first time: it's kilig to the bones all over again with barbie forteza, joshua dionisio and jhake vargas!

 

The first scene didn't make me jump for joy in my frilly but oh-so flimsy pink nightgown. On the contrary, I felt something deflated inside me. No, I didn't pass gas if that's what you think. I thought, after getting all worked up by those cutesypatootsie teasers which had me daydreaming all the way back to high school (and it's a long journey - mind you) every time I catch one,  I'm actually being served another Florderluna-rehash yet again. Not that Flordeluna was no good, but how many times can one actually survive reboots of the same old formula? Are beautiful tween girls really thart cursed? I definitely was not! Ominously, I stayed on with the first episode after promising to myself I would bail out once I see Joshua Dionision and Jhake Vargas together in one scene so I could at least decide on who's better looking. As it turned out, it's a good thing Jhake didn't appear until the third episode because by then I have understood why the story had to go back to a month ago to start its run and what the rather dark drama in the first scene was all about.

In a nutshell, for those who missed the first week, Cindy (Barbie Forteza) met Lucas (Joshua) in a resort in Zambales and immediately became good friends. Cindy has problems with her mother while Lucas feels unloved by his father. Unbeknownst to everybody (with the exception of Cindy's father who 'stumbled upon' it), Cindy's uncle was having an affair with Lucas' mother. They were found out by Lucas' father one night and the mother was shot dead in the ensuing, though only implied, altercation. And the story begins again, one month after that fateful night. So, in the first two days of the show, the viewers were enlightened of what the primary conflict is or would be - an exciting, if not altogether more convoluted, twist to the Romeo and Juliet affair.

From the third to the fifth episodes, a myriad of characters that should play important roles in the lives of Cindy and Lucas were introduced. Foremost of course is Baste (Jhake). Cindy's best friend and the third wheel of what could be described as a young, romantic romp for the young. I mean, I sure hope nobody gets pregnant in the show at the age of katorse and undergoes mammoplasty on the side.  But let us not get sidetracked as that's another story. So anyway...there's this one particular scene that I thoroughly enjoyed. It opened the fourth episode and the viewers were treated to glimpses of the other bagets and some of the faculty in one fell swoop. That particular tracking shot meandered from the covered walks outside the school building all the way to the principal's office. And it was so fast - as if on a mission - that the blocking was totally obscured (no palpable sense of choreography whatsoever) and what stood out were the performances of (and the distinct characters played by) the actors. It was like seeing Oprah doing her "finger snaps in a circle" (snap snap snap tapos!). And oh, I think I'm already liking Natalie Dimaculangan's (Bea Binene) deliciously wicked tween queen-esque character.

As for the three leads, well, I could not ask for anything more. Barbie is a delight to watch. She is as pretty as she is talented and plays her part with realness and all heart. And talk about that telegenicness!  I must point out that I thank God that they made her sweet character not bordering on the old-school, vomit-inducing kind. Joshua can act and he proved it to one and all (this writer included) in his confrontation scenes with Eric Quizon who plays his father. He has depth and range and I'm so looking forward to more acting revelations from him. Not to be left in the lurch is Jhake. Although we have yet to see his character in any kind of  'serious' situation, he's effective in those relatively quiet scenes with Barbie. All eyes and nothing more - we get it, we feel it, we understand, and we approve.

I give kudos and props to director Andoy Ranay and the rest of the production team for giving us a fresh, exuberant and totally engrossing show. I hope there's never going to be a letup - not even a slowing down of the pace. Don't fix anything that don't need any. Oh wait, I think there's one little thingy that needs tweaking or considering - more music please! I truly like the Pers Lab cover by Julie Anne San Jose (originally by Hotdog) but think Bagets, or Dawson's Creek or Glee. Nothing beats a good coming-of-age story but a good coming-of-age story with a definitive soundtrack.

Before I end this, I thank whoever should be thanked for creating and developing this show as it offers not-so-young romantic fools like me a look back to how it was or is to be young and in love...for the first time.

Nasaan na kaya si Marti...Choz!
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