I am addicted to 'Walang Hanggan'

MANILA, Philippines - Inisin mo pa ako (pause) papatulan ko ang daddy mo.” I repeat this line, maldita game face and all, but something is very wrong. I look around and there is nobody else in the room — no one for me to talk down to. I touch my face and remember that it looks nothing like Dawn Zulueta’s.

Then, it hit me… oh, sweet Susan Roces, it’s official. Hello, Philippines, my name is Tammy David and I am addicted to the teleserye of the moment, Walang Hanggan. If you have been living under a rock known as office overtime or GMA-7, Walang Hanggan on ABS-CBN is the latest evening prime time topper on local TV.

But what makes it so special? We’ve seen hit telenovelas Pangako Sa’yo, Marimar and the ridiculous fantaseryes we hate to admit watching. And Walang Hanggan is still the worn-out rich-guy-poor-girl-love-conquers-all-angle fare. Is Wong Kar Wai directing? Is the entire cast, Ogie Diaz the alipores included, decked out in Chanel? Does Kanye West or the Pope have a cameo?! Believe me, I ask myself the same things every time I spend two solid hours glued to the TV each night, for five days a week, when my world stops and Walang Hanggan airs.

Late Bloomer

I am a Walang Hanggan late bloomer. Back in January, I remember watching the first episode in a crowded Filipino restaurant in Queens, New York. I scoffed when Dawn Zulueta appeared onscreen as Emily, the daughter of an ordinary hacienda worker. “Hay nako, Dawn looks too stunning and maamo to play a young barrio lass,” I bitterly commented before stuffing my face with overpriced binagoongan.

Fast forward a couple of months later, I asked our helper to do something and she refused, explaining that she couldn’t miss the episode wherein Coco Martin, who plays Emily’s beloved son Daniel, finally becomes rich. I got pissed, told her to go to hell and proceeded to check out the show myself. That night changed my life forever — or at least until the series ends.

But before Walang Hanggan, I was a fan of Maging Sino Ka Man back in 2006 since I adore Anne Curtis and it was amusing to see Sam Milby deliver lines in Tagalog (pasado naman). I was never the type who classified local television as “guilty pleasure hihi,” but the thing is, I usually follow a series from the start. With Walang Hanggan, all it took was seeing Richard Gomez and Dawn Zulueta onscreen again and I got hooked.

Richard, Dawn And Reyna Films

When I was young, my older sister Coffy, a film student, would let me watch Reyna films. I was game for anything with kissing scenes and microwaved popcorn. I remember watching Hihintayin Kita Sa Langit and was so convinced that the two lead stars — the ruggedly handsome moreno, Richard and regal beauty Dawn — were meant for each other. Since that movie was based on Wuthering Heights, there was no happy ending. So I watched another movie of theirs, Saan Ka Man Naroroon, also a classic by Reyna — but damn it, another sad ending. To top this off, I found out that Richard and Dawn broke up in real-life in the early ‘90s.

Unlike Reese and Ryan or Piolo and KC, during those days, there was no social media or magazine specials to help me to relive Richard and Dawn’s romance. The loveteam remained a mystery to me, unlike the TMI, attention hungry love teams of today. So the build-up of Walang Hanggan, for me, was long and intense. I followed it from Richard and Dawn’s contract signing, to reading articles about the approval and excitement of Rep. Lucy Torres (a.k.a. the one and only Mrs. Richard Gomez). After two long decades, people were just as eager to see the poster couple of forbidden love onscreen again, even if Walang Hanggan is loosely based on — you guessed it — Wuthering Heights.

Philippine Phenomenon

It’s been almost seven months since the show premiered, which means, bentang benta — and, boy is ABS-CBN milking the “Philippine phenomenon.” This show is so successful, the channel does not need to make lame news reports about the show trending on Twitter. And in this day and age where we get our music online, the show released not one but two official soundtracks and other “collectibles” such as, and I kid you not, wine and rings. To top it off, yes, there is a fyeahwalanghanggan.tumblr.com, and ABS-CBN recently launched an online channel dedicated to the show (http://walanghanggan.abs-cbn.com/).

As a fan, I haven’t bought anything or shown up at a mall show. I’ve yet to prove my fandom by creating a Facebook page for Emily Guidotti’s perfectly shaped brows. However, I’ve done pretty nutty things, which make Facebook friends unfriend me. I’ve actually timed the commercial breaks with a stopwatch so I know how much time I can eat, take a leak or return calls in between. I try to block off my schedule beyond 8 p.m. so I can watch the show in peace. I am one of those annoying twitter users who use the hashtag #WalangHanggan, and sometimes tweet spoilers out of frustration.

I bully Twitter users who follow Paulo Coelho or The Notebook, but guess who follows Walang Hanggan quotes (@WalangHangganQ)? Whatever, don’t judge. For now, I can’t wait for the DVD box set and for the action-packed catfights between Emily and the much hyped-villain Black Lily, the latest villain played by Eula Valdez. Thanks to Walang Hanggan, I actually look forward to Mondays. I get my Dawn and Richard fix (though they should stop talking and make out even if Dawn reportedly said no to kissing scenes) and I appreciate random acquaintances who tell me they also watch the show.

Before I end: ABS-CBN, just because the series is called Walang Hanggan, does not mean your ads have to be, too! My stopwatch doesn’t lie… WHAT THE… 10 minutes worth of commercials? “Inisin mo pa ako (pause) papatulan ko ang TV5.”

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Tweet me @tammygdavid.