Teen Gen

Teen Gen
Genre	Teen drama
Created by	GMA Entertainment TV Group
Developed by	Kit Villanueva-Langit Mark A. Reyes V
Written by	Kit Villanueva-Langit
Directed by	Mark A. Reyes V Albert Langitan
Creative director(s)	Jun Lana
Starring	Angelu de Leon Bobby Andrews Dianne Hernandez Juancho Trivino Jeric Gonzales Thea Tolentino Seth Isay Abel Estanislao Sunyee Maluche Gianna Revilla Mikoy Morales
Opening theme	"Everything is Alright" sung by Julie Anne San Jose
Composer(s)	Mikoy Morales
Country of origin	Philippines
Original language(s)	Filipino, Tagalog, English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	28 episodes
Production
Executive producer(s)	Jan Navarro
Producer(s)	GMA Network
Location(s)	Manila, Philippines
Cinematography	Jay Linao
Camera setup	Multiple-camera setup
Running time	60 minutes
Release
Original network	GMA Network
Original release	December 16, 2012 (2012-12-16) – June 30, 2013 (2013-06-30)
Chronology
Related shows	T.G.I.S. Growing Up
External links
Website

Teen Gen or Teen Generation is a Filipino teen drama television series created and directed by Mark Reyes, developed by Kit Villanueva-Langit and produced by GMA Network. The show premiered on December 16, 2012, aired every Sunday at 3:00 p.m. time slot and December 23, 2012 worldwide via GMA Pinoy TV. It concluded on June 30, 2013 and consisted of 28 episodes. The series is a spin-off of the 90's youth-oriented show T.G.I.S. ^[1] and revolves around a group of young people making the journey from adolescence to adulthood.^[2]

Series overview

Season synopses

Season 1

In a subdivision somewhere in Quezon City, original TGIS character Joaquin "Wacks" Torres III moves in. Unknown to him, his former girlfriend and fiancee, Maria Patrice "Peachy" Real, is living right next door. A series of circumstances results in the two discovering that they are neighbors, and despite misgivings about their past romance, gradually rekindle their friendship over the course of the season. The renewed friendship leads to Wacks asking Peachy to give their love a second chance.

The season also introduces the main characters. Wacks' son Lucho, who leads the so-called TG, or Team Gwapo (Gwapo is Tagalog for handsome) a four-man clique of heartthrobs at the fictional West Ridge High School - his best friend Itos, cousin Tiago, and country bumpkin JV. The quartet transferred to the school after being expelled from another school. TG's hijinks at the school sets them on a collision course with four specific teenage girls - Peachy's daughter Lyka, K-Pop aficionado Angge, campus socialite Madison, and JV's childhood friend Drew. TG's interactions with the girls triggers positive changes in them.

Season 2

The season begins with the characters going on a summer escapade. With Lyka's attachment to Lucho getting stronger, she has a fit of jealousy upon seeing his former girlfriend. Tiago starts courting Angge, who is still uneasy on whether to stay single until she finishes school or accept him as her first boyfriend. Itos, who had started to bond with Madison, flies to the US and Xavi de Leon, a young man booted off TG years before for various issues with the other members, appears and reconciles with them; he takes a liking to Madison as well. Noticing that JV and Drew may be harboring hidden feelings for each other, Xavi and Madison engineer various schemes to make the two finally accept how they feel.

Meanwhile, Wacks and Peachy continue to spend time together. However, Wacks' ex-wife Violet reappears out of concern for Lucho when he has an accident with Lyka and lands in the hospital. She eventually learns of Wacks and Peachy's old romance, but Wacks implores on her to let him go. When Peachy goes on an out-of-town trip, Wacks gets nervous and looks for her. Determined not to lose her again, Wacks proposes to Peachy and she accepts. The two are determined to push through despite Peachy's fears of bad karma over their botched wedding several years before (depicted in Growing Up).

Season 3

The final season focuses on Peachy and Wacks' wedding. Several mishaps befall the couple on wedding day, such as their wedding vows and rings missing. Peachy sees the incidents as a sign that she shouldn't get married. She even thinks Wacks (whom the gang reports missing after being checked at a clinic for head injuries following a near-accident on the way to church) is making her feel his pain at her standing him up on their wedding in 1998. The old sweethearts eventually get married but are kidnapped on their honeymoon; it is revealed that the "kidnapping" was a staged part of a special honeymoon package organized by the hotel where they checked in - for another Torres couple. The two agree to settle down in Cebu.

Meanwhile, the other characters are going their separate ways. On the TG's side, Lucho stays behind in Manila to attend college while Lyca will join Wacks and Peachy in Cebu. Xavi is preparing for a law education, JV is entering the Philippine Military Academy, and Tiago is entering music school, but agrees to have a long distance relationship with Angge, who's studying in South Korea. Before they do part ways, the gang goes on one last adventure.

Cast and characters

Main characters

The series featured ten main characters throughout its run.

Luis Joaquin "Lucho" Torres IV was portrayed by Juancho Trivino

• Angelu de Leon as Ma. Patrice "Peachy" Real-Torres nee da Silva – A main character from TGIS and Growing Up, Peachy was originally slated to get married to Wacks during the initial season of Growing Up, but eventually bailed. By the time of the events of Teen Gen, Peachy is a widowed single mother.^[3]
• Bobby Andrews as Joaquin "Wacks" Torres III - The second of two main characters returning from TGIS and Growing Up, Wacks is Lucho's father and a motorcycle businessman. In the interlude between Growing Up and Teen Gen, Wacks is revealed to have gotten married and had a son, but the marriage fell apart because of irreconcilable differences. As a result, Wacks is committed to being a single father and aims to raise him as a responsible man. His world turns upside down just after moving into the subdivision only to discover that his old flame Peachy, was living next door, prompting him to confront her over their failed wedding.^[4]
• Dianne Hernandez as Ma. Lyca da Silva – Peachy's only child, Lyca is a smart student at West Ridge High, running the school paper and often carries a camera. Her status makes everybody on campus think of her as a geeky outcast. She becomes the catalyst for Lucho's change of heart.^[5]
• Juancho Trivino as Luis Joaquin "Lucho" Torres IV – Lucho is Wacks' only son and Team Gwapo's leader. Often seen as the bad boy, it is revealed that his rebellious behavior is because of resentment over his father's lack of time for him. His and TG's picking on Lyca gradually changes him into a more responsible person and likes her back. When his mother, Violet, warns that Peachy and Wacks' marriage will shoot down his chances of a relationship with Lyka, he dismisses it and resolves to take care of them.^[6]
• Jeric Gonzales as Santiago "Tiago" Torres – Wacks' nephew and Lucho's cousin, Tiago is TG's resident musician. He is depicted as the son of a shipping magnate, but does not let his rich-kid status go to his head. Wacks often calls on him to rein in Lucho's bad behavior.^[7][8]
• Thea Tolentino as Angela "Angge" Parahinog - Lyca's bestfriend in school, Angge comes from a poor family and being a breadwinner, often has to sell various food items on campus to raise money for her family and a future trip to South Korea. The latter is depicted as the ultimate achievement of her fascination with Hallyu culture. This causes her to frequently allude certain events to scenes in Korean drama series such as Endless Love and Boys Over Flowers.^[9] Although Angge is struggling to make ends meet, a dead aunt's family inheritance helps her family rise out of poverty.
• Gianna Revilla as Madison Avenida – One of the more popular girls in school, Madison is every bit a trendsetter and claims to have followers on Twitter and Instagram. She is one of the campus A-listers, but gradually hangs out with the other female characters.^[10]
• Abel Estanislao as Jose Vicente "JV" Cortez - One of the four TG boys, JV is a young man from the province. He often has a penchant for romantic gestures.
• Sunyee Maluche as Andrea "Drew" Remulla – The captain of the West Ridge High women's basketball team, Drew is JV's childhood friend. Often teased by Itos because of her seemingly tough exterior, Drew is actually very sensitive and romantic.^[11] Over the course of the series, Drew pines for affection from JV, who only sees her as one of the guys.
• Seth Isay as Carlitos "Itos" Buenavidez Jr. – Lucho's best friend and one of the four TG boys, Itos is the athletic type and tries to have his way with women.^[12] Isay left the show in late 2012, citing personal reasons. His character was written off as having signed up for a soccer league in the US.^[13]
• Mikoy Morales as Xavier "Xavi" de Leon - Itos' "replacement" in the TG quartet, Xavi is depicted as a suave, debonair young man. He was dumped from the clique years before because of differences with the other members (especially Lucho), but they patch things up. Over the course of the show, he gradually works with Madison to try getting JV and Drew together.

Notable recurring characters

Teen Gen features a number of notable recurring characters every season. Below, in order of appearance, are the recurring characters who have appeared in at least five episodes.

Background

GMA Network and Viva Television greenlit the creation of a youth-oriented show for a Saturday afternoon time slot, which had a non-existent audience market, in 1995. Screenwriter Kit Villanueva-Langit and producers Veronique del Rosario-Corpus and Cely Santiago hit on the idea for TGIS, with Mark Reyes as director. The show lasted for over 100 episodes, and led to a feature film and a Primetime show, Growing Up featuring most of the original cast members depicted as moving on to college.

Production and development

Because of the growing clamor to revive TGIS, the network came up with the idea to create a spin-off, with two leading characters from the original series brought back to be part of a new cast.^[14] TGIS original headwriter, Kit Villanueva-Langit, began developing the spin-off series mid-2012, under the title "TGIS New Generation". The title eventually changed to Teen Gen as show creator/director Mark Reyes and the whole production team wanted the show to have a fresh start and "[...] we don't want to look back, but to move forward."^[15]

Auditions for the new cast took place at GMA Network Center in Quezon City in September 2012.^[16] Mark Reyes, Kit Villanueva-Langit and series' executive producer Jan Navarro served as the casting panel. The casting was finalized in October 2012.^[17] TGIS alumni and loveteam Angelu de Leon and Bobby Andrews were the first two actors to be cast reprising their original characters Peachy and Wacks, respectively. Protégé season2 winners, Jeric Gonzales and Thea Tolentino, commercial models Dianne Hernandez and Juancho Trivino were chosen for the roles of Lyca and Lucho, respectively. Gianna Revilla, Gab de Leon and Arkin Magalona - all children of prominent local showbiz celebrities - auditioned and landed roles.^[18]

More changes occurred to the series' story lines during the casting process. The production team found that they had to adjust the characters they had written to suit the actors. Following the rumors of other TGIS alumni appearing on the show, Reyes confirmed that Michael Flores, Bernadette Allyson, Ciara Sotto and Rica Peralejo would be returning in recurring roles for a few episodes as their original characters. However, only the first three indeed appeared before the camera - circumstances prevented Peralejo's cameo.

The production began on November 25, 2012. Most of the series' scenes were shot on location in a private subdivision in Quezon City.^[19]

In an interview on April 4, 2013, Mark Reyes announced that he was leaving the show for a while to concentrate on his directorial job for the primetime series Love & Lies.^[20] Albert Langitan formally took over directorial duties at the start of the second season.^[21] The same season, Seth Isay confirmed his departure from the show, citing personal reasons for his decision.^[22] Another Protégé season 2 alumnus Mikoy Morales joined the cast in the early part of season two and was promoted to series regular for the show's third season.

On May 2013, the network renewed the show for a shorter third season, comprising only two episodes. However, GMA management shortly announced that Teen Gen would be cancelled. Officials explained that the show, along with Party Pilipinas on May 18, 2013, were axed to make way for a new show.^[23]

Reception

The table below indicates the ratings of Teen Gen based on National Urban TV Audience Measurement (NUTAM) overnight ratings gathered by the TV ratings supplier, Nielsen TV Audience Measurement, where it consistently ranked within the top ten of the weekly television ratings. "Rank" refers to how well the show rated compared to other television series that aired that date. The "Season premiere" is the date that the first episode of the season aired, and the "Season finale" is the date that the final episode of the season aired.

Awards and recognition

See also

• List of programs broadcast by GMA Network
• List of shows previously aired by GMA Network
• List of telenovelas of GMA Network
• Click
• T.G.I.S.
• Reel Love: Tween Hearts

External links

• Official GMA Network website

References