Well, in light of Benign0’s recent article about the “Pabebe” Girls and the reaction they’re garnering across the country, I come to wonder just what happened to the youths of today and what will become of the following generations. I’m not going to judge the children in the video. After all, as some of our commenters like to say, they are only children and probably aren’t aware of the implications of their actions. However, with the way some adults seem to approve and even encourage them in their activities, I can only wonder what happened to the idea that we Filipinos are supposed to be Christians. Worse yet, there are even celebrities who support their attitude as if implying that fame justifies everything.
All I can do now is sigh and wonder at what the youth is coming to. I think I have said before that the sight and sound of children playing in the empty lot beside my house are the inspiration for my wanting to write stories of my own. However, if the “Pabebe Girls” are what the media is encouraging our children to become, then I think it’s high time we made a stand against their promotion of immorality and decadence in our youths.
I remember Pope Francis mentioning that the power to dream is one of the forces responsible for a person’s development. That it is essentially one’s dreams that can turn him or her into a better person. Unfortunately, in the new 10s, it seems that the value of dreams has been all but forgotten. These days, most children come home in the afternoon or evening and are forced to watch nothing but programs that encourage having illicit relationships and are filled with characters who are utterly devoid of intelligence or empathy. Then, we wonder why our youths have nothing but sex, money or both in mind today. We have the gall to ponder why they lack the initiative to make themselves better people and are devoid of any motivation to work towards the common good.
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The MTRCB likes to go with the excuse that they took down anime and other animated programs because they supposedly promote violence, sexuality and stupidity. Well, I beg to differ however. Here are some of the shows of my youth and what they taught me:
Spider-Man: The Spider-Carnage Arc
Granted, I’m not a big fan of Spider-Man. I am and always will be a loyal follower of The Merc with the Mouth, The Regenerating Degenerate, The Plague of the Red Death, but I think I’m going beyond the point here…
Anyway, in this particular story arc, I remember seeing a flashback of Peter Parker and his Uncle Ben. In it, Ben Parker was teaching his young nephew to fish and, despite their best efforts together, the then young Spider-Man failed to catch anything. Of course, being a kid, young Peter cried and went on and on about the world not being fair. Ben simply smiled at his young nephew and told him that the world wasn’t supposed to be fair. That indeed, the world was unfair and there was nothing much that could be done about it except to be a good person nonetheless.
Later on, it was discussed by Spider-Man to Spider-Carnage (alternate-dimension, evil version of Peter Parker that was the villain of the piece) that being the victim of tragedy wasn’t an excuse to victimize others. That while the world may be cruel, that did not mean that everyone should be cruel too. At the end of it, Spider-Man, the Peter Parker that stayed true to his heart, proved that being a good guy in a bad world still meant a lot no matter how small he may seem in the grand scheme of things.
I have always thought that the problem with a lot of people in the Philippines is their absolute obsession with the victim card. Some people do the most horrible things and, when finally caught or called out, blame others for their actions even though they had an active hand in them. I think that good people (and no, in case you’re wondering, I DON’T think I’m one of them) are those who are essentially victims themselves but strive to do good for others even if no one else cares or are actively being antagonized.
Gintama: The Madao Episode
Well, forget Gin and his gang for a moment. And no, you can ask me what the hell that bird thingy beside Sura -I mean- Katsura is later. Let’s focus on Taizo “Madao” Hasegawa, the homeless guy with sunglasses.
Anyway, there was this one episode where he was adopted by a single mother and her son. Later on, Hasegawa discovers that the woman’s husband had once been a good man but, when they had hit hard times, had turned to alcoholism and eventually left or disappeared. It was clear that the man’s wife and son still loved him dearly but had lost hope in the idea that he would come back to them. In the meantime, Hasegawa replaced the man as the father of the household and later on found a new opportunity for work.
But then, during the job interview, he encountered the father of the household he had gone into and saw that he had changed and made something of himself. Feeling a sense of pity and knowing that he was neither the woman’s real husband nor the boy’s real father, he suddenly became violent, attacked the other applicants (except the man of course) and threatened the interviewers into hiring the only remaining applicant and then ran off. He had essentially sacrificed his own happy ending of having a job and a family so that other people (namely the man and his family) could have a happier one.
I think that thanks to our modern media today (especially teleseryes), we have been duped into thinking that we should all pursue our happy endings no matter the cost to others. Hasegawa’s act of self-sacrifice would probably seem alien to some people but I think that this is probably one of the reasons why Japanese seem like more mature people than Filipinos. I tend to think that happy endings that come at the cost of other people’s happiness can’t really be called “happy” at all and that one way we can discourage illicit affairs is by appealing to their consciences and not by making them appear sexy or cool in movies and TV shows.
Goof Troop: Series Wide
Who would’ve thought that good family values could be found in a cartoon show?
Anyway, with Goofy’s household I learned the value of accepting one’s family. Sure, Goofy isn’t exactly the perfect dad but he’s a father nonetheless. While it takes time for his son Max to understand and accept Goofy as his father, the boy later learns his father is probably the only family he has in the world and comes to love him nonetheless. I must admit that this does have personal connotations for me, as I too have a complicated relationship with my father as he is alcoholic and is, unfortunately, nowhere near as amusing as Goofy or as cunning as Pete. However, thanks in part to Goof Troop’s message about fatherhood, I’ve come to accept and at least respect him as my father.
As for Pete’s household, all I can say is that I think that you can find the meaning of being a good spouse in Peg, Pete’s wife and PJ’s mother. No, it’s not because your significant other is hot or because he or she is rich, it’s essentially because you’re good for each other. While I tend to think that Pete’s relationship with Peg can seem one-sided (in a varied number of interpretations) I still think of her as a good or even ideal wife because of the way she serves as a moral anchor for her otherwise conniving husband. A good spouse or partner is essentially the person who serves as your moral compass and vice versa, a best friend who’s more than just a friend as they know you at an intimate level. They’re there for you in times of need, prepared to do their part for your mutual benefit as should you, when they reach their limit or bottom. If we had more characters similar to Peg (regardless of them being male or female) in our own media rather than hypocritical Kris Aquinos, I can assume that more Filipinos would know what it means to be a good wife or husband.
For all the local media’s stance for family values, none of their shows really strike me as family friendly at all. Instead of catering to both children and adults, their shows always turn out to be too serious for children and too dumb for actual adults. At the end of it all, you get heavily cliched shows that might seem funny to less educated people but are actually quite tasteless and are usually just hinged on the emotions of the characters and not their motivations or methods.
Naruto: Series Wide
Asides from all the epic ninja skills, one of my clearest memories of the show was during the funeral of Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage (or ninja village leader). During his burial, the titular protagonist of the show discussed with one of his teachers the meaning of nation and community. It was there that it was revealed that Konoha, Naruto’s own village, drew its strength not from the great number of ninjas that live in it nor the powerful weapons and powers at their disposal. What truly makes them strong is their dedication to providing a bright future for the next generation of their village. And through it all, some of them fight, not just for personal gain, but for the chance to finally give their village as well as other villages the chance to live in peace.
Yeah, we like to call ourselves a nation. We like to think of ourselves as countrymen of the Philippines. Unfortunately, in action, we are more like a herd of frightened animals, coming together only for the purpose of safety in numbers. We gather in the hope that when calamity finally comes someone else will be the victim instead of us. We never use our numbers to our own advantage and create a coordinated strategy of mutual benefit. Instead, at the heart of it all, we are only for ourselves and our own. There is no room for anyone else and those who try to do what’s right, those who try to save others that are not related to them and those who take others into consideration instead of taking advantage of them are seen as fools and are ridiculed for all they’re worth.
Ladies and gentlemen, our media has essentially poisoned us with what is known as “bystander mentality”. It is the idea that some hero will always come along to solve the problem and that hero probably isn’t you. Essentially, when something bad happens, all they teach us to do is sit back and do nothing and, when nothing gets done, we blame the leaders who try to do something but whom we aren’t helping. Make no mistake, the anime might be entitled Naruto but it isn’t just about him. It is essentially a saga of warring nations and feuds between individual people seen through the young ninja’s eyes. And, while he may be the hero of the story after all, it was through the help of his family and friends that he manages to succeed against all odds.
Deadpool
Uh… Um… Wait…
Well… (Hmm… This is kinda tough…) What did I learn from Deadpool?
Aha! I know! CHIMICHANGAS!
That’s right, the world and especially the Philippines would be a better and happier place if more people just ate chimichangas, especially the Pabebe Girls themselves. Instead of running their mouths on Youtube, they should just film themselves eating chimichangas! Yeah, that’s right. They should just stuff their mouths with wad after wad of chimichangas instead of saying stupid things on social media.
I HAVE RETURNED TO LAY WASTE TO OUR ENEMIES!
Your nerdiness is showing Grimwald……
You might be disturbing the Force of others……. 😉
In other news …….
So what do you think of PewDiePie?
Hmm… What’s that?
there must be something more to life than watching someone play games as he rants along… say, like getting off youtube and then playing the game yourself?
You forgot to mention the likes of the Wild Thornberrys, Rugrats and what Nickelodeon used to air in the mid to late 90s. They may seem juvenile, but they’re a lot more moving and insightful than the regressive nonsense ABS-CBN, GMA and TV5 spoon-feeds into the youth these days.
Don’t worry, I’ll be adding more in another article or perhaps my “Alternate Media” ideas…
Alright, I’ll look forward to it then. Not to sound pushy, but could this be just as interesting enough to interpolate into a GRP article, especially in light of the recent issues with youths?
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/may/23/i-spent-most-of-my-life-as-a-nobody-the-last-of-the-silent-movie-stars
Avatar TLA & LOK were both AWESOME! When my both nephew and niece a re old enough, we will watch the together. I want them to get inspired learning the art of bending, I mean martial arts.
Don’t forget Hey Arnold! Unlike the other Nickelodeon shows, that one seems so “mature” for a kid’s cartoon.
Agreed. I also recommend watching My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. The show may be intended for “little girls” but the writing, humor and characters are way way way better than some shows *cough*spongebob*cough*.
Try to watch idiocracy if you want to have an idea on where we are heading.
Why dont they jsut put back sineskwela, mathinik and other educational shows instead of those shitty programs.
Back in my days learning was easy since it was fun
Besides Sesame Street for that matter. 😉
Speaking of anime, I may be biased, but JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure should be on the list and not just Naruto.
And Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works, IMO.
Those examples require the audience a lot of secondhand knowledge to make sense of the plots. Hardly accessible to the casual viewer.
Might I also suggest some of my own anime favorites because of the depth of the plot and character development:
1. Fate/Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works
2. Fate/Zero
3. Darker than Black (Seasons 1 and 2 and the OVAs)
4. Shadow Skill
5. Fate/Stay Night
6. Tokyo Ghoul
7. Tokyo Ghoul: Re
8. Letter Bee (Seasons 1 and 2)
9. Shingetsuhan Tsukihime
10. Brave Story
12. Princess Mononoke
13. Samurai X/Ruroni Kenshin
14. Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood
They’re all worth checking out.
Too bad I haven’t see most of them, but put a long list. I’ve seen:
Puella Magi Madoka Magica (THE BEST SO FAR IVE SEEN)
Attack on Titan(one of the best)
Parasyte (very good)
Hetalia
Taisho Baseball Girls
Kuroko’s Basketball
Hajime no Ippo latest season
Psycho-Pass 1 & 2
Zettai Karen girls
Moshidora
Gintama
And non-anime yet best Nickelodeon cartoon:
Avatar TLA & LOK
ang mga bakla prinopromote ang kawalang value, writers of noontime shows and illicit relationship movies are created by gays..
I’m not against LGBTs, I admired Harvey Milk and Alan Turing for their contributions.
But if they don’t come up with good innovative ideas to their shows and not those rinse and repeat, one-genre one-dimensional piece of shit they’re having, the whole LGBT media will feel our wrath.
They better not underestimate the non-media viewers.
Besides Sophie Wilson who was one of the principal architects for the ARM architecture, and is, as you guessed it, transgender.
And yes, it is way better for people to look up to those LGBTs who have done noble things to society, rather than those who have done nothing but to further the negative stereotypes being used to disparage them.
I count myself as one of the fortunate kids who were able to experience FEN-PH (Far East Network, Philippines). But besides that, i grew up in the late 80s/early 90s. I saw what was broadcasted back then, and i’ll give the highlights.
ABS had cartoons in the afternoon. Yes, Voltes V and Bioman were on. I was first disappointed when they broadcasted Shaider, which was in tagalog, because i had a hard time understanding tagalog back then (english/ilocano was our primary tongue at home). And oh who could not forget friday nights when Ghostbusters (later x-men) was shown! I found it weird though why baywatch came after.
GMA also showed cartoons, and it was the primary window to western media besides FEN. They showed Sesame Street, Knight Rider, The A-Team and most of the 80’s greatest hits.
RPN-9 had Macgyver. That was enough to influence a huge number of our generation and foster ingenuity and the awesomness of science. They also had batibot on, which i admit i rarely watched. They also showed a handful of animes and good cartoons early-mid nineties, from thundersub to dragonball to ranma 1/2 (being the most notorious anime aired because some scenes were left uncut). Their primetime shows were one of the best blocks during the time, showcasing the x-files, star trek:tng and the like. Oh, and “The Joy of Painting” on afternoons while other stations had “variety shows”, hence, i dont need youtube to tell me who Bob Ross is.
TV5 was cool when it was still ABC5. Quantum Leap, Wrestling, and of course, yaiba and sailor moon.
PTV had nothing on but basketball… EXCEPT that they showed Star trek:deep space nine. Really.
IBC-13 naman had a lot of good animes. Who do you think first showed yuyu hakusho? I still would kill for videotapes of the dubbed super boink/boorin and the local dubbed sdf macross (english – not the harmony gold robotech chop suey). All re-runs of Voltes V, Daimos and super sentai shows were here. Classic shows – if you knew what a smurf was before 2000, and you know who rin-tin-tin is, raise your hand.
Philippine local TV was once awesome. It was once had variety, and served a good deal of educating media. then RPN-9 had to go on and air marimar, which blew everything away.
To be fair, the old telenovelas were really good. But it slowly became so stale when the local producers used the same formula over and over again for the next decade.
The shows in the 90s were so good, so varied, di mo alam kung ano uunahin mo. It’s very different today.
And I conclude, please bring back Kamen Rider.
Wait. MTRCB Took down Anime bcoz “took down anime and other animated programs because they supposedly promote violence, sexuality and stupidity”? So… Telenovelas about having infidelity, sex, lies and guns (trust me, every pinoy telenovela had a villain point a gun against a bida) are not violent, sexual and stupid? When anime promotes ideals in a creative way? Hmmm…
MTRCB is jealous and pussy enough what Japan is offering to the audience. MTRCB is not good enough to compete against the giants of US and Japan TV shows.
speaking of Japan, Maria Ozawa was here for her upcoming film which is an official entry to this year’s MMFF. I wonder how will MTRCB gonna rate her movie? Will it be Rated x? :\
If the Failippines watches three stupid “telenovelas” in a row, Failipinos should be declared legally dead.
R.I.P. PH TV and movies. The glory days are long over. I welcome death.
I welcome cable, DVD piracy and internet streaming.
You manchildren thinking your chinese and ‘murrikan cartoons are the gifts of the gods. Why don’t you read real books instead of this childish crap?
Unfortunately, even those are rarely read around here…
Seriously, even Pinoys who read books are either reading 50 Shades of Grey or raunchy pocket books. I’m betting that the vast majority of them can’t even be bothered to read anything informative. When people pick-up newspapers in the Philippines, they either just use it as a cheap wrapper for something or because they think the woman on the front page is sexy.
So yeah, I’d rather be a manchild (who knows what’s really important and what’s actually going on) than a person who THINKS their mature but has the mental capacity of a 12-year-old.
I’d rather snuggle a doll or two than be subjected to whatever nonsense the mainstream tries to spoon-feed into the populace, too.
It must be Japanese instead of Chinese.
Animation can also awaken someone’s imagination and encourage one to be critical and analytical like reading sci-fi and political/war novels. My old favorite is Dragon Ball Z. When I was watching it with my bros I thought everything in it is so cool. Kinten cloud, magic beans, stretch stick, androids, flying cars, Capsule Corporation and its technology, and of course the endless power upgrade of the heroes. I just recently saw capsule-like trailers and this new tiny house technology called Ecocapsule home and I was reminded of the Capsule Corp headquarters and their round spacecrafts and that capsule houses enclosed in a little capsule that they can carry around. I especially like Bulma because other than being cute, she has strong character being (Vegeta’s wife!) a scientist, pilot, mechanic and the one leading the group in searching for Dragon Balls using the dragon radar she designed and invented herself. I already saw great animé recommendations but I noticed it mostly involved arms and physical battles. In addition I’ll also recommend the ones’s involving aspiration, art, music, science and technology, psychology, philosophy, hard work, work ethics, analysis and tactics, nature and culture…
Barakamon, Bakuman, Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad, Slam Dunk, Haikyuu, Tonari no Seki-kun, Cooking Master Boy, Initial D, Hayao Miyazaki movies, Capeta, Eyeshield 21, Pokémon
Death Note, Serial Experiments Lain, Planetes, Detective Conan, Last Exile, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Sakura Wars, Ghost in the Shell, Steins;Gate, Animatrix, Code Geass, GTO, Assassination Classroom, Death Parade and Arslan Zenki.
Has anybody here heard of the animé “Gangsta”?
If you already think it’s all childish crap well before viewing one, then nothing anyone will say to the contrary here will convince you to think of the best animation and comic books as sources of information, opinion, and perspective as illuminating as the well-thought printed word — which is a pity, really.
Oh, man the defensiveness. I thought this was Get REAL Philippines, not Get Delusional Phil. Wishing yourself in an imaginary world full of flying cars and magic is just as bad as the “unwashed masses” watching those telenovelas and wishing they were part of the 1%. Live life by the horns. Life is short. Don’t waste your time on what is ultimately escapist entertainment.
in a lot of ways flying cars and non-pinoy escapist entertainment show the human condition more factually than, say, “realistic” media reports and the like.
😉
“Wishing yourself in an imaginary world full of flying cars and magic”
Is this all what you think it is?
Personally, I would recommend animation in place of teleseryes since it never encourage gossips and provides both entertainment and learning. Also, the Japanese creators are not like Pinoy teleserye writers and creators for they are not satisfied with mere crap or producing something just to earn money. Be it an animation with perverts, big-chested women or peek-a-boo lingerie, you’ll still find something worth discussing and it still points to communicating necessary information. It has a message to deliver other than sex and romance and it is also a form of art in motion (what animation are you watching anyway? Perhaps we can discuss it here). But then it’s really up to the Filipino viewers what they will focus on but if one does explore the ideas behind the stories, in the same way he does with the book he is reading, this could stretch his mind and obtain a new point of view that may break his appreciation of a damaged culture including his own mediocrity.
“Oh man, the defensiveness.”
I’m more irked than defensive, really, for here you are with your nostrums when evidently you don’t watch berating me for having a different opinion because fuck it I actually watch all the shit you’re shitting on and think, “Shit’s pretty good.”
“… Wishing yourself in an imaginary world full of flying cars and magic…”
— because of course imaginary worlds full of flying cars and magic or anything that doesn’t exist here with us can’t be used to reflect on the world we live in.
“Don’t waste your time on what is ultimately escapist entertainment.”
If I give you a few titles, will you watch them? Let’s see how open-minded you are.
a simple explanation is that it just so happens that most grp goers seem to be anime fans.
anime fans tend to be defensive because most pinoys view them as “batang isip”. My advice to you guys, let it slide. No sense in reasoning with people who think they are more “evolved” just because they read books, are indie films junkies or watch teleseryes.
The thing is (as grimwald has pointed time and again) that most pinoys dont really know what maturity is. You could be an avid anime watcher at the same time a really responsible parent, just as you can be a hardcore gamer who has a social life. The stereotypes we see in film and print everyday have almost subconsciously dampened the definition of “grown up” and instead uses the hasty generalizations that “cartoons are for kids” and “real men dont watch kenkoy shit”.
Grow up, people. And to those people who try to promote reading by letting others feel that their form of entertainment is inferior to yours, please dont do that. You only strengthen the idea that more knowledge absorbed turns you into a sanctimonious prick.
Let’s all play nice shall we?
Well done there, T…
If that means I’m a “sanctimonius prick” for calling you children out of your moving drawing fantasy shows then so be it.
Address real issues using real media. Bashing one shitty medium while glorifying another shitty one is rather hypocritical don’t you think?
Then by all means, enlighten us with your selection.
I’m open to suggestions. Are you?
I read mostly scientific journals such as Nature and reports and treatises from reputable sources. All of this may be above the heads of those who revel in masturbatory fiction to get their “intelligentsia” fix.
However, society needs many elements to function, not just scientific journals and treaties. T is right, we have a right to love and enjoy what we want. However, we ALSO need to return to reality.
What I am stating here is that local media has no “pabaon” so to speak when its viewers return to reality. In fact, it convinces them that it IS reality.
science articles are an essential part of my daily dose of information. But rather than reading it – i consume it via podcasts, usually during my daily run/workout. See? there’s another alternative on how to absorb information rather than watching tv or reading books.
Surprised…no love for adventure time?
It’s fairly new so I haven’t gotten around to seeing a lot of it yet…
I’ve generally loved adventure time. The creative team behind the show were able to show something of substance in a 11 – 12 minutes, children show. It was once shown on TV5, not sure today though.
One episode that got me hooked in the series is “Ocarina”.
Adventure time is entertaining… but its better in English than Tagalog. More emotion, better jokes and it gives the people to LEARN ENGLISH.
On the subject of mature cartoons, I present to you, Rick and Morty. Story about a boy and his alcoholic mad scientist grandfather as they get into weird adventures.
pity the guy who, sometimes, do not wish that he is in a magical place…and at least for a brief period of time be free of the worldly worries and burdens…
Ironic. In pursuing “white-washed” television, they completely miss the smut currently on the air. In primetime no less. Which no doubt they consider to be “quality”.
If they really want “non-animated” thanks to the old stereotype of “Animated = for kids”, they should really bring back Tokutatsu shows such as Kamen Rider and Sentai shows. They have lessons to teach, have action to be entertaining, and have interesting characters that beat 90% of the Teleserye being shown today.
Eh, I feel that Toku suffers from noontime drama syndrome in between the cool fights now and then. Count the number of times the MC has to deal with his love interest in the most soap way possible.
True. But still a solid upgrade compared to what’s airing right now.
Imagine some animations such as Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Aeon Flux, Boondock Saints, South Park in the afternoon block then TV will be interesting.
Here’s a quote to ponder on:
“The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.” – Albert Einstein
?