A new set of co-workers

I have officially joined the game show Now Na! (QTV 11 every Wednesday from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m.) – along with Juliana Palermo and Joy Viado – and collectively we are known as the atribido and atribidas and our role there is to make life miserable for the celebrity-contestants.

Actually, we are like those two old balding hecklers in The Muppet Show (remember them?), who do nothing but criticize and put down everything they see on stage. The only difference is that at the end of the show, we challenge the winner at the final round and prevent him/her from getting the jackpot.

You may say that it’s unfair because that’s three against one. But no, everything is fair and square because:

1) The winner is given the chance to rethink and change his answers and the three of us do not have that privilege.

2) Too many cooks spoil the broth and sometimes the three of us can never agree on the same answer.

3) The winner is really smart and alert and can outwit the three of us.

All that happens at the final phase of the show and the energy level of everyone – audience included – is up, up, up around this time.

During the early part of the show, however, they put us in a specially constructed set in the very top of the audience gallery from where we watch the proceedings below. Arnell Ignacio is the host of Now Na! and the very talented person that he is he is very effective running this very exciting game show.

From up there, we have fun watching the celebrities outdo each other to get the correct answers and Arnell’s repartee with them (he is really so funny). Everything is done all in the spirit of fun and we die laughing up there.

But have you heard of the saying "It’s lonely at the top"?

That happens to the three of us also because we are isolated from everyone else. It’s like being stranded on an island, but with room service privileges.

I don’t know if this has something to do with altitude (we are up there, remember?), but from where we are the three of us constantly get hungry. And among us, it’s Joy Viado who has the discipline to say no to food. Juliana? Oh, she needs to constantly pick on something: candied sampaloc, Cloud 9, fudge bar, etc. And yet she gets to maintain that shapely figure.

One time, Arnell decided to send over boxes of his Arnelli’s Pizza from his lone outlet (near St. Luke’s Medical Center) and we had a feast up there.

Arnelli’s Pizza comes in different flavors (Hawaiian, supreme, vegetarian, etc.) and we tried each one.

I’m not exaggerating, but Arnelli’s Pizza is one of the best I’ve tried locally. It’s like a fusion of our pizza of old (3M, Fiesta – if you recall) and those high-end brands that are available commercially today. The best thing about Arnelli’s Pizza is that the ingredients are fresh and you can easily tell from the generous toppings – especially if it’s seafood.

Now that I think about it, we had those pizza right after we ate dinner (rice and viand) at the talent room of the GMA 7 Broadway Centrum studio. I don’t know how on earth we were able to finish the pizza.

During breaks and there is no food in front of us, we chat among ourselves. Our favorite topic of conversation? More food – specifically the specialty of each province. Juliana is currently shooting Barang in Vigan and we talked endlessly about the bagnet, the Vigan empanada and the longganisa of that northern city.

More than the food, we enjoy each other’s company and I’m beginning to discover what wonderful people Joy and Juliana are. And they’re intelligent, too. With Juliana, I’m no longer surprised because – after all – she is a Philippine Star columnist (naks!). But Joy Viado is a revelation because we know her as a comedian (aside from being a fantastic singer) and here in this country, comedians aren’t really taken seriously.

But Joy is bright and so knowledgeable about a lot of things and on many occasions we refer to her for information about anything.

Now Na! is a fun game show where you learn bits and pieces of information – no matter how trivial – and now that I am part of the show I am also beginning to discover the wonderful traits of my co-workers in the program. And so far, I like what I am discovering.