ABS-CBN/YMMV

Adorkable: This trope usually applies to an ABS-CBN drama protagonist who is rather ugly.
Alternate Continuities: ABS-CBN still operates today, even after taking different directions: bringing 21st century television to the Filipino people, and years later, going beyond television.
Arc Words: In The Service Of The Filipino, and Kapamilya.
Artistic Licence Geography: ABS-CBN's Broadcast Center and its interiors appears in some films and series, but ABS-CBN itself doesn't appear in any of them (except for some films and series where ABS-CBN appears, most notably the movie adaptation of Home Along Da Riles).
- For example, in Home Sweetie Home, one of the floors of one of the buildings in the network's compound, named the Eugenio Lopez Jr. Communication Center was used as an airport, but there were no changes to the floor to correspond with this.
- Here's a subverted example of this: in an episode of one of their fantasy series, Kokey, the main characters and Kokey, while in attack, run to the network's Broadcast Center. However, there's no fictional network in the series that occupies this facility, just ABS-CBN.
Awesome Art: A LOT. Probably the best creative masterpiece made by this network can be either the idents, the identity, or better yet, the logo.
Badass: ABS-CBN seems to take business excellence very seriously in all of its businesses (but not just television!). Apparently, because of this, in Philippine TV, ABS-CBN is probably the most badass network we have ever seen.
- ABS-CBN is also home to MANY of the country's most popular artists.
Banana Peel: Though precise and striving for perfection, ABS-CBN can sometimes end up making mistakes in its programming. Remember the "Nabulunan sa hamon" incident Korina Sanchez made? Or that sensual outfit Anne Curtis wore in ASAP? Or maybe, that hoax of a flesh-eating disease on Pangasinan? Or that nude paint challenge in PBB: All In?
Beauty Equals Goodness: ABS-CBN is a very nice, charitable, and optimistic media conglomerate, with a very Iconic Logo to back it up.
Benevolent Boss: Their chairman, Eugenio L. Lopez III (a.k.a. Gabby) is one. Current President and CEO Charo Santos-Concio (a.k.a. Ma'am Charo) and late Chairman Emeritus Eugenio M. Lopez Jr. (a.k.a. Geny) are also examples of this, due to ABS-CBN's legacy of service to the Filipino.
Berserk Button: Even though ABS-CBN is nice and compassionate, you better not do something wrong.
- You do not want to steal any of ABS-CBN's content, especially if you're their most hated rival, GMA.
Beyond the Impossible: In the 1990s, ABS-CBN branched out into films, record production, visual effects, cable channels, international services, publishing, new media, theatrical operations, sports, public service, and then, home shopping, telecommunications, and theme parks. In simple words, ABS-CBN did what no other network could do back in the 90s: become a total entertainment and information network (but you can simply call this term "media conglomerate").
Big Badass Family: ABS-CBN's owners, the Lopezes, are a family who dedicate their lives to serve the Filipinos and drive away corruption.
- Here's a subverted example: ever since ABS-CBN introduced the phrase "Kapamilya" in 1999, ABS-CBN started treating its employees like a family. In turn, the employees also started to picture ABS-CBN as their "second family". In order to extend this treatment to include its viewers, they soon adopted "Kapamilya" as their brand name four years later, in 2003. Surprisingly, the network also did this action in response to the "Kapuso" branding GMA launched the previous year.
Big Damn Heroes: ABS-CBN enters this mode when they serve victims of calamities and disasters.
Big Eater: ABS-CBN usually eats a huge portion of audience share every year, regularly.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: ABS-CBN would sometimes put some sort of twist in dramas, like making a Big Bad covered with good paint, then when the right time comes, the twist unfolds, and the Big Bad is soon exposed. Notable examples include Cynthia Salazar of Esperanza and Raymond of Pure Love.
Bootstrapped Leitmotif: Their leitmotif plays in their station idents.
Born Winner: A lot of Filipinos seem to like ABS-CBN programming more than the programming of any other network, which is one of the main factors of its consistent dominance.
Broke the Rating Scale: One time in the 1970s, ABS-CBN Channels 2 and 4 gobbled 80% of the audience share, then in 1993, Channel 2 alone consumed 62% audience share—12 times its audience share in 1988!
- ABS-CBN has housed a huge amount of high-rated broadcasts—among them are Esperanza which had 58% audience share (the highest rating of a program before the 21st century), Rosalinda which had 68.9% audience share (making it the highest-rated foreign program in Philippine TV) and Hataw Pacquiao: Laban ng Bayan which had 83.5% audience share (making the country's highest rated sports broadcast)!
Broken Bird: Their growth was stunted by Ferdinand Marcos and martial law. Guess what the dictator got? The network joined forces with the people to reduce his dictatorship to ashes and leaving a huge trail of destruction to the Marcoses. While it could be considered something done for the sake of bringing back democracy, it also did this because they knew that it was "payback time".
Building of Adventure: ABS-CBN's Broadcast Center in Sgt. Esguerra Avenue, Quezon City. It is subverted, however, since there is no battle in the building, but because the network does its business in this facility.
Catch Phrase: "In The Service Of The Filipino" and "In The Service Of The Filipino Worldwide". Their old catch phrase, "The Philippines' Largest Network", also counts as one.
Cheerful Child: ABS-CBN's child stars.
- Child Prodigy: While ABS-CBN has forged the careers of many children in showbiz (many of which have become today's biggest stars), this title is almost unanimously given to Lyca Gairanod.
Color Motif: An iconic example: red, green, and blue.
Copy Cat Sue: STRONGLY subverted: ABS-CBN's 1987 and 1990 IDs has the look of the 1981 "Leader" ID of Veronica, a TV station from the Netherlands (without the sun). Didn't you see the sparkling lights on the background and the lines? In Veronica's version, it featured the Veronica logo, a sun, the sparkling lights, and the lines. In ABS-CBN's version, the sun was dropped, and the Veronica logo was replaced by the ABS-CBN logo. ABS-CBN soon ditched all of them by the 90s, in favor of their own original graphic packages. Surprisingly, Veronica didn't know about the entire thing (which is the reason why this example is subverted).
Crazy Enough to Work: During the 1950s, pre-merger CBN's Channel 9 has a transmitter consisting of rags and bamboo strips that still worked. Today, ABS-CBN's transmitter consists of nothing but steel and metal, is 750 ft tall and transmits with a power of 346.2 kilowatts.
Crowning Music of Awesome: Also a lot, from their Leitmotif to the Christmas songs.
Dance Party Ending: Subverted. When James Lindenberg and Antonio Quirino finished getting the required equipment for the first TV broadcast, it all ended in a garden party. While it's signaled the end of a project's construction, it triggered the start of the history of Philippine TV's crown jewel.
Deadpan Snarker: ABS-CBN itself was pretty quick enough to point out GMA's "Kapuso" relaunch as "a copycat strategy to gain audience share". It was even Lampshaded in their 2002 Annual Report.
Determinator: Was this in 1986, as it was doing its best to get its glory days back. And it paid off two years after.
Does This Remind You of Anything?: ABS-CBN's station plugs during their 45th, 50th and 60th anniversaries, as well as their 2013 Summer ID were jam-packed with nostalgia from 1953 up to 2013. Not just juicy and nostalgic clips, but also whole memorable quotes as well.
- Some elements in their sitcom, Home Sweetie Home, are small tributes or "Easter eggs" to one of their greatest talents, Comedy King Dolphy.
Double Meaning: Their 2014 Christmas campaign, entitled "Thank You, Ang Babait Ninyo", was not only created to celebrate how much the network has served the Filipinos in its life, but also to thank all of the Filipinos for supporting the network throughout its 61 years of existence, as well as the people that have helped other people and have become a significant part in their lives.
Ear Worm:
- Their 2009 Christmas song, "Bro, Ikaw Ang Star Ng Pasko", which became a totally insane household sensation.
- Their Christmas song for 2013, named "Magkasama Tayo Sa Kwento Ng Pasko".
- Thank you, ang babait ninyo!
  - It's quite interesting to know that the song was based off a classic Christmas carol performed in the Philippines, which bears the same name.
- Then in 2015, along with the launch of digital TV in the Philippines, we're also introduced to the ABS-CBN TVplus jingle, which can probably enter your brain in an instant.
Earn Your Happy Ending: Thank you, hard work!
Everybody Calls It Kapamilya/Dos: Sometimes, you can just refer to ABS-CBN by its brand name, "Kapamilya", or by its Manila channel number in Spanish, Dos.
Fan Fic Recommendations: The fanfic Super Network Wars was crafted out of ABS-CBN's rather EPIC rivalry towards GMA.
Filipinos Love ABS-CBN: Try as GMA might, but nothing will damage ABS-CBN's popularity with the Filipino people.
Flawless Victory: ABS-CBN stated in its annual report in 1999 that for the year 1999, it was the number one network in all demographics, formats, timeslots, and days by a wide margin.
Foil: ABS-CBN is more charitable, nice, polite, ambitious, optimistic, munificent, and truthful in contrast to their corrupt, greedy, and scheming rival.
Fun with Acronyms: During the 90s, at one point when the network was number one, ABS-CBN used their name to form a pretty clever marketing strategy, which says "All the Best Shows Come from the Brightest Network". Almost two decades later, the statement is still true, as ABS-CBN is still the leading network, and the true home of the biggest top-rating shows and the biggest stars.
Generation Xerox: Most of the network's executives and board members are family members of the well-known Lopez family.
Genius Bonus: When you stop at 0:09 at ABS-CBN's Sky-themed station ID in 2001, you could see two rings (one green and one blue) crossing together to create GMA's Kapuso heart symbol. Ironically, this station ID was made one year before GMA could even launch their present logo.
Glory Seeker: When ABS-CBN was reopened in 1986, it was struggling in the ratings. Turns out, they wanted their glory days back (which they enjoyed back in the 1960s), something a lot bigger than industry dominance.
- They eventually get back their glory days back in 1987, and in the following year, in 1988, they became number one again.
- And surprisingly, thanks to new ventures in media and entertainment, ABS-CBN was taken to new heights that surpassed its former glory. Back in the 1960s, ABS-CBN was just a famous household name in TV and radio broadcasting, but now, that same household name is now a very admirable media conglomerate recognized around the world.
Goal in Life/Humble Goal: A powerful and ambitious example: ABS-CBN just wants to serve the Filipino in many different ways, and yet they don't get carried away with high ratings or towering amounts of profits.
Good Samaritan: They are perhaps the very first media company that emphasized public service in media.
- In 1986, ABS-CBN broke out of its prison and secretly joined the people and GMA-7 strengthen the People Power Revolution (via taking over Channel 4 of MBS, now PTV) which ended the Marcos rule and brought Ferdinand Marcos to a humiliating defeat (before dying 3 years later).
- One time, during the siege in Manila Peninsula, GMA-7's remote set-up caught fire. In a surprising turn of events, ABS-CBN's crew came to the rescue and put out the fire.
He Cleans Up Nicely: When ABS-CBN was relaunched in 1986, its programs aired during that time were total flops. It soon replaced them with more successful programs in 1987, and it didn't take long for ABS-CBN to be catapulted to first place.
- This example defines this trope to a much bigger extent: By 1986, it was a struggling TV station with low ratings. Today, it is now a dominant TV network and a successful media conglomerate.
Heroic Sacrifice: ABS-CBN's 1972 shut down was caused because it refused to join the Marcos propaganda machine. It was sad, but it was a sacrifice they had to make for the people.
Iconic Logo: Their transmitter symbol, which consists of three rings (denoting RGB pixels, and island groups Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, and the network's presence in the Filipino way of life), a line (denoting a transmitter tower and its core business in broadcasting), and a square (denoting balance and stability, as well as ABS-CBN's dynamism in other media businesses). Interestingly, it had to undergo a number of changes to adopt to the wide presence of color TV, the new millennium, and the changes brought about by new technologies such as smartphones and tablets.
- ABS-CBN probably kept the iconic symbol and revamped it sporadically because they already knew how much the logo became so established and iconic, and how much Filipinos loved it.
It Gets Better: Pretty much everything in ABS-CBN shares this trope.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: While ABS-CBN is kind and compassionate most of the time, it gets very tough when it comes to news reporting. And ABS-CBN is not really a jerk, but is just fierce and really tries hard to do things correctly (and they don't make bias reports). Compare this with GMA, who is a Jerkass who will do anything to get to the number one spot, and even goes far by manipulating AGB ratings to claim that they are the leader.
The Juggernaut: Seriously.
- In their 1999 Annual Report, ABS-CBN said that, "no other network in the world has, and probably can duplicate ABS-CBN's success in television." It's mainly because of their consistent leadership as well as the success of their other media-related ventures, something GMA is unable to match.
Large Ham: ABS-CBN likes making messages that promote Filipino values and talents, as a way of promoting the Filipino spirit at a time when Filipinos have become rather ignorant about them (damn you, America!).
- One of their newscasters, Noli De Castro, also counts as one.
- There's also the network's voice-over, Peter Musngi.
Leitmotif: ABS-CBN has three: the legendary (if not annoying) Star Network version from 1987-1999, the less annoying Sarimanok version from 1993-1999, and the mind blowing and completely awesome New Millennium/Kapamilya version from 2000 to present. And of course, it's not an ABS-CBN leitmotif if it doesn't have ABS-CBN's signature jingle in it.
Logo Gag: ABS-CBN used to make idents that featured the 1986 logo in different forms and appearances (like being placed on a platform with spotlights, as a Christmas wreath, or on a satellite dish) and formed by different objects (such as a ball, some papers, a bunch of birds, some drawings, or a bunch of stars and three planets) all of which were every creative.
- But one thing about these idents that is very disappointing is that only a handful of them were uploaded on YouTube: the idents with the RGB birds, with the spotlight, and with the stars and planets.
- The network's 2001 ID, which features two sets its RGB rings floating in the sky with the clouds and one set creating its 2000 logo looks like a creatively awesome homage to these idents.
Long Runner: Three of ABS-CBN's 20th century programs are still airing today: newscasts TV Patrol and The World Tonight (though the latter now airs on the ABS-CBN News Channel or ANC), and drama anthology Maalaala Mo Kaya.
- A lot of ABS-CBN's defunct programs also share this trope: among them are dramas Mara Clara, Esperanza, Pangako Sa 'Yo, and Mula Sa Puso, game show Pilipinas Game KNB?, current affairs programs Hoy! Gising!, Magandang Gabi Bayan, and Balitang K, talk shows Today with Kris Aquino and Martin Late @ Nite, and sitcoms Home Along Da Riles, Palibhasa Lalake, Abangan Ang Susunod Na Kabanata, and Oki Doki Doc.
- Travel Time, the longest-running travel show, also airs on ANC.
- Eat Bulaga, the longest-running variety show, once aired on ABS-CBN from 1989 to 1995. Prior to that, ABS-CBN was also home to former title holder as longest-running variety show: Student Canteen, from 1958 to 1965, before transferring to GMA in 1975.
Meaningful Name: This is the meaning of ABS-CBN's name: Alto Broadcasting System-Chronicle Broadcasting Network.
Mega Corp: ABS-CBN is a one in the media industry. In fact, its so huge that it even has investments in home shopping, mobile telecom, and even theme parks! However it is very compassionate compared to the average Mega Corp.
Mood Whiplash: When ABS-CBN found out about the popularity of RPN's Marimar which shook the competition triggered by ABS-CBN back in 1996. They repelled it in the second quarter.
- Here's another example: ABS-CBN was doing just fine during the first anniversary of Wowowee celebrated at the ULTRA stadium, then they looked at the sudden shenanigans only to see this event in horror: a deadly stampede that killed 71 people. Because of the massive impact of this tragedy, it became the "tipping point" (or the part that someone remembers most) of the network's chairman, Eugenio Lopez III.
Most Annoying Sound: The beginning of the Leitmotif they used from 1987-1999, if you were ever annoyed with it when it plays.
Nice Network/Mega Corp: ABS-CBN is very nice, compassionate, and service-oriented. In fact, didn't you read the Arc Words on this page? Oh yeah, and compare BIG time with GMA, who is really ruthless, power-hungry, and boorish.
Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: ABS-CBN is a huge media network, operating businesses in TV and radio broadcasting, global businesses, film production, music, sports, cable channels, books and magazines, cable and internet, digital media, licensing, remittance, mobile telecommunication, home shopping, and theme parks. Also, they used to have a basketball association and a chain of movie houses and retail stores!
Non Sequitur: ABS-CBN is known to be different among the major networks for its different business direction and dedication to service.
Not So Different: Subverted: ABS-CBN may be like a lot of media conglomerates, but is perhaps different among other media conglomerates, due to its dedication to public service.
Overly Long Name: Combine the full name of ABS-CBN and its corporate name until 2010, and you get: Alto Broadcasting System-Chronicle Broadcasting Network Broadcasting Corporation. Drop the "Broadcasting" name and you get: Alto Broadcasting System-Chronicle Broadcasting Network Corporation.
Period Piece: One of Star Cinema's films, Eskapo, released in 1995, focused on the escape of its former chairman Eugenio Lopez Jr. and Sergio Osmeña III, which happened in 1977, five years after ABS-CBN was shut down and nine years before ABS-CBN would be resurrected.
Playing Both Sides: For them, they play the average major industry player revolutionizing media at best, and a Good Samaritan who serves the Filipino for the sake of improving their quality of life.
Red Baron: ABS-CBN is also known as the "Kapamilya Network".
Shut UP, Hannibal: ABS-CBN probably says this to GMA as its reaction to GMA's self-proclaimed "dominance".
Stronger with Age: When years pass and ABS-CBN gets affected by some sort of adversity, they learn from this, and then solve it in a good way, and emerge stronger as this adversity fades away. Compare BIG time with GMA, who uses a lot of tactics of desperation to solve its problems.
This Means War: ABS-CBN entered this mode after being overtaken by GMA in the Mega Manila ratings in 2004. ABS-CBN was lucky enough to reclaim it 6 years later.
Undying Loyalty: ABS-CBN remains true to its oath to serve the Filipino, even as years pass and things change.
Your Favorite: ABS-CBN always stands out as a favorite among Filipinos, despite GMA's repetitive (and failed) attempts to crush it. In fact, it was number one nationwide in the Philippines for 26 years: from 1988 to the present, a record unmatched by any other network!
- All this despite the Marimar phenomenon in 1996 by RPN and GMA snatching the number one spot in Mega Manila in 2004 (only to fall to a far second six years later).