Far from the typical vibrant and festive vibe of “It’s Showtime”’s annual Magpasikat celebration, the team of Vhong Navarro, Ion Perez, Darren Espanto, and Amy Perez, also known as “Team VIDA,” chose to feature the glum and often untouched topic of death in their Magpasikat 2024 performance on Wednesday, October 23.

Since their presentation was coincidentally scheduled on the very day a super typhoon was devastating the country, host Jhong Hilario uttered a disclaimer that the scenes we're about to see were merely coincidental and not intentional. Right off the bat, spectators apparently already got the inkling that Team VIDA’s entry was going to be dark and melancholic (and even quite scary) through a dusky, cinematic VTR that served as its intro.

It featured several people cladded in black capes, who were revealed to be grim reapers that vanished in thin air whenever news about deadly tragedies was reported by the newscaster, played by ABS-CBN News correspondent Ganiel Krishnan. One of the reports was about the heartbreaking misfortune that struck the family of Amy, Darren, and Ion, who played mother and sons, during a super typhoon. Darren and Ion were seen weeping in a hospital room, hinting that something bad had probably happened, while Vhong appeared at the end of the video as a grim reaper.

Vhong suddenly emerged on the horror-themed stage of “It’s Showtime” as he demonstrated his suave dance moves that truly delighted viewers. He was joined afterwards by actor Raul Dillo, who’s popular with his portrayal of kapre and other scary characters in TV shows and films, to apparently depict the “King of Darkness.”

Next to take on the stage was Tyang Amy, who looked younger in the long wig and was accompanied by two boys that served as young counterparts of Darren and Ion. She appeared to be the representation of mothers who are willing to do everything for their children, even though it could cost her life. The Showtime Baby Dolls then surrounded her and pulled the red straps attached to her red waist belt, which Tyang Amy tried to resist and fight as they hindered her from being with her kids.

In a close-up shot, each member of the Baby Dolls appeared to be wearing tops with various words written on them, including “budget,” “pagod,” “sakripisyo,” “stress,” and “sakit,” which are some of the things that mothers go through that keep them away from their kids. But in the end, she’s able to prove that the selfless love of moms is the greatest superpower that can defeat all challenges that come their way. Despite already being in her “dying moment,” she still thought of her sons’ welfare.

Her two “sons” then joined her onstage, yet she chose to go with Darren and left Ion feeling dejected and rejected. It was revealed later that Ion symbolizes the least favorite child in the family, who, unbeknownst to his loved ones, was going through internal struggles.

He indeed astonished everyone with how he’s able to combine strength and grace as he did buwis-buhay stunts on a metal frame attached to the ceiling without wearing a harness or any safety gear. Ion pondered if it would still be possible for him to experience being the favorite when his time on earth was already up.

Darren, on the other hand, depicted the invisible bout of the favorite children with pressure via his impressive cyr wheel act while Amy was proudly watching him at the sidelines. Instead of thinking of himself, Darren was still more worried about not being able to fulfill his dreams for his mom.

The mother and sons got reunited onstage and were seen running on a treadmill together, as if they were running for their lives, while being chased by grim reaper Vhong, who was suspended in a harness.

Another VTR was shown, in which it was revealed that Ion was actually the one who died after saving his mother and younger brother from the flash flood. Darren and Amy showed up sobbing onstage together, cladded in white attire, with the former singing his own composition “Sasagipin Kita” and the latter embracing the urn that contained the ashes of her firstborn. The tearful Ion, meanwhile, was a vision in white as he appeared behind them while an ensemble of dancers and singers also dressed in white surrounded him.

As their production number concluded, Vhong reappeared onstage and stood between Darren and Amy, as if he were desiring to claim the life of one of them—or maybe even both of them.

The Magpasikat 2024 performance of Team Vhong-Ion-Darren-Amy depicting death received various reactions from madlang netizens, who expressed their sentiments on X (formerly Twitter). Here are some of them:

tbh I want to see more of vhong pero hinighlight nya talaga yung tatlo which came out good naman! The concept was indeed kakaiba, love that they didn't focus masyado on the drama but sa pagpapasikat.

It was deep, timely, and unique overall!#Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— ely (@annesuave) October 23, 2024

Magaling!!!!!! Periodt!!! Nagpasikat talaga sila individually!!!!

Highlighted yung kaya nilang gawin!!!! At hindi need ng back up at padrama!!!

Kasi sila mismo kaya gawin both yun. Relatable and talent!! Ganorn yown!!!

#ShowtimeMagpasikat2024

— Rosẽ (@syaoranriii) October 23, 2024

GALINGGG TEAM VIDA, different talent and skills na pinakita also the concept is goood!!🙇🏻‍♀️🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼#Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— ʲᵍᶠᵉᵉˡˢ (@jg_feels) October 23, 2024

Knowing kuya Vhong marami talaga siyang kayang gawin na pasabog pero binigay niya tong performance na to para kila Tyang Amy, Darren and Ion 👏🏻🙌🏼🙏🏼 #ShowtimeMagpasikat2024 #Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— showtime madc (@sweetmadc) October 23, 2024

Congratulations, Team Vida! Iba din concept. Iba din ang mensahe. Struggles in life at kalaban mong inner dem*ns. Dapat talaga marunong tayo mag appreciate maliit or malaking bagay mas higit sa mga tao na nandiyan for us. Good job Team Vida. #Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— 𝐊𝐀𝐘𝐄 (@iamkaye0225) October 23, 2024

Aminin natin yes when it comes to performance mejo underwhelming knowing vhong pero yung overall nya exceeded my expectation knowing kaka opera lang ni darren, Ion not a performer, tiyang amy in her age but nag pakita parin sila ng bagong concept #Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— KathShines✨ (@creamlineAV2) October 23, 2024

very new ang concept na ito. Showcase na showcase ang performance nila darren, tyang and ion here!! ganda ng concept!!#Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— Emz (@its_emdie) October 23, 2024

THE EMOTION 🖤🖤🖤
Finally may dark thing na pinakita. This is reality. Literal na reality at magpasikat! Yes may liwanag pero don’t forget may dark reality din ang life.
-Akala ko si Tyang Amy namatay 🥹@VhongX44 @Espanto2001 #Magpasikat2024 #Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy pic.twitter.com/ZtwNN2rREa

— Andrew Lim (@_limandrew) October 23, 2024

PARANG MAY NANALO NAAA!! GRABE, THE CONCEPT!!🫡 ICONIC VHONG NAVARRO! APAKAGALING NI TSANG AMY AT ION!! APAKASUHAY NI DARREN!! THIS IS MAGPASIKAT🔥

#Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— Lady//all for KJPE( ia) (@loveskylito) October 23, 2024

Napakataba ng utak ni Vhong, Napakagaling na performer ni Ion at Tyang Amy at Napakahusay ni Darren! Hindi kailangan ng maraming linya performance palang alam mo na yung mensahe! Wala rin guest! 10/10 #Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— yeh (@yeyeboyyy) October 23, 2024

Wow, hindi din nagpatalo ang Team Vida! Galing din ni Darren as a first time magpasikat member.

Good job Team Vida. Congratulations! 👏 #Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy @Espanto2001 pic.twitter.com/QpXup3rMfF

— 𝐊𝐀𝐘𝐄 (@iamkaye0225) October 23, 2024

medyo nakakabitin sa delivery (medyo hindi clear yung main message) pero sobrang angas ng concept at performances ng kada member 🥰🫶 so far, ito champ team ko 🏆 #ShowtimeMagpasikat2024 #Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy

— mikael (@mathlizard_) October 23, 2024

the concept itself makes the prod superb and breathtaking

DARREN MAGPASIKAT NA#DARREN @Espanto2001 #Magpasikat2024VhongIonDarrenAmy @itsshowtimena

— fritzie (@darrenafterall) October 23, 2024

Team VIDA may have opted to shy away from the usual vibrant and celebratory ambiance of Magpasikat, yet many commended them for their boldness and uniqueness in choosing death as their concept, which was a brainchild of Vhong. Even though it’s dark and depressing, they’re able to present it in a creative and entertaining way through their well-executed stunts and dance routines that absolutely stunned us.

Through their Magpasikat 2024 act, Vhong, Amy, Darren, and Ion were able to showcase facets of them that viewers don’t usually see them do or haven’t done yet. Furthermore, they got us drawn to the well-written narrative they created that could pass as a short film and to their compelling acting chops, as per the hurados.

This performance also highlighted the sacrifices made by children for their families that are often overlooked, as we tend to usually focus on the hardships of parents for their children. At the same time, it gave us a glimpse on the inner struggles that both the most favorite child and least favorite child in every family go through. And lastly, it’s also a reminder for us to always show our love to our loved ones and strive to do good deeds every chance we get because tomorrow is never promised.

Three teams down, two more to go! Don’t miss the remaining two Magpasikat 2024 entries by watching “It’s Showtime,” Mondays to Saturdays at noon, on Kapamilya Channel, Kapamilya Online Live, A2Z, GTV, and GMA 7.