Bata, Bata, Paano Ka Tumanda?

Mention the name Carlo Aquino to me and the first thing that pops in my head is this somewhat cute but intense (and quite talented) young actor who went head-to-head with the Star For All Seasons, Ms. Vilma Santos, in the movie Bata, Bata, Paano Ka Ginawa? In one epic scream-and-cry-fest of a scene, he and Ate Vi yelled, cried and screamed at one another, and in the process immortalized the line, “Akala mo lang wala! Pero meron, meron, meron!” His contemporaries were cuter (John Prats) or funnier (Stefano Mori), so usually I saw Carlo as a character actor who once in a while can do some lead roles.

Little did I expect that the child would grow up to be a man. Whenever I’d see him onscreen, I thought, “Hmmm, nothing remarkable.” And then I saw him with his shirt off:

Akala ko lang wala. Pero meron, meron, meron!