Captain Barbell (2016 TV series)

This article is about the 2016 version on IBC 13. For the 2006 and 2011 version, see Captain Barbell (2006 TV series) and Captain Barbell (2011 TV series).

Mars Ravelo's Captain Barbell is a 2016 Philippine superhero fantasy-action drama television series based on a comic book character of the same name created by Mars Ravelo. Directed by Mac Alejandre and Jose Javier Reyes, it is topbilled by Dominic Roque, together with an ensemble cast. The series premiered on IBC and worldwide on Global IBC on August 8, 2016, replacing Syrena.

The story has been adapted into five films and a spin-off, throughout the timeline from 1964 to 2003. Among those who took on the role in the big screen are Bob Soler (1964), Wilie Sotelo (1965), Dolphy (1973), Edu Manzano (1986), and Bong Revilla (2003). On the other hand, Richard Gutierrez played the character in the 2006 TV series of the same name and 2011 TV series of the same name on IBC. However, it is the second time where Dominic marks the first ever primetime project under IBC and took the role of Captain Barbell as a Pinoy superhero.

Synopsis
Follow the action of Dennis (Dominic Roque), who transformed as Captain Barbell becoming a super power donning a suit being with an extraordinary power. As his strength with flight and enhanced perception. He called his mother Mrs. B (Lorna Tolentino), are forced by his father Captain B (Ramon Bautista) to ride the time machine to escape from the soldiers of the General.

The General (Ronnie Ricketts) is the mysterious, rich and powerful owner of Live Corporation, which is the pioneer in the well-advanced human cloning and mutation that created an army of superhuman beings for his evil schemes, which Captain Barbell opposes. Captain Barbell can fight the General because of his extraordinary strength using barbanium. Unknown to them, the General sends Commander X (JM Rodriguez), the powerful cyborg, to destroy the barbanium with askobar.

The paths of Dennis and his childhood friend Nadine (Riva Quenery) cross once again. This time, Dennis realizes that he is in love with this young lady who comes from a rich family. But things turn out difficult for Dennis to confess his love for Leah because the young lady has an arrogant boyfriend. He also meets and becomes friends with Levi (Martin del Rosario), the son of the richest man in the town named Viel, who is against their friendship. Unknown to Dennis, it is Viel who is responsible for the death of Lolo Aloy (William Martinez).

Dennis discovers the powerful barbell. This barbell is the key to Dennis’ destiny in becoming the most powerful Pinoy superhero known as Captain Barbell!

Main Cast

 * Dominic Roque as Dennis Navarro / Captain Barbell - Dennis Navarro catapulted from the 22nd century to the present time. He was found by an elderly couple, who renamed him Dennis. He exhibited remarkable physical prowess but it was not until he found the mystical golden medallion-barbell plate that he obtained the ability to transform into Captain Barbell. This barbell has properties beyond transforming Dennis, it also gives him his strength. The abilities that the element endows Dennis seems to be limited to only enhanced physical athletism along with flight and enhanced perception.
 * Ronnie Ricketts as Viel Villian / General - is the wealthy patriarch of the Villian family and head of Villian Corp. He is an obsessive man with a tendency to control and manipulate people, including his own sons. Viel is fascinated by the remarkable abilities of Captain Barbell. His fascination is boosted by the fact that he suffers from an ailment that he believes only Captain Barbell's blood can permanently cure. He has hired a scientist named Dexter, who specializes in robotics and genetics to make some experiments for his own benefit. In the future he is the General.
 * Martin del Rosario as Levi Villian - is the eldest son of Viel Villian. A spoiled rich kid, Levi is regarded by his father as a weakling in desperate need of lethal character transformation in order to deserve the Villian legacy. He is in desperate need for his fathers approval. Dennis rescued Levi from a car accident, and it is from this incident that they have built an awkward friendship.
 * Kristel Fulgar as Marikit "Kit" Ortega - is one of Dennis' best friends. A bossy, smart-mouthed girl who is frequently pegged as a tomboy (lesbian). Although shed like to deny it, Kit has romantic feelings for Teng, a fact that she has confessed to Bobby. Dennis later realizes that he loves Kit more than Leah.
 * Riva Quenery as Nadine Lazaro - is the daughter of the Marravelos town mayor, and also the campus princess. She is often the subject of his fathers verbal abuse who is a belligerent drunkard. She used to date Jared until he was transformed into a monstrous wasp-creature. She is the object of Dennis' unrequited affections, and as such, has been saved by Captain Barbell more than once.
 * Bryan Santos as Boris - Dennis' brother. He is reunited with Dennis and his family after knowing that Viel Villian is just using him in his plans.
 * Julian Trono as Bobby - is one of Leah's best friends.
 * Lorna Tolentino as Mrs. B - is the wife of Viel Villian, and stepmother to his sons. She had little memory of her life before she became a part of the Villian family. When she recovers her memories, she realizes that she was Mrs. B and the birth mother of Dennis but was separated from him upon re-entry into the 20th century. She was surgically altered by Viel and it is implied that he is also responsible for maintaining her memory gaps. She eventually finds out that Captain Barbell is Dennis, who is also Arell, her son shes been looking for.
 * Rommel Padilla as Cesar Navarro - Dennis; adoptive father. Dennis's place in the family was a decision made by Cesar's father, Lolo Aloy, and as such their feelings toward him are rather conflicted. Cesar is generally sympathetic, but avoids making such a sentiment too obvious to Sandra.
 * Cherry Pie Picache as Sandra Navarro - Dennis; adoptive mother. Sandra refuses to accept Teng, let alone as a replacement child for Clarisse, the daughter she lost many years ago.
 * JB Agustin as Marco Navarro / Captain Boy - Dennis' little brother.
 * Tessie Tomas as Lola Carmela "Melay" Navarro - is the compassionate and kind grandmother of Dennis and the mother of Cesar. In Teng's childhood, She and her husband Lolo Aloy found him and decide to adopt him as their own. She is caring and protective to Dennis from Sandra's abuse to him.
 * Pamu Pamorada as Clarisse Navarro / Blanca / Ex-O - is the mean-spirited and resentful daughter of Cesar and Sandra. She is the half-sister and a typical bully to Dennis, who physically maltreats him for stealing away her Lolo Aloy's attention and was bitter towards him for being adopted, during their childhood. Moments after her disappearance, she was found in a lake by Bobby and Kit, with no memory of her past. The two named her "Blanca" because she has virtually no recall of her life prior to being found. After remembering who she was, Blanca was finally reunited with her family.
 * Ramon Bautista as Captain B / Prof. Brando - He is the biological father of Dennis. Rebelled against the General after finding that the General is planning for evil.

Supporting Cast

 * CX Navarro as Miguel Lazaro - Nadine's little brother
 * Bernadette Alysson as Medie Lazaro - Nadine's mom.
 * Lee Robin Salazar as Lorenzo Lazaro - Nadine's dad.
 * Hiro Torobu as Narciso / Bubog - The first villain in the TV series. He has the ability to make shards of glass spike out of his body like a porcupine and can also mimic the appearance of others.
 * Makisig Morales as Jared / Putakti / Cyborg 5564 - The second villain in the TV series. He has the form of a giant wasp and has the ability to fly and spit poison which causes hallucinations and is also invincible to gunfire. After being defeated by Captain Barbell, he returned into his normal state only to be experimented in a laboratory and turned into Cyborg 5564. Fortunately he was able to escape and is now under the custody of Nadine. After being resurrected by Viel, Jared joined his team of supervillains. He retained his abilities as Cyborg 5564 and his main weapon is a laser gun.
 * Jovic Monsod as Mike Gayoso - Once a personal scientist and assistant to Viel, he became an ally to Barbara and helps her to reunite her whole family.
 * Bernard Palanca as Tenorio / Tetano - He has the power to cause a corrosive reaction through touch which renders bullets useless and can deteriorate people and structures. After being resurrected by Viel, he joined his team of supervillains. He can now use his power in a projectile form so he can corrode people and objects from afar.
 * Eric Fructuoso as Ador / Adobe - He was previously a miner who attained the hardness and power of rock similar to The Thing in Fantastic Four. After being resurrected by Viel, he joined his team of supervillains. His new power is to summon boulders to hurl at his opponents and he wears armor similar to the Juggernaut in the X Men franchises.
 * Marissa Sanchez as Ms. Patti / Ms. Aero / Aerobika - Patti is an overweight trainer, who is driven to try all sorts of remedies (most notably herbal teas) in an attempt to forestall her rapidly descending self-esteem. On an impulse, she uses some Askobar-contaminated herbs from her backyard for a new brew of tea which slims her down into a buxom beauty obsessed with making everyone conform to her newfound standards of beauty.
 * Jang Amparna as Cyborg 5566 - He was sent to hunt down Jared(aka 5564) after the latter escaped from the laboratory. Like the other cyborgs, he is also powered by Askobar.
 * Pinky Amador as Myra Lazaro
 * Zarah Deligero as Julia Ortega - Kit's little daughter.
 * DJ Durano as Ruben / Black Boy
 * Maureen Larrazabal as Madame Aurora Salvacion / Lady Amorseko
 * Anna Larrucea as Magna / Magnetica
 * Alfred Labatos as Marlon "Mercy" Mercurio
 * JM Rodriguez as Commander X

Extended Cast

 * AJ Dee as Abel - the bossy janitor Dennis works with.
 * Nonie Buencamino as Officer Joe Salvacion - father of Kit.
 * Alexandra Macanan as Chari - Nadine's classmate/friend.
 * Carlos Dala as Gerald - Nadine's bestfriend in school.
 * Shaun Salvador as Chester - Nadine's love interest in school.
 * Pinky de Leon as Doña Victoria

Guest Cast

 * Julia Barretto as Kylie Morena
 * Slater Young as John Arellano
 * Rizza Diaz as Mara Mendoza
 * Alfred Vagas as Emilio Gonzales
 * Victor Anastacio as Enrico Legaspi
 * Robin da Roza as Alfonso Recto
 * Nicole Andersson as Vanessa Valdez
 * CJ Navato as Carlos Molina
 * Empress Schuck as Ella Madrigal
 * Philip Lazaro as Edward Palanca
 * Ella Cruz as Nadine Ramirez
 * John Manalo as Fredy Martinez
 * Beauty Gonzalez as Bea Barrera

Special Participation

 * Lance Lucido as young Dennis Navarro / Captain Barbell
 * Brenna Garcia as young Marikit "Kit" Salvacion
 * William Martinez as Lolo Carlos "Aloy" Navarro† - the late grandfather of Dennis and father of Cesar.
 * Mutya Orquia as young Leah Lazaro
 * Gerald Pesigan as young Boris

Production
On December 2015, the Ravelo family granted IBC rights to 5 titles and/or characters created by the novelist. The list included Captain Barbell, which aired its pilot episode on August 8, 2016. The family of graphic novelist Mars Ravelo is proud of IBC's version of Captain Barbell, based on one of the famous comic book characters created by the acknowledged "King of Pinoy Komiks". IBC Entertainment TV head Wilma Galvante revealed that to make Captain Barbell more appealing to the new generation of Filipino viewers, they decided to make changes with the approval of Ravelo family according to the production staff is that can be a superhero regardless of physicality. According to Galvante, Captain Barbell is produced as a fantasy-action series "for all ages" citing that there are superhero-themed series aimed for male, younger and mature viewers.

Since the fourth Pinoy superheroes in a primetime series of IBC after the first for being a teen pretty superheroine princess Super Janella of the network's light fantasy series Janella: A Teen Princess, the other one is the crime-fighting superhero Voltron Man. and the aswang-busting superhero Kumander Bawang (produced by IBC and Viva Television).

Using a technique commonly practiced by advertisers, Galvante said they went through a "brand essence" power-packed to truly understand what makes them Captain Barbell click. This also played a key role in their decision to cast the Kapinoy actor Dominic Roque to play the iconic superhero involved in the production shoot for the series. In the beginning, the name of Dominic Roque revelas the lead even before GMA Network brought the rights in 2006 and 2011. Galvante explained that they actually had to go through a survey and Roque was the people's choice to portray the 7th Captain Barbell.

Casting
Captain Barbell marks the first ever primetime role of Dominic Roque after his supporting role in the afternoon teleserye Anna Luna. It is also the second primetime project of action star Ronnie Ricketts after the primetime action drama Kailangan Kita, while the first major primetime project for Martin del Rosario after his short-term transfer from GMA Network. It is also the second primetime project of Kristel Fulgar after Only Me and You. The series also marks the first project for Dancing with the Stars grand winner Riva Quenery and the first ever primetime of Julian Trono after his long-term transfer from GMA Network. It is also the first primetime project of Lorna Tolentino on IBC. The series also marks their comeback projects of Cherry Pie Picache, Rommel Padilla and Tessie Tomas for IBC, while Ramon Bautista marks the first ever teleserye project of the network.

Production team
This is the first ever Pinoy superhero created by Mars Ravelo made into TV series by IBC. Mac Alejandre was hired to direct the series and the first times to helm a fantaserye for the network.
 * Script/Story: Mars Ravelo for title character, Mel Mendoza-del Rosario for TV series
 * Entertainment TV Head: Wilma Galvante
 * Executive In-Charge of Production: Ginny Monteagudo-Ocampo
 * Custome Design: Captain Barbell's Yellow and Red Modern costume was designed by artist, Reno Maniquis. He was commissioned by the Mars Ravelo Marvelous Characters Inc. to design the new official costume.
 * Costume Maker/Manufacturer of Captain Barbell's suit is Miles Teves (based on the design of Reno Maniquis.)

Filming
Filming for Captain Barbell began in May 11, 2016.

A 30-minute TV special titled Mars Ravelo's Captain Barbell: Ang Simula was aired on August 6, 2016 at 4:00pm before the fantaserye kicked-off on Kapinoy Primetime, featuring exclusive behind-the-scenes footage and cast interviews of the highly anticipated superserye, hosted by Mario Dumaual.

Timeslot change
As of February 13, 2017, Captain Barbell was moved to a later timeslot at 8:30pm after the conclusion of You Light Up My Life, to give way for Hanggang Kailan, Annaliza?.

Soundtrack
On August 7, 2016, IBC Records Inc. officially released the original soundtrack for the superserye Mars Ravelo's Captain Barbell: The Original Sountrack and available in physical and digital formats in leading music stores and digitally via Spotify and iTunes.

The theme song, Nandito Lang Ako, composed by Kaye Galler, was sung by Marlo Mortel for the superserye's own rendition. The song was originally sung by Shamrock as a theme song for the telefantasya Mars Ravelo's Captain Barbell on GMA Network in 2006.
 * 1) Nandito Lang Ako (composer: Kaye Galler, arranger: Kiko Salazar) - Marlo Mortel
 * 2) Sayang (composers: George Canseco, Claire de la Fuente) - Gerald Santos
 * 3) Dito Sa Puso Ko (composer: Vehnee Saturno) - Miguel Aguila
 * 4) Sana Maulit Muli (composers: Gary Valenciano, Angeli Valenciano) - Janella Salvador
 * 5) Huwag Mo Nang Itanong (composer: Ely Buendia) - Eraserheads
 * 6) Sana Kahit Minsan (rap) (composer: Vehnee Saturno)  - Blanktape feat. John Edge
 * 7) Minsan Ako'y Nangarap (composer: Metamorpho) - Metamorpho
 * 8) Sembreak (composer: Raimund Marasigan) - Eraserheads
 * 9) Ako si Kapitan Barbell (composer: Raymond Abracosa) - Abra
 * 10) Paniwalaan Mo (composers: Ely Buendia, Raimund Marasigan) - Eraserheads

Ratings
According to data from Kantar Media Philippines, Captain Barbell conquered the nation as the primetime viewing habit of TV viewers as it reigned in the timeslot with a pilot national rating of 46.8% beating its rival programs are FPJ's Ang Probinsyano and Encantadia which are only got 43.3% and 19.4%. It soared high on its 2nd day garnering a 46.7% national rating versus the 43.9% and 20.7% ratings of its rivals. Since then, Captain Barbell became the #1 superserye of IBC, according to data from Kantar Media.

Batang Barbell
After the primetime success of Captain Barbell, the show was also given a follow-up series called Batang Barbell, which telling the story about Jacob before he was known as the little Captain Barbell. The series premiered on November 21, 2016, replacing Roberta.

Endorsements
The show gains endorsements and brand promotions from companies. The advertisements airs during and after the commercial breaks of the show.

Awards and nominations

 * 2016 Anak TV Seal Awardee (Household Favorite Programs) - Won

Trivia

 * Richard Gutierrez is the sixth of Captain Barbell in 2006 and 2011, respectively.
 * Dominic Roque is the 7th official Captain Barbell. He is the actor to play the role at age 26. Bob Soler was 26 when he played Captain Barbell, while Wilie Sotelo was played as the second Captain Barbell. The others were a little older when assigned the superhero role: the late Dolphy was 45, Edu Manzano was 31, Bong Revilla was 37, and Richard Gutierrez was 22.