Pusong Ligaw
Pusong Ligaw is a 2017 Philippine melodrama television series starring Beauty Gonzalez, Bianca King, Sofia Andres, Diego Loyzaga, Enzo Pineda, Joem Bascon and Raymond Bagatsing. The series premiered on ABS-CBN's Kapamilya Gold afternoon block and worldwide via The Filipino Channel from April 24, 2017 to January 12, 2018, replacing The Greatest Love in The Better Half's timeslot.
Plot
Pusong Ligaw is a classic story about friendship, love, and achieving dreams. Two women, Tessa and Marga are bound by a promise to keep their friendship forever. This fictional drama follows them through the disintegration of their friendship, the tragedy in their lives and their children's, and their reconciliation.They both come from poor families but Tessa and Marga always support each other as they face their issues, struggles, challenges, as well as the happy experiences of their youth. Their bond is tested when Caloy enters their lives. Caloy has a historical relationship with Marga, but she prefers to keep it platonic. He meets Tessa and they fall in love. Marga changes her mind about Caloy and decides she can win him back. As Tessa pursues her dream of becoming a fashion designer, Caloy gets jealous of Tessa's mentor, the wealthy and influential Jaime Laurel, owner of a fashion conglomerate in Asia and America, who invites Tessa to one of his events. Marga uses Caloy's jealousy to undermine his faith in Tessa, and in one drunken evening, they spend the night together.
Tessa finds them together the next morning and is distraught. Shattered and broken over the betrayal of both friends, she leaves Caloy and returns to her home in the province. She discovers she is pregnant and her mother banishes her from their home. Tessa moves to Manila alone and supports herself. She gives birth to a boy, Rafael, and struggles to earn a living as a seamstress in Divisoria. Her life further destructs when her baby is kidnapped by a woman known by authorities for kidnapping and selling babies. Unable to find her son, Tessa is distraught and out of her mind when Jaime Laurel finds her and takes care of her. Years later, they get married. Although Tessa never stops looking for her son, she adopts a street urchin and calls him Rafa.
Caloy is heartbroken over losing Tessa. He returns to school and completes his engineering degree. He leaves to work abroad with an international shipping company, saving a substantial amount of money when he returns. He opens a business servicing companies and retail establishments requiring mechanical repairs of tools and mechanical equipment. He does very well, and is able to build a large house and continues to support orphans with building their job skills to keep them off the streets.
Marga becomes a successful entrepreneur, her talent agency becomes one of the biggest in the Philippines. She runs into Caloy and the two resume their friendship and eventually become a couple.
Tessa goes on to fulfill her dream to become a fashion designer, and with the help of Jaime, she opens a fashion coutre house in the US called House of Teri. They return to Manila when Jaime feels Tessa is ready to launch her ready to wear brand in the Philippine market.
The lives of the three friends collide at the House of Teri launch. But instead of renewing old friendship and forgiving past mistakes, they thread down a path of jealousy, revenge, and obsession: this time including Jaime Laurel, the one person most affected by their history.
In the near end of the series, it is revealed that Jaime was responsible for murdering his foster son Rafa and a master manipulator of the events so far. Tessa and Caloy discover the DNA results revealing Miraculo "Potpot" Policarpio as their biological son Rafael Magbanua Cervantes, and Jaime manipulates Tessa for blaming her real son for the crime he did not commit. He stages a car accident while he was sought by the authorities and barely survives the car crash. Due to his mental instability, he kidnaps Marga's son as a bait to get Tessa, which succeeds until the arrival of Caloy, Marga, and the authorities to rescue them. Eventually, to pay back what Marga has done to her best friend, she sacrifices herself to rescue Tessa from getting shot by Jaime until he was neutralized by the authorities.
In the end after Marga's death, who did not survive from her gunshot wounds at the hospital, Leon was serving time in life imprisonment after he became involved with Jaime on Rafa's murder. Jaime was in the mental asylum after surviving the gunshot wound by the authorities. Tessa becomes the owner and entrepreneur of House of Teri where she shows a tribute of the fashion models wearing the dress designs made by the late Marga, as their dreams from their youth have finally come true, all while being supported by Caloy, Rafael, and Vida.
Cast and characters
Main cast
- Beauty Gonzalez as Teresa "Teri/Tessa" Magbanua-Laurel
- Bianca King as Margarette "Marga" Dimaawa-Verdadero
- Sofia Andres as Vida D. Verdadero
- Diego Loyzaga as Rafael M. Cervantes / Miraculo "Potpot/Ira" Policarpio
- Enzo Pineda as Rafael "Rafa" M. Laurel
- Joem Bascon as Carlito "Caloy" Cervantes
- Raymond Bagatsing as Jaime Laurel
Supporting cast
- Albie Casiño as Leon M. Laurel
- Atoy Co as Danilo "Danny" Magbanua
- Smokey Manaloto as Melchor Policarpio
- Almira Muhlach as Didith Policarpio
- Maureen Mauricio as Rowena Magbanua
- Shalala Reyes as Asiong "Tita Asya" Salonga
- Vangie Labalan as Gabriella "Lolay" Policarpio
- Beverly Salviejo as Guadalupe "Guada" Epifania
- Rhed Bustamante as Melanie "Melai" Policarpio
- Ysabel Ortega as Charlotte "Charlie" Quiñones
- Maricar de Mesa as Amanda Yulo
- Helga Krapf as Patrice
- Carla Humphries as Lauren
Guest cast
- IC Mendoza as Vinny
- Jojit Lorenzo as Lito
- Tart Carlos as Noemi
- Air Lajada as Arvin
- Marnie Lapuz as Luz
- Emman Nimedez as Tisoy
- Ricci Chan as Alex
- Hiyasmin Neri as Andrea
- Trina "Hopia" Legaspi as Kitty
- Michael Rivero
- Erin Ocampo as Cynthia
- Luis Hontiveros as Lance
- Benedict Campos as Sandro
- John Matthew Uy as Mike
- Chienna Filomeno as Shane
- Nikki Gonzales
- Igi Boy Flores
- Dawn Chang as Janine
- Franchesca Floirendo
- Marinella Sevidal
- Angelo Alayon as JR
- Josef Elizalde
- Ethyl Osorio
- Karlo Ramos as Pogi
- Wilmer Abulencia as Buknoy
- Alex Calleja
- Jong Cuenco as Father Julian
- Cora Waddell as Kayla Benoit
- Lilygem Yulores
- Chun Sa Jung
- Clint Bondad as Simon
- Manuel Chua as Marcus
- Eslove Briones
- Alchris Galura
Special participation
- Teresa Loyzaga as Olivia Montero
- Alma Moreno as Alma Morena
- Miriam Quiambao as Monique de la Cuesta-Laurel
- Nikka Valencia as Clarissa Dimaawa
- Justin Cuyugan as Emil Verdadero
- Loren Burgos as Ximena Vergara
- Vivo Ouano as Edward Jacobs
- Troy Montero as Chris Ruiz
- Nina Ricci Alagao as Donna Bella
- Johnny Revilla as Paul Enriquez
- Toby Alejar as Donato Antonio
- Carla Guevarra as Amparo
- Cindy Miranda as Francheska
- Marco Gumabao as Nathan Ruiz
- Sophia Reola as young Vida
- CX Navarro as young Rafael / Potpot
- Lance Lucido as young Rafa
- Kokoy de Santos as teenage Caloy
- Zyren Leigh Luansing as young Leon
- Wally Bautista
Ratings
Production
Timeslot changesFollowing The Greatest Love's conclusion, the show became Kapamilya Gold's leadoff teleserye, and ABS-CBN decided to move The Better Half to the timeslot which was previously occupied by Pusong Ligaw's predecessor.