Jose and Wally on the serious business of making people laugh

What makes a successful prank?

MANILA, Philippines — Jose Manalo and Wally Bayola, hosts of TV5’s “Wow Mali Doble Tama” — the latest edition of the longest-running reality-based comedy show on Philippine TV — have spilled some secrets.

They said that No. 1 is the artist and talent doing the prank or joke. Second is that the material should be good, smooth and effortless. Third one is the treatment of the prank. They said the “Wow Mali” production — from the head, direk Mike Tuviera, down to the writers — is meticulous and thorough about how a joke or trick is set up and done.  

“Hindi kasi pwede tira lang ng tira,” said Jose during an exclusive interview with The Philippine STAR.

“Talagang binubusisi nila (writers) paano namin gagawin at the same time, yun nga, kailangan natin magandang materyales. Kahit hindi masyadong slapstick, hindi nananakit, pero swabe yung pagkakagawa.”

And no, they don’t rehearse or practice the pranks before doing them for television.

“It’s like a joke na you can’t rehearse,” said Wally. “It will take out the element of surprise if you test the prank.”

So, what if the joke or prank doesn’t hit the mark? They drop it right away if it doesn’t land, they said. “Iiwan kaagad namin yun,” said Jose. “Pag nakikita namin hindi nagki-click, iwanan mo na!” 

“Parang, ‘Sunog! Sunog!” quipped Wally, adding that there are subjects who are also quick to suspect and spot hidden cameras.

Jose and Wally are happy to have original ‘Wow Mali’ host Joey de Leon’s blessing to take over hosting the longest-running reality-based comedy TV show.

“So, we are careful about that. As long as they don’t feel it’s a prank, (we’re good). It’s hard to be honest,” explained Jose.  

Both Jose and Wally, who have been a comedic tandem for 24 years now, agreed that it’s no joke to pull off pranks on live TV or even in taped shows nowadays.

Wally said, “Yes, especially now and we really appreciate our production, especially our writers because nowadays, it’s also very difficult to prank because many people are sensitive.”

Jose quick to add, “Siguro hindi sensitive tawag doon — marami nang matalino ngayon.”

Wally continued, “Aside from matalino (being sharp), as Jose mentioned, and sensitive, many others are also doing this on different platforms. There’s a lot of competition. So, we have to do our best and do it nicely.”

“At walang sabit (And no slip-ups),” Jose added.

They also noted that a lot of funny material gets discarded, so to speak, due to more “no-go zones” or off-limits subjects.

“Minsan nahihirapan din kami as a comedian or artist and even with other artistas also. Anong gagawin namin? Ano bang pwedeng gawin kung lahat ibabawal? ‘Di ba parang hayaan niyo kami kasi siguro sa tagal na rin, parang alam na rin naman namin yung ginagawa namin. At ayaw din naman naming mawalan ng hanapbuhay, nagpapasaya lang naman kami,” admitted Jose.

There’s also that matter of technology wherein their jokes are filmed on mobile video and shared as social media content.

“There are advantages and disadvantages of people using their cellphones during our shows. ‘Pag maganda pagkagawa (joke) and effective, they film it and post it on social media. Then people react (during our other shows), ‘Ay napanood na namin yan sa TikTok.’ Minsan yun ang disadvantage,” said Wally.

He, nevertheless, stressed that jokes and laughter have to keep coming with mental health being such an important issue in the times we’re in.

“Pero laban pa rin kami kasi sa dami ng nade-depress din ngayon, sa dami ng mga nalulungkot, marami ang gustong matawa and mag-enjoy,” said Wally.

Meanwhile, Jose and Wally have just entered the third season of “Wow Mali Doble Tama.” Born almost 30 years ago on ABC (now TV5), in 1996, the gag show is considered the precursor or original producer of prank content now all over YouTube and other online platforms.

Being chosen as the face of the iconic comedy show last year, the first thing they did was to seek the blessing of original “Wow Mali” host and their “Eat Bulaga” mentor Joey de Leon.

Sharing their reactions when they were first offered the hosting job, Wally told The STAR, “We felt overwhelmed yet nervous because of course, Boss Joey yan.”

Jose said that the first question he asked production was if they had Joey’s go-signal. 

“Yan ang unang tanong namin, alam ba ni Boss Joey ‘to? Nagpasintabi ba tayo? Sabi namin kailangan malaman muna ni Boss Joey kung okay sa kanya. Sa amin okay, syempre kay Boss Joey (we had to know) kung ipapamana ba samin ito.”

They were told that Joey immediately gave his approval when he learned it was Jose and Wally taking over. 

It’s not difficult to say they’re fit for the job because they’re pranksters themselves.

Jose said that they were already into doing pranks even before these became a thing.

Wally jokingly pointed out, “Si Jose laking Tondo, madami mga kalokohan.”

“Mahirap i-prank ‘to. Parang meron sensor eh. Nalalaman niya. Nung birthday niya, hindi na-prank kasi malakas ang pakiramdam,” he added. 

According to Jose, he and Wally love joking around each other and that their regular banters have inspired routines and spiels in the show. 

“Puro kalokohan lang talaga kami ‘pag nag-uusap kami. Napa-prank ko si Wally. Akala niya tama lahat ng sinasabi ko. Minsan akala niya biro yung sinasabi ko, seryoso na pala,” he said.  

“So, nagiging part ng routine namin. So, sometimes, yung pag-uusap namin, yung biruan namin, nakakabuo kami ng routine.”

They also shared some of the most memorable “Wow Mali Doble Tama” pranks. These included “Ilag” wherein someone shouted the word, and people would duck and cover in reaction, thinking they needed to dodge falling objects. Then they would find out that a person named “Ilag” was just being called.

The resident pranksters also enjoyed their recent “Commanduo” segment with Ara Mina, wherein Jose and Wally would spontaneously give hilarious if not ridiculous instructions to the actress while doing “serious” scenes with unsuspecting people hired on the spot as co-actors. 

They also had a prank where one got fake-stabbed in the back. This, however, got them summoned by barangay officials. Jose recalled that they had to apologize and promise not to stage such a prank again. 

While the title suggests double the fun, it also means double the care that goes into the creative process.

If the earlier editions of “Wow Mali” were “more open” and “anything goes” in terms of format or content, the present revival now has more considerations.

Jose said they also are not just thinking about the ones they prank, they’re also thinking of the viewers and even the bashers.

Wally said that there’s already quality control in the writing process, the result of which goes through several rounds of approval. He added that there are many things that they can no longer play around with and certain things that they can’t prank anymore.

Jose added they are also prohibited to say certain words that used to be allowed before. “We avoid those now, and we’re not stubborn anymore,” he said.

Even with Wally and Jose themselves, when it comes to scripts and spiels, they already do the double checking so as each joke or prank doesn’t come across hurtful and offensive.

One of the best segments of the current “Wow Mali” is “Wow Ikaw Na” wherein they honor everyday heroes.

Of course, they start out by pranking the person, but there’s a reward in the end. And it’s heartwarming to see that the prank further exposes the reason why these people are being recognized in the first place. 

For Jose and Wally, the final segment of “Wow Mali Doble Tama” goes to show that they’re not all about joke time.

“Hindi puro kalokohan yung ginagawa namin,” Jose said. “May kabutihan pa rin kami dito sa show namin… Kailangan may puso rin.”

“Wow Mali Doble Tama,” which is now co-produced by APT Entertainment, TVJ Productions, and Cignal TV, airs Saturdays at 6:15 p.m. on TV5 and 7 p.m. on BuKo (Channel 2 on Cignal and SatLite).