MANILA -- "Sigabo" kicked off its much-anticipated run on Monday with an action-packed premiere that introduced viewers to Gabo, a former inmate determined to clear his name, and Sam Jacinto, the NCIA agent destined to become part of his journey.
True to its promise, the debut episode opened with action-filled scenes, betrayal, hope, and a budding romance.
The show opened inside the Manila City Jail showing Gabo (Coco Martin) with other inmates. Gabo was warned by Tatang (Joonie Gambo) to stay safe so he would not get dragged into the trouble.
But Gabo was once again accused of starting the chaos and was sent to solitary confinement.
A flashback followed, revealing how Django (Jhong Hilario) convinced Gabo to join him in threatening a congressman.
Reluctant at first, Gabo eventually agreed — but Django betrayed him by killing the lawmaker. After a dramatic motorcycle chase, Gabo managed to subdue Django, only to end up arrested by the authorities himself.
Back in the present, Gabo — having been tortured by jail officers — is urged by fellow inmates to escape in order to save his life. But Gabo refuses, insisting he will stay to prove his innocence.
In a surprising turn of events, he later receives good news: he is granted parole and finally released from prison.
On the way back to his family, Gabo recalled his childhood without his mother and the lucky coin he received from his father.
"Hindi ko na sasayangin ang pagkakataon. Babaguhin ko ang kapalaran ng pamilya ko. Hindi habangbuhay naririto kami sa ilalim," Gabo said.
Meanwhile, Samantha “Sam” Jacinto (Montes), an NCIA agent, prepares for work, wearing her late brother’s wristwatch.
She is briefly greeted by her sister Maxene (Arci Muñoz) before heading downstairs for breakfast with her parents, Isabel Jacinto (Carmi Martin) and Ricardo Jacinto (Edu Manzano), who appears noticeably distant toward her.
In the next scene, fate intervenes as Gabo and Sam finally cross paths when the bus Gabo is riding is held up.
While driving, Sam witnesses the robbery unfolding on the road — unaware that Gabo is already on board and attempting to stop it.
Gabo manages to take down the holdup gang before the bus is fully secured.
However, once again, he finds himself accused — this time by Sam herself — of being one of the robbers.
Insisting that he is not a robber, Gabo tries to walk away from Sam, who keeps her gun trained on him. In the chaos, Gabo is shot by one of the remaining muggers, who is immediately killed by Sam in return fire.
A passenger then pleads with Sam to help Gabo, explaining that he was the one who fought off the robbers. What follows is a “kilig” moment as Sam attempts mouth-to-mouth resuscitation in a bid to save his life.
Gabo eventually regains consciousness, much to Sam’s surprise — only to be met with a slap, as she accuses him of taking advantage of her.
“Ang ganda mo, ano ang pangalan mo?” Gabo asks.
“Iba ka rin, ah. Talagang tinanong mo pa ang pangalan ko,” Sam replies.
As he prepares to leave, Gabo adds, “Paano? Aalis na ako, kayo na bahala sa mga holdaper na ’yan.”
He then looks at himself and mutters, “Kapag sinuswerte ka nga naman, ikaw talaga ang tunay na lucky charm sa buhay ko,” before kissing his lucky coin.
On Monday night, "Sigabo" has logged more than 404,000 concurrent viewers on Kapamilya Online Live on YouTube.
"Sigabo" airs on weeknights on AllTV2, A2Z, TV5, Kapamilya channel, Kapamilya online Live and iWant.
Premiere of Coco Martin's 'Sigabo' logs over 400,000 live viewers online
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