RICHARD Gutierrez is back to playing a hero – half-human half- something. From being half-bird to half-snake, he stars in GMA’s latest offering, Codename: Asero. This time, he’s half robot which provides him superpowers but causes confusion, memory loss and soul-searching for him as well. The upside? Three bootylicious young women vying for his heart, or whatever remains of its normal functions after he was forcibly turned into a cyborg.
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One of these women is Heart Evangelista, a newly-minted Kapuso. Her switch to GMA7 from archrival ABS-CBN as well as her break up with long-time boyfriend Echo Rosales are by themselves already stuff for a controversial teleserye, complete with recriminations and counter-accusations. But in GMA’s first unveiling of their new Kapuso star, they chose to cast Heart in a role as far away as possible from her real life dramas.

In Codename: Asero, Heart plays a role close to our hearts: that of a plucky migrant worker. How she’ll achieve her economic mission for her deprived family back home and win over the questionable heart of the cyborg hero while parrying the dangers of her migrant life and the cyborg’s double agent life will doubtless keep millions tuned every day for the next few months.

And we haven’t talked yet of how the plot will thicken with the brilliance and foibles of its formidable cast of supporting characters and villains including such “naglalakihang artista” as Richard Gomez, Janno Gibbs, Michael V and Carmina Vilaroel. Also in the cast are sexy beauties as Francine Prieto, Ehra Madrigal, Bubbles Paraiso, Rhian Ramos, Jenny Miller and Chynna Ortaleza, as well as rising hunks Paolo Contis and Marky Cielo. Three of Richard Gutierrez’s real-life brothers are also part of the cast: Ramon Christopher and Rocky and Elvis Gutierrez. Plus there’s the returning Bobby Andrews.

RJ Nuevas heads the team writing Codename: Asero, while Mark Reyes and Mike Tuviera direct.

Eye candy

The teleserye’s opening week’s episodes alone cost the studio around P10 million, because, as Heart describes it, “it is eye candy for the viewers.” But she’s just talking of the unique sights of Dubai where they started shooting last April. Indeed, cinematic sand dunes don’t often serve as backdrop for a Pinoy sci-fi hero’s tribulations.

Another eye-candy that GMA7 is making a big thing of is Heart herself gyrating and pulling off a few mean bellydancing moves.

No wonder when asked what challenged her most in Codename: Asero, Heart said something about being fi t. “I wasn’t really a person who works out,” she explains. But for her role as Emily in the series, she really prepared herself physically. As in, “I run or jog everyday. I even bought myself a treadmill.”

Her bellydancing would have to be unforgettably awesome because Richard Gutierrez will still be 100 percent human in fi rm possession of his feelings and memories when he watches her. Th e memory of her dance, among other things Emily, should be able to help Richard’s character recapture his memory and humanity when he grapples with these later as a cyborg. Certainly, a tall order for Heart.

“I think Asero is gonna make a history in my life... the project itself, working with the actors here,” Heart Evangelista tells us.

Balanse lang

For his part, Richard says the series will balance off drama, action and comedy even if he won’t be providing the laughs. Those will be dished out by other members of the cast like Janno Gibbs as well as Heart.

Richard says he has also given his input on the production, something he’s used to doing with his other series. “That’s just being part of the team... My directors are like my old friends. They ask me for ideas. ‘What do you think? How do we develop our characters?’”

Asero will also help bring Richard Gutierrez closer to realizing his plan of producing a movie with his brothers. Aside from playing the title role, he also directs the fight scenes in the series. “It’s just a matter of time, really,” he says of the movie he plans to make with his brothers.

In the meantime, he invites everyone to watch and have fun with Codename: Asero as he fi ghts the “masasamang loob” and searches for his memory, humanity and loved
ones.