MANILA — A major character’s death in “FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano” surprised viewers Tuesday night, making the primetime series a top trending topic on social media. (Hint: The casualty isn’t Cardo.)

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In the October 8 episode of the Dreamscape production, Task Force Aguila, led by Cardo (Coco Martin), finally managed to penetrate the hideout of Bungo (Baron Geisler), where Major Alex Romero (Denise Laurel) has been held captive.

The operation to rescue Alex proved futile, however. In a calculated, cruel move to inflict pain on Cardo, Bungo shot Alex, who was dangling with her hands tied to a rope, just as she came to view to her friends in the police force.

By the end of the episode, which saw Bungo escaping, its official hashtag, as well as “Justice for Major Romero” ranked among the top trends on Twitter.

Laurel’s Alex is the latest major character to exit “Ang Probinsyano” throughout its four-year run, after the likes of Lito Lapid, Edu Manzano, Jhong Hilario, and Bela Padilla.