Viewing highlights of Christmas week

“Nostalgia” and “throwback” channel revisits defunct sitcom’s musical special.

The Jeepney TV “nostalgia” and “throwback” channel really came into its own last Sunday, Dec. 21, when it aired the Yuletide episode of the long defunct weekly sitcom, “Home Along The Riles.”

What made it special was the fact that it was a musical special, with the popular series’ stars and supporting cast members (Dolphy, Nova Villa, Nida Blanca in a guest appearance, etc.) breaking out in song, enthusiastically performing well-loved Christmas carols that had been given new, adapted lyrics in “street-savvy” Filipino to add up to a delightful minimusical for TV!

What made the unusual show delightful even after the passage of many years was the fact that the new lyrics were well-written and sometimes even witty—congratulations to director Johnny Manahan and his writers for pulling it off so well.

Does ABS-CBN have other musical specials in its archives? If they’re as good as the recent “Riles” revival, they should also be shown again, so mature viewers can get a nostalgic high, and young TV buffs will realize that some “old” TV shows were better than many of today’s productions!

In this regard, we’re happy to share that ABS-CBN, perhaps listening to pleas from many quarters, including this one, recently came up with a new “Ryan, Ryan Musikahan” Yuletide special.

Every time we’re with the network’s executives, we make a “passionate” plea to this effect, because we believe that a new edition of the show will go a long way in training young performers and the current generation of viewers, to produce good music and to appreciate it. We may not (yet) have gotten our fervent wish, but the musical special was most welcome, thank you very much!

Bland developments

As “Dream Dad” continues with its storytelling, we worry that it’s becoming too “cute” for its own good. Its plot development has slowed down, and the show devotes too much time to the loving relationship between dairy company head Zanjoe Marudo and the series’ resident button-eyed moppet, Jana Agoncillo.

Yes, Jana is the cutest bundle of gamine charms to make her debut on the TV screen this year, but there has to be more than that to keep viewers viewing.

Last Friday, Dec. 19, for instance, just about all that the show did was avidly follow the two leads as they frolicked in the park and celebrated the delightful way that they had been “fated” to enhance each other’s life.

Jana’s character is the luckiest one of all, because she now lives, not in that dreary, old orphanage she used to call home, but in a mansion with a big swimming pool and a family that dotes on her, bigtime.

Yes, we’re happy for her—but, when will reality come knocking at her door to break the spell?

Other developments on the show include Zanjoe’s character’s impending wedding to his “second time around” girlfriend, Angel, and the machinations of an ex-flame (Maxene Magalona) he doesn’t love. But, these are exceedingly wan and bland developments to keep us interested.

One good thing that the series is doing is making Jana speak like the little girl she is. Other TV dramas have a misguided penchant for giving their child actors dialogue that’s too verbose and “wise” for their tender years.

Thank goodness, “Dream Dad” opts for much more natural and short lines for its 5-year-old lead—a refreshing tack that we hope other TV dramas will immediately follow.

That brings us to the just-concluded Christmas drama series, “The Gift Giver,” and its resident child character, Makoy. He ended up not coming off well because he was used by the show’s writers to much too handily unravel some of the adult characters’ problems in the show, especially those involving Eddie Garcia’s character.

It was Makoy who ended up assuring Eddie’s kids (Aiko Melendez, etc.) that they were wrong in believing that he didn’t love them—and they were so happy to be told that—by the all-knowing child! Spare us the overtly facile and improbable revelations and realizations, please.

As for “Forevermore,” it too is getting stuck in a predictable plateau—this time, of “kilig” romance, as Liza Soberano and Enrique Gil’s characters are now officially “on”—and most everybody around them is empathetically getting a lovey-dovey surge.

OK, fine, but is there anything else happening in their now ultrarosy and loving universe? Well, Enrique’s family isn’t really thrilled that Liza’s dad is a farmer and her mom used to be a Japayuki—but, we hope that a edgier conflict will soon be thought up to more strongly test the two young leads’ palpitating love for each other—!