You followed the original version, tuned in on a regular basis, memorized the best lines, and if it happened to be a series, bought a pirated DVD copy. Maybe two. So does it rightly follow that you'd also go crazy for its local adaptation? Don't bet on it.
Perhaps for lack of eureka moments while brainstorming for new shows, and/or because the original (usually dubbed) shows were such a huge, shrieking fan club-generating success among Filipinos, local TV superpowers turn to the boob tubes of lands far, far away like the United States, Mexico and, the nearest at about 1,625 miles away from Manila, South Korea.
International copyrights, or a franchise, of foreign television shows are usually bought. Sometimes, however, whether they admit it or not, some locally produced shows obviously drew "inspiration" from shows abroad. Then television bigwigs are gathered to produce the same, although Filipino flavor-injected, show. Only to elicit an "Oh, no, they didn't!" from followers of the original. Because, really, it's an automatic trigger for a compare and contrast examination.
Good ratings and attractive stars aside, here are ten of those reincarnations on Pinoy TV that went lights, camera, action, but that only became poor imitations:
1. Only You
This Pinoy remake of the popular Korean series of the same title stars Angel Locsin as Jillian, Sam Milby as TJ, and Diether Ocampo as Jonathan, and features a love triangle, a love child and food.
The story: Jillian loves to cook. When she wins a cooking contest, she and Jonathan (her best friend who's secretly in love with her) are flown to South Korea to learn the art of cooking. She meets the angst-ridden TJ, then one thing leads to another, and they spend one night together. Later, her night with TJ a has-been, she learns that she's pregnant, and is forced to give up her dream of becoming a chef. It's only six years into the future when she and TJ cross paths again. In other words, restaurant owner TJ hires cook Jillian.
The not-so dream come true Only You: Maybe its greatest weakness came in the end when Jonathan, tired of trying and trying, but failing, to win Jillian's heart, takes away her son Joshua, and blackmails her into marrying him in exchange for a reunion with her son. It's a love gone mad. A poor attempt to stretch the story, which had Angel bawling her eyes out while negotiating with an annoyingly stubborn Diether. Aside from the drama that constitutes the lives of the characters, there is the cooking (and product placements of a particular food seasoning) – Asian food, in particular. But while South Korea is located in Asia, it isn't exactly one of the region's culinary destinations. The original got it right by going to Italy. The Pinoy version could've won in this aspect by heading to China, Vietnam or Thailand. But then again, maybe the Talangkanin Bibimbap at Kaya can save the day?
2. Rosalinda
Still airing during the primetime block, this Pinoy adaptation of the successful Mexican series, which starred Thalia and Fernando Carillo, features newbie actress Carla Abellana and Geoff Eigenmann in the lead roles. The original caused such a ruckus that Carillo, who played the dashing Fernando Jose, flew to Manila for a concert (which featured Viva Entertainment stars more than him, but that's another story). A you-and-me-against-the-world plot, with wicked stepmothers, amnesia and revenge here and there, Rosalinda promises to give the viewer loads of romance, drama and… roses.
The thorny truth: Carla Abellana, thrust into a title role on her first stab at acting, fails to deliver enough acting prowess to draw the viewer in to the whole drama. (Marian Rivera starred in supporting roles way before her big break as Marimar. Thalia already had had several telenovelas in her arsenal before she bagged the role of Rosalinda.) Geoff Eigenmann, on the other hand, although he does have those enviable celebrity genes, still lacks the tall, dark and handsome, rugged sex appeal that Fernando Carillo possessed.
