'StarStruck' says goodbye and thank you to Fianca Cruz

Last night, isa sa fourteen 'StarStruck' hopefuls ang tuluyan nang nagpaalam sa competition. Ito ay si Fianca Cruz of Pasig City. Text by Jason John S. Lim. Photos by Mitch S. Mauricio. First elimination night ng StarStruck V kagabi, held live at Studio 5 ng GMA Network Complex. And after revealing their post-makeover looks, isang surprise ang ibinigay ng show sa mga contenders: a reunion of sorts with some of their loved ones. Pero it's still an elimination night; and the three survivors na tinawag to be part of the bottom group were: Ian Batherson, Fianca Cruz and Diva Montelaba. And in the end, it was Fianca who had to go. Post-StarStruck Parang foreshadowing ang nangyari in last Saturday's episode, when Fianca gave this message during the show's visit sa kanilang family home: "Na-relieve na ako nang nakasama ako sa Top 14. So parang wala na akong mahihiling pang iba. Sobrang thank you, God. Thank you so much." And now that she is out of the competition, Fianca says her first plan is to talk to her professors. Prior to StarStruck kasi, Fianca was juggling a full load of subjects in college. "'Yung ibang subjects ko, baka hindi na akong tanggapin ng prof ko. Kasi ang tagal ko na ring hindi pumasok. So 'yung iba, kakausapin ko. Tapos tatapusin ko 'yung studies ko." This Miss Universe aspirant says mami-miss niya daw ang lahat ng taong involved sa show, from her fellow contenders to Direk Rommel Gacho (StarStruck's director), hanggang sa mga Production Assistants na nagbabantay sa kanila. And her message para sa mga natitirang contenders: "Guys, galingan niyo. Sobrang gawin niyo lahat ng makakaya niyo. Kasi, katulad ng sinasabi nila Kuya Dennis nga, every second counts dito sa StarStruck. So galingan niyo. Always pray to God. Tapos, nandito ako para suportahan kayong lahat." "At saka sa lahat ng sumuporta sa akin, hindi ko man nakuha 'yung expectation niyo na makasama ako ng matagal dito sa StarStruck V, at least nandito ako sa Top 14; so alam ko na masaya kayo para sa akin." Fianca ends her night in gratitude. "Maraming-maraming salamat kasi sinuportahan niyo ako, kahit hanggang dito lang tayo, sobrang maraming-maraming salamat sa inyong lahat." Messages for Fianca Nakausap rin namin sina Ian and Diva, ang mga nakasama ni Fianca sa Bottom 3, para hingan sila ng kanilang message for their comrade. And here's what they have to say: Diva says, "Alam niya kung gaano siya ka-importante sa akin. Sa lahat ng StarStruck survivors na nakasama ko, siya lang 'yung talagang nagtatanggol sa akin every time nararamdaman ko 'yung insecurities ko. Siya lagi 'yung nagsasabi sa akin ng 'naiiba ka,' 'maganda ka.' Nagpapasalamat ako sa kanya. Si Fianca kasi, isang totoong tao. Hindi siya marunong magalit, ni minsan hindi ko siya nakitang galit. Mahal na mahal ko yang batang yan. Pero alam ko na may career pa siya talaga in the future. Kasi she's a very nice person, very talented, very intelligent. So yun, mamimiss ko siya ng sobrang-sobra." From Ian naman, "You know, sobrang proud ako sa kanya kasi napasok siya dito. Siya 'yung may full Filipina look talaga. Maganda siya, tapos sobrang bait, tapos talented siya. So just ingat. I hope to see you around dito sa GMA. [And] kasi nag-aaral pa siya: do good in school. It won't be the last time I see her, kasi kaibigan ko siya. Sobrang bait talaga. She's a real person, and I love her for that. Nice girl. I felt sad she's leaving, 'cos she's always happy—I'll stop before I start crying." Bottom 3 Kasama pa sa competition sina Ian at Diva, pero sa kanilang pagkakasali sa Bottom 3, we ask them kung ano ang naramdaman nila—at ano ang gagawin nila to make sure they don't get included in the bottom group again. After all, Factor I states that anyone who has been in the bottom group three times will be eliminated regardless of their actual standing. Diva tells us honestly na akala raw niya siya na ang matatanggal, and not Fianca. "Pero in-announce nga na hindi ako, [kaya] sobrang saya [ko] kasi may chance pa akong ipakita kung anong mayroon talaga ako. Ayaw ko namang mabigo 'yung Central Visayas sa akin." Tuloy niya na para sa kanya, naibigay naman niya ang best niya. Being part of the Bottom 3 only means na her best isn't good enough—which is why she'll have to exceed her own limitations. "Ngayon, kailangan ibigay ko lahat ng 200% best ko sa susunod na mga activities." As for Ian, he tells us na hindi daw siya nagulat na napabilang siya sa bottom group. "Alam ko, wala ako masyadong fans like Enzo [Pineda] at Rocco [Nacino]." Dagdag pa niya na hindi rin exceptional ang naipakita niya sa kanyang acting test because of the language barrier. "Silang lahat, alam na hindi masyadong magaling 'yung Tagalog ko. But I'm doing my best, so I just hope they notice my effort." He continues, "maybe [being part of the bottom group is] a wake up call talaga." He tells us na people are telling him na he's overconfident. "So alam ko na [to] tone it down, focus more on the competition. Not everything is fun and games here, kasi trabaho 'to—totoong buhay 'to. Ang dami kong sinacrifice so I can get into the Final 14. Masaya po ako nandito pa ako, pero alam ko I need to do my best." For sure, Ian doesn't want to end up in the bottom group again. "Hindi maganda 'yung feeling talaga; kasi hindi mo alam kung 'yung voting 'yung downfall mo, or 'yung sa [judging] pinaka-low score, or both." Patuloy pa rin ang mga tests ng Final 14! Araw-araw may bagong gagawin, at may bagong panonoorin—kaya don't miss the daily StarStruck ShoutOut bago mag-Family Feud. At siyempre pa, don't miss the weekly round-up every Saturday pagkatapos ng Pinoy Records. And this Sunday, after Kap's Amazing Stories, magkakaroon na naman ng tanggalan. Vote to keep your choice survivor in the running! Just text STARSTRUCK (space) NAME OF CONTESTANT and send to 2344 for Globe, TM and Sun subscribers, and 367 for Smart and Talk N' Text users. Each vote costs PhP2.00 for Sun subscribers and PhP2.50 for other networks. (This service is exclusive for the Philippines only.) You can also vote through the website StarStruck.TV. Pag-usapan si ang StarStruck V and your favorite contenders sa pinagandang iGMA Forum! Not yet a member? Register here!