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‘My Only Love’ redux

By Alwin M. Ignacio, Contributor

11/17/2007

Who would ever imagine that My Only Love, Sharon Cuneta’s third major movie during her bubblegum years, would get a makeover? This Cuneta starrer was a certified box-office hit during the early eighties, considered as one of the glossiest movies ever produced by Viva Films, and best remembered for three major factors. First, it has the corniest of movie lines that somehow manage to remain ingrained in everyone’s subconscious. To illustrate, imagine an ultra-posh restaurant with Gabby Concepcion (looking like a prince as Billy) saying to Cindy (Cuneta’s character), “You are my number one.” To this, Cuneta replies, “Ayoko ngang maging number one. Kasi ‘pag may number one, may number two, may number three, I won’t settle for number one.” Billy then asks, “So, ano ang gusto mo?” Sharon, with her hideous bangs, replies coyly, “You’re only one.”

Coming in at number two is Jackie Lou Blanco’s (Trixie) defining moment as a contravida. She literally hissed when she saw Cindy wearing a bracelet identical to hers as she said, “Nice bracelet. Pareho rin ba ang nakalagay?”

Finally, who could ever forget the infamous beach sequence? Here, we witness a full-figured Cuneta traipsing on the beach, not wearing a swimsuit but in blue jeans and a ruffled polo top!

This November, My Only Love reincarnates as the latest afternoon drama that brings to light the value of friendship, sacrifice and standing for your only love.

The love triangle this time features Mark Herras (Billy), Rhian Ramos (Cindy) and Bianca King (Trixie). Joining them are Rita Avila, Lloyd Samartino, Sherilyn Reyes, Ruby Rodriguez, Gladys Reyes, Marco Alcaraz, Kevin Santos, Tess Bomb, Stef Prescott and Alfred Vargas in a special role as Emman.

Mark Herras plays Billy

Since his victory as StarStruck’s first ultimate male survivor, Mark Herras, the bad boy on the dance floor and alleged playboy of his generation, has indeed come a long way. Still considered cute and cuddly by his legion of female and gay fans, Herras portrays his biggest television role to date for an afternoon soap, as he reprises the role of Billy, originally done by former matinee idol Gabby Concepcion (who is reportedly poised to strike a comeback via a movie with Jolina Magdangal).

Here, he is the young man thorn between Cindy (Ramos) a stepdaughter of a rich cosmetic surgeon and childhood friend gone poor and Trixie, a budding ballerina and amiable stepsister of Cindy.

“Of course, I feel proud and very lucky to be part of this project,” begins Mark. “It is not every day that I get to portray the role made popular by Gabby Concepcion. I know, mas guapo siya sa akin but I will try my best na maabutan ang kapogian level niya. Joking aside, it is a very interesting and challenging character, and I hope I would be able to give justice to it. I will not deny that I feel a little pressure since most of the shows in the Drama-rama sa Hapon are top-raters.”

“The difference between my role now and that of Kuya Gabby is quite clear,” says Herras. “In the movie, Kuya Gabby is very rich. My Billy here only becomes affluent after winning the lotto. When he was still impoverished, he and Rhian’s Cindy were friends. They even exchanged friendship bands. However, somebody adopted her so we lost touch. They will not see me growing up poor anymore, rich boy na ako. Our characters see each other again while I was participating in a motocross race.”

How is Rhian as his new leading woman? “She is very promising. She is very down-to-earth. She is like one of the boys, may pagka-tomboyish. I fondly call her Tibs. At times, I jokingly call her Dumbo because I find her ears too big, but hey, don’t get me wrong. They are the cutest pair of ears though. Honestly, what I like about her is her professionalism. She is willing to learn, very giving. It is always wonderful to work with Rhian. There is simply no dull moment with her,” replies Mark.

“People should watch this soap because of its story. It is very engaging. In addition, the audiences are in for a surprise as they will see me in a more mature role. My part is well written and as actor the serious side of me will definitely shine in this soap,” answers Mark when asked why should viewers should support My Only Love.

Speaking of love, how is he and EB Babes Lian? “We are in an eight-month-old relationship. I am proud of her. She inspires me. That is why ganado ako sa work ko, and she is supportive. She does not pressure and she understands my work.”

Lately, negative intrigues are hounding Herras, and of all the things written about him, the one that peeved him is about his alleged foray into drugs.

He clarifies, “I know that a lot of people are speculating that I am hooked to illegal substances because I am very thin. There is no reason for me to try it because I know it is a bad thing. I have been working very hard because I have a lot of shows and tapings, and that is the main culprit why I have not gained weight. Aside from all the tapings, I am currently in muay Thai, training for my next project and busy preparing for my dance birthday concert. I hope that issue stops because there is no truth to it at all.”

So, now that he is the Billy of this generation, will he survive the comparison with Gabby? “You bet!” he confidently exclaims, and he ends with a big guffaw.

The tomboyish best friend is Rhian Ramos

Since her discovery for a fast-food chain’s commercial wherein she endorsed a soft drink float, Rhian Ramos’s star continues to shine brightly. She was the leading lady of showbiz prince Richard Gutierrez in two top-rating prime time fantasy series, and in the cast of The Promise and Ouija, two movies that were monstrous box-office hits.

There is no denying that her star will shine at its brightest as she gives life to Cindy, the pretty lass who is in love with Billy, a childhood friend who happens to be in love with Trixie (Bianca King), her stepsister.

“Before we even started to tape the soap, I watched a DVD copy of the movie it was based on, and I found it quite beautiful. It had the perfect blend of kilig and dramatic moments,” begins Rhian.

She continues, “When I heard that I would be part of it, I was super excited and nervous at the same time since they have added new elements to the original story. I will be facing a lot of dramatic scenes, not to mention there are romantic scenes as well, so I know that this is not just a pa-cute lang project.”

“During my first taping day, I was super tense especially since the first scene that we were taking, it was in a way, a little intimate, because our faces were very near each other. When you look at it, it was like we were kissing. It made me ill at ease because that it was my first time to be with Mark in a scene that was literally super close. That scene served as our icebreaker. Now, I feel very comfortable working with him.”

Rhian personifies everything that is sugar and spice. However, despite the pretty-young-thing packaging, all sorts of unpleasant rumors (Ramos being a flirt and she purportedly cock-teases and jumps from one guy to the other. This tittle-tattle titillated everyone as various photos of her with young men circulated in the Net) continue to hound the former De La Salle Zobel student.

“Honestly, I am not bothered by it because I know my conscience is clean. It is my mom who is very affected because she is not used to this kind of showbiz thing. My dad just laughs it off because he also knows the truth. If I had it my way, all I want for myself is good publicity because the bad publicity is not helping me anyway. However, I cannot help it. People will believe what they want to believe about me so what can I do? The only redeeming factor all these nasty talks has given me is that, somehow, I get to use all the depressing energies every time I do my crying scenes,” explains Ramos who is obviously unperturbed by all the chit-chat.

With director Louie Ignacio at the helm, the premier of this heartwarming movie-turned-TV series happened last Nov. 12. Sine Novela presents My Only Love after Pasan Ko Ang Daigdig on GMA 7’s Dramarama sa Hapon.