Lack of focus weighs down ‘Probinsyano’s’ unusual star turn

GANDA. Portrays supremely self-absorbed character.

CESAR MONTANO’S “chapter” on “Ang Probinsyano” ended recently, with his gun-for-hire character expectedly being vanquished by series lead Coco Martin, after a protracted rooftop stand-off and hectic car chase.

What made the chapter finale less than truly exciting was the predictability in the way it unfolded. It was also frustrating to see that both macho men were previously depicted as sure shots who didn’t miss their targets—and yet, when they shot at each other many times throughout the long sequence, they kept missing their mark!

Yes, they needed to stretch the climactic sequence out for minutes on end, but the sudden loss of perfect aim was disconcerting.
Another key element of the big finale was Montano’s attempted assassination of Coco’s beloved uncle.

This made their “duel” intensely personal, and viewers hoped and prayed that the old police general would survive his exceedingly grave injuries (he did).

Anguished reactions

In the process, however, the actors playing the victim’s relatives were brought into the picture by way of their loudly anguished reactions—which became another irritating distraction, because they overacted like heck to each get their individual melodramatic “moment.”

All told, therefore, the chapter finale was not as focused and dramatic as it deserved to be, given Montano’s unusual star turn.

The fact that it wasn’t the series’ finale made us wonder what else the show had in store for viewers to keep them watching.

That question was quickly answered by a teaser that confirmed rumors that Vice Ganda would be the production’s next “chapter’s” guest star.

True enough, we caught his “grand entrance” telecast last week, in which he played a supremely self-absorbed character who loved to put his “inferiors” in their proper place with cutting insults that sharply found their deadly mark.

His character also appeared to have a lot of money to burn, so what was his racket? Early intimations hint that it has something to do with the sex and blackmail trade—more titillating details coming soonest!

By the by, another new development on “Ang Probinsyano” involves a subplot related to the popular neighborhood eating place run by Coco’s relatives: One day, its popularity was challenged and upstaged by another carinderia, which served more delicious meat dishes.

It soon turned out that it was using dog meat, so this adjunct development and controversy could probably lead to the revelation of the identity of the people behind the illegal activity, as well as expose Coco’s relatives to additional danger.

But, how credible is this latest scam? Some people we know in a province where dog meat is illicitly cooked and eaten say that it has a characteristic taste.

If there’s truth to this, how could the carinderia’s customers not detect the difference, enabling the scam artists to get away with their sub-rosa ruse? Just asking.