‘Carmela’ features sensitive character portrayals

Actress Marian Rivera talks about her character in the new prime-time soap opera, “Carmela”, a story about May-December affair. Video by Ryan Leagogo/INQUIRER.net

The first telecast of “Carmela,” with Marian Rivera playing the title role, got off to a brisk start last Monday, despite its leading lady’s absence.

Instead, the debut episode focused on the series’ back story, involving her mother, played by Agot Isidro, whose mole on her shoulder symbolized the bad luck that would hound her to the end of her days. To counter her streak of ill fortune, she had a “lucky” necklace, but soon threw it away, because her streak of bad luck just didn’t stop.

Luckily for her, it was picked up by a deaf-mute (Ricky Davao), who finally managed to make her happy, despite his disability.

RICKY DAVAO. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Alas, her good fortune didn’t last for long, because it turned out that he was in some way related to the wife of the would-be rapist (Roi Vinzon) Agot’s character was running away from!

What is it about the constricted universe inhabited by teleserye characters that makes it oh, so easy for characters to bump into each other at practically every corner? It’s as if the country was just a few kilometers in circumference and inhabited by just 50 individuals, who keep getting involved with one another in various screwy, positive and negative permutations!

Also ineluctably incredible is the fact that teleserye writers keep coming up with the same, “fated,” “bumping into each other” scenarios without being embarrassed about their limited creativity and lack of variety in terms of plot and character. This  is why they’re getting paid, to keep churning out picayune variations on pretty much the same thing?

Villain

—Uh, would you believe, yes? You see, some teleserye producers feel that the still popular dramatic form works because its conventions are so pat and predictable, and its characters are generally “black” or “white” (monstrous villain or victimized heroine).

Jumble or rumble up the “classic” plots and characters, and many viewers are left befuddled and unhappy—and in search of more reliably predictable fare!

Is this, in fact, the real lay of the land as far as local teleseryes are concerned? Does familiarity breed, not contempt, but comforting reassurance? Our scripting colleagues resignedly agree that some deviations from the desultory rule have succeeded, but they are so few that they are exceptions that prove that the rigorous  rule still holds sway.

Other TV people also seek comfort in the fact that some directors and actors manage to at least make their work more eventful, even if it’s still within the limiting parameters of age-old teleserye conventions.

On the first telecast of “Carmela,” for instance, Agot and Ricky turned in felt and compelling portrayals. Ricky was especially touching in his subtle depiction of his deaf-mute character. However, he didn’t stay onscreen for long, because he was quickly run over by a train(!), so that the series’ villain could again get his clutches on poor, whimpering Agot!

That’s another frustrating thing about watching teleseryes: The best actors are often killed off in only one or two episodes—and the rest of the acting is left to the younger and far less gifted leads—some of whom can’t act their way out of a paper bag!

Well, we hope that, once Marian finally enters the picture, she will turn out to be one of the rare exceptions to  that rule. But, now that Ricky is history, who else will step in to make the unfolding drama really worth watching—?