GMA Entertainment Group’s newest prime-time masterpiece Maria Clara at Ibarra is clearly making headlines since its world premiere on October 3.
The historical portal fantasy series not only has topped the rating charts but is also included in Twitter’s list of top trending topics in its first two weeks.
Based on Nielsen Philippines TAM ratings data from October 3 to 7, the show posted a combined average people rating of 15.1 percent on GMA and GTV.
The program maintained its strong TV ratings from October 10 to 14 with a combined (GMA and GTV) average people rating of 14.8 percent based on Nielsen’s TAM preliminary/overnight data.
Maria Clara at Ibarra defeated its rival show Darna, which only managed to get a combined average people rating of 7.2 percent from October 3 to 7 (TV5, A2Z, Kapamilya Channel, and Cinemo). Furthermore, Darna only posted a 6.9 percent combined average people rating from October 10 to 14.
In its first two weeks, the show has received thousands of tweets with multiple trending hashtags. Netizens could not help but admire the educational yet entertaining story of Maria Clara at Ibarra, which is bannered by 2016 Fantasporto International Best Actress Barbie Forteza as Klay, Julie Anne San Jose as Maria Clara, and the multi-awarded Dennis Trillo as Ibarra. It tackles not only the rich history of the Philippines, but also some of the most crucial issues in the society.
“They discussed education, labor, misogyny and ethnocentrism in a span of three episodes. GMA is brave enough to tackle feminism in a recent episode. This only manifests that they are taking our free TV experience into a more realistic point of view,” a netizen tweeted.
Meanwhile, a netizen commended Dennis’s portrayal of the iconic role of Crisostomo Ibarra: “Super deserve! Wala nang ibang magpi-fit sa character na ito kung hindi si Sir Dennis. Another Best Actor award in the future! Ang husay gumanap from head to toe—dama talaga ang vibe ni Ibarra.”
The program also depicts more relatable problems as seen in the character of Klay, who came from a broken family and had to grow up with an abusive stepfather. Barbie is undeniably earning rave reviews for her outstanding portrayal as the Gen Z Maria Clara.
“This is the series that I’ve been waiting for. It talks about real human struggles. Barbie’s story is very realistic and her lines were so on point. Grabe ’yung batuhan nila ng lines ng prof niya and ’yung between sa kanila ng nanay niya. She deserves an award for this,” another netizen remarked.
Fans and netizens also stay tuned on social media for snippets and replays of the series. In fact, it has already accumulated 130 million views and counting on TikTok, while thousands of people watch its livestream on GMA Network’s YouTube page every night. The first six episodes of Maria Clara at Ibarra also received over 1 million views each on GMA’s Facebook page, another milestone for the prime-time series.
One netizen also praised how the production team paid attention to the smallest details of Dr. Jose Rizal’s novels: “Fonda Francesca de Lala Ary is a famous hotel during the Spanish period in the Philippines. Dr. Jose Rizal may have stayed in this hotel during his stay in Manila as a student and he mentioned this place in Noli Me Tangere.” The hotel can be seen in the show where Ibarra stayed after his sojourn in Europe.
Playing equally important roles in the series are Tirso Cruz III as Padre Damaso, David Licauco as Fidel, Manilyn Reynes as Narsing, Rocco Nacino as Elias, Juan Rodrigo as Kapitan Tiago, Ces Quesada as Tiya Isabel, Dennis Padilla as Mang Adong, Lou Veloso as Jose Torres, Gilleth Sandico as Donya Victorina, and Karenina Haniel as Victoria. Completing the powerhouse cast is the special participation of Andrea Torres as Sisa.
Maria Clara at Ibarra airs weeknights at 8 pm on GMA, and at 9:40 pm, Mondays to Fridays, on GTV.