REVIEW: “A Family Affair” leaves viewers delighted, bewildered in finale episode | ABS-CBN

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REVIEW: “A Family Affair” leaves viewers delighted, bewildered in finale episode

REVIEW: “A Family Affair” leaves viewers delighted, bewildered in finale episode

Mary Ann Bardinas

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Just when we thought that we’re going to get a happily ever after for Cherry Red (Ivana Alawi) and the Estrella brothers in the “The End Is Red”’ finale episode of A Family Affair aired on Friday, November 4, viewers were indeed left in utter bewilderment because of its cliffhanger ending.

The delighting yet puzzling finale week

The final week of the series commenced with Cherry Red trying to live a brand-new life with her stepmom Everly (Ana Abad Santos) and daughter Malaya (Sienna Stevens) somewhere in Cebu. She might seem happy and have already moved on from the darkest phase of his life, but it was revealed in the latter scenes that she hadn’t yet.

Even though she was struggling to make ends meet, she remained adamant against seeking the help of the Estrellas in raising the kid. She also didn’t let Malaya have any inkling about them, until she saw Paco (Gerald Anderson) on the online news Tiyang Ebs was watching on her phone.

Unbeknown to Cherry, Paco hired a private investigator to help him locate them and he had successfully found them. Thus, Paco wasted no time and immediately went to where the three of them were residing. He didn’t just see the woman he had been looking for, but also a little girl who she fondly called “anak”. He came back the following day and had the chance to talk with Malaya, who astonished him with how she’s not only a spitting image of her mom, but even shared the same vivacious and candid personality as hers.

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Paco was indeed over the moon upon confirming that he and Cherry shares a daughter. He once again expressed how apologetic and regretful he is for everything that they’d done to her, with Everly advising him not to commit those mistakes again if he really wanted to get back to her. That night, he had the chance to meet Cherry again for the first time, which made her remember the traumas she had experienced and still trying to overcome.

Unfortunately, Cherry just quickly walked past him and went straight home to pack their bags and attempt to escape from Paco anew. But Tiyang Ebs stopped her and encouraged her to finally confront him this time.

She heeded to her advice and mustered the courage to confront Paco, but she’s still firm in not allowing Paco to return in her life or be in the life of their daughter Malaya. At the same time, she was also not keen to the idea of reuniting with his family, too. As she absolutely lost her trust on him, Cherry threatened Paco that she could kill him if ever he’s going to try take their daughter away from her.

The moment Cherry had been dreading for finally came when Malaya asked her out of the blue if she has a father, to which she replied that she would meet him at the right time. As Cherry was still indomitable to make amends with Paco, Tiyang Ebs reminded her of her dream of having a complete family and her definition of it, which is not hiding any secret.

Paco may be losing hope already, but Seb reminded him to go after her and fight for his love for her and their kid. After all, he deserves to be happy and be with the woman he loves, and at the same time lost in pursuit of protecting their family.

While working in their ranch, Seb was visited by Colleen’s (Rans Rifol) ghost. Cherry and Malaya then appeared all of a sudden, much to his delight and surprise, as well as of his brothers Dave (Sam Milby) and Drew (Jameson Blake). She might not have forgiven them absolutely, but it’s already more than enough for Dave. Paco’s aspiration to be recognized by Malaya as her father also finally came true as Cherry formally introduced him to her.

Cherry told Paco that they would not return to the mansion since Malaya still studies in Cebu and she’s yet to start her canteen there, too. While Paco was still hopeful to rekindle his romance with Cherry, she, on the other hand, was already in the moving on stage. As she told him to just do the same as she doesn’t love him anymore after everything that happened and the six years that they’d been separated. However, Paco wasn’t keen on simply letting go of her and expressed his willingness to wait for her until she’s ready to give their marriage another try.

And while we’re already fine with that kind of ending, we were certainly as mind-blown as Paco when he saw the content of the hard drive handed to him by one of their house helpers. It was the CCTV footage of Drew assaulting Cherry’s father Mang Panyong (Lito Pimentel) outside their mansion, which they believed caused his death.

But much to our horror, Mang Panyong wasn’t fatally hit by Drew as he was able to regain consciousness shortly after and even had the chance to speak with the Estrella patriarch Freddie (Edu Manzano), who came out of their house after hearing him yell his name. Despite getting injured and bloodied, he still mustered to tell him what his youngest, drug addict son just did to him and that he wouldn’t let himself die without telling Freddie the truth.

Freddie apparently got curious about it and brought him to his office, wherein Panyong conveyed that he already knew that he had a hand on his wife’s tragic demise and on the deceitful grabbing of their land. And just when we thought that it’s only the Estrellas who were keeping a secret, Panyong confessed that he also had one, which he confessed to Freddie by whispering it to him. The latter was totally enraged by what he just heard, which triggered him to choke him to death.

Rave comments from bewildered Twittizens

Since Panyong only whispered his confession to Freddie, netizens who were able to watch the finale episode turned to Twitter to express how bemused they are of what they had just seen and didn’t hear. While many were seemingly satisfied by what happened between Cherry and Estrella brothers, particularly Paco, but the puzzling and cliffhanger ending received mixed reactions, and even spawned to various theories on what Panyong’s deep, dark secret could be.

With how nakakabitin the ending was, many netizens are clamoring for A Family Affair to have a Book 2 or at least a special episode wherein all the answers to our questions about the finale will be laid and Dave and Drew are going to achieve the justice and happiness that they truly deserve. At the same time, there are other viewers who are just leaving it as it is since it’s rare for a teleserye to conclude that way.

Aside from the shocking and confusing finale, other things that we love about the entire series are the remarkable performances of the ensemble cast, especially its lead stars Ivana Alawi, Gerald Anderson, Sam Milby, Jake Ejercito, and Jameson Blake.

Ivana was able to prove that she is definitely more than just a pretty face and a sexy body for she is also a versatile actress. As much as we enjoyed seeing her comedic side in her vlogs and her lighthearted and romantic moments in the series, she also impressed us with her dramatic and antagonistic prowess that prove how truly promising she really is.

Seasoned actors Sam and Gerald were both able to astound us anew with their dramatic chops and their finesse in doing steamy scenes, which we have probably didn’t see in the previous roles they took on. Meanwhile, Jameson was able to further display his caliber as an actor through his laudable portrayal of a drug addict and depressed young man. Jake, on the other hand, is such a revelation in this series, as he’s able to amaze us, too, with his portrayal of his character.

The performances of other cast members shouldn’t be overlooked as well, for they were also able to compel us with the commendable talent they exhibited in this series. Despite their limited exposures veterans Edu Manzano, Lito Pimentel, and Lloyd Samartino, as well as young actresses Aya Fernandez, Heaven Peralejo, Claire Ruiz, and Rans Rifol made sure to make their appearances truly notable. Ana Abad Santos was also really effective in her portrayal of Tiyang Ebs who, from being a lasenggera became Cherry Red’s constant companion throughout her journey.

Of course, the success of this series isn’t only because of the actors’ performances, but also of the excellent execution of its directors Richard I. Arellano, Tak Barrios, Jerome C. Pobocan, and Raymund B. Ocampo; and the brilliant minds and creativity of its writers Rona Co, En Villasis, and Gena Tenaja.

Here are some of the rave comments and sweet commendations from Twittizens that we were able to spot:

Takeaways from the lives of Cherry Red and Estrella Brothers

Of course, in every story, there are lessons that could either change our view in life or support the principles that we already believe in. And A Family Affair is indeed not an exception.

Throughout its four month-run, it made us realize that secrets – regardless of the intention – have the tendency to destroy any relationship, just like what happened to Cherry Red and the Estrella Brothers. Besides, no secret can be hidden forever because the time will come that it’s going to be unraveled in a circumstance that we probably do not expect.

Furthermore, we are also the product of our choices, so we have to carefully ponder on the significant life decisions that are going to create a huge and lasting impact to our lives and those of the people around us. We must not only use either our heart or brain when it comes to decision-making because it’s better if we are going to take into consideration what our minds think and what our hearts feel.

The journey of Cherry also reminded us that while taking revenge is one of the ways that some of us want in order to attain justice or get even against the people who crossed us, it is not always what we need to achieve peace in our mind and heart. Sometimes, it’s forgiveness and acceptance that are going to set us free from the chains of pain and hatred. Regardless of the final scene, the reason why the finale is dubbed “The End Is Red” is probably because despite everything that happened, it’s their love for one another that still reigned in the end.

And true to its title, it didn’t just focus on its romantic arcs, but mostly to the Estrella family and the issues plaguing them and the people close to them. In one of his tweets, one of its writers En Villasis wrote: “We tried na ipakita hindi lamang ang good romantic side of the family but the toxic relationships that we had with our families and the corruption of ourselves because of it. Minsan, the choices we made for the sake of family ang siya pang sumisira sa atin.”

Lastly, everyone of us deserves a second chance in life. And once we’re given that second shot, we must use it wisely and made sure to not disappoint the person who gave it or ourselves, most importantly, by not committing the same mistakes or going back to our old ways. There must always be character development.

A Family Affair may have already ended, but this series would definitely go down as one of the best we’ve ever seen these 2020s. Congrats to the whole A Family Affair fam!

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