Ang haba ng title. 
Aftermath Report/Mini-Review: Imagine You And Me Grand Premiere Night
12 July 2016 – SM Megamall Cinemas 9 and 10
This is going to be a super-lame recap, because it’s photo-less. Why? Because some @($%)#_%_!!!!! out there stole Blackie Lou, my trusty Canon camera, as we were going out of Cinema 10 after the movie. 
I mean, who would’ve thought that there’ll be a thief amidst a cinema full of celebrities, fans and industry people? I actually don’t feel bad that I lost that cam, because I can always replace it. #oomaypambiliakobakitba It’s the memories that come along with that camera that made me sad. We conquered many SPS episodes and AlDub/MaiChard events together. Also, I browsed through it before the movie started and I know I took quite a number of really good ones last night, despite the, uhm, challenges. 
(Will rant about that later. Oh yes, I will rant. Ngayon pang mainit ang ulo ko?) And now they’re gone. 
Pero pag bigla kong nakitang naka-upload sa kung kaninong IG o Twitter ang mga pics na ‘yan, #alamna. Sana ikasikat mo yan, ha?
Anyway… in the spirit of trying to keep everything spoiler-free, I will just post my review/recap of the night and the movie in random bullets. Just like how I always do it when I’m lazy or I don’t have much time to blog. (It’s past 3:00am and I have work tomorrow, er, later.)
1. As I have Tweeted earlier (which also led to my camera being stolen from my bag), throw away whatever theories you have developed based on the teaser trailers that were released. The trailer did not reveal much of the real plot and story. It’s full of surprises. Very pleasant surprises. It’s a simple story that was executed well. It’s something that you won’t hesitate to recommend to other people who are not part of the fandom. At least, I won’t hesitate to recommend it.
Siguro, ito lang yung masasabi kong accurate talaga sa lahat ng teasers na inilabas nila: Totoo yung KIT = Kilig Iyak Tawa.
2. The movie will cater to all sorts of “Teams” within the AlDub fandom. Yes, including #TeamAlembong, na parang ako lang ang naka-relate kasi… basta. 
Abangan n’yo lang.
3. Como was pictured beautifully in the movie. As in. Sooooobrang ganda. 
The cinematography was excellent, especially in all the Italy scenes.
4. Corollary to that, Alden Richards also registered well on screen in the entire movie. Oh wait. ‘Registered well’ is an understatement. I lost count of how many times I heard the phrase, “ang guwapo ni Alden, shet!” in the entire duration of watching the film, and not all of them came from me. Ultimo batok at likod n’ya rito, guwapo. Kainis. 
5. Nearly everyone who has seen the movie has said this, and I will join them in saying: kailangan may kasama kayong mahahampas pag pinanood n’yo ang pelikulang ito. This movie is the one that should have the tagline #KiligPaMore. It’s the first time that I saw a movie in theaters na bigla na lang may lumipad na mga kung ano-ano tulad ng tarp at lightboard dahil naihagis at naihampas sa sobrang kilig. That’s all I’m gonna say.
6. All of the supporting characters play a key element in the movie. Wala ritong random na maisali lang sa cast pero pwedeng alisin at aandar pa rin ang istorya. Even the cameos have something to offer to the story kahit pampagulat lang. Side comment: naaliw lang ako kasi there were two instances where Cai Cortez wore clothes that I happen to own, as well.
7. Now let’s talk about Alden and Maine’s acting.
Alden… what can I say. BRAVO, young man. 
I’ve always known you have it in you but in this movie? My gol-ly. Pati ang pag-iyak mong mala-Nora Aunor, wala akong masabi.
Alden’s acting has so much depth. Direk Mike has mentioned on the primer that he purposely gave him something a little bit more challenging owing to his acting experience. Andrew is really quite a complex character and I believe Alden truly delivered, and so much more.
As for Maine… she excelled in the light and funny parts. For someone who’s new in this, she truly has shown so much talent especially in the field of comedy. Napaka-natural niya mag-deliver ng linya. However, and this is just my opinion so please don’t bash me, she’s still struggling a bit in the dramatic parts. Medyo mababaw pa ang hugot sa ilang mga eksena at hirap talaga siyang umiyak, although aminado naman s’ya dun. Still a vast improvement than what she showed in God Gave Me You, though. 
But she has shown so much potential and I think, with just a few more workshops and acting experiences, she can become a truly prolific actress in the future. There is one scene here where she managed to tug my tear ducts because the emotions she showed looked and felt so real. Parang kusang tumulo ang luha n’ya dun eh. I really wonder what her motivation was when they filmed that scene. 
8. The ending… is something that I won’t reveal, of course. 
But it made me think. I wonder if others had a similar theory/opinion. We’ll find out later, when spoilers are already allowed. 
===
To end this recap/mini-review, I would just like to post this little rant because… seriously? Way to ruin the experience, guys.
Look. Lightboards are created so that your idol can see your banner even from afar. I really don’t know what is the point of placing yourselves right there in front, literally in the face of the artists, and effectively covering everyone behind you? Lahat po ng nagpunta doon ay gustong makita sina Alden at Maine, hindi yung likuran ng mga lightboards ninyo. At sigurado po ako na gusto rin makita nina Alden at Maine ang lahat ng pumunta doon, hindi yung mga lightboards n’yo lang. Bakit kailangang lumagay sa harapan at takpan sila?
Sana… SANA. Sa lahat ng tinamaan sa sinabi ko sa itaas: Matuto naman po tayong magbigay kahit katiting na pagkakataon sa iba dahil lahat naman tayo nagmamahal kina Alden at Maine. Salamat po.
To be fair, Paul Wilkins’ take on Marius isn’t as bad as Nick Jonas’. 
Also, I’m bitter that I did not personally witness him do this:
I already saw two different instances on social media. Yes, it might sound too shallow (or lame, depending on who you’re talking with) because it’s just a mere mention (three times, in case you’ve missed it) but if you know how things were in the Alden fandom before Alden International was launched, you would know why we’re rejoicing over this.
), Lou and I got stuck in super-horrible traffic yesterday. It took us almost three hours from her home in Mandaluyong to PETA Theater in New Manila. No, it’s actually more than three hours from Mandaluyong to Betty Go-Belmonte Ave. in Quezon City which still 1.3 kilometers away from PETA Theater. As we were stuck on the same spot near the corner of Balete Drive and E.Rodriguez Sr. Avenue for nearly 40 minutes and Charity, who was already at the venue, texted that the show has already started, we just decided to walk the rest of the way. Long story short, we missed the first 30 minutes of the play.
), Charity said that we walked in just as the main highlight of the story is unfolding and we only basically missed the character introductions. We still thoroughly enjoyed the show even if we missed a chunk of it.
.
But at the same time, they also showed ‘regular’ teen issues such as secret crushes among friends/classmates. Unlike in the first season where the topics were mostly about teen sexuality (like, if you watch Season 1 you would think that all high school students in Thailand engage in nothing but clubbing and sex – I know they’re most probably not, but that’s what Season 1 told me), Season 2 was more diverse. They also talked about drugs, peer pressure and the effects of both broadcast and social media on today’s youth.
The one who caught my interest in Season 2 is 
So much for having my ship sunk even before it sailed. Drats. 
) The only character who somewhat appropriates the original Korean was Guy, the Thai version of Yoo Min Hyuk. It helped that Channel V’s VJ Utt, who played Guy, has a resemblance to Kim Sung Soo.
) Aom can be annoying sometimes, but she’s good at dramatic scenes. Jane (Mintra) is so good at being a brat that I want to slap her silly and throw her into the river behind Full House. Utt is convincing as the player Guy, because well, it’s VJ Utt. He has that swag. Special mention should be made about the golden retriever named Junior who visits Aom’s house every now and then to keep her company. That dog managed to make me cry twice.
