Dyan dyararan… here is my follow up post about the latest happenings in the Pinoy Idol world of Carnival. Believe it or not (even I can’t believe myself), I watched the whole three episodes of the Pinoy Idol Extravaganza. “Bluup nagtyaga ka?” Opo mga kakosa. I sacrificed two and half hours of my life just to see if there is really an improvement on the show. Episodes 1-7 are all let-downs, starting from the judges down to the editing of the videos. With my uncanny frankness and my constructive criticism of the show, I gained the ire of a certain Harry 54 who is a self-confessed Jolina Magdangal Fanatic (oops there’s laughter inside my head) and a Multiply User named Mittle Alegre who happens to be a friend of a contestant named Vrenalin Villaflor and who gave me a lecture about the definition of “Egotistic”. Every time I post some commentaries here in my blog, I don’t intend to put anyone down. Being an independent blogger, and unaffected by arguments so to speak, I also have to weigh and balance the pros and cons and not just tip the scale in favor of my own preferences. And in order to do that I have to be objective in some way, that is according to what I have observed and not what I have felt. I am a number one viewer of GMA7 because I grew up watching their shows and I learn so much from their documentaries. But then again what would I gain if I will just blog about the goodness and lighter side of the show if the negative aspect weighs down the positive? Criticisms should be taken constructively and not as a destructive blabber.

We bloggers blog not to fuel fire among fans and readers, but we blog because we want to be heard. I for one being an American Idol fanatic wants to tell the people behind Pinoy Idol what I see as a viewer and not as a mere critique.

Expecting that the idol franchise would improve after so many people voiced out their dismay on the previous episodes of the show, yet I was more than disappointed on the semi-finals night compared to the audition episodes and some details that GMA 7 ommitted for improvement.

The Official Website

Let’s start with the official website. For months the Official website of the Pinoy Idol has been elusive. You can’t even find it on google, yahoo or MSN search. For the last few weeks, If you try to go to the official website of GMA 7 and click the shows tab, you will never see any link to the Pinoy Idol show. Yet just last week, this website emerged, not in google ladies and gentlemen but in other forums. Seing the website of the Pinoy Idol is also a disappointment. There are several broken links and aside from these inconsistencies, the updates are also slow. I mentioned on my previous post entitled “Wrong Move On Pinoy Idol?” that GMA 7 is known for its laxity and mediocrity in interactive website development, and I was vindicated. If you will visit the Official Website of the Pinoy Idol, you will definitely be disappointed. One forum memeber even said that the website is a reminiscent of the starstruck website. I don’t know what he means by that, but by the sound of it, it seem that he is pointing to the negative. I don’t want to suggest anything on your free mind, but just compare the website of the Idol fanchise of our neighboring asian countries and you will see what I mean:

Compare: Singapore Idol Website, Indonesian Idol Website and Vietnam Idol Website to GMA 7’s Pinoy Idol Official (huh?) website.

Try also looking for this google search result link on Pinoy Idol’s website and you can never see the URL of the website in its first to third page of result index. Poor SEO (Search Engine Optimization) for such a big and famous franchise website. Tinalo pa kayo ng mga bloggers!

The host

The host did not improve a bit. Hes redundant, nasal, annoying, scripted and very uptight. Plus what’s with thet outfit? Is he trying to imitate the hideous flamboyancy of Boy Abunda? The show is not yet on the finals but his outfit seem to cry for a signboard that says “Wala sa Okasyon”. Ryan seacrest just wear long sleeves or shirts during the show. I don’t know, but for me his outfit is queer just like his hosting. Might as well call Kuya Germs to give him advice how to be shiny and sequined on television. Or better yet, mag co-host na lang kaya sila dalawa. And the Master Showman says: “I can do Better”

The Judges

Ogie alcasid, Jolens and Wyngard are so dull. Their comments have no substance. False assurances and sugarcoating of what is obviously an insincerity, sums up the performance of the three. And why only one judge is speaking after every contestant’s performance? They are there not to sit on their *_ _ _ es but to influence the public with their opinion which is by the way is a mere impossibility at this point in time. It’s very obvious that the three judges are running out of words. This happens when you put people on that jury just on the basis of credentials and popularity and not on the basis of intelligence. I pity these three for accepting the job for they know very well that there are many people in the industry who can give more justice to their roles as judges.

The Stage

Haha I can’t help but laugh on the stage especially when the Final 24 squeezed themselves on the itsy bitsy cramped platform. The stage is weak. When I say weak, i meant it’s poor in the design concept and spatial aspect. The veranda is laughable because the female contestants are likened to GRO’s waiting to be called on the table. The Male contestants on the benches dancing reminds me of “that’s entertainment days”. And the judges table? what’s with the Neon lights? Is it a bar or something? The stage is bare and plain. The lighting is too bright that you can almost see the zit of one contestant. The Screen at the background is so common that just by mere looking at it makes you want to go Plaza Miranda and watch at the Mercury’s Giant TV. The transition effects on the big screen while the contestants perform are likely taken from Windows Media Player transitions and hey, what’s with the clouds? Is that a segment of wish ko lang? The Lipton tea cup on the judges table says everything on the show: Wake up and smell the TEA! (Coffee) haha.

Look at the semifinals stage of the Indonesian and Singapore Idol…

The Sound system and the Band

The Sound system is not clear. The Audio feedback suck and can be compared to a cheap karaoke audio output. You can barely hear the other instruments playing in the background. The viewers cannot decipher the true quality of the contestant’s voices and everyone sounds like they have phlegm at the back of their throats. Are they imitating the nasal voice of Raymond? The band is obviously recycled from SOP stint. Seeing Danny Tan on the band makes me want to shout “Pinoy Pop Superstah!”. Where’s Ruel Santiago, Gerald Salonga or Raul Mitra when you need them? You have got to be serious? Replace the musical director please!

The Live Performance

It should be a live performance and not taped as we saw last friday and saturday night. Halatang halata na hindi kaya ng host ang live show. Viewers wanted everything live and not taped. They want to see what really happens in front of them and not something that the directors already edited and polished to the brim, which in their case, was not even half baked.

The contestants

The contestants are pityful. One of the Idol contestants was called as the first casualty of the voting system (may bumoto kaya?). Raymond did not even made the elimination a suspense, avoiding such thrill for the audience. I pity the first guy he called. The man was clueless because he thought that some of them will still face the burning question of “Are you safe?”. But no, Gutierrez shocked the nation with his pea-size wit when he immediately disclosed the results. So much for thrills…

The studio

The studio is so cramped and small that you can’t help but wonder if GMA 7 is holding tight to it’s purse strings. Halatang tinipid ang pucha. The Parents shown are also pitiful. Di man lang nila nagawang ibili ng damit at ayusan yung mga parents. Everytime some parents are flashed on the screen, di mo maiwasan isipin kung mga pasyente ba yun sa Kapwa Ko Mahal ko ang pinapakita. The show is being watched on National TV, heck even on the middle east and US, and sad to say they failed to make the studio a little bit impressive. I doubt if the show even have real fans in the audience. It seems that everybody who was there were all relatives of the performers. And the chairs they were seating on?.. Parang meeting de avance ng pulitiko. The first Philippine Idol Studios and Performance venues of ABC 5 was more appealing. Their Manila week in 2006 was held at the CCP while GMA7’s Manila week was held in SM North EDSA. Tell me which among the two has the biggest budget to make the show globally competitive? How much did GMA7 spent to acquire the franchise of Idol just so they can waste what ABC 5 has superbly achieved?

The Director

Fire the director please. The shots were as cheesy as the clouds that faded during the contestants journey recap. All of it were done in a bad and cheap taste. Walanjo, para kang nanonood ng amataeur singing contest na may pinaghalong wish ko lang. Wala ngang paro-paro, baduy naman. Bring back Mark Reyes and Lino Cayetano to direct the Idol. It’s not too late for them to redeem the show by firing the uber emo Louie “Butterfly” ignacio.

The clips

The editing of the clips, the interviews and the over all vtr production is so messed up that you can’t even tell if the video that is being shown is a tribute or a eulogy for the eliminated contestant. The clouds are ridiculous. Might as well put a cross and a tombstone on the right side of the screen.

The Schedule

GMA gives a terrible schedule for the Pinoy Idol. Every Friday night, it is shown at a later hour of the evening. On Saturdays it is shown at 7pmor sometimes at 7:15 pm. And on Sundays it is only shown half an hour. In the first place, why would you put it on a timeslot where everybody is out of their house? Moreover, No one knows the real time that Pinoy Idol is shown precisely because GMA 7 slashed the real time slot (ergo 7pm, 8pm, etc) to favor their tentative airing of their advertisement choked soap operas. Para bang, kung ano muna ang mauna. In the US they are very strict when it comes to time. When they say it’s 8pm EST, it will be shown at that exact time. Pero dito, GMA just proved that Pinoy Idol is running on Pinoy Time. pahuli-huli, paibaiba at pabago-bago. It confuses the viewers to tell you frankly.

The Press Release

The Press release is so bad that many members of the press are obviously being paid by GMA 7 just to mum them from making a negative comment on the show. Try to type the keyword “Pinoy Idol” on google search, and the results will bring you numerous blogs and sites that are screaming mad at the show’s suckage and incompetence. The only credible review that I have read about Pinoy Idol’s status is that of Nestor Torre which he said that PI is a big let down.

The Overall impact of the show

Its so weired since if the camera focuses on the performing contestant, the show looks like Ang Bagong Kampyon. If the Camera shifts to the Terrace where some of the contestants stands, it seems thay are in “Mel and Joey“. When cameras goes to the judges table, it’s like Eye to Eye of Inday Badiday, If the director focuses on the contestants on the benches, it’s like That’s entertainment all over again. But when the video clips are shown on the large monitor, it seems that you are watching Wish ko lang.. worse, when the band is shown at the background and you see the face of Danny Tan, you can’t help but ask, is this Pinoy Pop Superstar? Confusing as it may seem but it only sums up what the we viewres see on Pinoy Idol: A frankenstein program of GMA’s shows. How weird is that?

If these trends will continue to persist until the final 12 performances, PI will surely plummet to the ground— ratings wise. It’s so obvious that the show was not well thought of and refelected upon. I bet they hurried the auditions and the production so that they can compete for the Pinoy Dream Academy of the rival station. Sad to say they are both utter disappointments. In the latest ratings game, the Saturday show of the rival network which is known for having a low cost production, have raked the idols from the ratings by a point 8 advantage. See what I mean?

I have so much respect for the works of GMA 7 considering they house the most awarded Public Affairs program in Asia. The can’t prevent the viewers, especially fanatics of American Idol to compare the show of the US, precisely because it is the epitome of broadcasting excellence. I can’t imagine that they are ignoring what the people are telling them. If GMA 7 has something to learn from ABS CBN, it’s the way that the latter carry their shows globally competetive, because they listen to what the viewers are telling them.

Remove The Host, The Director and The three Judges and some of their writers. Bring back the Judges from the first Philippine Idol (Minus Ryan Cayabyab)… and replace the rest.

Having said all these things, we might as well ask the FreemantleMedia execs to rip the Idol franchise from GMA7 and give it back to ABC 5 where it truly belongs. If Simon Cowell will watch the show, I bet he will say “Pinoy Idol just died from non-existence”.

My sincere condolences to those who were taken a back by this murderous act of killing the counterpart of one of the World’s prestigious and famous talent show.

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Pinoy Idol Monitor
Week 8 Top 24 Elimination
May 25, 2008