FRIENDS OF SUPREME: The ‘Mega’ story: A quarter’s turn

MANILA, Philippines - What does it take to be iconic?

It is a lofty word, one that sends many a bright, beautiful and bold star into a fit of blushing giggles. Perhaps it hasn’t crossed their minds just yet, but over the course of Mega’s 25-year history, it has seen the woman in every possible circumstance. With tides and tectonic shifts constantly felt, only those who matter and want to matter survive. And their stories, as important as it is to further the narrative that is woven with the past and consequently, the future, are captured in a single, searing image—an evocative still that elicits an emotional reaction, sending shivers down the spine at a flick of a glance. Without so much as a dribble of breath escaping one’s lips, it is these visual and written storytelling that makes them iconic, in every sense of the word.

Make no mistake about it; this isn’t just a history lesson. Cutting across a rich and illustrious 25 years, this is a reminder that their story, as memorable and personal as it is, is yours, too.

1. Judy Ann Santos (October 2001)

Practically everyone was trying to coax founding editor Sari Yap out of the decision to put Judy Ann Santos on the cover that year. But the team remained resolute; this was a risk they were willing to take. Already considered one of the greatest actresses of her generation, she was on the cusp of cementing her superstar status — and this cover would punctuate it, in a fitting exclamation point no less. Photographed by Raymund Isaac, Judy Ann Santos was decked in a slinky black dress against a daring red background, no less. People bit their tongue and took notice. It made a statement. See, this is why you should always trust and go with what your gut says.

2. Claudine Barretto (August 2004)

She remembers this iconic cover very clearly, more so because of the story it came with. “At long last, love,” the cover blurb read. While it chipped off at a veneer she was fiercely protecting, MEGA succeeded at something greater — capturing Claudine Barretto straight on camera, sending a smoldering gaze through the lens that sears through this day. In a fashion story that successfully mixed the high-fashion, the casual staples, as well as incorporating local textile, this is the Claudine Barretto we’ve come to love.

3. Anne Curtis (September 2013)

If a calm and content but full-of-life exhale of breath was to be captured in a searing and evocative still, it would have to be with Anne Curtis atop the historic sanctuary of Machu Picchu in Peru. Catching the first wash of light in a crisp button-down and a traditional knitted chulo, the splash of freckles punctuating the breathtaking image. Lensed by Danilo Hess, this cover remains a favorite across the board, as it also heralded the magazine’s Making MEGA series.

4. Kathryn Bernardo (September 2016)

The magical land of fire and ice has seen the famed Game of Thrones live out a fantasy in their gloriously untouched terrain season after season — and so has MEGA. On its second sojourn to Iceland, the magazine punctuated its Making MEGA trilogy that year by taking Kathryn Bernardo (and Daniel Padilla) on a trip unlike any other. Resulting in more than a handful of covers — the photos were too good to whittle down to just a few — Kathryn played out a modern-day Nordic princess set against the most dramatic and picturesque of landscapes.

5. Betty and Veronica (February 2013)

While we wait in eager anticipation for the next episode of the millennial re-imagination of the Archie Comics in Riverdale, it can be said that we have gone loco for the drawn heroes of our childhood. In a single stroke of genius, MEGA put the ladies of Riverdale, Betty and Veronica, on the cover of its anniversary issue. Illustrated by the comic book artist himself, Dan Parent drew Betty and Veronica in nothing less but Filipino couture, of course. Needless to say, MEGA sent shockwaves across and broke our little portion of the Internet then.

6. Maja Salvador, Kathryn Bernardo, Julia Barretto and Erich Gonzales (September 2014)

There isn’t a more heartwarming visual than four of the country’s brightest young stars debunking any manufactured myth that show business tends to churn out between them. Hand-in-hand, Maja Salvador, Kathryn Bernardo, Julia Barretto and Erich Gonzales braved the game reserves of South Africa in heightened utilitarian fare. With a bond and friendship forged between the cover stars, this issue would also mark the beginning of a new era in MEGA’s history with the induction of current editor-in-chief Peewee Reyes-Isidro into the revered list of women commandeering the Philippines’ best fashion magazine.

7. Cherie Gil (November 2010)

How does one want to look like when they hit the big 4-0? In 2010, and well, pretty much up to this day, it would have to be in the guise of the effervescent Cherie Gil. The classic movie anti-heroine, the consummate actress sheds the intimidating stare and trades it for a lingering and saucy gaze in a casual, all-denim look. Set in the stables, this story saw her in a different light, one that has since inspired us to work on looking that damn good as we age ever so gracefully.

8. Nanette Medved-Po (February 2011)

For a while there was a running joke in the MEGA headquarters that the go-to cover pose was that of a powerful and striking Nanette Medved-Po with clenched fists half-raised to the temple of her head. A vision in white and silver, the image says don’t-mess-with-me but keeping an air of refined grace, much like the woman MEGA represents. A celebration of 19 years, this issue also featured Nanette alongside industry heavyweights such as Jun Escario, Lala Flores and Mark Nicdao.

9. Melai Cantiveros (January 2011)

No one saw this coming, even insiders of the magazine. An idea that took form in between the requisite coffee, cigarette and fire exit break, it hit the team, why don’t we put Melai Cantiveros on the cover of the January issue? After all, who doesn’t love a good swan story? Proving that even the most unassuming of a province lass can turn the other cheek and transform into a high-fashion model, Melai and MEGA proved naysayers wrong with a cover that was regal, provoking and well beyond the confined box of safety.

10. Sweet Sixteen (February 2008)

Turning 16 will always remain to be such a sweet, sweet memory. Charged with an unshaken energy of youth, as well as a shock of pink that ran the gamut from soft to electric, MEGA celebrated its 16th anniversary in a major way by shooting 16 of the biggest names of the show business and society plane in individual covers. With a cast that included Iza Calzado, Bea Alonzo, Celine Lopez, Bea Valdes, Anne Curtis, Bianca Gonzalez, Georgina Wilson and Ruffa Gutierrez, this Michael Salientes-styled effort was truly one for the books.

11. Tyra Banks (February 2014)

The modern fashion dictionary has been updated with words like smize, booty tooch and no-neck monster, all thanks to model and media mogul Tyra Banks of America’s Next Top Model fame. Lifting the crushed velvet drapes of fashion’s behind-the-scenes and presenting it through the introspective lens of reality television, she ushered in a new generation of fashion-loving fiends so it was a coup on all counts when MEGA scored an exclusive to shoot Tyra Banks in New York. Facing a snowstorm that has incapacitated the fashion capital, MEGA braved the cold front and swathed her in nothing but the very best of Philippine fashion. 

12. Kim Chiu (May 2011)

The month of May is typically and thematically the magazine’s beauty issue. And if we go by the dictates of tradition, beauty meant bright, effortless and romantic. Well, MEGA had other plans that year because as it constantly sought to go against the usual, it turned beauty and romance on its head and went for something moodier and darker. A juxtaposition to the almost-macabre take on beauty, Kim Chiu fronted that month’s cover in a black-fringed dress with insects latching on. A whimsical take on an exquisite exterior, we promise no insects were harmed in the making of this cover.

13. Bea Valdes (September 2005)

Shadows evoke mystery and this mood, alluring as it is, invites you in to look closer. Navigating through a veil of darkness, a slash of light shines through, revealing a woman of handmade success. Bea Valdes captivates with cat-like piercing eyes, a cover that despite barely showing her face, is still arresting even to this day. Like a chiaroscuro painting, this Big Fashion Issue seems to get better with age — drawing you even closer than ever before.

14. 23 Cover Girls (February 2015)

A seemingly herculean effort, MEGA did the seemingly impossible — it brought together 23 of the country’s brightest, most promising and on-the-cusp women for its anniversary issue. The magazine cut across different industries and paradigms to accurately represent the women of the now and the future. Full of hope and promise, this endeavor saw the women being fashioned in Vania Romoff originals as captured in a striking three-fold cover by BJ Pascual.

15. Vice Ganda (September 2015)

Let it be known that MEGA is no stranger to putting atypical choices on the cover since time immemorial. But even in its daring and boundary-pushing guise, putting Vice Ganda on the cover of the September issue was met with a lot of noise — the good, the bad and everything else in between. Firm and confident from the get-go, MEGA was standing behind this decision, whatever way the pendulum would swing. The effort paid off as the magazine captured the comedian unlike ever before — soft, resplendent and feminine with the colorful and fragrant flower fields of Hokkaido, Japan. Breaking, nay, shattering barriers, archetypes and preconceived notions, this was a risk MEGA was willing to take and boy, were we glad we ran with it.

16. Bianca Gonzalez (November 2013)

“A woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life,” says the great and ever wise Coco Chanel. In the spirit of pushing the confines of a comfort zone and well, liberation, Bianca Gonzalez chopped off her long and luscious locks as part of the #GetSassooned campaign. Showing off the precision-cut short ‘do, a curtain of fringed bangs and streaks of purple in various shades, the result was subtle and graceful (further heightened by a sheer frock) but one that packed a visual punch.

17. Gerone Oloricsimo (February 1992)

What was once just a dream and idea born out of winter-induced illness and an obsession for magazines, Sari Yap created MEGA, the first fashion glossy in the Philippines. Unheard and unseen of for its time, she would cull a team who would not only believe in her vision but see it through in print. Already breaking barriers at the onset, the maiden issue was fronted by top Filipina model Gerone Oloricisimo. This was the cover that started it all and the rest, as it has been written, say it with us, is history.

18. Kim Chiu, Judy Ann Santos, Sharon Cuneta (February 2012)

In the long drawn-out push and pull of a heated discussion on the state of media consumption, the message was strong and clear that year: Print is not dead. The staggered debate aside, the next course of action was to figure out who to headline such a bold statement. Then a light bulb flicked on, why settle for just one? A tribute to the past and a toast to the future, MEGA brought together Kim Chiu, Judy Ann Santos and Sharon Cuneta, defining representations of generation and swathed them in eye-catching prints to drive the point home — print is here to stay for a long, long, long time.

19. Anna Nicole Smith (August 1994)

Relax those furrowed brows because yes, MEGA once saw the infamous Anna Nicole Smith on the cover. Known on the pop culture plane as a sex symbol, pin-up model, actress and well, a free spirit, the magazine chose to come closer than most would at the time and get to know the woman beyond the preceding reputation. Photographed by Lorraine Belmonte in an extreme close-up that focused on the eyes, the cover was as bold as the woman it represented, personal and sans pretense.

20 Maine Mendoza (October 2016)

Breaking records, shattering the status quo and charming the world over, where do you take a phenomenon like Maine Mendoza? Well, you whisk her (and perennial onscreen beau Alden Richards) to the rich terracotta landscape of Morocco. Running across borders from the biscuit-hued cosmopolis of Casablanca to the brimming-with-life and vibrant Marrakesh, Maine Mendoza captured the warmth and the glint of the sun in warm, deep red romantic fashion. Oh, and did we mention that this issue has seen three reprints so far? Yes, you read that right.

21. KC Concepcion (July 2001)

It was the turn of the new millennium and there was one elusive name on everyone’s lips — KC Concepcion. A perennial cool girl shying from the public eye, her first magazine cover was granted to MEGA at 16 years old. Jitters and excitement coursing through, she had imagined seeing racks and racks of fashion for the shoot. While that was the case, the team also took to exploring her closet and dressed her in a hot pink leopard-printed silk dress. In this exclusive (one that saw the magazine’s first order for a reprint), there were no roles, no portrayals, no layers of excess. It was just KC Concepcion at her most natural, comfortable and yes, MEGA worthy self.  

22. Lea Salonga (December 2014)

What’s the holidays without a splash of red? In the spirit of the decadence and luxury of the season, this cover had the living legend Lea Salonga photographed in a red patent leather trench coat (her leg peeking just a bit) behind a red background and for good measure, rouge swiped on her lips. The result wasn’t heavy-handed but something that immediately jumped at you from the stands. It also remains to be a favorite of Lea Salonga as a photo from the cover story is framed and hung on the wall of her mother Ligaya’s home.

23. Cristina Garcia (April 2006)

“If this cover had been published recently, we surely would have gotten a memo for the smoking,” says Sari Yap in an interview. Sporting a blonde pixie-cut and wearing a white jacket with cowboy boots, top Filipina model Cristina Garcia evoked an edgy Parisian daydream in a compelling monochrome, complete with a wisp of smoke. Worldly and artistic, this cover was certainly one of those that pushed the boundaries of modesty and creativity.

24. Sharon Cuneta (January-February 1995)

What is MEGA without the Megastar? More than sharing a name, the two share a personal history, one that includes Sharon Cuneta personally ringing the MEGA office to renew her subscription. A black and white cover that not only sold, this remains a vivid memory for the Megastar as she recalled founding creative director Lorraine Belmonte following her around for the story in an almost journalistic pursuit — including 2 a.m. band rehearsals. Entitled The Sharon Consistency, the story was a nine-page slice of life that saw her in a different light — relaxed, unguarded and real.

25. Ruffa Gutierrez (September 2010)

In the second coming of Sari Yap’s editorship (following the tenure of previous editor-in-chief Carla Sibal), this was her first Big Fashion Issue since assuming the responsibilities she once held. Exuding movement and sass, Ruffa Gutierrez was stripped off the affectations she is usually associated with and instead, she wore a black flared jumpsuit with a wide-brimmed hat that bumped her high-fashion meter way off the charts. Let’s not even go into detail with that pose because that fashionable squat is very hard to attempt, let alone pull off and maintain.