After Sino ang May Sala? Mea Culpa ended, ABS-CBN offers another suspense-thriller / mystery drama series, The Killer Bride. The drama series tackles about family feud, siblings rivalry, and scandals.
The plot of the series revolves around Camila dela Torre, portrayed by Maja Salvador, who fell in love with a man from an enemy clan, Vito dela Cuestas.
The Dela Torre and Dela Cuesta clans have been mortal enemies since the death of Belinda dela Torre. Alledgedly, some members of the Dela Cuesta clan raped Belinda and covered it up to make it look like a suicide.
To make the long story short, Camila dela Torre and Vito dela Cuesta is a forbidden love affair.
Now that we have given you some background about the pilot episode, here are some of our comments:
1. Romeo and Juliet
One thing we noticed about The Killer Bride is its similarity with Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. There’s nothing wrong about that as long as you give it another look and feel.
Even James Cameron’s The Titanic was inspired by Shakespeare’s masterpiece.
2. Mexican Telenovela
The cinematography and the wardrobes look like you’re watching a Mexican Telenovela. In the pilot episode of The Killer Bride, the viewers have seen impressive shots. It was like you’re watching a film created for television.
3. Casting
The cast of The Killer Bride includes Maja Salvador, Geoff Eigenmann, Cris Villanueva, James Blanco, Precious Lara Quigaman-Alcaraz, Joshua Garcia, and Janella Salvador, with the special participation of Dominic Ochoa and Eddie Gutierrez.
Most of the actors are versatile and respected in the Philippine film and television industry. However, the cast didn’t blend well as most of them wanted to take the spotlight.
On the first episode, I was only impressed by Maja Salvador, Lara Quigaman, and Eddie Gutierrez.
4. Full of ‘Sigawan’
Just a heads up, when you want to watch this show, remember to turn down the volume of your television as there’s a lot of shouting scenes.
“Bakit hindi na lang kayo magtabi-tabi?” that was what I said when I watched the first episode. When did shouting became the standard of acting nowadays?
5. Hiraya Manawari / Bayani
I also found the narration part to be quite disappointing. It feels like you’re watching the defunct shows from a long time ago, Hiraya Manawari and Bayani.
6. A Rip-Off of GMA’s Hanggang sa Dulo ng Buhay Ko?
No. It’s quite different than Hanggang sa Dulo ng Buhay Ko. I only managed to watch the first three episodes of Hanggang sa Dulo ng Buhay Ko since GMA only uploads the first 3 episodes of their ongoing TV series on YouTube.
I would say that I was hooked and actually wanting for more but I couldn’t watch an afternoon series due to its schedule.
The style of Hanggang sa Dulo ng Buhay Ko is quite similar to the American Soap Opera Dark Shadows while The Killer Bride is like a Mexican Telenovela. I also found some similarities between The Killer Bride and GMA’s La Vendetta.
7. Marcella
Another thing I noticed is the mental blackout of Maja Salvador’s character. It’s quite similar to the blackouts of the main character in Marcella on Netflix.
You lost consciousness and when you wake up, VOILA!, you’re a murderer!
Camila’s Waking Up Scene was shown twice in the pilot episode. The first one was during the Prologue and the second one was at the episode’s ending.
You will notice in the prologue that she woke up with no blood on her dress and she wasn’t holding a knife or something. Then the narrator said, “At ito ang kwento ng kanyang buhay at kamatayan.”
At the ending part, same scene but she has blood all over her and a knife on her hands.
Well, it’s Pinoy Soap Opera after all. She’s innocent and she was just framed by her uncle who wanted to take revenge on the Dela Cuestas. LOL (I may be wrong too, but still she’s innocent.)
8. Script
Despite its ensemble cast, the show’s greatest downfall is its ridiculously written script. The first episode is usually the most crucial part of the series but they failed to introduce the characters well.
Apart from the characters, the writer wrote too much of coincidences. Like when Eddie Gutierrez and Cris Villanueva were talking about Camila, then Camila was actually IN THE SCENE. Wow Man!
Another coincidence scene was when Camila was trying to save a poor woman from getting raped by Dominic Ochoa. (I’m sorry I kept saying the actor’s name since these weren’t well established in the script.) Geoff and Camila were holding hands when James Blanco arrived the scene. WOW MAN!
The timeline of the story wasn’t also shown in the first episode but as a viewer, you’ll assume that this is in the 1920s to 1970s – the era of Hacienderos riding horses.
Then suddenly… there’s a cell phone? (Well, sabi ng producer: kailangan maipasok ang Sun Cellular endorsement. LOL)
There’s a car but you chose to run?
And go to your stable to get your horse? Fuck Logic.
Conclusion
Superb cinematography, the editing is great, actors acted well, but what this series is lacking is a good script.
It’s 2019 but the concept is still pang-Pocketbook material.
Will I watch the second episode? Honestly, no, it’s not my cup of tea. I would rather watch on Netflix over this.
