Barbie Forteza saying goodbye to David Licauco and paying respect to Dr. Jose Rizal in “Maria Clara at Ibarra”. Images: Twitter/@GMADrama
Just three days before the finale, an episode of the GMA hit TV series “Maria Clara at Ibarra” showed Barbie Forteza’s Klay bidding an emotional farewell to the world of “El Filibusterismo,” then finally confessing her feelings to David Licauco’s Fidel.
Moments after Simoun Ibarra (Dennis Trillo) breathed his last, Klay bid farewell to the characters in the “El Filibusterismo” arc of the series, then unabashedly showing the basics of a selfie with the protestors.
As the titular character prepared to return to her world, she shared a tender moment with Fidel, pleading for her lover to come with her. Fidel, however, chose to stay in hopes of fighting for the nation’s independence.
“Babu, Fidel. Mahal na mahal na mahal kita,” Klay said. (Goodbye, Fidel. I love you very much.)
An emotional Fidel held back his tears in response, saying, “Mahal na mahal rin kita, aking Binibining Klay.” (I love you too, my Klay.)
When Klay finally returned to her world, she was transported to the Rizal Monument in Manila, where she gave Rizal — author of the novels “Noli Me Tangere” and “El Filibusterismo” — a heartfelt salute, as she appeared to understand the significance of his written works.
MABUHAY KA, RIZAL! SALUDO KAMI SA’YO! #MariaClaraAtIbarra #MCIMabuhayKaRizal pic.twitter.com/fpCaESAxip
— GMA Drama (@GMADrama) February 22, 2023
The episode became a trending topic on Twitter in the Philippines as the episode’s official hashtag #MCIMabuhayKaRizal garnered over 56,600 tweets, as of this writing.
Under the guise of Fidel, Licauco took to his personal Instagram account to share some behind-the-scenes photos with Forteza. “Fidel & Klay,” he said in the caption.
Forteza, for her part, replied to her onscreen partner’s post, saying “at ang magic.” (And the magic.)
Image: Screengrab from Instagram/@davidlicauco
The actress also took to her Twitter page to share her brief thoughts about the episode in character, where she admitted that “goodbyes are always the hardest”.
Goodbye’s are always the hardest. #MCIMabuhayKaRizal
— Barbie Forteza (@dealwithBARBIE) February 22, 2023
The teleserye is set to air its final episode on Friday, Feb. 24, after being extended for one week due to popular demand. It also stars Dennis Trillo, Julie Anne San Jose, Khalil Ramos, and Juancho Triviño.
Following “Maria Clara at Ibarra,” Forteza and Licauco are set to be featured in an upcoming episode of the anthology series “Daig Kayo Ng Lola Ko” but their upcoming appearance is yet to be announced by the network. EDV