The Idolcoaster

This weekend, our first Philippine Idol Mau Marcelo will be competing with 5 other Idols from Asia (Indonesia's Mike Mohede, Malaysia's Jaclyn Victor, Vietnam's Phuong Vy, Singapore's Hady Mirza and India's Abhijeet Sawant) for the title Asian Idol.

For about two years, Idol has been a roller coaster ride for me and I'm actually excited about it ending with Asian Idol this weekend. Last year, we mounted the first Philippine Idol. It was a huge undertaking for a network that had just been relaunched and for a production team that has not been producing live programs for a long time. We had many a technical glitch and even got hit by a typhoon once. But hey, the show did go on.

In my years in TV, I've also never had a show that got so much feedback. I am just in awe at how many blogs and forums have been dedicated to Philippine Idol up to now. And then there's all the press! What kept us on our feet was that we got a fair share of good and bad comments - which I took note of and accepted constructively. But the important thing is, everybody seemed to keep talking about it from the time we launched it in February 2006 until the finale that made newspaper headlines in December 2006.

This year, quite publicly, we found ourselves in a tug of war with another network for the second season of Philippine Idol. It was all in the papers too when it was announced in September that we lost. Everybody kept asking me what happened and was consoling me like it was a personal tragedy. Of course, it was quite frustrating. But it's the way the cookie crumbles, I said. And at least, not only did we get a chance to do it, we also seemed to do it so well (or to be modest, let's say that at least we showed its potential) that it became desirable to someone else, right?

But then, like the rollercoaster that fools you as it slows down only to pick up speed again, Idol came back into our lives. Quietly first, when Elliott Yamin came to Manila and we were the partner network in September. Then, to everyone's surprise, we got the broadcast rights to Asian Idol on our network and chose to support our first Philippine Idol's bid to win it. Like I said in a press interview, it is a fitting finale to our Idol run.

And so here we are, counting down the days. I decided not to go to Jakarta to watch Asian Idol there because I have to man the fort here - and personally, I just want to be here at home to see the show beamed via satellite. Besides, it's out of my hands now. Sorry to mix metaphors midstream, but I daresay I'm like a parent who has given birth to a child and reared it and sent it to school. Asian Idol is graduation day. And on graduation day, the parents' role is merely to sit down, take pictures and applaud. It's the child's moment, not ours.

I hope Mau does well. I hope she comes home with the crown. And I hope everyone who supported us and Mau will tune in and vote. But for me, it will be time for this rollercoaster to finally slow down to a halt. Whatever the outcome, my Idol journey will end here. I will get off with legs still shaking and (hopefully when Mau wins) with a big grin on my face. And I will walk away and move on to other things - and I'm already eager to go on what rollercoaster ride the next one will be.

Tune in to Asian Idol on ABC 5 in the Philippines this Saturday, Dec. 15, 8pm and on Sunday, Dec. 16, 9pm. If you're in Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and India, check screening times here. Oh and please vote for Mau, she's really good.