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Maria Clara at Ibarra viewers think that singer-actor Khalil Ramos is the “perfect casting” for the role of Basilio in the hit GMA Telebabad show.

As the historical portal fantasy series enters Jose Rizal's El Filibusterismo, the character of Basilio was re-introduced. After 13 years, the young son of Sisa is now seen as a grown up teenage boy, played by Khalil Ramos.

While many netizens remembered the child actor Stanley Abuloc as the young Basilio, many of them have nothing but praises for how Khalil took over the role.

In an interview, Khalil expressed excitement to “fill-in” the shoes of a character viewers have watched numerous times.

“Siyempre, isa siyang character na sinulat ni Jose Rizal so I'm very much excited and very thankful to be part of this wonderful show,” he said.

He also expressed his excitement to play the role of Basilio knowing how important the role is in El Filibusterismo.

A Maria Clara at Ibarra viewer said that Khalil “perfectly embodies” the young Basilio's innocence from the Noli Me Tangere days, which made them believe that the production made a perfect casting for the role.

Another viewer compared Basilio's character to a warm hug.

“He carries that familiarity from NMT (Noli Me Tangere) and all the memories we've created with him,” the comment read.

Meanwhile, others are looking forward to see more interactions between Khalil and the rest of the cast, much like how he interacted with Simoun (Dennis Trillo), whom he knew as Crisostomo Ibarra.

One netizen also expressed how the scene where Simoun remembered Basilio and hugged him melted them while another was worried that they will only see Khalil as Basilio “for just a short amount of time.”

“He is one of the reasons we need season 2 or else we were rob[bed],” the comment read.

Aside from Khalil, additional characters were also introduced such as Paulita Gomez (Julia Pascual), and Isagani (Kim de Leon).

TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THE TRIUMPHS KHALIL HAS IN SHOWBIZ: