Dyesebel

Dyesebel
Dyesebel, the popular mermaid of Philippine komiks, cinema and television, is based on the mermaid (sirena) of Philippine folklore.
Directed by	Gerardo de Leon (1953), Emmanuel H. Borlaza (1973), Mel Chionglo
Written by	Mars Ravelo, Pierre Salas (1953)
Produced by	Premiere Productions (1953), Regal Films
Starring	As Dyesebel: Edna Luna, Vilma Santos, Alma Moreno, Alice Dixon, Charlene Gonzales, Ara Mina; Others: Romeo Miranda, Chanda Romero, Divina Valencia, Jaime dela Rosa, Mat Ranillo III, Richard Gomez
Release date	1953, 1973, 1978, 1997
Country	Philippines
Language	Tagalog

Dyesebel is a popular mermaid character in the Philippines. The comic book character was originally conceived by the Filipino comic book illustrator, Mars Ravelo. Dyesebel is a prominent character in Philippine cinema and television.

Plots

1953: Dyesebel

In the Philippines, the story of Dyesebel was narrated as a character born to a mermaid-obsessed Filipino mother. The mother, due to her obsession with looking at calendar pictures of mermaids, eventually gave birth to a female infant with a fishtail instead of normal human lower extremities. The angered father wished to abandon the abnormal child but was hindered from doing so when he was struck by lightning during a typhoon. To avoid the stigma of having a mermaid child, the couple decided to leave their village. The child was kept hidden from the sight of new neighbors. The mermaid eventually met other mermaids while spending time at the seashore. Her adventures at sea brought her into contact with Diangga, a sea-witch who had the power to transform sea-creatures like Dyesebel into normal humans. Dyesebel fell in love with a normal human man. But her secret of being a mermaid, prompted the jealous former girlfriend of the man with whom Dyesebel was in love, to kidnap Dyesebel and place her in a carnival. Dyesebel was later saved by her human lover. Diangga, the sea-witch, eventually transformed Dyesebel into a permanent female human with normal lower extremities.

1964: Anak ni Dyesebel

After a decade, Gerardo de Leon reunited the cast of the blockbuster 1953 movie Dyesebel in a sequel based on Mars Ravelo's Anak ni Dyesebel. The movie introduced Alona, the daughter of Dyesebel (Edna Luna) and Fredo (Jaime dela Rosa).

1973: Si Dyesebel at ang Mahiwagang Kabibe

The 1973 Dyesebel movie directed by Emmanuel H. Borlaza was closer to Mars Ravelo's heroine mermaid. The character inhabits an undersea kingdom of mermaids, who were considered outcasts from the land of humans, due to the belief that mermaids can cause misfortune. Dyesebel became attracted to a male human being and swore to find a way by any means, to become a normal human woman, in order to be with the man that her heart desired.

1978: Sisid, Dyesebel, Sisid

The synopsis of the 1978 movie version Dyesebel was similar to the 1953 plot, except that in this version, angry superstitious local people killed her father. To escape the mob, Dyesebel 's mother brought her to the ocean. During her exile from land, Dyesebel met Banak, another mermaid, who brought Dyesebel to the kingdom of mermaids. In this film adaptation of Mars Ravelo's Dyesebel, Diangga was a jealous mermaid instead of a sea-witch. Diangga's envy forced Dyesebel to return to land. Dyesebel also met Fredo, a kind male human who became her friend and protector. A jealous former girlfriend of Fredo then arranged for her to be kidnapped to be displayed in a circus. Fredo rescued Dyesebel from her fate at the circus. Dysebel became a true human with feet because of an enchanted seashell. Dyesebel married Fredo.

1990: Dyesebel

Dyesebel is a 1990 film version. Alice Dixson played Dyesebel directed by directed by Mel Chionglo. If in the previous movies, Dyesebel's love interest is named Fredo, in this version he was named Edward. Richard Gomez played the role.

1996: Dyesebel

Dyesebel is a 1996 film version Charlene Gonzales played Dyesebel. Dyesebel directed by Emmanuel H. Borlaza.

On-screen actresses

In the movies, Dyesebel was portrayed by Filipino actresses, Edna Luna, Vilma Santos, Alma Moreno, Alice Dixon, and Charlene Gonzales. In television, she was personified by the actress Ara Mina in a cameo appearance in Darna, The TV Series in 2005. Vilma Santos was the only actress who played two of Mars Ravelo's komiks characters respectively, namely Darna and Dyesebel.

Here is a chronoligical list of actresses who played Dyesebel in the movies and on television:

• Edna Luna in "Dyesebel" (1953) and "Anak ni Dyesebel" (1964)
• Vilma Santos in "Si Dyesebel at ang Mahiwagang Kabibe" (1973)
• Alma Moreno in "Sisid, Dyesebel, Sisid" (1978)
• Alice Dixon in "Dyesebel" (1990)
• Charlene Gonzales in "Dyesebel (1996)
• Ara Mina in "Mars Ravelo's Captain Barbell" (2006 TV Series) - first TV Dyesebel

2008 TV Series

GMA Network had announced that they will be doing a TV Series of Dyesebel for 2008. They are eyeing Marian Rivera for the title role. The same network has earlier made a TV series of Mars Ravelo's works like Darna and Captain Barbell.

See also

• Panday (comics)
• Zuma (comics)
• Philippine mythical creatures

External links

• Dyesebel illustrations, photographs and screenshots in Philippine comics, film and television at MarsRavelo.Tripod.com
• Dyesebel film (1950) at the Internet Movie Database
• Dyesebel film (1973) at the Internet Movie Database
• Dyesebel film (1990) at the Internet Movie Database
• Dyesebel film (1997) at the Internet Movie Database