Over the three-year run of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo,” we have usually witnessed its main hero, Tanggol (Coco Martin), run away from, go after, or come face-to-face with the enemies and, sometimes, even have his dramatic and lighthearted moments. But along the way, it’s not only nemeses that he got to encounter, as he also met new friends who became his companions in his adventures and battles—some of them were women who we can say had spiced up his life.
In this "FPJ's Batang Quiapo's" special third anniversary feature, let us meet the 10 women who played a significant role in his life.
Mokang (Lovi Poe)
Of course, the first on this list is none other than the ultimate love of his life, Mokang, portrayed by versatile actress Lovi Poe. Those who got to watch “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo” since Day 1 certainly know that they’d known each other since they were kids, with Tanggol being completely head over heels for her, which he tried to hide by teasing her whenever they saw one another.
It was only when they were already adults that Tanggol mustered the courage to express his romantic feelings towards her, yet Mokang consistently turned him down. Even though his sweet gestures for her obviously made her kilig, she had only considered him a friend, not to mention that her family disliked her so much. However, in spite of getting rejected by her over and over again, it didn’t stop Tanggol from loving her, as attested by the many times that he had put his life on the line either to save her from harm or to help her get out of any trouble.
Unfortunately, just when Tanggol was able to finally obtain her sweet “yes” that officially made them a couple, their romance was short-lived after Mokang was killed by Olga (Irma Adlawan) in the midst of their battle against the Montenegros. It happened after Tanggol managed to take her away from the Montenegro mansion, where her then-husband, Ramon (Christopher de Leon), whom Tanggol eventually found out was his estranged biological father, locked her up out of jealousy. Extremely heartbroken by the tragic demise of his one true love, Tanggol seemed to have found it difficult to move forward and fall in love again.
Fatima (Sarah Edwards)
Not a lot of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo” viewers can perhaps recall that there was a time when Tanggol had a brief encounter with a Muslim woman named Fatima, played by newcomer Sarah Edwards, whom he rescued from two perverts who attempted to harass her while walking alone in an alley.
Tanggol even accompanied her on her way home to ensure her safety, through which he met her father, Abdul (Rez Cortez), who expressed his utmost gratitude to him for helping his beloved daughter.
Bubbles (Ivana Alawi)
Right at the very moment that she’d laid eyes on him when she was tasked by one of the prison administrators to clean and treat his wounds after they tortured him, Bubbles—impressively portrayed by Ivana Alawi—was obviously smitten by Tanggol.
They eventually became friends and got even closer as, aside from being able to know each other deeper through their conversations, they also went on to become partners in accomplishing the missions outside the prison that were assigned to them by Chief Dolores Espinas (Jaclyn Jose) as her “trustees.” Their friendship continued beyond the correctional facility and further bloomed, especially when Bubbles took him into their house after he was barred by Rigor (John Estrada), from coming back to their house on the day he was set free.
As they got to spend more time together, it apparently became harder for Bubbles to hide her feelings for Tanggol, as she finally mustered the courage to profess her love for him. Although he was having difficulties reciprocating her feelings, she still expressed willingness to wait for him until he was ready to open his heart again and accept the love that she was offering to him.
Sadly, the happily ever after with Tanggol that Bubbles was fantasizing about didn’t have the chance to materialize anymore because she was killed by Tanggol’s younger brother, David (McCoy de Leon), in his pursuit of gaining the favor of his in-laws, the Caballero family, as they thought that she was the reason why their scion, Pablo (Elijah Canlas), was murdered.
Katherine (Ara Davao)
While many people are hoping to meet the love of their life via organic encounters, Tanggol apparently has plenty of it, with his chance meeting with Katherine—played by Ara Davao—as one of the best examples. It can be recalled that the first time they bumped into each other was when he helped her take back her handbag that a snatcher grabbed from her while she was exploring Quiapo all by herself. She tried to ask for his name and give him cash as her way of thanking him, but Tanggol crabbily refused to tell her who he was and to accept her offer.
Their paths once again intertwined at the Caballero mansion, as Tanggol and his group once worked for the affluent family as their bodyguards. Katherine was able to recognize him while he was walking within the premises of the mansion and initially called him out, which resulted in a little argument between them. But she subsequently apologized to him for being rude and confided that they just lost a loved one, which happened to be her older brother Pablo, who, unbeknown to her, was killed by Tanggol.
Not even friendship was able to blossom between them, as Katherine was brutally murdered along with the remaining members of her family by the Montenegros, who massacred them inside their abode.
Madonna (Kim Domingo)
Tanggol may have lost a potential new friend in Katherine, yet he and his group had gained a new ally in Madonna—astonishingly portrayed by Kim Domingo—who used to be one of the close-in security personnel of the Caballeros. Since she had nowhere to go anymore, Tanggol invited her to join their group as his way of expressing his gratitude to her for saving them from the enemies who attacked the Caballero mansion.
While his friends were rooting for them to become an item, that actually didn’t happen because although she seemed to have appreciated him and maybe even liked him at some point, finding love was apparently not part of Tanggol’s plans at the time. Besides, he seemed to not have really moved on yet from losing Mokang and Bubbles.
From being the dangerous and mysterious woman in a sleek black suit and deep red lips who once put his fighting skills to the test the very first time they’d met, Madonna went on to become one of the most important people in Tanggol’s life as his friend and ally until she took her last breath during their fight against his father, Ramon.
Veronica (Angeli Khang)
The attraction between Tanggol and Veronica—the gorgeous granddaughter of their former business partner Arthur Kwon (Leo Martinez), played by Angeli Khang—the very moment they’d seen each other for the first time was indeed real and felt, as manifested by how they looked at and behaved around one another.
Their families even shipped them to each other upon learning that both of them were single, hoping that a potential romance between them might lead to a stronger and bigger relationship between the Kwons and the Montenegros. But that didn’t happen anymore, as Ramon killed both Arthur and Veronica after their once-promising partnership eventually turned sour.
Tisay (Barbie Imperial)
Tanggol apparently had found his match in Tisay, portrayed by Barbie Imperial, who used her angelic beauty to lure people into thinking that she was harmless and flawless. One of those who fell for her beguiling charms was Tanggol, whom she met at the casino that he and his group once owned. She may have initially succeeded in convincing them that she was a rich young woman, but they eventually discovered that she was actually a fraud and a part of a carnapping syndicate, who was trying to victimize them upon seeing the line of luxury cars parked in front of their gambling den.
Just when Tisay thought that she had succeeded in fooling Tanggol and making them fall into her hands, she eventually found her and her gang battling against Tanggol’s group, which resulted in their deaths. Even though she had crossed him, he still couldn’t help but feel pity and sorry for her, as he felt sad that she died young and wouldn’t be able to have a second chance in life.
Fatima (Andrea Brillantes)
What are the odds of meeting two people with the same name, right? While he seemed to have only met the first Fatima once, the second Fatima that came into his life—remarkably played by Andrea Brillantes—stayed for quite some time and developed a crush on him. Their first-ever encounter may not be that pleasant, as she and her kin tried to extort money from Tanggol by abducting him, but the two of them eventually became friends.
As he sensed that she and her family were innately kind and they were just forced to do it to him out of desperation to bail her brother out of prison, he decided not just to give them more money than the amount they needed but also to pay off their debts. Their connection didn’t end there, as Tanggol went on to help her and her family escape from the tight grip of the Guerreros and their allies. In return, Fatima helped him by courageously exposing the crimes of the Guerreros, which included Miguelito’s (Jake Cuenca) murder of David.
Unfortunately, despite the efforts of Tanggol and his friends to protect them from enemies, Fatima and her family were still murdered, not by the powerful family, but by the police whom the Guerreros ordered to hunt them down.
Dimples (Criza Taa)
Unlike the other ladies who showed attraction to Tanggol at the very moment that they’d seen him, Dimples—played by Criza Taa—already admired him even before she had the chance to see him in person. After she missed saying “hi” to him the first time that he and his friends came to their house, she made sure to be able to personally introduce herself to him when he swung by their house again.
She and her best friend, Kitkat (Nicole Luna), fangirled so hard upon seeing Tanggol enter their house and quickly approached him to thank him for rescuing her stepdad and mom from the goons who attacked them at their beerhouse the other evening.
Ponggay (Maris Racal)
And the latest woman to hold a significant role in Tanggol’s life is Ponggay—depicted by versatile actress Maris Racal—who, from trying to have him imprisoned as part of her duty as a police officer, went on to become his accomplice in gathering evidence that could send the Guerreros to jail and make them pay for their transgressions.
While she was initially hesitant to cooperate with him due to his and his group’s reputation as criminals and fugitives, Ponggay eventually agreed to collaborate with him after experiencing firsthand his genuine kindness and sincerity to serve, as well as his willingness to help and sacrifice himself for other people. He rescued her when she was being assaulted by Rockyboy (Baron Geisler), as well as her father, Mauro (Richard Quan), when he was being ganged up on by the people he was in arrears with.
Were you able to witness Tanggol’s encounters with these beautiful, amazing women, Kapamilya?
Don’t miss an episode of “FPJ’s Batang Quiapo,” weeknights at 8 PM on Kapamilya Channel, A2Z, ALLTV2, iWant, and Kapamilya Online Live (KOL).