"Ako mismo ay fan din ng ‘Batang Quiapo,’" said Julio Diaz  during his last shooting day for "FPJ's Batang Quiapo," as his character, Gen. Augustus Pacheco, recently met his end in the series. 

The veteran actor admittedly struggles with memorizing lines due to a heart condition and the effects of a past brain aneurysm. But thanks to the magic of editing, scenes are seamlessly pieced together even when he occasionally slips on his dialogues, "Hindi napapansin kundi nakikita pa rin ‘yung gilas at tikas ng pagiging artista ko in terms of line delivery."  

He truly believes the production works its magic in bringing scenes to life, especially with the many "magical" moments in the show. 

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One of his favorite moments in the series—one that he describes as almost cinematic—was in the pilot episode when Miles Ocampo, playing the young Marites, shouted the now-iconic line "Anak ko 'yan!" as she fought to save her newborn Tanggol from Olga (Ryza Cenon). And then, as if fate had come full circle, the same scenario played out more than a decade later when Marites, now played by Cherry Pie Picache, once again saved Tanggol (Coco Martin) from Olga (Irma Adlawan), yelling the same powerful words. 

Julio also praised the brilliant and creative decision to have Coco portray the young Ramon, later taken over by Christopher de Leon, to establish how strikingly alike the father and son were in their youth.  

When asked about his favorite characters, he mentioned Tanggol at the top of his list, not just because of Coco’s undeniable charm, but because of the depth and intensity he brings to the role. He also has a deep appreciation for Marites and Rigor (John Estrada) because of how vividly their characters are brought to life by the versatile actors playing them. 

Does he also admire his character General Pacheco? Not at all. In fact, he believes Pacheco was so evil that he truly deserved to die. "Walang redeeming value 'yung character ko bilang si Pacheco," he admitted. And true to form, Pacheco went all out with his wickedness until the very end by setting up his enemies in what he called a 'grand party' in hell, "Hindi lang sila mag-aaway kundi magpapatayan with my vicious mind, which is nakakatakot bilang karakter." 

In his final sequences, Pacheco orchestrated a deadly clash between Tanggol’s group and Amanda (Lorna Tolentino) and Primo (Lito Lapid)' allies. He finally got his long-awaited chance to kill Primo, but in a cruel twist of fate, the bullet meant for Primo was taken by Amanda—the very woman Pacheco was obsessed with. It was as if fate was mocking him with the fact that Amanda never chose him, not even in the end. 

And in the ultimate poetic justice, Primo put an end to Pacheco’s reign of terror once and for all. 

 As a farewell, Julio expressed gratitude over working with Coco and his team and for gaining a true friend in him. He’s beyond proud of Coco and hopes for his continued success, believing he’s the one carrying on the legacy of Da King, Fernando Poe Jr. 

"Kay Coco, ang istilo ng kanyang pagiging tao ay napaka-pure, ‘yung kan’yang advocacy na makatulong sa mga taong nangangailangan ng trabaho—katulad ko, na kaibigan niya, na patuloy pa rin niyang kinukuha," he shared, adding that working with Coco has taught him the real meaning of camaraderie. 

"Coco, mahal na mahal ka namin bilang artista at bilang kaibigan. Napakaswerte ko dahil naging kaibigan ko ang taong 'to at nakilala ko siya," he said.