Anna Marie Lukban

Fighting spirit, respect, positivity and the qualities that defined Michael and Emilio as a duo in “PBB Collab”

Article (news)

Liezel Dela Cruz

In the Gen Z lexicon, being a “green flag” means showing all the right qualities, such as kindness, maturity, and just an overall good vibe. And as viewers of &quot;<a href="http://abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/pinoy-big-brother-collab">Pinoy Big Brother Celebrity Collab Edition</a>&quot; noticed, ex-housemates Michael Sager and Emilio Daez perfectly embodied  “green flag” energy. So when <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/2025/4/26/day-49-michael-and-emilio-evicted-from-kuya-house-pbb-collab-1949">Team MiLi stepped out of the PBB house</a> last Saturday, April 26, it’s no surprise that many fans were heartbroken. But more than the sadness, it also became a moment to celebrate and look back at all the ways Michael and Emilio proved that they are Big Winners in their own right. One of the standout &quot;green flag&quot; qualities Michael and Emilio embodied throughout their PBB journey was their unwavering positivity. On eviction night, when Team MiLi and another nominated duo were asked to head to the dreaded eviction room, Emilio chose not to say goodbye to their fellow housemates as he believed that he and Michael would be stepping back inside.Yet, as they exited the living room, Emilio confessed to feeling a wave of unfamiliar anxiety, as if somewhere deep down, he sensed that their time might be up. Still, when the announcement came, he faced it with acceptance. He and Michael had long agreed that no matter the outcome, they would give nothing less than their best. And in Emilio’s words, &quot;Sometimes your best isn&#x27;t enough. But that doesn&#x27;t mean you failed. It&#x27;s just another step to success.&quot;Michael clung to his partner&#x27;s fierce positivity too. After all, they had done enough to stay, stepping up during their last task inside the house, where Emilio was one of the leaders. But once they entered the eviction room, Michael also started to feel that maybe this was really the end of their PBB journey. He got emotional as all the memories from his almost 50-day stay inside the house came flashing back. It helped a lot that he had Emilio beside him during that emotional moment. Emilio’s calmness became his source of comfort.Emotions hit Michael even harder when they were officially back in the outside world. Seeing the overwhelming support from fans, especially when he spotted the placards bearing their tandem name &quot;MiLi,&quot;moved him in ways he didn&#x27;t expect. He had no idea just how strong the support for him and Emilio had grown outside the house. Until now, Michael admits he’s still overwhelmed by the outpouring of love from the public. If he could, he says he would hug every single supporter. But he hopes that something as simple as liking fans&#x27; comments online is enough to let them know that he, and Emilio, are deeply grateful.Michael&#x27;s eviction was also his third time being nominated, and understandably, he felt frustrated along the way. Each nomination left him quietly longing for more appreciation from his fellow housemates, &quot;Minsan we just need a pat on the back, kumbaga. Minsan gusto ko lang maramdaman &#x27;yung kaunting pagmamahal.&quot; But even then, he chose to turn the experience into a lesson. &quot;When you give love, you don&#x27;t expect—you just accept. Accept that you might not get anything in return. That doesn&#x27;t define you, but it defines the people around you.&quot;He continued, &quot;At the end of the day, just do good. Just spread love.&quot; By the third nomination, instead of losing heart, Michael used it as motivation to prove to his housemates what he was truly capable of.Sharing the same strong, focused mindset, Michael and Emilio made such a perfect duo. As soon as they realized they might be spending their final week in Bahay Ni Kuya, they made a silent pact to give it their absolute best. And they did. Before leaving the competition, <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/2025/4/26/day-49-housemates-nakuha-ang-buong-weekly-budget-pbb-collab-2006">Team MiLi secured a 100% weekly budget for their co-housemates after they stepped up in and successfully completed the &#x27;bottle flip&#x27; task</a>, which seemed like one last gift of love and hard work for their friends. Both of them are competitive, determined, and natural fighters. But they also carry a deep sense of respect and emotional intelligence. They know when to pull back, especially when they see how their competitiveness might affect the group dynamic in a negative way. But when it&#x27;s time to step up, these two will never hold back.&quot;Me and Emilio, lalaban kami. I&#x27;m sorry, but we will fight,&quot; Michael smiled. &quot;Siguro we adjusted it accordingly na lang to be respectful because we believe that the value of being respectful is the number one thing we should prioritize.&quot;Viewers also couldn&#x27;t help but notice another beautiful thing about Michael, which is that &#x27;words of affirmation&#x27; is his love language. He would consistently lift up his fellow housemates with simple but sincere compliments. When asked why he was naturally that way, Michael shyly smiled, saying that&#x27;s how humans are supposed to be. &quot;As much as we see the good in someone, why not tell them? A small comment like that can make someone smile, and if I could do it, why not?&quot; He added, &quot;At the end of the day, it&#x27;s really one of my values to just spread positivity.&quot;During their guesting on Kapamilya Chat, MiLi also looked back at their very first night inside Big Brother’s house. Emilio laughed as he remembered how excited River Joseph was when he walked in. Maybe you’ve seen the clip where <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/2025/4/1/day-24-housemates-makilala-kaya-sina-emilio-at-vince-pbb-collab-2335">River got so hyper when he guessed that Emilio was the new housemate</a>. &quot;He ran up to me and I also ran up to him. We just gave each other the biggest hug,&quot; shared Emilio, calling River one of his closest friends in the industry, and one of the most genuine, too. And he&#x27;s glad that people are seeing how good of a guy River is, &quot;I&#x27;m so happy that this platform of PBB has allowed the whole Kapamilya and Kapuso [audience] to see that personality that I&#x27;ve so graciously experienced from River.&quot;For Michael, stepping into the PBB house for the first time felt almost surreal. He recalls that the first person he approached was Ashley Ortega. He was just so excited to see both Kapuso and Kapamilya housemates under one roof. Everything about the experience felt dreamlike, and a full-circle moment.Fun fact: His father auditioned for “Pinoy Big Brother Season 2” but didn’t make it. Michael himself had tried his luck in one of the teen editions years ago but also fell short. So when the opportunity came again through the current celebrity edition, and he was finally accepted, it felt like the stars truly aligned for him, and his dad.&quot;I felt like as a son, that would be cool to fulfill one of my father&#x27;s dreams,&quot; he said. &quot;When it happened, the timing [was perfect] din na the impossible became possible, the two giants [ABS-CBN and GMA] collaborated and it became possible for me to enter the house,&quot; said Michael. And so, he auditioned once more, &quot;I was praying so hard. Sabi ko, &#x27;Lord, this is my third time, but they say third time&#x27;s a charm.&quot; Looking back at their PBB experience, the ex-housemates reflect on their biggest takeaways from Kuya himself. Emilio shared that <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/2025/4/26/day-49-emilio-nanindigan-sa-desisyon-niya-bilang-task-leader-pbb-collab-2026">Kuya advised him about the beauty of taking risks</a>, which reminded him of the risk he made in his own life when he let go of his dream corporate job to pursue a career in showbiz. Now, Emilio is grateful for where that leap has taken him today. For Michael, Kuya&#x27;s words about appreciating the people around him struck him the most. Living independently in the Philippines while his family is based in Canada, Michael often feels isolated, like he&#x27;s navigating life without the support of family. But Kuya taught him to recognize the people around him who are willing to lend a hand. In that way, he&#x27;s always reminded that he&#x27;s never truly alone, and that the people around him can become his family.As Michael and Emilio continue their &#x27;totoong laban ng buhay&#x27; beyond the PBB house, the best is yet to come, as long as they carry with them the same optimism, fighting spirit, and respect they&#x27;ve shown in Bahay Ni Kuya. <div>*Photo credit to GMA Network IG</div>

Michael Sager and Emilio Daez share lessons and memories from their time in “PBB Collab” in this episode of Kapamilya Chat.

Michael Sager and Emilio Daez share lessons and memories from their time in “PBB Collab” in this episode of Kapamilya Chat.