They may not be the ghosts and ghouls most are familiar with, but if you grew up in a Filipino household, you might know them very well. Luckily, the streets of Manila have Alexandra Trese to stand against the darkness and maintain the balance with the supernatural world. Since last December when I discovered the first trade paperback of Trese by Budjette Tan and KaJO Baldisimo, I’ve been waiting for more news and information on the upcoming anime. And it’s here — opening a door to a mythology I knew very little about, but found instantly captivating. We’ll be able to walk through on June 11, 2021, in a series overseen by producer/director Jay Oliva — familiar to animation fans as the director of Justice League Dark from Warner Animation. But this is darker.
The trailer has a tone that may mean Alexandra has been softened a little bit, but only a little bit. Taking over the family business and dealing with creatures most people don’t want to admit exist can take its toll. Shay Mitchell voices Alexandra Trese in the English language cast (this is officially a release from Netflix Philippines), and she’s joined by Darren Criss, Lou Diamond Phillips, and others– including the great Eric Bauza (who’s killing it on Looney Tunes Cartoons).
As is only appropriate, Netflix has a Filipino voice cast as well, led by Liza Soberano and professional voice actors local to Manila.
From Netflix:
English language voice cast:
● Shay Mitchell – Alexandra Trese
● Griffin Puatu – The Kambal (Crispin and Basilio), Bantay
● Matt Yang King – Captain Guerrero, Dominic
● Jon Jon Briones – Hank, Xa-Mul
● Steve Blum – Datu Talagbusao, Ibwa
● Carlos Alazraqui – Anton Trese, Santelmo
● Manny Jacinto – Maliksi
● Eric Bauza – Nuno the Snitch, Bagyon Lektro
● Darren Criss – Marco
● Nicole Scherzinger – Miranda Trese
● Lou Diamond Phillips – Mayor Sancho Santamaria
● Dante Basco – Bagyon Kulimlim
● Rodney To – Aswang market guard, Man in drag
Filipino language voice cast:
● Liza Soberano – Alexandra Trese
● Simon dela Cruz – The Kambal (Crispin and Basilio)
● Apollo Abraham – Captain Guerrero
● Christopher Carlo Caling – Hank
● Eugene Adalia – Anton Trese
● Cheska Aguiluz – Miranda Trese
● Christian Velarde – Nuno
● Bryan Encarnacion – Datu Talagbusao
● Nica Rojo – Ramona
● Jo Anne Orobia-Chua – Emissary
● Jose Amado Santiago – Marco
● Steve dela Cruz – Maliksi
● Rene Tandoc – Mayor Santamaria
● Steffi Graf Bontogon-Mola – Young, Teen Alexandra
● RJ Celdran – Santelmo, Señor Armanaz
● Elyrey Martin – Ibwa, Dominic
● Steven Bontogon – Jobert
Set in a Manila where the mythical creatures of Philippine folklore live in hiding amongst humans, Alexandra Trese finds herself going head to head with a criminal underworld comprised of malevolent supernatural beings.
Director and Showrunner: Jay Oliva (Justice League Dark, The Legend of Korra)
Executive Producers: Jay Oliva; Shanty Harmayn and Tanya Yuson at BASE Entertainment, a
studio based in Jakarta and Singapore
Written by: Tanya Yuson, Zig Marasigan, Mihk Vergara
Series Directors: David Hartman (Transformers: Prime), Mel Zwyer (Star Wars Rebels), Tim
Divar (Young Justice)
Production designer and Art Director: Jojo Aguilar (Tron Uprising)
Character Design: Will Nichols (Star Wars: The Clone Wars)
Editor: Christopher Lozinski (Batman: The Killing Joke)
English language casting and voice direction: Wes Gleason
Filipino language casting and voice direction: Rudolf Baldonado
Composers: Kevin Kiner, Sean Kiner, Dean Kiner(Star Wars: The Clone Wars)
Original song: “PAAGI” by UDD, with lyrics by Armi Millare and Paul Yap
Format: 6 episodes, releasing all at once
Filipino band UDD, formerly known as Up Dharma Down, composed the official soundtrack for Trese, titled “PAAGI,” with lyrics by Armi Millare and Paul Yap.
In addition to running Fanboy Planet, Derek has written for ActionAce, Daily Radar, Once Upon A Dime, and The Wave. He has contributed stories to Arcana Comics (The Greatest American Hero) and Monsterverse Comics (Bela Lugosi's Tales from the Grave). He has performed with ComedySportz and Silicon Valley Shakespeare, though relocated to Hollywood to... work in an office? If you ever played Eric's Ultimate Solitaire on the Macintosh, it was Derek's voice as The Weasel that urged you to play longer. You can buy his book "I Was Flesh Gordon" on the Amazon link at the right. Email him at [email protected].
