Captain Barbell

First & foremost, the original Capt. Barbell already has an existing storyline which is already a very smart, very witty, and very interesting storyline of a skinny kid known as "Tengteng" who, whenever he lifts the mystic barbell given to him by a strange hermit, transforms into the muscle-bound hero known as Capt. Barbell. Only a few of the elements from the original storyline created by Mars Ravelo were altered and improved in the adaptation of the Bob Soler-Dolphy and Herbert Bautista-Edu Manzano movies of Captain Barbell. Among them was a funny emphasis on Tengteng's love interest, who, before knowing of Captain Barbell, was still in love with Tengteng, but when she met Capt. Barbell, immediately diverted her attention onto the muscle-bound hero. In addition, there is the dramatic contrast of Tengteng's skinny features with his alter-ego, the musclebound, evil-crushing Capt. Barbell. I am tempted to imagine that there is some kind of influence that has put Richard Gutierez on both roles because, if he plays only one role of either Tengteng or Capt. Barbell, he would have a very minor screen time. And of course, he wouldn't take a minor role. Even though, in my opinion, the Imaw the puppet in Encantadia is a better actor than he is. In this act of actor-worship committed by the producers of the show, they have destroyed the one element that has made Capt. Barbell unique among any other local superheroes, also eliminated the chances to make great story lines out of this comedic scenario that CB has with his skinny alter-ego Teng-teng.

In furtherance of what appears to be superstar-worship on the part of the producers, their version of Teng-teng is named in a seemingly pop idol nickname "Teng" whose only distinct feature apart from his Capt Barbell persona is a silly little facial scar. It borderlines itself to hilarious comedy that what hides another's secret identity is a lack of cosmetics that will take off facial blemishes. Maybe it is superstar-worship at work that the scar is made so small and the Teng-"look" so non-pathetic that it still qualifies as "teen flick protagonist look". I can imagine the actor telling the producers "Please, don't make me too ugly... I still want to look gwapo" If the producers only had some manner of artistic sense and less of that stereotype tacky-minded and narrow-minded factor, they should've cast people who indeed fit the roles of Tengteng and Captain Barbell; Maybe some skinny comedian like Pekto or Rainier Castillo for Tengteng, and they should've had auditions for bodybuilders who are fitting enough for the role and have the talent to act.

GROSS LACK OF ORIGINALITY A single afternoon episode of the radio drama CONDORILLA has MORE originality than the entire 2 or more weeks of the Capt. Barbell series since its start, up till the present episode. Each and every detail of the characters and incidents in the Captain Barbell series has been unmistakably similar to the sequences in the Superman movies (both in Smallville and in Superman the movie). Unmistakably similar to a point that it would be unbelievable to qualify it as something coincidental. The gross lack of originality that surrounds this project is so severe that one would jump to the conclusion that the show's pool of writers are a bunch of talentless hacks. Even the character's names are hilariously un-original; In the show, Cabtain Barbell's parents are named Capt. B and his wife, Mrs. B. Their enemy is simply known as General. And his henchman that killed Capt. B is Commander X (to make things worse, his appearance & costume design looks exactly like Peque Gallaga's "Batang X" which makes the character a grown-up version of Batang X). Are their writers so untalented that they can't even give decent believable character names? They all sound like characters from a laundry soap commercial.

Captain Barbell is laced with numerous ridiculous sequences too. Some of the heroes would face off against Robotic foot soldiers clearly armed with laser rifles yet, when they fight each other, they often end up resorting to mere fisticuff & martial arts. Instead of utilizing what already is an established and original storyline of a Pinoy superhero, the producers of the show tarnished that Pinoy superhero reputation by making their own version, which is a mere copycat of the obviously popular Superman storyline. Before Superman's parents would die, they sent their son to Earth via a space pod; before CB's parents died, they sent their son to present-day Earth via Time pod. Even though time pods travel through time, we see the time pod on the CB show zooming like a falling meteor, apparently traveling from outer space instead of from another time dimension.

The Captain Barbell TV series insults the reputation of the Filipino talent in the field of TV & movies. Instead of cleaning the reputation, it makes the local industry look worse. Sure, the masses may love it; their ratings may soar; but history will remember it to be an embarrassing project that makes the local industry look bad. These big production and network companies have the power to influence the taste of the masses. Look at ENCANTADIA. It was smart, refreshing and inventive, and it did not stop the masses from loving it.

Rarely do I give positive reactions to prime time soaps nowadays, and one of those lucky TV programs that gets some sort of praise is "Captain Barbell", the latest superhero soap to hit GMA prime time after the highly-embarrassing "Darna" (whose creators spawned another moronic fantasy soap opera entitled "Majika", but that is another article).

Surprisingly, the lead character of Teng is effectively portrayed by Richard Gutierrez, the current network's prime time superstar. This is in contrast to his previous work in "Sugo" wherein he plays enigmatic but uninteresting characters.

CB is the creation of the Philippines' top comic book creator Mars Ravelo, the same guy who made "Darna" and "Dyesebel". Captain Barbell's original story was about Tengteng, the urban poor boy who transforms into a superhero to save the day. CB's soap TV reincarnation gets a highly science-fictionalized face-lift by inserting various Marvel and DC Comics story lines into the picture; and this is where the show goes horribly wrong.

Firstly, it was perfectly obvious that certain story elements were shamelessly copied from well-known comic book/movie stories such as Superman, Spider-man, and even the time-traveling elements of the "Terminator" movies. The reason for this is that the writers probably thought that the kids who watch the show might relate to the story better if they find some of the story elements familiar; however, to us adults we find this laughable.

As the story goes along, we find ourselves immersed into the trials and tribulations of Clark... Er, Teng, the boy who would eventually become the country's greatest superhero. However, later on, as if adjusting to amazing powers were not enough, fate (or the writers) decided to add the stereotypical soap opera antagonist in the person of Sunshine Dizon, the greedy and jealous relative.

Afterwards, we root for the hero again as the writers use the characterizations to effectiveness. The entrance of wildly fun villains such as Rufa Mae Quinto make the story delightful to watch. This writing creativity, in turn , is contradictory to CB past enemies in the show such as Bubog (who is the Filipino version of a villainous Wolverine) and Adobe (who is an obvious amalgam of Absorbing Man and Colossus) who were stereotypical and tiring.

All in all, CB is a hit and miss show; sometimes it is effective and entertaining, most times it is tedious and laughable. So far, it is still in its enjoyable phase; and I'm still keeping my expectations low that it will get better anytime soon.

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And they are calling this as "The ORIGINAL Superhero"??? Who are they kidding. For those who've seen Smallville should know what I'm talking about. A lot of elements or should I say situation and characters are strangely copied from Smallville. Teng is obviously copied from Clark Kent's persona. His friends Kit and Ryan Yllana's character are what a reminisce of Chloe and Pete. Yup, I should say Kit is Chloe. Complete with the hidden feelings for Teng. And the intuitiveness of Chloe.. I guess it must be safe to say that she too have a "Wall of the Weirds" researching about some fragments or something... And that Leah, Teng's ultimate crush is no less than Lana Lang... Levi and Veil Villain (what a lousy name) are the Luthers. God, even the pilot strongly resembles Smallville. Well, I do hope that Warner Bros. should sue GMA networks for this... Original... Not...

This show should NOT be called Captain Barbel, it should be "Scream 2". The storyline of Scream 2 is about a COPY CAT of the killer, and that's what this show is: TENG IS A CHEAP Imitation OF CLARK KENT IN SMALLVILLE. The original story of Captain Barbel was interesting and enjoyable, but this one, well... this one is... just plain crap. The whole story that Mars Ravelo made become a pathetic imitation. The costumes are terrible. 1 million peso budget? Oh come on... its like five centavo! The script? God bless the writers and I hope someone with a mind-problem will get them for another show. The acting was descent, but the leading man was terrible, even Paris Hilton was far better than him.

If Mars Ravelo was still alive and if he is watching this show, he might didn't want his name to be credited, and thanks to GMA-7, the heart of crapness.

1/10 stars

SMALLVILLE-INSPIRED It was very disappointing that the series was nevertheless inspired by "Smallville". The original Filipino superhero was already dubbed as a "Smallville copycat". Smallville is Marravelos. Clark Kent is Teng. Kit is Chloe. Leah is Lana. Bobby is Pete. The Villains are the Luthers. Krypton is Askobar. VERY DISAPPOINTING in the sense that they changed the entire story and history of Captain Barbell. I was wondering why do they have to do that when in fact, CB has already its original premise, original story, original characters and villains. I wonder how Mars Ravelo would react if he was still alive.

FAKE-MUSCLES Another thing subject to criticism is the superhero's costume. It was hyped as being made by Miles Teves, a renowned Filipino-American costume maker in Hollywood. Teves is credited for the Batman, Spiderman, Robocop and Superman costumes. However, it is also disgusting. Richard Gutierrez has a very gorgeous hunky body and he would look more regal if he wears a body-hugging CB costume (like the original CBs did) His hyped "million-dollar" costume (according to press release) is disappointing. Who would love seeing CB battling with his foes with his fake muscles accentuated? Furthermore, the suit's yellow color irritates the audience.

RICHARD AS BOTH TENG & CB In previous incarnations, Teng and CB are two characters. Teng is often played by a skinny comedian and CB by a hunky Filipino actor. Obviously, for publicity reasons, the tradition was not followed. In this case, Richard plays both Teng and CB.

ON THE LIGHTER SIDE Despite all those issues and criticisms, CB has managed to soar high on Philippine TV by consistently topping the ratings. Setting aside the its Smallville plot, I myself enjoyed the run of the series. One thing commendable is the true-to-life acting of Camille Prats. This former-child star proved her acting prowess in the series. It can also be noted that Richard Gutierrez had improved his craft. This is his best performance as an actor as of the moment. Richard and Camille has undeniable chemistry as Teng and Kit and I was hoping that their characters would end up together. Newcomer Rhian Denise Ramos is promising. The supporting cast is powerhouse. The effects is awesome. The best super villain that made a cameo in the series for me is Aerobika, played by Rufa Mae Quinto. Her comic antics added excitement and humor to the show.