Kim Chiu and Gerald Anderson's reunion teleserye Ikaw Lang Ang Iibigin aired its pilot episode yesterday, May 1, at the 11:30 a.m. slot of ABS-CBN.
The pilot episode opened with Kim's character Bianca winning a gold medal in a race.
On the other hand, Gerald's character Gabriel rode a bike going to school while being of service to his neighbors.
Jake Cuenca's character Carlos was also introduced when he won a national race. His mother, Vicky (Ayen Munji-Laurel), showed support for her son while his father Roman (Michael de Mesa) was unable to attend due to a business trip.
Bianca's victory in the race made her mother, Myla (Bing Loyzaga), very proud of her. It was later revealed that Myla used to be a track and field runner as well.
A flashback shifted the story back to 1993. Back then, young Myla (Carla Humphries) and young Vicky (Bangs Garcia) were members of the Philippine Team and used to be the best of friends.
Vicky felt insecure towards her friend, especially when Myla was chosen to be an official representative in the SEA Games.
The competition between them became even more intense when Vicky lost to Myla when it comes to the affairs of the heart. Vicky also liked Joey (Alex Castro) but he decided to pursue Myla and not her.
For her part, Vicky had a persistent suitor named Rigor (Edgar Allan Guzman) who would do everything just to win her love.
To win Vicky's heart, Rigor disguised as a holdupper and hit Myla's legs with a pipe.
Myla's injuries left her unable to walk and she had to back out from the SEA Games.
Vicky was then chosen to replace Myla in the SEA Games. After the competition, she met the rich Roman de la Vega (TJ Trinidad) and she found ways for him to notice her.
However, Vicky discovered that she was pregnant with Rigor's child. To get him out of her way, Vicky framed Rigor as a drug pusher and he was sent to prison.
In the year 2006, a young Bianca (Francine Diaz) and her family transferred to a new town in Zambales.
She had an encounter with Gabriel (Yogo Singh) at a pier. Gabriel insisted on getting to know her but Bianca hesitated to entertain him.
When Bianca decided to walk out on him, she fell into the water and the young Gabriel rescued her.
Future episodes will show how Bianca and Gabriel will develop a strong friendship until they become separated. Eventually, they meet again after many years to rekindle their suppressed feelings for each other.
AGB RATINGS. How did the pilot episode of Ikaw Lang Ang Iibigin fare based on AGB Nielsen Philippines TAM (Arianna) overnight ratings data?
Ikaw Lang Ang Iibigin, directed by Dan Villegas and Onat Diaz, registered an AGB National Urban Philippines rating of 5.8%.
The pilot episode of this new Kapamilya show aired from 11:11 AM to 12:05 PM in the network's Prime Tanghali slot.
Meanwhile, its competitor Trops, which aired on GMA-7 from 11:30 AM to 12:01 PM, got a TV rating of 4.9%.
Trops started airing last October 2016 and is topbilled by Eat Bulaga's boy group That's My Bae, headed by Kenneth Medrano.