Under the Microscope: Ariella Arida

Is FIFTY really equal to GOLD?Let me take you on a series of reviews as to the more or less, controversial outcome of the Binibining Pilipinas: Gold Edition.First in my 6 part series, Ariella Arida. Let’s put her, under our microscopes, shall we?

UNDER THE MICROSCOPE: ARA ARIDA

Contextualization:

Ara Arida will be sent to the Miss Universe Pageant of this same year, slated to be sometime between September to November. So it is a must, thusly, to put into context the lady upon whom our hopes and dreams rest.

What is Ms. Universe, in the first place?

Ms. Universe is an old pageant which has always been ranked as the best in the world, in terms of production and more importantly, following. Prior to the drought which begun circa 2000, the Philippines had always been a powerhouse in this pageant. We have 2 crowns and a bunch of finalists to boast of. In more recent times, we have a 3-peat in placing in the top 5 of the pageant. Venus, with here ridonkulus (yes, im using this word – thanks Ted Mosby! J) body, Shamcey, with that megawatt smile and Janine with her stomp, reinstated the Pearl Archipelago into the Miss Universe hall of fame.

It’s safe to say we have sash powers now. And although this is no assurance, in fact, it’s scary even, we have a fighting chance in landing that elusive number one spot.

But mentioning the three girls, it does raise the question why we weren’t able to nab the crown.

Let’s review the queens we’ve had lately.

DAYANA – she started the high fashion trend that is steam rolling the pageant world. She isn’t your typical doll, in fact, she beat out Taliana who is just that. Why did she win then? Fierce is the word. Trump has realized he couldn’t use those sunshiny girls as much as he would want. Those charity balls and gala events only happen once or twice a month – not really reeking in the greens. What is more lucrative is the modelling scene, and Dayana fit the bill perfectly.

STEFANIA and XIMENA – These two girls are just plain and simple – gorgeous. Also very model-esque but more importantly, they have perfect faces. Ximena in particular has a face that sent the pageant world into a frenzy. Stefania has so much youth and vibrancy. Both girls are just beautiful.

LEILA – this girl is fresh – personified. No wonder why she beat out Oleysa and Shamcey! She has such a cover girl image that is just magnetic.

OLIVIA – The lady with the perfect face. Another straight forward beauty. Olivia blew away the competition with her relaxed wit. Her smile and huge eyes are big pluses too.

Let’s now take ARA and see if she matches the apparent requirements of being a Ms. Universe.

 

FACE:

The bad: I’m not that big a fan of her eye-bags. But that’s easy to conceal. The smile is at times cold. I feel like she just overdoes the whole fierce thing. She tends to give off a very cold persona. The face isn’t your typical beauty. The nose needs a little work.

The good: Those eyes! Those huge seductive eyes are her major selling points. She can just stare at you and you’d melt. In general, her face has some symmetry. Her neck is gorgeous. There’s something about the shape of her face that is to me very appealing.

BODY:

The bad: Her curves aren’t very obvious. When she does her poses, her muscles tense too much and they’d seem bulging. This is something she has to work on.

The good: Right now, she doesn’t have obvious body fat. She is quite toned. She’s not short, but not tall either. Just the right Miss Universe height.

PERSONALITY:

I have friends in the pageant circuit who know her. They were pretty excited when she won, and they were sending her love. Apparently, she’s a really nice girl. Some would say, quite fun to be with. She seems to me very determined too.

WIT:

The bad: She gets nervous easy. And it really shows.

The good: She still spews very sane remarks even when she’s nervous.

WALK:

YES. YES. YES. I love her walk! Perfection!

To me, Ms. Ara is a shoo-in in the top15. But she needs a lot of work with her packaging, projection, confidence to really get to the crown.

I’m giving Ara, right now with what she has, a 85% chance at nabbing the crown.

Your Opinion on Janine

Which areas does Janine Tugunon need to improve the most at, so she can nab a top 5 finish at the Miss Universe pageant this year?

I say there are 5 major components of a modern queen, which are basically prerequisites for a good placement at any pageant.

1. Body
2.  Presentation
3. Personality
4. Wit
5. Packaging

Body

We conquered 2010 with Venus’ 22 inch waistline, and 2011 with Shamcey’s super toned  + healthy looking body. Does Janine have either or both? Can she still catch up with the Bodines and the Irene’s who have fabulous bodies?

Presentation

Shamcey’s tsunami, Dayana Mendoza’s twirls, Riyo’s wings, Miriam’s elegance, J. Hawking’s stomp – evidence that a good catwalk would bring you miles ahead of the competition. Does Janine’s pseudo-tsunami walk good enough? Do you think she has what it takes to glide her way to the crown?

Does Janine have Ximena’s easy-breezy poses (giggles in-tow)? Can she charm her way to Leila’s throne?

Personality

We all know that the organizers have a say as to who gets in the top 15 or 20. The so-called trump cards depend on politics. Not being replaced by the trump cards depends on a girl’s relationship with the organizers. Rumors swirled around the exclusion of Vivian Ortiz. The short lived run of Vanessa Goncsalvez too was rumored due to her bitchy personality.

Does Janine have an easy-to-get-along-with personality that won’t antagonize the other girls and the organizers? Does she project a positive persona on pictures and videos? Can Janine do a “Jesinta” and land on the top 5 with a congeniality award under her arms?

Wit

The preliminary interview is so important. Apparently, that was where most of our queens who didn’t penetrate the semis failed at.

Wit isn’t about being Magna Cum Laude, because that obviously didn’t help Licaros. Wit is about being sharp. It entails knowing HOW to answer rather than WHAT to answer. Take Venus and Shamcey’s interviews. They weren’t as smart as the other girls, but they were confident and straight. Their answers were unforgettable.

Does Janine have wit that can help her penetrate the semis and give her an edge at the last round?

Packaging

Hair, make-up, aura.

Does Janine need to change up from Pinay Sweetie to Diva, or add some fierceness to her arsenal?

Sho0uld her hair go straight or curly with bounce?

If you think Janine is safe in all of the facets, then go ahead and let your voice be heard over at the comment section.

If you think there is one or more areas she needs to work on, then tell me. I will take all opinions and make a composite review of Janine after. Also, check out my get-go analysis of Janine here.

Gearing Up for Ms. Philippines Earth 2012: An Analysis

To understand Miss Earth Philippines, you have to understand the force behind it – Carousel Productions.

The thing is, this team isn’t like other pageant organizers. If you look at the past winners of both Miss Earth Philippines and Miss Earth, you’d notice that most of the work the winners have is actually after the pageant itself. Basically, the point is, Carousel Prod., actually sticks to its advocacies and does use its queens as much as they could to forward their vision. Take Miss Earth 2011, Olga of Ecuador. She’s considered the “Busiest Queen” of 2011. So were Larissa and Nicole before her.

This adherence to their advocacy has a multitude of implications to the pageant itself. And so many goddesses were dropped because of this.

Criteria (based on past competitions and winners)

1.       Smart/Witty – compare Ms. Tanzania 2008 to eventual winner, Karla Henry. Consider also, Jennifer Pazmino to Nicole Faria of 2010. There is also the inclusion of Bokang Montjane in 2007. And Athena Imperial’s triumph in the national pageant in 2011. Since of course, they need a functional ambassador, they’d really need someone who has something between their ears. Other examples: Jessika Trisko, Dania Mendez and Winfred Omakwe

2.       Sweet and Pleasant – This is a major result of how Carousel works. Of course they’d want a queen who is easier to deal with, than a crazy primadonna.  This is considered to be why a lot of Goddesses lose out in the completion. The organizers always weed out the bitches. Take Sarka, Ms Czech Rep. 2011, the heavy favorite for the crown. And the inclusion of the plain Ms. Taiwan. The thing with this is it’s not about being nice to get in, but about not being a bitch so you can stay in. Other Examples: Alexandra Braun, Pricilla Mereiles, Karla Henry, Nicole Faria, Olga Alava.

3.       Presentation over Body – Take how Sandra Seifert won most major awards even though Misses Brazil and Venezuela were superior physically. It’s not about the machine, it’s how it’s driven. Jessica Trisko wasn’t even beautiful, but her ramp was. Hill Hernandez of Chile was only “okay” compared to the Ms. India that time. But the way they presented themselves won over their lack in the body department.

These considered, you go on look and read about the MPE candidates for 2012 and see if any fit the 

bill.

My Front-runner so far is Ms. Negros Oriental – Glenna Duch.

Who’s yours?