Pangako Sa 'Yo (transl. promise to you, international title: The Promise) is a Philippine television drama romance series broadcast by ABS-CBN. It stars Jericho Rosales and Kristine Hermosa. It aired on the network's evening line up from November 13, 2000 to September 20, 2002, replacing Labs Ko Si Babe and was replaced by Bituin.
The series is streaming online on iWant and on YouTube via Jeepney TV.
The soap opera centers on themes of wealth, politics, business socio economic climate, and the love between the rich and the poor.
Contents
Plot
The story begins with the romance between Amor de Jesús (Valdez) and Eduardo Buenavista (Gutierrez). Eduardo's mother, Doña Benita (Lorena), opposes the relationship because Amor is a housemaid and she wants Eduardo to marry Claudia Zalameda (Garcia) for political reasons. Doña Benita enlists Eduardo's older brother, Diego (Alarcon), who is also attracted to Amor, to separate them. Eduardo mistakenly believes Diego and Amor are involved when he sees Diego trying to sexually abuse her, leading him to marry Claudia. Pregnant and banished from the Buenavista hacienda, Amor returns to her mother in Manila, living at the Payatas dumpsite. She vows revenge on the Buenavista family upon learning of Eduardo's marriage to Claudia.
After giving birth to her daughter, María Amor (Hermosa), Amor and her friend Lourdes (Austria-Ventura) survive by working in clubs. Amor catches the eye of a rich American, James Powers (Cooper), who brings her to the United States. She leaves María Amor and her mother, Chayong (Bautista), at the dumpsite, sending money to them periodically. James proves abusive, preventing Amor from returning home when a landslide hits the dumpsite. Believing her mother and daughter have died and retaliating for his abuses, Amor does not seek medical help when James had a stroke. He dies, and Amor inherits his fortune.
Eduardo and Claudia have two children: Angelo (Rosales) and Lia (Sta. Maria). Eduardo serves as the governor of Punta Verde, while Claudia becomes the elusive queen of illegal gambling in the province. Angelo, a rebel, dislikes his father, whereas Lia is a sweet, devout Catholic teenager who cares deeply for her loved ones.
Amor's daughter survives the landslide and is adopted by Isko (Daluz) and Belen Macaspac (Darren). They find drawings Eduardo made for Amor, signed “Ynamorata,” near the abandoned child and name her Ynamorata, later shortened to “Yna.” Isko and Belen have their own children: Caloy, who hates Yna, and teenager Flerida (Mendoza).
Doña Benita regrets forcing Eduardo to marry Claudia, who turned out to be cruel. On her deathbed, she tries to confess to breaking Eduardo and Amor's relationship but dies before doing so. To atone for her sins, Doña Benita's spirit haunts the dreams of the grown Yna.
Cast and characters
Main cast
Kristine Hermosa as Ynamorata ”Yna” Macaspac / María Amor de Jesús
Jericho Rosales as Angelo Buenavista
Eula Valdez as Amor de Jesús / Amor Powers
Jean Garcia as Madam Claudia Buenavista
Tonton Gutierrez as Eduardo Buenavista
Supporting cast
Amy Austria-Ventura as Lourdes Magpantay/Ka Adora
Jestoni Alarcon as Diego Buenavista
Patrick Garcia as Jonathan Mobido
Jodi Sta. Maria as Lía Buenavista
Vanessa del Bianco as Bea Bianca Bejerrano / Electrika Powers
Carlo Muñoz as Mark Delgado
Dianne dela Fuente as María Amor / Clarissa Barcial
Eva Darren as Belén Macaspac
Cris Daluz as Francisco "Isko" Macaspac
Hazel Ann Mendoza as Flerida Macaspac
Evangeline Pascual as Betty Mae Verseles
Minnie Aguilar as Coring
Michelle Bayle as Felicity Banks
Dennis Trillo as Ruel Pedro
Extended cast
John Arcilla as Simón Barcial
Ilonah Jean as Cherri Barcial
Nikka Valencia as Julieta Macaspac
Jay Manalo as Caloy Macaspac
Luis Alandy as David San Luis
Liza Lorena as Doña Benita Buenavista
Ricky Davao as Tony Banks
Ernie Zarate as Mayor Enrique Zalameda
Flora Gasser as Yaya Pacita
Mosang as Doray
Ian Galliguez as Chinee
Gigette Reyes as Debra
Sean Glenn Ignacio as Serafin
Suzette Ranillo as Fatima Dela Merced
Bing Davao as Lorenzo Dela Merced
Sally Baderes as Nimfa Macaspac
Rey Kilay as Cookie
Perla Bautista as Chayong de Jesús
Eliza Pineda as Young Amor de Jesús
Rene Pangilinan as Rene
Kristine Garcia as Elizabeth
Anita Linda as Purificacion
Ronnie Quizon as Badeo
Production
In June 2002, the Filipino Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (FILSCAP) accused ABS-CBN of copyright infringement due to alleged unpaid royalties for its songs, with the Regional Trial Court 90 of Quezon City issuing a temporary restraining order towards ABS-CBN that prevented them from using "Pangako sa 'Yo" and other FILSCAP-owned songs in their programs for 20 days.
Reception
The soap, which ran from November 13, 2000, to September 20, 2002, spanned 481 episodes at 30 minutes each then replaced by Bituin. The show posted an all-time high rating of 64.9% during its September 2002 series finale. This is the second highest rating for any Filipino-made TV series, behind one of the airings of Esperanza on ABS-CBN in 1997, and is the all-time highest rating for any TV series finale in the Philippines.
Accolades
Asian Television Awards 2001: Runner Up - Best Drama Series
Asian Television Awards 2001: Highly Commended - Best Direction (Long Form)
15th PMPC Star Awards for Television: Best TV Series
15th PMPC Star Awards for Television: Best Actress - Eula Valdez
16th PMPC Star Awards for Television: Best Actress - Jean Garcia
International broadcast
Pangako sa 'Yo was the first Filipino television program to air in Kenya on the national broadcaster KBC. Its immense popularity in Kenya resulted in its second run years later on Citizen TV and paved the way for the many teleserye that have been broadcast in Kenya for over two decades. It aired in Tanzania on national broadcaster TBC formerly known as TVT and gained National popularity that’s switched from the usual Latin American soap operas. In Malaysia, through a local satellite TV channel, Astro Bella, starting November 22, will air Pangako sa 'Yo because of high demand. It airs in Tagalog with Bahasa Melayu subtitles. Airs Monday to Friday at 11:00am with encore on the same day and also on weekends with marathon. In Singapore through local satellite TV Channel from Malaysia, Astro Prima on mio TV Channel 602 starting April 10, 2013, will air Pangako sa 'Yo because of high demand in Singapore due to this series was first shown on Suria in 2007. It airs in Tagalog with Bahasa Melayu subtitles. Airs Monday to Friday from 5:30 PM to 6:30 PM with an encore on the same day at 10:00 AM and also on 12 midnight on the same day.
Cambodian adaptation
Pangako sa 'Yo was adapted in Cambodia when Cambodian Television Network (CTN) acquired rights from ABS-CBN Corporation. Entitled The Promise (Khmer:សន្យាស្នេហ៍), the Cambodian version was produced by Khmer Mekong Films (KMF) and aired in Cambodia from 2013 to 2014 with 198 episodes. It was adapted to suit the Cambodian cultural context and audience sensitivities.
The Promise was broadcast peak-time on CTN, Cambodia's most popular TV channel, running three shows a week until July 2014.
Remake
The first remake of Pangako sa 'Yo debuted on May 25, 2015. It stars Jodi Sta. Maria, Ian Veneracion, Angelica Panganiban, Kathryn Bernardo and Daniel Padilla. Rory Quintos, who directed the original series, also directed the remake. The remake was produced by Star Creatives. It ended on February 12, 2016, with a total of 190 episodes.
Jodi Sta. Maria, who played Lia Buenavista in the original, was cast as Amor Powers in the 2015 remake. Two other cast members from the original version were also part of the 2015 remake - Amy Austria (who played Lourdes Magbanua in the original series) was cast as Belen Macaspac; and Richard Quan (who played Benjie Gatmaitan, the investigative reporter, in the original series) was cast as Theodore Boborol, Eduardo Buenavista's political rival.