Allyzza Kay Trinidad

Krystal tries to guess the titles of Iza’s past MMK episodes

Article (news)

Mary Ann Bardinas

Prior to making us bawl our eyes out and piercing our hearts with their superb performances in the latest episode of “<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/maalaala-mo-kaya" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Maalaala Mo Kaya</a>,” tagged “A Stepmother’s Story”, Iza Calzado and Krystal Mejes swung by this recent episode of Kapamilya Chat to mainly talk about their stints in the long-running drama anthology. With the much-awaited comeback of “MMK” also comes the return of the thrilling “guessing game,” or hulaan, for the title of every episode. And since Iza has already appeared in several episodes of the program throughout her more than a decade as a Kapamilya, we had Krystal take on the “Guess the MMK Title” challenge to see if she could figure out the titles of the three episodes that starred Iza based on the clips shown to them. For her part, Iza was asked for some trivia regarding each episode.  The first clip shown to them was from the “Ilog” episode aired in 2013, which was helmed by prolific director Ruel C. Naval. It follows the story of Iza’s character Rowena, a woman whose daughters suffered from the same physical deformity, which their family and neighbors assumed was God’s way of punishing her and her cousin, Alex (Joem Bascon), for their forbidden love.She may not be able to recall anymore if it was indeed this certain “MMK” episode that brought her a couple of recognitions, but our research suggests that she received two nominations for her notable portrayal here. She was nominated for the “Best Single Performance by an Actress” category of the PMPC Star Awards for Television, as well as for the “Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Single Drama/Telemovie Program” category of the Golden Screen Awards, both in 2013.A clip from the “Casa” episode broadcast in 2017 and directed by Raz Dela Torre was shown to them next, which featured Iza in another mother role. She played Hazel, a woman whose dreams and hopes of having a better life got shattered after being sexually abused twice by two different men. Unfortunately, she wasn’t only sold by the second man who molested her to a prostitute house, but she was also impregnated by him, which spawned a son (Jairus Aquino), who seemingly grew up resentful against her. As the host noted how it seemed easy for Iza to cry, Krystal revealed that her onscreen “Mama” could instantly let tears stream down her face just as their director, Paco Sta. Maria yells, “Action!” Iza explained that her being a self-confessed “iyakin,” or crybaby, and doing teleseryes over the past years that she has been in showbiz have helped her develop that skill. However, there are instances when it’s hard for her to suppress her emotions, such as in one of her scenes with co-actor James Blanco in the newest “MMK” episode, for she didn’t want to upstage him since it was supposedly his scene. The last clip, meanwhile, was from the “Medalya” episode, which she co-headlined with Heaven Peralejo in 2021 and was directed by Mae Cruz-Alviar. Iza described it as somewhat “deeply personal” for her since, just like her character, Caridad, her mom also suffered from mental illness that eventually claimed her life. The story revolved around the life of Julie, the character played by Heaven, who rediscovered her love for her schizophrenia-stricken biological mother, Caridad, through her teacher, Esther (Shamaine Buencamino).Catch Iza and Krystal in “<a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/entertainment/studios/tv/maalaala-mo-kaya" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">MMK</a>”’s “A Stepmother Story,” airing on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live (KOL), and A2Z on May 31, Saturday at 8:30pm.

Krystal Mejes tries to guess the titles of Iza Calzado’s past MMK episodes in “Guess the MMK Title Challenge” of Kapamilya Chat.

Krystal Mejes tries to guess the titles of Iza Calzado’s past MMK episodes in “Guess the MMK Title Challenge” of Kapamilya Chat.