PAULO Avelino
If ABS-CBN plays its cards right, its new series, “Honesto,” could end up as long-running, appreciated and acclaimed as “May Bukas Pa” some seasons ago. The new show, which started telecasting only last Oct. 28, is all about a clan that is so honest that, when one of them tells a lie, his or her nose ends up looking like a big, red tomato!
Pinocchio ‘peg’
No, they aren’t distant relatives of Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer—the “peg” is more akin to Pinocchio, the boy-puppet in the classic fairytale, whose nose grew longer—and longer—whenever he told a lie!
Whatever the most relevant derivation (add Cyrano de Bergerac to the pile, why not?), the updated concept and plot conceit are potentially significant because they could make the issue of honesty dramatically relevant again—a much-needed development at this time in our nation’s life, when official corruption and just plain lying have so many people up in arms.
The show’s premiere got off to a brisk start, with a standout cast led by Nonie Buencamino and Joel Torre introducing viewers to the series’ cautionary tale and colorful characters.
Joel and Nonie portray the tale’s avaricious villains, criminals and con men who find themselves in a remote part of the country, where this incredibly peaceful and honest clan lives.
Naturally, since the small sitio looks so clueless, the con men plan to rob them blind. To make things easier, Joel pretends to be a priest, and forces his son, Paulo Avelino, to act as sacristan.
Crisp pace
Trouble is, Paulo has a hard time focusing on the dastardly task at hand, because he’s distracted by the beauty and innate goodness of Maricar Reyes, cast as the daughter of the clan’s patriarch, portrayed with great texture and unction by Spanky Manikan.
The first telecast was so crisply paced that, at the end, viewers had already learned that the clan was harboring, not just its communal wealth—but part of the fabled Yamashita treasure!
Bars of gold bullion glistened and blazed at telecast’s end, dazzling viewers with prospects of major plot complications and brazen criminality in just the new series’ first week!
The fast-paced storytelling is much to our liking but we hope the production doesn’t forget that its significant focus on the theme of Honesty should consistently hold sway.
Aside from all this fuss and bother about vast, fabled caches of treasure and such, we would like the series to also go into smaller but more thematically illustrative tales of honest people put to the test, dishonest denizens learning relevant lessons in various spheres of life—etc.
More standouts
This shifting weekly “situational” focus was what made “May Bukas Pa” so inspiring and instructive for so many months to so many people, so we hope that the “think tank” behind “Honesto” won’t miss the trees—for the forest!
Other standout performers in the new series include Janice de Belen, who is cast as surrogate mother to Maricar’s little love child. Speaking of Maricar, it’s just too bad that, right after painfully giving birth to her little babe all by her lonesome, her character was made to expire.
While she was alive, Maricar filled the TV screen with her rare combination of beauty, acutely believable portrayal and talent. We hope to see her again in a new TV drama series—soonest!