Animated horror series based on Philippine Folklore gives all the chills
The new animated series on Netflix will give a huge platform for Filipino mythology, stories and their own supernatural creatures like the aswang, kapre, tikbalang, and tiyanak written by people who know their heritage and culture. The city of Manila is almost it’s own character as we ride the subway, visit gravesites and architecture of the city inhabited by humans and supernatural creatures alike in this fascinating series.
The 6 episode series is set in Manila and we meet the babaylan-mandirigma, Alexandra Trese who is carrying on the family business of keeping the balance between the human and supernatural world after inheriting from her father Anton Trese. By her side our Crispin and Basilio who work with her on cases that are outside of police jurisdiction. The stories weave together as a war is brewing as they keep the peace between the two worlds. I won’t spoil the scary fun but all the twists and turns will have you guessing who is the real villain and what they are after.
The first episode grabs you by the throat with the Filipino mythology meets FF and keeps going full throttle as each episode builds on the mysterious villain pulling strings in the background with nefarious plans. I loved this show not just as a fan of animation, supernatural, and things that go bump in the night but also the representation of mythology that expands on other series. I loved learning more about their supernatural creatures and using the proper terminology. I’ve seen a few of the supernatural creatures in other movies/tv shows but to see them in their own world really has me excited.
The rich core of the series (and comic I haven’t read but plan to) is family and the ties that bind you to people or as I like to say ‘chosen family’ and they will do for love. The nods to the culture and country from how people commute to work, the perfect snack, and ‘daddy’ issues that cross human and supernatural creatures really enriches not just the story but also the mystery that all come to the head with the first season finale. This is a no spoiler review so won’t give away much but the devil is in the details and this series needs your full attention.
It’s an unbelievably well written, animated and directed series that had me binging it all day. I enjoyed it so much I plan to watch again so that I can focus on the supporting cast and then just the background. I strongly recommend the series on Netflix now but also the Filipino komiks (graphic novel) series it’s based on.
Trese is based on a Filipino komiks series by Budjettte Tan and KaJO Baldismo back in 2005. The komiks series grew from a 20-page adventure with Alexandra Trese and her kambal sidekicks that garnered a passionate fanbase and eventually became a series of graphic novels expanding into its own universe. The series not only is loved by readers but recognized by the Philippine National Book Award for Best Graphic Literature of Year in 2009, 2011, and 2012.
It’s not performative diversity where they have minority characters/cast but the writers and directors are often White with no connection to the culture, country or ethnicity and so often will fall to ethnic sterotypes. The showrunner Jay Oliva and his art director Jojo Aguilar have connection to mythology and even flew to Manila in 2018 for a Story Summit to be able to bring realism and knowledge to Manila that were included in the graphic novels. I can imagine how excited the team must have been to bring their culture to a worldwide audience on Netflix.
Set in Manila where the mythical creatures of Philippine folklore live in hiding amongst humans, detective Alexandra Trese finds herself going head to head with a criminal underworld composed of malevolent supernatural beings. This horror Netflix Original Anime series is based on the Philippine graphic novel created by Budjette Tan and KaJO Baldisimo. Created for the screen by Jay Oliva (Wonder Woman, The Legend of Korra), Trese is voiced by Liza Soberano (My Ex and Whys, Alone/Together) in the Filipino language version and Shay Mitchell (YOU, Pretty Little Liars) in the English language version.
English language voice cast:
● Shay Mitchell – Alexandra Trese
● Griffin Puatu – The Kambal (Crispin and Basilio), Bantay
● Matt Yang King – Captain Guerrero, Dominic
● Jon Jon Briones – Hank, Xa-Mul
● Steve Blum – Datu Talagbusao, Ibwa
● Carlos Alazraqui – Anton Trese, Santelmo
● Manny Jacinto – Maliksi
● Eric Bauza – Nuno the Snitch, Bagyon Lektro
● Darren Criss – Marco
● Nicole Scherzinger – Miranda Trese
● Lou Diamond Phillips – Mayor Sancho Santamaria
● Dante Basco – Bagyon Kulimlim
● Rodney To – Aswang market guard, Man in drag
Filipino language voice cast:
● Liza Soberano – Alexandra Trese
● Simon dela Cruz – The Kambal (Crispin and Basilio)
● Apollo Abraham – Captain Guerrero
● Christopher Carlo Caling – Hank
● Eugene Adalia – Anton Trese
● Cheska Aguiluz – Miranda Trese
● Christian Velarde – Nuno
● Bryan Encarnacion – Datu Talagbusao
● Nica Rojo – Ramona
● Jo Anne Orobia-Chua – Emissary
● Jose Amado Santiago – Marco
● Steve dela Cruz – Maliksi
● Rene Tandoc – Mayor Santamaria
● Steffi Graf Bontogon-Mola – Young, Teen Alexandra
● RJ Celdran – Santelmo, Señor Armanaz
● Elyrey Martin – Ibwa, Dominic
● Steven Bontogon – Jobert
Director and Showrunner: Jay Oliva (Justice League Dark, The Legend of Korra)
Executive Producers: Jay Oliva; Shanty Harmayn and Tanya Yuson at BASE Entertainment, a studio based in Jakarta and Singapore
Written by: Tanya Yuson, Zig Marasigan, Mihk Vergara
Series Directors: David Hartman (Transformers: Prime), Mel Zwyer (Star Wars Rebels), Tim Divar (Young Justice)
Production designer and Art Director: Jojo Aguilar (Tron Uprising)
Character Design: Will Nichols (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)
Editor: Christopher Lozinski (Batman: The Killing Joke)
English language casting and voice direction: Wes Gleason
Filipino language casting and voice direction: Rudolf Baldonado
Composers: Kevin Kiner, Sean Kiner, Dean Kiner (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)
Original song: “PAAGI” by UDD, with lyrics by Armi Millare and Paul Yap
Format: 6 episodes, releasing all at once
Filipino band UDD, formerly known as Up Dharma Down, composed the official soundtrack for Trese, titled “PAAGI,” with lyrics by Armi Millare and Paul Yap.
About Netflix:
Netflix is the world’s leading streaming entertainment service with 208 million paid memberships in over 190 countries enjoying TV series, documentaries and feature films across a wide variety of genres and languages. Members can watch as much as they want, anytime, anywhere, on any internet-connected screen. Members can play, pause and resume watching, all without commercials or commitments.
About Lex+Otis:
Lex+Otis (L+O) maximizes current and next-generation techniques to develop and produce cutting edge animation for television, film, video games, virtual reality, mobile and more. Led by Founder and CEO Jay Oliva, the burgeoning boutique studio boasts an impressive roster of established and emerging production talent focused on creating unique, immersive stories to inspire, educate and entertain across multiple platforms. L+O’s roster of clients/partners features Netflix, CMON, Wild Card, SideShow Collectibles and The Stone Quarry. The studio currently has three Netflix Anime Originals in production: Trese, a Filipino mythology-based supernatural series; Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas, a futuristic zombie thriller that serves as an animated prequel to Zack Snyder’s upcoming live-action feature film; and a yet-to-be-named adult animation series based in Norse mythology with Zack Snyder and Jay Oliva serving as executive producers. The studio is also in production on the star-studded Ark: The Animated Series, as well as several yet-to-be-announced series. In addition, L+O is presently in development on more than two dozen original concepts, toplined by an animated dark fantasy series based on Sideshow’s popular Court of the Dead franchise. For more information, please visit lexandotis.com.
About Base Entertainment:
BASE ENTERTAINMENT is a Studio with outposts in Singapore and Indonesia. Founded by partners, Aoura Lovenson Chandra, Shanty Harmayn, Ben Soebiakto and Tanya Yuson, BASE is focused on working with top creative talent to bring forward stories from Asia to the world. BASE’s slate of projects includes film as well as series for various platforms. Most recently, Joko Anwar’s film IMPETIGORE from Indonesia, which had its world premiere at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival and took home the top prize at the Film Festival Indonesia, GURU-GURU GOKIL which is a Netflix Film and the omnibus QUARANTINE TALES which was shot during the pandemic. TRESE, based on the Award-winning Philippine graphic novel is its first Netflix Original Anime series.
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