Bearing traditional local soap opera themes and plot lines, Return to Paradise has to anchor on characters that are strong and performances to soar.
GMA Entertainment Group
Actors: Derrick Monasterio, Elle Villanueva, Eula Valdez, Teresa Loyzaga, Ricardo Cepeda, Liezel Lopez, Kiray Celis, Karel Marquez, Paolo Paraiso, Allen Dizon.
Genre: Drama
Premise: The story follows two college students, Eden Sta. Maria (Elle Villanueva) and Red Ramos (Derrick Monasterio), who were both marooned on an island after a plane crash. As they survive life in the wild, the two fall in love with each other. When they are rescued, Eden and Red find out that their parents have major conflicts that will affect their relationship (GMA Entertainment).
Running Time: 35 minutes
Director: Don Michael Perez
Timeslot: Weekdays, 3:25 PM
Why You Should See It:
Eden Sta. Maria (Elle Villanueva) was on her way home from a sports competition she won when the plane she was on got crashed. She was hoping to receive a good news about the appeal she filed for her mother, who has been in prison for a crime she did not commit. Lost and hopeless, she found out that the only people who survived the crash were her and Red Ramos (Derrick Monasterio), the campus star athlete with whom she had an unflattering prior encounter.
Nature dictates that when two strangers get isolated in a place and try to survive by depending on each other, they inevitably form a bond. In Eden and Red, surviving the life in the wild brought them together and made them fall for each other. It is a teleserye template that is already overused, but gets adopted over-and-over because audiences do not seem to get tired of them. Like the many sappy melodramas that came before it, Return to Paradise finds its crux in familiar complications. This time–it’s the long-standing conflict between Eden and Red’s parents.
Return to Paradise marks the first time the the homegrown Kapuso hunk star Derrick Monasterio is teaming up with Sparkle talent Elle Villanueva. It is too early to tell yet that this new partnership is working, but there are few sparkles that suggests it may be off to a great start. Will the chemistry manifest later on? That’s the challenge this series needs to beat, especially that the proceedings seem to take the traditional soap opera path: campy, centered on familial conflicts and vengeance.
The series also marks the return of the ultra-talented dramatic actress Eula Valdez to GMA Network, nine months after the finale of ABS-CBN’s Huwag Kang Mangamba, where she served as the main antagonist.
It is an understatement to say that Valdez is an actress of top caliber, that it is disappointing to see her take on the role of a martyr-like mother who is on the receiving end of insult, cruelty, and impression.
That said, it is still too early to say that the character won’t grow into something more challenging or memorable. Otherwise, this series will be a lost opportunity for a formidable talent like hers. Given its familiar storyline, Return to Paradise undoubtedly has to find its strength in compelling performances and unexpected twists to establish a hook among the viewers.
Return to Paradise airs Mondays till Fridays on GMA Network’s Afternoon Prime. Check out the official full trailer below:
