MANILA, Philippines - GMA 7 takes pride in its original shows, which have made a mark in the viewing habits of Filipinos. Among others, there’s the reality program, Extra Challenge (hosted by Richard Gutierrez and Marian Rivera) which aired early this year and the current game show, Celebrity Bluff (hosted by Eugene Domingo).
The most recent addition to the line-up of original, weekly programs of the network is Picture! Picture!, hosted by Ryan Agoncillo. The show marks Ryan’s comeback to GMA 7, where he started his TV hosting career more than a decade ago, when he was seen in the daily morning program, Unang Hirit.
This is the first time, however, that Ryan is hosting a game show. He states proudly that Picture! Picture! is not a franchise unlike other programs even in other networks. The show is an original concept that’s why there were birth pains in the airing, although the flaws were not really obvious.
In Picture! Picture!, four celebrities join the show as contestants every week. They get to play as a team by answering the picture questions that will be uploaded on the LED screen, so they should give one (and hopefully) correct answer within a short time frame of 30 seconds.
There are 10 photo questions with a prize value from P10,000 to as much as P500,000. After every three questions, there’s a kick-out question that’s not included in the line-up and it has to be answered individually. The one who answers correctly will have the power to kick out one player.
The last remaining player can answer the jackpot question and win P500,000. If he fails to answer or the answer is incorrect, he wins only P100,000, plus additional P10,000 for each correct answer.
Back-ups can help the contestants reach up to the jackpot. It can be used anytime in the game except the jackpot round. Save Pic can be automatically used if the team gives the wrong answer. Ryan will then ask another question with the same money value. Twin Picks is the other back-up. From the three choices, the players can give two answers and post each one separately on the screen.
From the four celebrity players, a team leader is chosen for every question. Even if the players argue, the team leader will choose to post the answer. For the jackpot, the celebrity player gets to choose from the three mystery pictures. Each choice requires five answers. For example, name five kinds of bananas. Lakatan, latundan, saba, señorita and cavendish.
The pilot episode featured celebrity dancers — Rochelle Pangilinan, Wyn Wyn Marquez, Mark Herras and Rodjun Cruz. Wyn Wyn was the last (wo)man standing, but she failed to answer all picture questions in the jackpot round.
For the second episode, Francine Prieto, Andre Paras, Glaiza de Castro and Julie Ann San Jose were the celebrities who played in Picture! Picture!. The third week, Ryan’s co-hosts in the daily noontime show, Eat, Bulaga — Dabarkads Allan K, Ruby Rodriguez, Belle Daza and Julia Clarete — played in the show.
Just recently, Max Collins, Chris Tiu, Jaya and Ate Gay were the celebrity contestants who took a shot at winning half a million pesos. Jaya won the round and attempted the jackpot question, but failed to give all correct answers.
Picture! Picture!, which airs every Saturday night after the early evening newscast, 24 Oras Weekend, runs right smack into Bet On Your Baby, the show of Ryan’s wife, Judy Ann Santos on the rival network, ABS-CBN. So the couple was not spared by the network war.
However, Ryan and Juday did not make it an issue or something to worry about. To them, it is a friendly competition. Ryan even greets his wife on the air. He says towards the end of the show that he will go home in a while so she should prepare a hearty dinner.
Although this is his first game show, Ryan makes Picture! Picture! an engaging, interesting and entertaining photo-guessing craze on early primetime TV. The show is educational and informative through the succession of picture questions uploaded onscreen and the celebrity contestants need to guess.
Ryan’s natural rapport and repartee with his contestants are undeniable. He knows how to make them feel comfortable and at ease on the set. His wit and intelligence are plus factors in his hosting, that’s why even if Picture! Picture!, a game show, is a totally new assignment for him, he can undoubtedly pull it off successfully.