Robin called a ‘megalomaniac actor’ by ‘Totoy Bato’ writer.
by Mario Bautista
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TOTOY Bato" has ended and now it can be told. The GMA Creative Team refuses to work with Robin Padilla again. Viewers lambasted the way the show deteriorated towards its ending. If you’d read their comments on the internet, it boils down to one thing: it’s "pangit." It’s about boxing but it became a telefantasya as it ended. "Nagkaroon pa ng mga kulto, ano ba ‘yun?" said one viewer.
Suzette Doctolero, the show’s supposed head writer, wrote about her experience working with Robin.
"We need to explain our side kasi kami ang tinitira," she says. "Ayoko na sana magsalita pero ayoko ring akalain ng lahat na pakana ito ng creative. Truth be told ‘Totoy Bato’ is a very frustrating show for me."
She says Robin meddled with the scripts her team wrote. "Only weeks 1 to 4 and week 6 ang nagawa nang buong-buo at di pinakialaman. The rest were all Robin’s. Siya rin ang nagsusulat, nagdidirek, nag-e-edit, nasusunod sa lahat. We have scripts pero 10% lang ang sinusunod niya. Ninety percent were his. So most of the time, ‘pag nanonood ako, di ko alam ang nangyayari sa kuwento, pati scenes, ‘di ko kilala (maski production, walang magawa dahil alam nilang magwawala si Robin ‘pag ‘di siya sinunod). Kaya ‘di ko alam ang naging ending. Hindi namin alam lahat! Si Robin lang ang nakakaalam and his own crew (yes, may sarili siyang crew: may sarili siyang director na ‘di ko alam kung saan niya napulot, cameraman etc. – no, hindi sila part o empleyado ng GMA). Kaya pag grainy ang napapanood n’yo, at pabago-bago ang volume at madilim: in short, parang high school production, sila gumawa nun. Oo, TB ang first indie soap – Ha-ha-ha-ha. (Indie ganda!) Management cannot do anything also dahil palaging nagbabanta itong magwa-walk out sa show ‘pag ‘di siya sinunod. I can understand them, nakontrol ni Robin ang kuwento in such a way, na pag mawala siya, ‘di na tatayo ang show. In fairness, mautak siya. This, I am promising to myself: I will not work with him anymore. I hope my station will not get his services anymore. Isa siyang megalomaniac actor. Gusto niya siya lang ang bida. Gusto niya siya lang ang magaling. Hence, ang isang soap, na sa tingin ko, ay maganda nung simula, pagdating sa gitna hanggang dulo, ang pangit-pangit-pangit na! I’m sure makakarating ito sa kanya. I don’t care. He already knows my discontentment (‘yun ay kung sinabi na sa kanya ng manager niya ang mga masasakit na sinabi ko). He ruined a once promising good show. Sayang."
Wonder what Robin has to say about this. In effect, Suzette says na kaya pumangit ang show, dahil sa kanya.
(source, Malaya newspaper entertainment section, July, 9 2009)