The women in Cardo Dalisay’s life: Memorable leading ladies of 'FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano'
The longest-running primetime series on Philippine television has finally come to an end!
After a successful 7-year run, Coco Martin’s FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano has taken its final bow. For years, this action-packed series became a part of Pinoy televiewers’ nightly routine, tackling a lot of personal, political and even mental health issues. It surpassed three presidents and fought strong as it bid farewell to its loyal viewers.
The show paved the way for a number of Kapamilya stars to showcase their acting capabilities. It also became a platform for former action stars or semi-retired artists to make a comeback.
To spice up the storyline throughout the 1,696 episodes, Cardo encountered a lot of beautiful ladies who made his life more colorful. Some of the stars who were lucky to be chosen to be part of the show went on to star in numerous TV and movie projects after they graduated from the show.
For some dose of kilig and appreciation, let's take a look back at just a few of the many lovely leading ladies that graced the show and developed an undeniable spark with Coco Martin a.k.a. Cardo Dalisay.
Maja Salvador as Glen
FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano served as the reunion project of Coco Martin and Maja Salvador, who were paired previously in the shows Minsan Lang Kita Iibigin and Nagsimula sa Puso. Maja played the role of SPO1 Glen Corpuz, Cardo’s close friend who was secretly in love with him. The show had a lighter tone during its early run and fans looked forward to the funny yet kilig scenes of Cardo and Glen. One of the memorable scenes of this pair is when they pretended to be a rich couple ala BranGelina to catch a budol-budol gang.
After a number of missions, Glen eventually left Manila to attend to family matters in the province.
Bela Padilla as Carmen
Carmen is the wife of Ador, Cardo’s twin brother who died while on duty. With Cardo’s goal to seek justice and find the killer of her brother, he assumed his identity. The two got close, but Carmen ended up marrying Joaquin (played by Arjo Atayde).
After starring in a number of leading and supporting roles in GMA, Bela Padilla transferred to ABS-CBN in 2015 and was introduced as a new Kapamilya through this show. Initially, her character was supposed to appear only for a few weeks, but fans grew fond of Cardo and Carmen’s chemistry so they extended the pair's storyline. Carmen died while attempting to escape a drug syndicate and was shot dead by her father-in-law Thomas (Albert Martinez).
Yassi Pressman as Alyana
Among all the ladies linked to Cardo, only one woman ended up marrying him: Alyana played by Yassi Pressman.
Just like Bela Padilla, FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano is Yassi Pressman’s first big project as a Kapamilya star. Alyana, a reporter, crossed paths with Cardo in a hospital after a bombing incident. The two worked together and eventually, they fall in love. They got married and even had a child together. For years, Cardo and Alyana’s love angle was a source of kilig and inspiration for the viewers and it made Yassi a primetime favorite for five years.
Alyana met her tragic death when she got caught in the crossfire between Task Force Aguila and the Black Ops unit.
Anne Curtis as Trina
Meet cute? Check. Dyosa Anne Curtis also had a special appearance on the show as a rich fashion designer named Trina. Cardo was hired to be her bodyguard and the two disliked each other at first. While in hiding, the two got to know each other more and developed a special bond. Though it was obvious that there was ‘something’ between them, their time together came to an end when Trina decided to go the US. During that time, fans were happy that Coco and Anne were finally paired togehter in a project, albeit short.
Angelica Panganiban as Marta
Did you know that the 2020 Star Cinema film Love or Money is not Coco Martin and Angelica Panganiban’s first teamup? Angelica had a short stint in FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano way back in mid-2016. She played the role of Marta, a member of an illegal drug syndicate who wanted to leave. Cardo protected Marta a number of times and they shared a number of dramedy scenes. Unfortunately, the character of Marta was shot dead by her former boss Mr. Lao (Mon Confiado).
Yam Concepcion as Lena
Before she became the nation’s favorite kontrabida with her effective portrayal as the loud mistress Jade in Halik, Yam Concepcion had her first Kapamilya primetime project via FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano. She played the role of Lena, a member of the Rebel Group Pulang Araw. Initially, she had feelings for Anton (Mark Lapid), but she eventually fell for Fernan (Cardo). Though she confessed her feelings, Fernan discouraged her. Despite this storyline, you cannot deny the fact that Coco Martin had good chemistry with Yam Concepcion. What about an action-themed movie for the two soon?
Jane De Leon as Lia
Before she flies high as the new generation’s Darna, Jane De Leon was given an opportunity to be part of FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano. Viewers were able to see her in action as Pol. Cap Natalia ‘Lia’ Mante, who was assigned to Kill Cardo. With the death of Alyana, many viewers assumed that Natalia would be Cardo’s last love.
Through FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano, Jane was able to hone her skills in terms of dramatic acting and action-packed fight sequences. The show also served as a platform for her to prove that she can handle these types of projects. I wouldn’t be surprised if Coco and Jane will end up reuniting for a full-blast action film. Cardo and Darna? Why not?!
Julia Montes as Mara
Last, but not the least, is Cardo’s ultimate love: Mara!
Ever since the show started, loyal fans of Coco Martin were hoping that Julia Montes would join the show one day. It can be recalled that Julia was also busy with afternoon teleserye projects and had her primetime comeback last year through the show much to the delight of fans.
She eventually played the role of Mara, a mysterious woman Cardo met in a coastal town, who turned out to be the long-lost daughter of President Oscar Hidalgo (Rowell Santiago) with ex-girlfriend Aurora Guillermo (Sharon Cuneta). Her adoptive parents Armando (John Estrada) and Lolita (Rosanna Roces) founded a rebel group that Mara was part of.
Up to the last episode of FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano, viewers were not sure whether Mara was dead or alive. There were rumors about her character being written off due to personal reasons and having her unconscious body thrown in the water meant that anything could still happen.
With the bloody finale week of the show viewers were hoping that Mara would come back and give a glimpse of hope – and she did come back for her man. Indeed, Mara is Cardo’s last love.
Surely, FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano will be missed by the viewers. Who among the leading ladies of Cardo did you like the most?
