Twenty years ago Groin, Chel, Joni and I met in the kiosk in front of Palma Hall Annex. It was grad pic day, and we had to take a cab to Greenhills to the studio of Toch Peypoch. A few months prior Chel and Joni were the test models in the different studios we were choosing from, and these photos were then posted in the bulletin board for votation. Other than in Toch’s pics, we commented that they looked like they had ten kids each and overdosed on crack. They now both claim that those pics worthy of being in Requiem For A Dream and Insiang are gone forever. We don’t believe them!

While waiting in the kiosk a centipede or some hairy larva mutant worm fell down on my neck and immediately caused an allergic reaction. It started as redness and some pruritus–by the time we were in Greenhills my neck was peppered with gigantic wheals. “Patungan na lang natin ng maraming foundation,” make-up artist Miss Cleo cheerily said as she lined us up to the photo room. Looking back I could have developed anaphylaxis and died there and then. When it was Joni’s turn we discovered X-Men movie premiere tickets among his things– we somehow coerced him to ditch his other friends and take us instead.

It was Saturday and Megamall was packed. There was a night party in the area between Buildings A and B. We got free samples of Nescafe Frothe Hazelnut and we thought it was the best sugary coffee we’ve ever had. We then watched X-Men in awe–it was the first good superhero live action feature  in a long time, the previous decade having a dearth of superhero movies that demanded to be taken seriously. What immediately pops to mind as representative of the 90’s superhero crap is the horrific Justice League TV movie shown in HBO featuring Fire, Ice, and Guy Gardner, and of course the 1997 Joel Schumacher Batman and Robin featuring turgid Bat Nipples and protective plastic lips.

X-Men and X2 movie toys from Toybiz (2000-2004)

X-Men would eventually be followed by successful sequels and spin-offs, and could be seen as the movie that really launched the explosion of superhero films that we’ve been enjoying.  For its unevenness the X-Men movies have a special place in my heart–I saw X2 in the summer of 2003 with my siblings and thought that it was the most fantastic movie of all time, and watched X-Men: The Last Stand with Namtab Pots while studying for the med boards. X-Men: First Class was a surprise hit and most memorable for being shown while I was in my hellowship poorita mode with Helliza and the gang. I think X-Men Days Of the Future Past is a masterpiece, rendering its immediate follow-up X-Men Apocalypse pedestrian but still serviceable by comparison. Finally, no bad review will ever make me not love Dark Phoenix.

These blog entries of reminiscences with Joni, Chel, and Groin are becoming quite frequent. Should I one day develop early-onset Alzheimers I would have these to get me by.

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