Who will be Pinoy Fear Factor?s el ultimo participante?

By Isah V. Red

Brace yourselves, Fear Factor fans. Tonight?s the night when el ultimo participante in the localized version of the American reality TV show will be declared.

Everything happened in Argentina in South America, and we have seen them go through unimaginable challenges.

Only four remain standing, and one of them will be El Ultimo Participante, or the last man standing. The final stretch of the show started last Monday with the four participantes?Manuel ?Supermanuel? Chua, Jommy ?Scorpion King? Teotico, Janna ?Bonana? Dominguez, and Marion ?Kryptonite? de la Cruz. All four are trying their best to win the P2-million prize, house and lot, and the title ?El Ultimo Participante,.

Many are hoping Manuel or ?Supermanuel,? who has dominated the competition, to bag the prize. He needs it so much that he had done everything in his power to remain at El Campo Miedo. He has two Fear Factor world records tucked in his sleeves, and he is the only participante ever in Argentina to halt the horse while being dragged in mud, yet he is not invincible as we all saw him in his two recent stints in the danger zone during the sixth and seventh round of eliminations. The appliance store owner in Nueva Ecija also had a near meltdown recently after getting jealous when Marion and Janna got too close for comfort.

Can Manuel redirect his focus to be El Ultimo Participante? Jommy a.k.a. the ?Scorpion King? has graduated from being a joker to a legit contender after convincingly beating Manuel in challenges like the ?Car Re-entry? stunt, where he made his own Fear Factor world record. He?s also shown no fear for pain when he cut his lip while eating 20 scorpions and when he risked his body in the ?Drag by a Horse in Mud? stunt. Though bruised and wounded, the 24 year-old model is dead set to win to be able to help his family, and RJ his closest friend in the pump squad. Janna earned the ?Janna Bonana? monicker because she always brings a lucky charm with her during stunts. With or without luck, the youngest participante has proven her worth by braving through stunts even at the expense of her safety. Just like when her foot got stuck in a net under a helicopter. Upside down and ankle twisted, she still tried to get up and complete the stunt. This type of relentlessness has brought her to the Fearless Four, and if she wills it, she can make it to the top spot.

Marion is the softie turned toughie of the group and as the rounds go by, the more serious this balikbayan from Vienna gets. The winner of the ?Tarzan Swing? and ?Water Coffin? stunts, who was baptized ?Kryptonite? by host Ryan Agoncillo, has given the gay act a rest and is now performing like a beast in the stunts. His attraction to Janna has given him additional motivation to win and to beat Supermanuel, who has also developed a liking for the stand-up comedienne.

So, who do we think will be declared winner?

The four guys are not saying, afraid to pay the penalty for spoiling the fun. And they know it would make their lives miserable, paying off P5 million for life.

Watch the finals tonight, right after Tayong Dalawa on ABS-CBN. Manuel fans, just cross your fingers, and pray.

P25 million, says Lily Monteverde

When I Met U, Regal Entertainment and GMA Films? Valentine movie offering, exceeded the expectations of its producers and more importantly, of the legion of fans who waited for the second collaboration of Richard Gutierrez and KC Concepcion on the silver screen.

On Valentine?s Day alone, the Richard and KC-starrer earned a whopping P25 million in total gross and is now on its way towards a record-breaking performance at the box office.

That?s nearly incredible. But if Lily Monteverde is saying the truth, this movie is really a monster at the box office.

Last Valentine?s Day, I was at Shangri-La Plaza for an errand. I went up to the multiplex to see how the movie was doing that day. Well? I want to remain friends with the Gutierrezes.

Adieu to Force of Nature

Last Tuesday, Greenpeace advocate Richard Gutierrez finally said goodbye to hosting Full Force Nature, which debuted with a strong 18.4 rating last Dec. 2.

The episode showed a feature on America when it reeled dramatically after being struck by Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Rita and a flashflood in Texas.

The show?s theme was ?Unity in Times of Tragedy?.

We like this guy when he?s playing himself, and not some character from komiks or movies. But he will soon be busy with Zorro, where he plays a rebel on a horseback, not in Mexico, where the original Zorro was said to have lived during the early days of Gringos, but in a fictional town somewhere near Metro Manila. It could be in Tanay, Rizal, or some unknown barangay in Batangas.

Unmasking Bayani

You either like him or hate him. Those who like him find in Bayani Fernando a guy who doesn?t mince words. When he does something, it is not arbitrary. Everything, he tells friends and foes, is according to the law.

I guess that?s what makes him an interesting personality in a government that is besieged with allegations of corruption. Here?s a man who doesn?t so much involve himself in politics but focuses his energy on making sure he delivers what he promised Metro Manilans.

Those who hate him simply can?t fathom the guy, who they think is anti-poor, and a lot of them are people engaged in business that breaks the ordinance on the use of sidewalks, or those who live (for free) along the esteros and rivers in Metro Manila and contribute to the degradation of the environment in the metropolis, or incorrigible public utility vehicle drivers who break the law or bribe traffic aides to let them go when caught.

If you wish to know the real Bayani Fernando, watch Life and Style with Ricky Reyes on QTV-11 on Sunday (10 to 11 a.m.). Ricky engages BF in a no-holds-barred chat? as he tells his story, from childhood to his private life and eventually to his responsibility as a public servant. He will discuss his past, present and future endeavor towards the urbanization and modernization of his domain under the Metro Manila Development Authority as well.

?Not everyone knows that the seldom smiling BF has a heart of gold and is a good husband, loving father and very dependable. As his charming wife and Marikina Mayor Marides avers, to know Bayani is to love him,? says Ricky whose fondness of the Fernando couple is known far and wide.

In the segment ?Tesda Bida,? Michael Anthony Garcia of Pinoy Pop Superstar portrays the role of Tesda scholar. Watch ?Great Hair Day? and delight on the makeover performed on a boyish Maan Pintado; an ugly duckling turned into a swan.

Life and Style with Ricky Reyes is a production of ScriptoVision.

Ruffa and Ai

Many are able to heave a sigh of relief when they heard about Boy Abunda and Kris Aquino moving on to late-night time slot Monday to Friday, and Ruffa Gutierrez and box-office queen Ai Ai de las Alas taking their morning slot on ABS-CBN in a new talk show called Ruffa and Ai. The new show piloted last Monday, and unfortunately it hasn?t put competition scurrying for better content.

There has been a Boy-Kris fatigue for sometime already (refer to ratings figures of the Boy and Kris and Buzz?after Cristy Fermin was asked to leave and you?ll understand what I?m trying to tell you all), so the decision to ease them out of the show and move them at a time when everyone else is tucked and snoring to dreamland, is a wise decision until such time Gabby Lopez finds the guts to tell Charo Santos Concio to stop being too friendly with talents that do not deliver the figures the network wishes in order to put GMA-7 back to being second in Mega Manila. While the replacements are not as awesome to make the De Belen sisters (Gelli and Janice) and Carmina Villaroel in a panic mode, Ruffa and Ai Ai are a more welcome view (and sound) when we are having coffee and reading the day?s papers while the TV is on. Otherwise, with the use of the remote, we can easily surf the cable and find a show that doesn?t irritate our ears.

So, we will give Ruffa and Ai some time to adjust to this kind of stuff.

Matt says go Walker

Popular TV and movie star Matt Evans, an ABS-CBN and Kapamilya talent, is the latest endorser for Walker Underwear, one of the country?s pioneers in quality underwear. Matt is scheduled to have a series of mall shows in Metro Manila and selected provinces for this year.

Incidentally, Walker is having its month-long sale this month of February 2009. All you have to do is buy three Walker item of the same kind, and you will be given ONE Free Walker item of the same kind. Or you may want to buy three Walker item of different kind and you will be given one free Walker item of the lowest price.

This Walker promo is available at all Royal Duty Free, Metro Shoppers, Gaisano, Uniwide Department Store, Value Shop Total Department Store and other stores nationwide.