ABS-CBN's Attempt to Mainstream Gayness

There's something interesting happening in Philippine TV today. ABS-CBN's latest offering for its show "Your Song" is a story of a man caught in between a girl who's affection is welling on him and the girl's brother to whom his affection is really welling. A classic love triangle bearing a twist so ancient that it may not worth watching at all, but the main point is that it's showing on TV at 3:15 PM where the family is probably eating merienda while spending time in front of the boob tube. I picture this a bold move done by ABS-CBN, an attempt to represent homosexuals in mainstream media by flipping the coin and "risking" what was supposed to be "normal". In a jiffy, the old gay formula in television was thrown out of the window, finally smashing our faces with the real thing. And for another first, the audience was trusted this time.

In this episode of "Your Song" entitled "Without You," Bobby (played by Joross Gamboa) and his mother (Pinky Amador) moved to a new house they bought in Tagaytay. The first scene is a striking one: Bobby stepped off the car with his eyes fixated on the other side of the street where we will see the siblings Jen (Alex Gonzaga) waving and John (Victor Basa) smiling to his direction, both seemingly excited to meet their new neighbor. Provided the trailers did not spoil anything about the story, we could have enjoyed the game of guessing to where Bobby's excited glances were directed at. Still, the scene was done wonderfully.

Bobby's gayness was affirmed when he ceased his mom from carrying his cartons, which we would discover are filled muscle-men graced magazines. We then became voyeurs of Bobby's attempt to woe John whom he now claims as the man that he loves, but he is still testing the waters because he doesn't know whether John is gay or non-gay. However in his attempt to be close with John, he must learn how to be honest with Jen who has fallen madly in love with him from the start. In one scene, Bobby and Jen arrived from a date and Jen kissed him in the lips. A startled John came to the rescue and pushed Bobby so hard, he landed on the ground, posterior first... then goes John's subjective gaze directed to Bobby before entering their house. That gaze can mean any of the following: (1) "I feel hurt seeing you kiss my sister" or (2) "Don't give my sister any hopes that you can learn to love her because I know what you want" or (3) all of the above.

This is an episode where most of the conversations are happening in the eye. And I love it.

Joross Gamboa and Alex Gonzaga are acting gems in this episode.Joross' soft-spoken Bobby knows what he wants but still has a knack with indecisiveness and fear. He's awkward closetedness is amazing and his eyes tells a lot of things. I never enjoyed Joross' acting even during his Star Circle Quest Days, but this challenging role is an eye-opener that showcases his subtlety and vulnerability. He deserves a big round of applause. Alex Gonzaga's Jen on the other hand is an exact copy of a person who tries hard to project strength despite being deeply crushed inside. When she shared to Bobby the guy whom she is attracted to is probably attracted to somebody else (who is actually Bobby), you can see the glow in her
face but still feel sorry because you can sense the hope(lessness) as projected by her gestures. We know that she's just trying to be happy. Victor Basa's acting may fall not at par with his counterparts but there is something natural flowing out there. Those gazes are worth studying for.

I am at awe after realizing that Your Song does have the teenage group as its audience and I shall tirelessly emphasize again the courage embodied in this episode as it tries to drift them away from the notion that attraction between two human beings of the same sex can be possible and acceptable. Of course, the hassles belied on it would always emerge but it never puts the audience in a concrete stand that such type of attraction is taboo, unlike how it was ditched before. (By the way, I refer the characters in the story as simply gays, not "straight-acting" gays ... because I don't want the idea of "straight" as basis for a normalized concept.)

I also like how ABS is trying to market this as a typical love triangle story despite the obvious homosexual tone. I think love per se shouldn't be labeled gay or straight at all as this would only lead us to the adherence to essentialist view of what is supposed to be acceptable. It's plain love. Period. And everyone can be soaked in that moment.

I wouldn't lie and say that I wasn't amazed on this initial episode, but I wouldn't want to expect too much and get frustrated by it on succeeding episodes. But still, I'm relying my trust on this one. What I'm really excited about is what will hppen after Bobby revealed to Jen his true sexuality (thanks for feeding us with spoilers from your own shows, ABS-CBN): will there be an attempt to turn him back to straightness again or will he just remain the same way as he is? If the latter happens, then "Without You" is a total statement.

P.S. Bad me. I didn't pay attention at the credits to give a nod to the writer. I'll give him/her the nod next time.

Your Song is shown every Sundays of May, 3:15 PM