'Ganap na artista': Julie Anne San Jose bids farewell in 'Maria Clara at Ibarra'
MANILA, Philippines — It gets clearer each night as the hit historical portal fantasy series "Maria Clara at Ibarra" nears its end next week — no matter how many "revisions" are made, it will still end up as written by Dr. Jose Rizal.
Spoiler alert
Last night's episode certainly killed the hope of many for a happy ending and broke many hearts with the death of Maria Clara (Julie Anne San Jose).
At the beginning of the show, a disclaimer consistently reminds viewers that it is a reimagination of Dr. Jose Rizal's two novels, "Noli Me Tangere" and "El Filibusterismo."
It did took liberties by introducing two characters not in the original novels, namely, the 21st century nursing student Klay (Barbie Forteza) who gets transported inside the book, and Fidel (David Licauco), the best friend of the male protagonist Crisostomo Ibarra (Dennis Trillo).
Elias (Rocco Nacino) is still alive in "El Filibusterismo" when he should have died at the last chapter of "Noli Me Tangere."
But no matter how much Klay wanted to have a happy ending for the titular main couple, her namesake, Maria Clara still died by the hands of Padre Salvi (Juancho Trivino), who is obsessed with her.
In the novel, she died inside the monastery. In the show, she and Ibarra, who returned to wreak vengeance on the colonizers as Simoun, had a brief reunion and even shared a kiss after 13 years before she took the bullet intended for her beloved.
In a fit of rage, Simoun fired bullets into the shocked Salvi, who was aiming for his rival. His death in the show is another diversion from the book.
Julie Anne bid farewell to the character that arguably will become synonymous to her. The singer-actress has been praised throughout the show for bringing to life a reinterpreted version of the oft-thought subdued and meek Maria Clara.
"Mas minahal ko ang aking larangan bilang artista sapagkat kami ay naging instrumento upang maipakita namin ang makulay at maalab nating kasaysayan," Julie Anne shared on her social media accounts.
"Para sa akin, isang obrang maituturing ang aming palabas. Ito ay siguradong kapupulutang aral, na maipamamana sa mga susunod pang henerasyon. Matapos man ang palabas na ito, ang kultura at kasaysayan natin ay habang buhay na nakatatak sa ating mga puso’t isipan. Ito ang nagpapaalala sa ating mga karapatan bilang tao, at sa ngalan pag-ibig – sa sarili, sa kapwa, at maging sa bayan – tayo ay lumalaban at patuloy na lalaban," she added.
She ended her heartfelt open letter of appreciation by giving ode to the country's history.
"Hanggang sa muli, ito po ang inyong Maria Clara delos Santos Y Alba, isang maalab na pagpupugay sa kasaysayan ng Pilipinas, salud!" she added.
Her co-stars, including Barbie who plays Klay, left congratulatory messages on her post.
Ces Quesada, who plays her aunt Tiya Isabel in the show, praised the actress, calling her a true artist.
"Alam ko kung ano ang pinagdaanan mo para mabigyan ng buhay si Maria Clara. Isa kang ganap na artista. Masipag, matalino, generous, bukas sa pagtuto, focused at napakaganda ng attitude. So proud of you, my Clarita. Deserve mo lahat ng lechong baka at buko," the seasoned actress wrote on Julie's Instagram post.
Julie replied that she looks forward to their next food trip and "chika" session.
With Maria Clara's death, viewers are asking if Elias will die as well as originally intended in the book. Will Ibarra, who died in vain in the book, also die in the show? What will the resolution be for the non-Noli characters, Fidel and Klay, who seem unlikely to end up together?
"Maria Clara at Ibarra" will end next Friday, February 17.
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