Blog Post: Two

Mabuhay, or “welcome,” to my second blog post! Since my last entry, I have diligently watched and completed my telenovela, Bridges of Love. To give you an overview about the characters and storyline, the show begins with two orphan brothers who initially ran away from their abusive, alcoholic father. Unfortunately, they are separated by a tragic bridge collapse - the older brother, Gabriel “Gael” Nakpil, believes his brother is dead while the younger brother, JR Nakpil, actually survived the fall, was adopted by his father’s ex-best friend and successful business mogul, and changed his name to Carlos Antonio. Already with this situation established in the first three episodes, the audience follows along their lives: one who lives in a poor socioeconomic status yet works hard on his dream to become a successful architect, while the other is able to experience the luxuries of life and yet carries anger and bitterness from his past. It seems that their lives would never cross again...

Although these brothers are separated, the female lead of the show - Mia Sandoval, initially a strip club dancer who finds success as an up-and-coming jewelry designer - brings them both together through her love for each person. Neither one of three know that Gael and JR/Carlos are actually blood brother throughout the majority of the show, and this is only one of the elements of the show that creates tension. Other factors which build the drama include: a spurned lover who, after being tricked to betray her husband by Carlos, is after revenge on the Antonio family and company by using inside information from her marriage to Carlos’ adopted father to blackmail other characters; the Nakpil brothers’ parents have their own conflict with President Antonio that lasted since before the brothers were born; a female colleague who holds unrequited love for Gael and destroys his and Mia’s long-distance relationship while Gael is held prisoner after an architectural project in Saudi Arabia; Carlos and Mia’s friendship and business partnership turned romantic couple; and many close instances when the truth of the Nakpil’s brotherhood were nearly revealed before the end of the series.

About the characters and their archetypes...

The character in Bridges of Love who most closely fits the “Evil Mother-in-Law” archetype is Alexa, the woman who was first scorned by Carlos and later marries his father and becomes his stepmother. Although she engages in questionable actions throughout the teleserye (the Tagalog/Filipino word for telenovela), such as marrying her lover’s father, changing the Antonio’s business transactions to reflect illegal activity that wasn’t there in the first place, and manipulating Gael, Mia, and Carlos’ schedule so hope that grudges and jealousy would arise, I still felt pity for her as part of the audience because I could understand where she was coming from (SIDENOTE: they did not mention her age, and I know there’s the saying “age is just a number,” but just think if your *slightly* older significant other gets in a relationship with one of your parents…). When we experience betrayal, I think it’s natural to experience emotions of sadness and wanting to get justice for the wrongs committed against you; it’s just that in Alexa’s case, she took her plans for revenge onto another level.

From first glance, the female lead, Mia, does have the elements of the “Cinderella” archetype; she’s poor, beautiful, and pure despite her nighttime profession as a club dancer. She overcomes socio-economic hardships through help from connections. However, she is not completely naive. She carries herself with dignity and is not easily swayed by money as a means to “buy” someone’s affection. There is also the “sexy” side to her, similar to the lead in Todos Quieren con Marilyn, when they show shots of Mia dancing in the club with sparkling outfits except that she has chosen for herself not to have sex until she is married. 

Gael was the first man in Mia’s life and in the show to court her, and while he does not fit the “prince” archetype coming from a poor family himself - he is hardworking and determined; he continues his schooling to achieve his dream to be an architect; he is aware of his surroundings; Gael is presented as the man with high morals and rarely makes mistakes - he perseveres in his courting towards Mia, even when she rejects him multiple times in the beginning because of her abandonment fears from childhood. In this relationship and with Gael’s help from his employer, she is able to pay off her debt from her father’s medical expenses. Ironically, it was Gael’s employer’s deal to help them with the debt if Gael worked in Saudi Arabia for a few years that ultimately ended their romantic relationship since during Gael’s wrongful imprisonment, his colleague impersonated him and “ended” his relationship with Mia via Facebook. For me personally, I thought they were both their best selves when they were together; they were able to help the other overcome their personal obstacles as a couple. It was the lack of communication when Gael was abroad that lead to their breakup…

On the other hand, Mia’s relationship with Carlos began when he was about to “sell” her to one of his business partners so that she could repay another set of unexpected hospital bills, and although he did not decide to follow through the with the transaction, it felt like their romantic relationship continued to worsen when Gael works in the Antonio Company as their lead architect on a prominent project of a national bridge. As the intellectual “prince” who rescues Mia from her economic hardships, Carlos is able to be her saving grace, but he accomplishes that through hidden tactics - bribing other people like Mia’s potential employer with large sums of money so that they wouldn’t help her. As his girlfriend, Mia nearly serves as Carlos’ mother and therapist, two roles which can be a burden for anyone in a relationship. On top of Carlos’ jealousy, insecurity, and many drunken nights, she is forced to deal with Carlos’ unpredictable change in emotions and paranoia as he tries his hardest to keep Gael and Mia apart by carefully monitoring her activities, assigning bodyguards to her at all times, and almost forcing her to have sex with him, a scene which carries undertones of possible harassment. While does redeem himself successfully in Mia’s eyes to the point that they become a couple again, I’m *slightly* frustrated with how events turned out in the end of the telenovela. 

My personal frustrations with the ending (BUT the show’s redemptive qualities)...

We briefly talked about music as a tool to develop romantic attraction, and when I learned that, I paid more attention to that element in my telenovela. Nearly every time Gael and Mia were together, their theme song, the title translated loosely to “you are right for me,” would play on the screen complete with slow-motion action so that the audience could appreciate the moment on-screen. Personally, I thought that the song title and lyrics “I won’t forget you” foreshadowed that Gael and Mia would marry each other at the conclusion of the show. Instead, Gael ends up marrying his lawyer who helped him win against the Antonio’s unjust litigious case towards him, and Mia and Carlos are a couple again after they take a break when Mia was in the United States briefly for work. 

Despite not seeing my favorite characters end up together, the telenovela did develop the theme of forgiveness and redemption within family. However, I felt like not having the ending I wanted is a reflection of real life, how sometimes people are put in your own life to help your personal growth. The novela used a modification of the Cinderella model to convey these themes, and audiences were able to increase their awareness about life through the entertainment provided by the love triangle.

Till next week...