The K-drama ‘oppa’ who can turn Jessica Soho into a giddy schoolgirl

Jessica Soho

The “Jessica Soho Presidential Interviews” has set the bar high for future election specials, with GMA News and Public Affairs pillar Jessica Soho boldly asking four of the presidential aspirants tough questions.

Nobody could have pulled it off the way she did. It became the most talked about subject last week, receiving rave reviews, dominating weekend programming and registering online milestones.

Viewers and netizens were all praises for Soho’s no-holds-barred interviews. It made viewers get to know the aspirants better. It will have a replay on GTV at 7:05 p.m. today.

After Ms. Jessica’s monumental TV special, I congratulated her, then teased her, “So after your interviews with the presidentiables, your next project should be ‘The Jessica Soho Interviews with the OppaPables.’” She shot back, “I would love that and hope it won’t be via Zoom.”

Not too many people know that the esteemed broadcast journalist is a big fan of Park Seo-joon (PSJ to K-drama addicts). Jessica and I turn into giddy high school girls when we talk about PSJ. We want to go to Seoul to “stalk” the Korean superstar.

Now that she’s done with her serious presidential interviews, in the spirit of fun, we talked about her dream PSJ interview. I told Jessica that I will volunteer to be her personal assistant if and when that happens. Then, I chided her, “Your show’s title, ‘KMJS’ (Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho) must be changed to ‘KMSJ’ … Kapuso Mo Mrs. Seo-joon.”

Here’s my chat with Ms. Jessica:

What are three questions you want to ask PSJ?

How did he become such a versatile actor? I read that he still lives with his parents. Why? And how does he handle fame?

Who are the other oppas you wish to interview?

Hyun Bin, Lee Min-ho, Gong Yoo, Park Bo-gum and, because he was recently controversial, Kim Seon-ho.

Park Seo-joon in “Itaewon Class”

What’s your fave K-drama of PSJ?

“Itaewon Class.” It was the first PSJ series that I watched, and he was so good in it. He was versatile as he transitioned in the movie—from an innocent-looking schoolboy to becoming an orphan, a young entrepreneur and, toward the end of the film, a successful businessman who finally gets his revenge.

Rita and Rhen in lesbian rom-com

BL (boy’s love) series are already flourishing. Now, it’s time for GL (girl’s love) series to emerge. So make way for “Lulu” (now streaming on Vivamax). Written and directed by Sigrid Andrea Bernardo, the rom-com celebrates the magic called serendipity.

It is topbilled by Rhen Escaño and newbie Rita Martinez. Rita is a lesbian indie band singer who could pass for a Korean oppa. “Kilig” was in the air while we were interviewing Rita and Rhen. So, let “Lulu” say the rest.

Rita Martinez (left) and Rhen Escaňo in “Lulu”

Here are quotes from Rhen (RE), Rita (R) and Sigrid (S):

RE: Rita is always willing to listen to me, even when I’m talking nonsense. She understands my angst. I am not closing my doors to a possible lesbian relationship with her, but for now, we are savoring our friendship. Love knows no gender.

R: Our series will break stereotypes about lesbians. Even if prejudice still exists, that won’t stop me from living my truth. That’s why when I joined “The Voice,” I proudly declared that I belong to the LGBT community.

S: Our series isn’t heavy drama, which is usually associated with lesbian love stories. I focused on individual struggles. Love is just secondary here. We showed the fun side in the daily lives of lesbians.

RE: When I did “Adan,” I was still groping in my love scenes with another girl. But in “Lulu,” I totally surrendered, so the “kilig level” with Rita was something else. I am not wary of being typecast in lesbian roles. In fact, I hope “Lulu” will have a sequel.

R: It remains to be seen if my friendship with Rhen will evolve into love. But we are happy that our off-cam rapport translated into on-cam chemistry.

IC Mendoza (left) and Vice Ganda

Vice gathers gay influencers

My gay son IC Mendoza had a blast at Vice Ganda’s “UnkabogaBall Eksaherada Eleganza” fête in Okada. The attire was flashy and shimmery. Vice gave P100,000 to the Best-Dressed Guest Awra Briguela and consolation prizes to the runners-up.

Aside from being a reunion of Vice and his gay colleagues in the biz, it was also an acquaintance party for LGBT Tiktok and YouTube sensations. As Vice said, “There are so many new gay content creators who are making waves online. That’s why I hosted a party, so we could all meet in person and collaborate. Being influencers from the LGBT community, we must be united and not pull each other down.”

No boyfriends of the gay celebs were present. Not even Vice’s boyfriend Ion Perez. It was an all-out bonding ng mga bading: “Rampa na wa jowa!”