Fans were treated to Bisayan conversations in a Cartoon Network show.
When have we ever heard Visayan words such as “mano”, “guapo” and “salida” in an international cartoon show? Probably not much but Cartoon Network is doing a great job in highlighting Filipinos.
As one of the most beloved cartoon channels for the longest time in the Philippines, fans showed great reaction when they heard a Visayan lola speak the language in their cartoon show called “Craig of the Creek”.
Craig of the Creek, a Cartoon Network show that began airing in 2018 and is currently on its fourth season. The show follows Craig, Kelsye, and JP as they explore an untamed suburban wilderness at a creek in Herkelton, Maryland in the United States.
The reason behind the Filipino references is from the show’s illustrator, storyboard artist, writer, and supervising director Tiffany Ford who is part-Filipino.
Specifically, the viral scene came from the season four episode, Sink or Swim Team, in which Eileen, a Filipino character herself, introduced Craig, the main protagonist, to her lola.
The scene started as the Filipino character Eilieen tells Craig usually doesn’t understand what her lola usually says, but that he’ll have to do the “bless,” aka mano. We then hear the lola speak in Bisaya while watching TV saying,
“Ah, mayo ra na sila sa sunod na salida.” (Ah they’ll be fine in the next episode.)
When Craig meets her lola, he does the aforementioned bless and she then says to Eileen,
“Ah, ka guapo, imu ning boyfriend?” (Oh, he’s handsome, is he your boyfriend?) leading Eileen to feel slightly embarrassed.
Eileen embarrassingly exclaimed, “Lola!” and led Craig to the kitchen.
Following the trend of the Craig of the Creek’s “Sink or Swim Team” episode, many netizens across Facebook and Twitter reacted to the representation and diversity shown in the animated series.
One user on Twitter tweeted.
“Representation is so important in cartoons man,, I was tearing up watching this bc i rlly wanted something like this in my childhood, glad kids now are getting this rep shown to them!”
Tags: Cartoon Network, entertainment, Visayan