My Extraordinary (2020)

FAILED

A good attempt that failed miserably. If you havent seen this just stay away, otherwise youd be watching "The Sandee Show".

The good:
1. Good actors - Enzo and Darwin are good as Ken and Shake, Keijiee was also convincing as Heaven, even John as Romeo. I also love Yayo's subtle strong single mother acting (more on Yayo later);
2. There is a number 2?

The bad:
1. Sandee. BIG PERIOD;
2. The crying Yayo;
3. The deaths and that ghost-seeing character;
4. The second half of the story;
5. That horrible horrible Ken hospital makeup;
6. The title. How the hell did that title connect to this series? What was so extraordinary???

The moment it was implied that one character can see ghosts and then really saw one at the theater, i knew immediately that something was off with this show, and that things will turn sour. I was hoping i was wrong but damn, they had to go there and it immediately went downhill.

Tropes and my snide remarks aside, the truth is this series had so much potential in the beginning. The first few episodes can actually be considered good - the characters, the acting, the script, and specially the non-Covid plot ( Covid-related fictional stories from the Philippines is just so overused now). Remove the girl best friend and i would gladly give this show 9 gold stars out of 10. Why the heck then do i think the show failed?

It is because of the second half- when the two gay lead characters became extras and the two female characters became the leads. The first episode promised a well produced series with its two gay characters at the center of the story, not as villains, and not as a source of comedic and idiotic relief - something we havent seen in a normal Philippine primetime tv show. What they delivered instead was a confusing mess, and an attempt to give the veteran Yayo the heavy lifting in acting. The story shifted from a love story into a preachy information campaign - "End Homophobia Now" or your child or your friend could die.

The show would also like us to believe that the love between Ken and Shake is so EXTRAORDINARY, that heaven and earth will move just to bring them together even in the afterlife- something that wasnt even established enough before their demise . What little time they got in the first half is a beginning of a love story, at best, they're not even officially a couple yet. They could have spent a couple more episodes to make us believe that what they have is real love.

Also, this series became a semi-supernatural show with a cheap attempt to copy that "Sixth Sense" twist that you can see from miles away. Then they gave extended screentime for the wailing mother, and that best friend who is actually a selfish insecure b*tch. If i was the mother and after realizing what i did, i would have beaten that pretend angel into a pulp. That character lacked remorse and would forever be etched in my mind as one of the worst characters ever.

Overall im giving it a 5.5 just because of the good first half. Should you watch it? No you shouldnt. Will i rewatch? Hell no! Oh, did i mention i hate Sandee?

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It SHOULD have been the BL of the year, but...

My Extraordinary was heavily advertised as the first BL in The Philippines to be aired to a primetime national audience.
I was so excited from watching the trailer, it appeared to be a drama that would hit all the right chords and send a great message. Sadly, this was not the case.

Here is my list of pros and cons:

PROS:

ACTORS. The actors really brought it. Each one of them played their roles to a T, with special mention going to Yayo Aguila (Monica, Ken's mother), who gave a powerhouse performance and made me absolutely hate her character for most of the series.

MUSIC. Probably the best part of the series for me. The theme song is one of my favorites and Kenji Exaltacion's singing of everything was perfect. Also, hats off to director Vincent deJesus, who also composed the music.

ATYPICAL LEAD COUPLE. For once we have a lead couple that doesn't look like two Ken dolls (not that there's anything wrong with that... ). It was refreshing to see two pleasantly average looking guys as the leads, rather than the perfect teeth and skin, chiseled gym bodies, etc. Same with the actors that played Heaven and Romeo.

CINEMATOGRAPHY. The outdoor scenery was so nice and the wishing tree was beautiful.

ESAW. Although the thought of eating chicken intestines sounds absolutely revolting to me, it was nice to learn that "Esaw" is a delicacy in The Philippines.

CONS:

THE STORY. My biggest problem with the story was not the sad ending (although that is a factor, which I will explain later)... it was with the whole supernatural/Sandee sees dead people nonsense. The story would have been just fine -- and much better, in my opinion -- without it.

WRONG MESSAGE. Homophobia is always worth fighting against. But, let's face it, dramas about homophobia have been around for years. It's 2020, folks. People know very well that bigotry is wrong... that's not news. Especially, for a primetime (mostly straight) audience, it would be nice to show how great (and yes, NORMAL) same-sex couples can be. THAT'S the message that needs to be delivered these days... enlightenment, not negativity. As it is, what message does this send to young gays thinking of coming out of the closet? "Stay in the closet, kids. Your parents will freak out and if you think your life is bad now, prepare to be REALLY miserable!" Horrible message.

KEN/SHAKE RELATIONSHIP. Yes, they were adorable. But there was no progression of their relationship shown. One moment they barely know one another and suddenly they're majorly flirting. Huh? And, although I absolutely disliked the "together in the afterlife" deal, the bottom line is that they barely knew each other. They were just two people about to get together and see where it would lead, -- they never even had a real kiss -- yet, the series portrays them as the romantic couple of the century. Couldn't buy into that, sorry.

HE LIED: Director Vincent deJesus said, in the comment section of a reaction video, that no one would die in the series. He didn't have to say anything, but he chose to tell this blatant lie. NOT cool. I'm pissed about that.

I can't say I did not enjoy My Extraordinary. I DID enjoy it... mostly. For me, the best line in the series was this one (Ken to his mom): "Mom, I'm your son. You've always known. You were just the last to admit."

Too bad it was a dead gay character saying it to a mom that couldn't hear it.

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