Why we could sympathize with Franco but not much with Mona

9:00 AM, June 26, 2014

Let's not even talk about the actors that play Franco and Mona in the hit teleserye "Ikaw Lamang". It is a given that the series is overflowing with thespic talents, Jake and Julia included. Let's talk about why we can easily understand why Franco is the way he is while we are so ready to condemn Mona's every word and action.

We have known them since their childhood. Franco as the scion of the rich and powerful Hidalgos and Mona as the bubbly, dependable (most of the time) "kababata" of Samuel. We know how the stereotypical brat was raised by his shrewd and scheming Lolo Maximo and his delusional mom Miranda. The only thing Franco missed as a a child was his dad Eduardo's more overt display of affection towards him. Early on, we found out he was not of Eduardo's blood and we sympathized with how painful it was to have that truth thrown at his face at so young an age, no thanks to Maximo. He had Isabelle as a friend from the beginning, though the girl was always oblivious of the fact that he worshipped every inch of her. Even in London, Franco was just so sure that their common class origin and family ties made it inevitable that they will end up in marriage. What about Mona? We don't know much about her and her sister Lupe. She had no childhood problem except for the obviously accepted fact that they didn't  have parents anymore. From the start they were a welcome extension of the Severino family, thanks to the charity and hospitality that seem staple in the Severino household. Since their younger years, we already know it was Franco who would play the bigger part in the story as the nemesis of Samuel and the obsessive lover of Isabelle.

Franco was treated to one embarassment after another. From being exposed as a pretend hero who took the credit for saving Isabelle in the canefields fire, to being scolded in public by his very upright father for behaving so unkindly towards the obreros. In London, Isabelle would go out with anybody but him. It was just too naive of him to propose to Isabelle when he never got past the friend zone from the beginning. Mona? We remember her for not telling Samuel that Isabelle was living for London. and she was his best friend.

Samuel and Isabelle's love bloomed after she got back from London. Franco had no idea the alitaptaps were always working against him. Meanwhile the adults (three of them: Maximo, Miranda and Gonzalo) were all for using him to forge a union between the two wealthy families so that wealth could be secured. He had to marry Isabelle. Shunned not just once but several times already, Franco with his stereotypical arrogance as the hacendero's son could not for his very limited understanding of what love is accept that a lowly rival would win every step of the way. One event after the other showed him losing to Samuel even as he was able to legally own Isabelle. On top of this, he sooner than later lost the only woman who loved him- his mother. One painful truth after another, Isabelle still carrying a torch for Samuel, Lolo Maximo as the murderer of his mother, enough to explain why Franco is sporting that insane/psycho look for many episodes now.

And Mona? We remember her for taking advantage of Samuel during his most vulnerable moment. With the help of alcohol, she won Samuel for life, stupid as he is too righteous, Samuel took responsibility and up to the most recent episode  maintained an incredibly kind attitude toward his "mamimikot". It would be extremely satisfying if one day he would just slap her and remind her that he only married her out of a sense of obligation. In real life, this scenario is more likely to happen. But Samuel is a saint.

And so in last night's episode, "Ikaw Lamang: The scandal", all of Mona's words were actually hateful in that she was accusing Isabelle, the forever suffering Isabelle, of the very acts she had committed in her effort to have Samuel for herself. Isabelle, pregnant and always in tears, was being pushed and shouted at by the woman who thwarted a possible SamBelle union by giving herself to the intoxicated and very depressed Samuel.

Franco, we know was just being shrewd and with a game plan like an adroit chess player he has become. He was the one with the bigger scheme. He was controlling everyone from his wheelchair, as he has said himself. But we remember the many things he's been through, the pain, the loss, the rejection and we know where he's coming from. We know what caused him to act insane. Mona? Just an insecure legal wife who can't accept the truth that Samuel is only hers on paper.

The reactions to yesterday's episode showed that the roles were well essayed by the actors and I congratulate everyone in the project for that. Many characters are too familiar and predictable but the actors make them enegaging with their approach. This makes for affected/affective viewing which teledramas target. Ikaw Lamang and its cast always hit the bull's eye weeknight after weeknight.

Warning: This is a very biased review.

I don't watch all teleseryes on Primetime. At most, I follow two of them from start to finish. These days, I am an avid viewer of Ikaw Lamang, the fourth Coco Martin teleserye I have followed religiously. Religiously is an apt term to describe my Coco Martin habit. In high school, I learned that religion is a way of life. Watching Coco Martin has become a way of life at least since Minsan Lang Kita Iibigin. his first main starrer since his thespic skills started getting the much deserved attention.

I especially like Ikaw Lamang because at the beginning I was skeptical of the decision to pair him with Kim Chiu. The two played siblings, I understand, in a previous project. Also, I was expecting somebody else to play Coco's leading lady in the teleserye which had a working title of Hidalgo. Anyway, I was just too excited he was going back on primetime after the very iconic Juan Dela Cruz. I was also excited that he was working with the directors he worked with in the said fantaserye, Direk Malu Sevilla and Direk Avel Sunpongco. I love the JDC team. It was the first teleserye set I have visited in my entire life. I never went that far in my previous fangurling modes. Coco Martin was the one celebrity I needed to see in person. I would have reserved a set visit for Hollywood favorites like Keanu Reeves, Johnny Depp or Adam Sandler, but I am not in the USA.

Anyway, many were surprised and eventually converted when the chemistry between these two chinito actors manifested early in the series. Thanks to the alitaptap scenes, I suppose, but obviously, the two are really so good at their craft and the camera love them, in separate shots or together. The series may have also struck sentimentality among its viewers because of its revisiting of decades when romance and friendships were not aided or made complicated by technology and the social media. Samuel and Isabelle consistently showed the kilig factor since their childhood scenes to the tune of My Girl. Many things, some of them gory, have taken place since then and the SamBelle moments are what fans began hoping for weeknight after weeknight.

In my tweets, I have been very vocal about the existence of Mona. I just think that she is an excess as Franco played by Jake Cuenca, is more than enough to make things difficult for my SamBelle. I understand though that young actress Julia Montes commands a following that can't be ignored (although many of them need to learn to let go of their idol and be respectful of other people) and therefore she was added to the cast. I do not care about loveteams. Coco Martin is beyond that. He can be without a love team  and  instead be teamed up with female actors that can deliver as well as he does. Jodi Sta. Maria and Angelica Panganiban were earlier choices for this tele, I gather.

Ikaw Lamang boasts of the best talents in showbiz. They are so good that Coco Martin need not be in every scene to sustain the viewers' attention. I have also not seen the camera works that IL's directors  do in the series in other teleseryes shown these days. IL's scenes are as picturesque as picturesque can be. Needless to say, the narrative makes every scene unforgettable with crisp and quotable lines expertly delivered by the characters.

I can go on and on and sound like a member of Ad Prom of Dreamscape. I warned at the beginning though that this is a very biased review. I am a Coco Martin fan. I enjoy most of his projects especially the ones on TV. I will talk about his commercial films in my next posts.