Mahal and Mura as the evil stepsisters, plus Ate Glow, Ate Gay and maybe Roderick Paulate as the fairy godmothers.

Now, is ABS-CBN really pushing through with this kwela move and fight the competition head-on on its own level?

We’re in for happy TV-viewing time, folks! Fasten your seatbelts. We’re ready for take-off!

Juday, Raymart Team Up For The First Time

Anytime now, Regal Films will start the principal photography of the romance-drama Aishite Imasu 1941, directed by Joel Lamangan from a screenplay by Ricky Lee, which marks the first movie team-up of Judy Ann Santos and Raymart Santiago (who has been visible on the GMA 7 sitcom Lagot Ka, Isusumbong Kita but not on the big screen).

The casting coup was cooked up by Regal Matriarch Mother Lily Monteverde and daughter Roselle Monteverde-Teo, intended for the Metro Manila Filmfest in December.

It’s a case of changing partners. Judy Ann’s screen sweetheart Piolo Pascual has been paired with Claudine in the smash-hit Star Cinema romance-drama Milan and now Judy Ann has Claudine’s boyfriend Raymart as screen partner.

Aishite Imasu 1941 (it means "I love you" in Japanese) is about a young married couple in the small provincial town of San Nicolas, whose lives are thrown into turmoil after the Japanese invasion. Friends, neighbors and family members quickly find themselves on the opposing side of the conflict, their paranoia growing and their motives becoming questionable. Judy Ann and Raymart’s characters are forced to answer a difficult question: Whom should you love more, your spouse or your country?

Incidentally, Raymart and Claudine have reportedly scrapped their plan to get married this year because Claudine’s Canada-based sister is getting married. According to superstition, it’s bad for sisters or brothers to get married in the same year (sukob sa taon). The sweethearts are having a house built somewhere in Quezon City.

Reader’s Reaction

Here’s an interesting reaction to my Conversation with Angel Locsin a few issues back, from reader Ramon Alfonso A. Fuentes, my "pen pal":

Your featured interlocution with Angel Locsin was most interesting (Conversations with Ricky Lo, May 30, 2004)

When I first learned that Angel Locsin’s real family name is Colminares and reading from your piece and elsewhere that she was a former Philippine Swimming team member, I stared at her face in the picture and I knew that she was somehow related to a great national swimming star of some half a century or more ago– Angel ( AngHel) Colminares – one of the two fine brother- swimmers who were teammates of two of my swimming uncles in Bacolod City back in the late 1940s.

In the early 1950s Angel (the father) was a swimming star of UST. Even then, he wore very thick glasses. (And I’m very sorry to know that he is now blind.) In the early 1960s, I heard that Angel Colminares moved to Talisay, Cebu. I thought it was logical because Talisay (now a city) was the finest swimming resort of Cebu then. I figured he must have taught swimming in that resort.

After that, I lost track of the great Colminares swimming duo. He had a brother who was also a fine swimmer. Unfortunately, I don’t remember his brother’s name now.

Now, Angel, the former singing star, is Angel Locsin (I wonder why she chose Locsin instead of retaining her real family name.) And I am certain that had she continued swimming, she would, no doubt have been another Christine Jacob or Akiko Thompson–who are just as lovely. But of course, she may not have been able to buy herself a condo and cars for herself and her dad.

I wonder if Angel Colminares still remembers his Fuentes swimming teammates in Bacolod City more than half a century ago.

Please tell Angel Locsin that since her father is a senior citizen, he may want to interact with members of our group–the SCAAG. If so, she or he may contact SCAAG through telephone no. 726-4976 or cellphone nos. 0916-9227004 or 0919-4298892. Who knows, we may be able to make life a little more meaningful for him.

Please convey my heartfelt good wishes to Angel Locsin and, through her, to her father, whom I hope I may be able to meet again after more than half a century. – Ramon Alfonso A. Fuentes, Founding Principal

(E-mail reactions at [email protected])