What a powerful comeback for the Primetime King – and the stars who established the storyline of FPJ’s Batang Quiapo. 

Coco Martin’s FPJ’s Batang Quiapo made a historic debut last night, February 13. Along with the huge crowds that gathered at Plaza Miranda for the live watch party with the cast, 341, 509 viewers simultaneously watched the episode on Kapamilya Online Live.

 

 

The live viewing and concert in Plaza Miranda, Manila is the biggest gathering for a teleserye since the pandemic. The event hosted by Eric Nicolas and Melai Cantiveros of PIE Channel barkada commenced at 3 pm with performances from guest artists. Onlookers had the chance to participate in the games and win prizes. 

 

 

A few moments before the telecast, Coco led the unveiling of the teleserye’s official poster. The ensemble cast came in full force. We spotted Cherry Pie Picache, Christopher de Leon, Lito Lapid, Pen Medina, Mercedes Cabral, Mark Lapid, McCoy de Leon, Lou Veloso, Ronnie Lazaro, Ryza Cenon, and that night’s most applauded, trending actress Miles Ocampo.  

 

 

Also present are cast members Toni Fowler, Norvin and Lovely dela Peña, Sarah Edwards, and more social media content creators, FlipTop stars, and rappers. 

ABS-CBN bosses Cory Vidanes and Lauren Dyogi came to support, along with Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna and Vice Mayor Yul Servo. 

In-between commercial breaks, a special gap show hosted by MJ Felipe aired from Plaza Miranda on Kapamilya Online Live. Toni Fowler, BigMak, and Renz “Baby Giant” Benzon appeared in the first chunk of gap shows, thanking Kapamilyas for their solid support and sharing what viewers can expect from their characters and their experiences as Coco’s on-cam talents.

 

 

The episode highlighted an intense acting sparring between Miles and Lara Quigaman, who played the younger Marites and Tindeng, respectively. So, it was just right that Miles opened the second gap show segment with Cherry Pie and Ryza. At that point, MJ proudly announced that Miles claimed the number one spot on Twitter’s local trending topics, alongside Coco’s name and the episode’s official hashtag. 

“Kinikilig po ako. Salamat! Na-miss ko po umarte, eh,” Miles bashfully reacts when asked about the praises she’s been receiving that night. MJ mentioned that onlookers at Plaza Miranda applauded Miles’ dramatic scene as a reluctant mom-to-be. And by the end of the telecast, she clinched a spot among Twitter’s worldwide trends. “Ang sarap sa pakiramdam na may mga taong nagtitiwala pa rin sa akin ngayon,” she says during the gap show.

 

 

Ryza also shared her experience acting again after giving birth, implying that it was a challenge and it felt surreal to be back in action. Meanwhile, Cherry Pie promised to match the amount of brilliance shown by Miles as her younger counterpart in the series.  

Coco closed the gap show to thank everyone who made FPJ’s Batang Quiapo pilot telecast a huge success. The actor-director emphasized their goal to create a masterpiece that can keep up with global productions, thus he was extra hands-on in the technicalities from color grading to camera movements. He even roamed around Quiapo by himself to observe life there. 

 

 

Coco didn’t forget to mention his mentor, Director Brillante Mendoza, saying his technique, which is raw and very cinematic for a teleserye, is a product of his years of experience in indie films. He guaranteed audiences would get nothing but quality entertainment. “Dugo’t pawis ang pinuhunan namin,” he smiled, adding that FPJ’s Batang Quiapo is on a big mission to brandish Filipino talent worldwide.   

In the maiden episode that drew loud cheers from the sea of watching people, Coco jumpstarts the action as Ramon in a bank heist scene in Quiapo with Olga (Ryza Cenon) as leaders of a seemingly powerful organization. Escaping the cops, Ramon infiltrates an urban neighborhood and sexually assaults Marites, resulting in her pregnancy and conflict in her relationship with Rigor (Ejay Falcon). 

Desperate to fix their relationship and forget her traumatic experience, Marites considers abortion, but is discouraged by her mother Tindeng in a deeply palpable dramatic confrontation. At the wet market where she sells fish, Marites gives birth and initially wanted to get rid of the baby until Olga, who seemingly plans to betray Ramon, attempts to run away with the newborn. This was the scene that Coco described as a major cry fest – Marites getting back her child and strongly embracing motherhood.

As narrated in the next episode’s teaser: “Isinilang na ang tagapagtanggol.”

Prepare for more action, drama, and good vibes in FPJ’s Batang Quiapo, weeknights, on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, and A2Z.