Anime News: Anime Adaptation of Trese on Netflix

After their humble origin as an ashcan comic, Trese has reached another milestone as the Netflix anime adaptation now presents a release date. Mark your calendars as Netflix drops Trese on its streaming platform on June 11, 2021.

The anime is based on the multi-award-winning Filipino graphic novel of the same name created by Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo.

The first official announcement of this adaptation was made last 2018 at Netflix's "See What's Next Asia" event at the Marina Bay Sands, Singapore. It is produced by Jakarta and Singapore-based BASE Entertainment with Jay Olivia as the executive producer and director.

The series will have 6 episodes which will be released all at once. Part of the soundtrack of the series will be performed by UDD for the song Paagi.

As of writing, the trailer on the platform is dubbed in four languages namely: Filipino, English, Japanese and Spanish. On the other hand, the subtitles offered are: English, Filipino, Japanese, Spanish and Traditional Chinese.

The English language will be headed by the voice of Shay Mitchell as Alexandra Trese. Other voice artists are Griffin Puatu, Matt Yang King, Jon Jon Briones, Steve Blum, Carlos Alazraqui, Manny Jacinto, Eric Bauza, Darren Criss, Nicole Scherzinger, Lou Diamond Phillips, Dante Basco and Rodney To.

The Filipino language is amazingly headed by Liza Soberano as Alexandra Tresa. Other voice artists are Simon dela Cruz, Apollo Abraham, Christopher Carlo Caling, Eugene Adalia, Cheska Aguiluz, Christian Velarde, Bryan Encarnacion, Nica Rojo, Jo Anne Orobia-Chua, Jose Amado Santiago, Steve dela Cruz, Rene Tandoc, Steffi Graf Bontogon-Mola, RJ Celdran, Elyrey Martin and Steven Bontogon.

So mark that date on your gadgets as we are ushered back into the world of Trese, in its new anime form. Loosely wandering the streets of Metro Manila, our Philippine mythology creatures are constantly kept in check by Alexandra Trese who continues to fight for balance and peace. This will premier one day before our independence day.

"In Manila, where dark supernatural forces pervade the criminal underworld, it's up to Alexandra Trese to keep the peace - but there's a storm brewing."

Anthology: Trese ~ Book 1: Murder On Balete Drive

Story by: Budjette Tan

Illustration by: Kajo Baldisimo

Alamat Comics

Visprint, Inc.

(4.25/5 ★★★★☆)

"When the sun sets in the city of Manila,

don't you dare make a wrong turn

and end up in that dimly-lit side of the metro,

where aswang run the most-wanted kidnapping rings,

where kapre are the kingpins of crime,

and engkantos slip through the cracks

and steal your most precious possessions,

When crime takes a turn for the weird,

the police call Alexandra Trese."

The Good:

Trese is a great masterpiece done by an excellent writer and an incredible artist.

Who knew that our Filipino creatures would also adapt with the changing times. The best example among them is the Nuno sa Manhole.

There's a lot of great elements here but the best story, or case, would be the 4th case. Tan gave a wonderful homage to a well known Filipino superhero. The last panels of that case poetically ends with so much love and care.

The Bad:

No matter how incredible the story and art seems to be, it is a disservice to see how the layout was done. A reader cannot fully appreciate Kajo's illustrations. It is because some details of his art were at the edge of the panels which in turn were seen to be near the spine of the book.

The spell done on the 1st case, which was written in Baybayin like characters, could have been better if it was an actual word written in Baybayin.

A typo can also be seen on Case 3, in the scene where Oriol is in the bathtub.

The Verdict:

This comic is a gem that stands among the great number of komiks the Philippines has produced. The "Trese universe" presents to us fresh eyes of what our Philippine mythology creatures could be doing in our present time. An investigation of the paranormal world is unleashed in this cases.

Tan and Kajo paints the Philippine society as a society that has not changed despite the advancement in technology. Despite our history being slightly touched, such as the Bukidnon Massacre and the Great Binondo Fire, the same injustices and inequalities remains the same to this day.

This comic book is heading towards a great future. Trese shines brightly like the first star that you would see at night.

"But these aswang are the blood thirsty and stupid kind."

More information about the Trese comic can be seen at:

http://tresekomix.blogspot.com

 

* Breakdown of Rating:

★☆☆☆☆ -

★★☆☆☆ -

★★★☆☆ -

★★★★☆ - Case 1, Case 2, Case 3

★★★★★ - Case 4

Book News: Budjette Tan Reveals Upcoming Trese Books

Looks like fans of the comic book Trese are going to have a blast this year 2021, as we all wait for the release of its Netflix adaptation.

Tan teases us multiple times in his social media accounts regarding Trese books not yet released to the public.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Budjette Tan (@budjette)

In Tan's recent post in his Instagram account, all future Trese books that will be released by both Avenida, a local publisher, and Ablase, an international publisher.

Avenida is seen to have new edition of Trese Book 1: Murder In Balete Drive, Trese Bloodlines Volume 1 and Trese Postcard Book 1. Unreleased yet to the public are Trese Bloodlines Volume 2, Trese Postcard Book 2, new editions of Trese Books 2-7, and Trese Book 8, titled "Whatever Something Shadow".

Ablaze is seen here with the released international edition of Trese Book 1. Unreleased books yet are international editions of Trese Book 2: Unreported Murders and Trese Book 3: Mass Murder.

2021 is indeed a year for Trese books as they reach to a more global audience.

Anthology: Balik Tanaw

Illustration and Story by: Ardie Aquino

Ardie Aquino Comics

(4.167/5 ★★★★☆)

"Ang librong ito ay koleksyon ng mga komiks na nagawa ko noong 2015. Ito ay anim na kwento na tungkol sa paghanap ng kaligayahan, pagluto ng sinigang, pag-hingi ng extra rice, lihim ng kasama mo sa bahay, pagkain ng bawal at pagbalik tanaw sa buhay. Sana sa bawat paglipat mo ng pahina ay madama mo din ang mga emosyon na nadama ko noon."

The Good:

Ardie's craft really has improved. This could be seen from the changes that he made with the Extra Rice with Extra Tries story as an example. His illustrations also improved, if one would compare this 2020 version to the 2015 original.

Balik Tanaw is a new story included in this 2020 remastered edition of Ardie's 2015 comics.

The best story in this compilation is Ang Roomate Kong Aswang. It tells about the battle between a human and an aswang, which mostly centers on the aswang pictured as a bad roomie rather than his identity.

Reading beyond the surface of this story would give the picture that every person is different and unique. It could be due to gender, sexual orientation, religion, nationality and even species. Despite these differences, what really matters is how a person interacts with others. Being angry to an individual does not need to be discriminatory but rather it could be plainly due to his or her awful demeanor towards others.

The Bad:

This anthology would have been better if the layout was improved. Some pages are hard to read due to the parts that are near to the spine of the book. This problem is already evident on the foreword page.

All stories exists in the same world except for Balik Tanaw and Hipon sa Hapon. It would have been interesting if they were connected in some way.

The story that didn't do well was the bonus story, Balik Tanaw. Its never ending story didn't work with me. If your future self went into your past to try to save your past self from doing the same steps, why on earth would you repeat the same things. It could have easily worked out by not helping the character find the crystal in order to prevent the same things from happening once again.

The Verdict:

Ardie's throwback to his previous works by creating an updated and better version of them is a good concept. It measures the growth you have achieved with your craft in doing so.

This anthology is a gateway to Ardie Aquino's weird and absurd ideas. Be sure not to miss it.

He can be seen at:

Facebook Page: Ardie Aquino

* Breakdown of Rating:

★☆☆☆☆ -

★★☆☆☆ - 

★★★☆☆ - Balik Tanaw

★★★★☆ - Burn Baby Burn, Sinigang: Kwento ng Lumbay, Extra Rice with Extra Tries

★★★★★ - Ang Roomate Kong Aswang, Hipon Sa Hapon

Comics: Extra Rice with Extra Tries

Illustration and Story by: Ardie Aquino
Ardie Aquino Comics
(3/5 ★★★☆☆)

The Plot:

We all have our own inner demons.

The Good:

The illustrations from Ardie are consistently great. He truly owns this weird chibi style of illustration.

The Bad:

The extra rice that was the title and main focus of the cover page illustration of this comic was not part of the main story. It only serves as an addition in the epilogue.

The Verdict:

This comic, as I percieve, is a motivational one. It tries to convey that no matter how much life scares us, even through our inner demons, we must always get out of bed and fight the day out.

Our dream serves as our refuge. A place to heal and regroup our thoughts on how to fight once we wake up again.

He can be seen at:

Facebook Page: Ardie Aquino

Comics: Sinigang: Kwento ng Lumbay

Illustration and Story by: Ardie Aquino

Ardie Aquino Comics

(3/5 ★★★☆☆)

The Plot:

A Filipino pork stew cooked to perfection with MeTube as a guide.

The Good:

The illustrations are becoming a trademark of Ardie Aquino's simple and neat artwork. It can be seen on how the ingredients were drawn.

The story is simple and could remind readers of memories of love and care through cooking.

The Bad:

Based on the flow of the story or recipe, an ingredient was missing from pages 1 and 5. Pepper was not included even though it was used on pages 12 and 13.

The Verdict:

Sinigang is a simple comic book that takes a look at our past. It gives that comforting feeling after engulfing a warm and delicious pork stew on a cold and rainy day.

The food brings beautiful memories as one savors each spoonful of pork stew. This is our Filipino dish  story equivalent to the Ratatouille dish of an American film.

He can be seen at:

Facebook Page: Ardie Aquino

Book News: Trese's Book Releases for 2020 and 2021

 

Budjette Tan made a huge announcement for Trese fans as he revealed upcoming books that we should watch out for.

The first one is a new series titled BLOODLINES. It is an anthology set in the Trese universe which would probably tackle Trese's other family relatives. The first volume would include stories by David Hontiveros, John Amor, Brian Balondo, Mark Gatela, Marvin del Mundo, Brandie Tan, and Jb Tapia. It will also include a new story from Budjette Tan and Kajo Baldisimo. This is set to be launched this December 2020.

The second volume of BLOODLINES will be a treat for the fans since it will include stories solicited from readers. Selected stories will be drawn by Kajo Baldisimo. This is set to be released in 2021.

Another treat that will be coming out in 2021 is the Avenida Edition of Trese Books 1, 2 and 3. It is said to contain new artworks and additional pages that will further expand the stories of each arc.

The Trese volume definitely keeps on expanding to our wonder and amazement.

More information about the Avenida Edition of Trese books can be seen at:

Facebook Page: "Avenida Books"

Trese Books 2021 Update:

Book News: Budjette Tan Reveals Upcoming Trese Books