The Hooded Figure

Fantastic Man has found new allies with Professor Llyod and Wena’s discovery of her flora-inspired powers as Fantastic Girl. But as the mystery of the mass disappearance at St. Anthony’s unravel, more allies are cropping up -- but are all of them allies? Marco Alcaraz is known for his simple man roles, most recently the character of Bien in Pati Ba Pintig Ng Puso?. And as he joins the cast of Fantastic Man, a new Marco is revealed -- quite literally after his character sheds his hood! “Ako ‘yung hooded person,” Marco begins by saying his character Ivan appears as a good guy. But he continues that Ivan is also the one who has been taking powers from the students of St. Anthony’s. “Tinutulungan ko sina Fantastic Man at Fantastic Girl para kunin ‘yung mga powers na binigay ni Draxor sa mga estudyante ng Saint Anthony’s.” Draxor? Is that Lloyd (Patrick Garcia) under a new name? “Hindi si Patrick, ibang character pa si Draxor,” Marco explains with a laugh. Back to Marco’s character, he adds that he portrays and alien in the show. Definitely a new thing for the actor who reveals that the role challenged him, “‘Yung acting (ko) may pagka-pigeon-like na galaw ng galaw.” He admits that his character’s make-up can be a challenge, but his alien behavior is the most challenging for his current role. “Kasi ‘di ba dito (sa Fantastic Man) iba-iba ‘yung character mannerisms nila? Sa akin, iba rin.” He also admits that he initially had a hard time veering away from playing Bien to playing the hooded person in Fantastic Man. “Medyo mahirap at first, pero ngayon medyo kabisado ko na ‘yung mga galaw ko. Minsan kailangan lang talagang mawala ‘yung character ko as Bien. Totally different talaga dito eh.” “Marco shares that it’s easier now, especially when he’s already in costume. “Nakakatulong ‘yung costume, ‘yung set...” Yet even with this challenge, Marco enjoys the Fantastic Man family. “Enjoy naman kasi most of them, I know them. Karamihan sa kanila naka-trabaho ko na rin. Enjoy ako sa set kahit na kung minsan hanggang the next day kami. Kulitan pa rin kami nina Mark (Herras) at ng ibang cast members dito.” But while they are having fun off-camera, his character is all about the seriousness of the situation -- in fact, this Saturday, Ivan goes head to head with Lloyd once more as they prove which one of them is the real good guy. Marco teases, “Ako ba ‘yung kalaban o si Patrick? Sino ba talaga ‘yung kakampi ni Fantastic Man at (sino ang) kalaban?” The answer to that would have to lie in watching Fantastic Man this Saturday on its new timeslot, after Wish Ko Lang! In the meantime, check out the iGMA forums where you can chat with your fellow Fantastic Man fans! Text by Jason John S. Lim. Photos by Mitch S. Mauricio.