[OPINION] PBB Unlimited: Who Deserves A Slot In The BIG FOUR? {1}
Since Seiichi’s exit from the Pinoy Big Brother House last week (he was my bet for Big Winner), it has become apparent for me on who’s left that deserves a spot in the Big Four… Slater Young and Divine Maitland-Smith.
Slater Young
Since the beginning of the show late October of last year, my initial impression of Slater had been spot on. In one of my earlier posts on the reality show, [refer to PBB Unlimited: A Closer Look] Slater struck me as “someone who has that mysterious aura behind the charming smile; he strikes me as being observant and laid back, but will step up to the plate when given a task and will ensure that it is done right.” And Slater has proven me right. He has stayed consistently strong as an individual player and as a team player who stands by his teammates. As a leader, he is unwavering especially when it comes to his principles. He has not compromised his values as an individual even if it meant having to sacrifice himself as a repercussion to his actions.
Slater, who hails from a prominent family in Cebu, is different from other rich kids who were born with a silver spoon in the mouth. His parents have taught him the values of self respect, perseverance, humility and courage which have greatly influenced his game as housemate in the Big Brother House.
Humility.
Though belonging to the upper social circle in real life, Slater has consistently been down-to-earth to his housemates. Although he found solace and comfort in a select group of housemates when they started out in Looban,1 he was still someone whom the rest of the housemates were comfortable being with. His warmth, kindness and always being a gentleman made him stand out, proof of which is his being the number one go-to guy in the group and being the “crush ng bayan” status among his female housemates and role model to younger PBB peers like Biggel.
Perseverance.
Slater’s stature in the outside world did not hinder him from taking on the kind of lifestyle that greeted him inside the PBB house. He did everything that was asked of him, and he did it without question except for those that he believed went against his values.2 Slater has done numerous tasks that personally challenged his patience3 but never wavered in his stand as a champion for what he believed was right.
Leadership & Courage.
Everyone will agree that Slater has always fit the shoes of a leader without being arrogant. His leadership qualities have always been so subtle yet his presence formidable. His style of leadership is benevolent rather than dictatorial. He listens to what others have to say, and is a good follower himself. And although in the latter part of the show, the housemates were thrown in for a loop with a string of challenges that tested their patience and self-worth, Slater persevered all that and withstood everything, not once compromising his core values. He is not afraid to fail, because in failure he learns to get back up and start over, bringing with him the lessons learned from the experience. He is not afraid to go against Kuya’s orders in cases where he believes isn’t right. Being boxed up in a household of different personalities takes a lot of courage to deal with in itself, and Slater did that with such grace and composure that is almost too good to be true… but he is—that is why he is so admirable in more ways than one.
Armed with strong values, strength of character, strong leadership qualities, kindness and humility and impeccable intelligence make Slater a perfect candidate for a slot in the Big Four. He is the complete package (with great looks to boot).
Divine Maitland-Smith
Also hailing from an A-List family based in Cebu, Divine was born with privileges that many of us could only dream about. But having to live in different parts of the world as a result of her father’s work allowed Divine to experience different kinds of culture and styles of living that have molded her into a unique personality that is endearing. Her edgy vibe inside the PBB house is something that can never be denied. She brings a breath of fresh air to a group of people who are too eager to please Kuya and everyone else.
Divine, though young (just turned 21) acts well beyond her years. Her being independent shows in almost everything she has done inside the PBB house. She is not afraid to be seen as the “bad guy” when her beliefs go against others’. She speaks her mind even if she knows it may not sit well with the rest of the house. Being too frank is probably Divine’s strongest trait—one that also gets her misconstrued in more instances than one. But putting that aside, Divine is such a sweety—she takes care of her housemates like a mother hen. She stands up for people she cares about—sometimes to a fault.4 With every challenge that she has faced inside the PBB house, Divine has showed strength and courage. Even if she showed weakness at some point, because she is just human after all, but her core values were never compromised.
Courage.
With Divine, it’s either you love her or you hate her…there is no in between. But when you do come to appreciate her independent and fighting spirit, you’ll see that endearing person that she is. Her spunk and feisty personality is a legend on its own. She is not afraid to go against the flow especially when she is hell bent on doing something that she believes is right. But Divine is a softie, too. She has a soft spot for people who are less fortunate in life and will do anything to help them.
Strength of Character.
Divine’s opinion (though through a sweet-sounding voice) was one of the loudest and most heard this season. Because she is not afraid to speak her mind, she is thought of as being domineering. Most Pinoys who are not exposed to western culture are not used to this straight-forwardness, which can cloud their mind into thinking that it is unacceptable.5 Being in a household of people with different personalities and traits can be intimidating. But for Divine who has a firm grip of who she is, she definitely stood out as one of the more prominent personalities in the show.
Humility.
Being one born with a silver spoon in her mouth, Divine was used to a life of luxury and ease. But being thrown into the Pinoy Big Brother game, she was more than willing and able to face the challenges head on. Armed with the experiences of living in different parts of the world, Divine put aside her social stature in the outside world and lived the life like millions of less fortunate Filipinos did, and did with grace and no complaints. It is quite admirable and humbling in itself watching her live the “Looban” and “Bukirin” lifestyle like she did, knowing fully well that she could have just given up whenever she could.
Divine’s complex mix of spunk, courage, humility and strength of character more than makes her deserving of a spot in the Big Four. That is more than what the other housemates left in the show right now can ever live up to, save for Paco.
Pinoy Big Brother is supposed to be about who is deserving, and not a charity case. It is not whether someone NEEDS the money but rather who deserves to win. It shouldn’t be an issue whether the one who deserves to be Big Winner is already someone who is financially set in real life. In Divine and Slater’s case, though both of them are from privileged families, they have proved to themselves and to the viewing public that they can stay true to themselves and not compromise their core values, even when faced with the most difficult and challenging situations. They are my pick for the Big Four (along with Paco and Biggel) because they have proven their worth, not just because they’re eye-candy. They both have substance, which is more than what the remaining housemates can say for themselves (especially Pamu, who has NOT DONE ANYTHING for her to be worthy of the spot at all).
The show’s avid following (though now dwindling in number because of the recent turn of events) are smart enough to decipher between who are deserving and who are charity cases. I just hope that the show still lives up to its prior fame like its slogan “Pinoy Big Brother–ang teleserye ng TOTOONG buhay sa loob ng bahay ni Kuya.” Let’s hope the TRUTH prevails and not otherwise. If not, then I wouldn’t be surprised if the succeeding seasons will even be patronized at all. Respect begets respect… and if the PBB management does not respect the PEOPLE’s opinion, then the show does not deserve to be patronized by the very people whom the show is supposed to be all about.
- the very first household that simulated the “slums” for the first few weeks of PBB [↩]
- risked being nominated as a consequence of not completing a task involving Joya Gensola [↩]
- being a “hacienda worker” who did the bidding of the ruthless hacienda owners, Baron and Beauty [↩]
- saving Deniesse two times from being nominated [↩]
- which is a reason for “culture shock” when they do get out into the world, they are up for a rude awakening, especially if they move or work in Europe or North America [↩]
Mar 12, 2012 @ 07:09:59
True that! I just don’t understand why they only had one time voting this time while on the past 2 weeks they had it twice. is it bec. BB likes the set of nominees?!urgh!
Hope Divine and Slater make it to Big 4!