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Encantadia is a daily fantasy soap opera for primetime television (locally known as telefantasya). It was hailed by Philippine critics as the grandest, most ambitious, and utterly expensive production made for television to hit Philippine primetime. It's premier telecast dated May 2 2005 was broadcasted on GMA, The Kapuso Network

The series created by GMA Network, the same network that produced other telefantasya series such as Mulawin and Darna and an assemblage of creative team featured comprehensive storytelling, magnificent visual effects, a wide array of detailed costumes, extensive set designs built on Philippine cinema's first ever sound stage and an ensemble cast of brilliant actors.

It can be considered as a spin-off of Mulawin because some characters of Mulawin appeared in this series like Dakila and Bagwis.

Plot

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Encantadia is a term coined from the Filipino word encantada or encantado which means enchanted beings endowed with supernatural abilities.

In the show, Encantadia is a vast enchanted realm comprising of four divided kingdoms where different mythical entities thrive. These four kingdoms bear the four precious stones that holds the land's balance. The kingdom of Adamya, Sapiro, Lireo, and Hathoria. The tranquility and future of Encantadia rests on the four gemstones of water, earth, wind and fire; each being carefully kept by the bearers from each kingdom.

But when the Hathors, from the kingdom of Hathoria threatened to accumulate all the gems from the other bearers, hostility and war swept over the realm. It's a battle of three kingdoms against one.

One of the most significant beginnings of the tale is the entwined linkage of Encantadia to the mortal realm through the Asnamon Tree, a century-aged tree serving as the gateway to both world. The pilot episode established the account of one of the lead protagonists, Amihan. In here, she and her father Raquim lived a mortal existence. But she discovers her enchanted nature and her ability to control the wind. Soon she realized that her father is in fact a prince. And all of Encantadia is told to young Amihan.

Her father's death to the hands of the gruesome Hathorian leader, Hagorn, triggered an early consciousness to fight. She is whisked away into Encantadia reuniting with her biological mother, Ynang Reyna and her enchanted sisters. Amihan is on a road to self-discovery and finding out her true heritage.

As time goes by, Amihan grows up and learns all about her people and the land of Encantadia. She learns how to speak the language and how to act like a Sang'gre (a diwata of royal blood). And she is seen as the most likely candidate for the throne of Lireo, which upsets the eldest sister, Pirena, who is convinced that her mother is playing favorites and loves Amihan more than all her other children.

The four Sang'gres soon grow up. Amihan grows up mature and motherly. Pirena lets her anger and jealousy get the best of her and thus grows up bitter, cunning and deceitful. Alena grows up innocent, beautiful and demure as ever, and her beauty gets her quite a few suitors, including Ybarro (later named as Ybrahim). Danaya grows up into a strong-willed, rebellious, albeit militaristic woman with a soft spot for nature.

The time came when it was time for a new queen to ascend the throne. Minea, after having consulted her advisors, told her daughters to prepare for the test. Pirena later overheard Minea talking with Imao that she wish either of her three daughters, except Pirena, would become queen, vaguely mentioning something about Pirena's "blood" (she still didn't talk about it clearly and it even mystified wise Imao) and that she is sorry that Pirena won't be able to fulfill her ambition but Pirena was already gone this time, angry and hurt with questions on her mind.

The test for the sisters is to fight a cloaked warrior. The goal is to retrieve a "key" that the warrior wears as a pendant. The cloaked figure, clad in a white cloak with a brown face covering (the attire is, intriguingly, of a common Sapirian warrior).

Danaya went first and it was her battle that was most difficult (she even stepped on several traps). Defeated, she went home sulking. Alena went next and also succumbed to defeat but she was just happy about it (to everyone's puzzlement). Next went Amihan. When the enemy proved to be too strong for her, Pirena decided to join her and together they forced it to retreat into the woods. In the midst of their pursuit, Amihan fell of a cliff, Pirena then tried to save her but then remembering that it would ruin her dream of becoming queen, kicked Amihan's hand, letting her fall down. The cloaked warrior flew down rescuing the diwata. It was at this moment that Amihan discovered the warrior's identity. It was Ynang Reyna and she stated that she would know since her mothers love would always show through, despite of any sort of disguise. They were both safe going back on the cliff.

Because of her betrayal, Amihan is declared the heir to the throne. Pirena, hurt and angry, decides to challenge the queen for the throne and steals the crystal of fire (with the goading of her long-time nanny and secret-Hathor-spy Gurna) to ensure her success. Pirena manages to bring down Yang Reyna aided by the gem. But before the last blow was struck, her three sisters join forces and defeat her. She escapes and allies herself with the Hathors.

During the ceremony to acknowledge Amihan as the legal heir to the throne, the three remaining elemental gems are entrusted to each of the sisters. Amihan is entrusted with the air crystal, Alena with the water crystal, and Danaya with the earth crystal.

It soon becomes apparent that Amihan must also produce her heir. She invokes Bathala to help her find a worthy father to her child. The father chosen is none other than Ybarro, who is revealed to be the long-lost prince of the fallen kingdom of Sapiro. Both Ybarro and Amihan conceive the child in a collective dream. A healthy daughter is born and is named Lira.

Pirena, aware of the situation, hatches a plan and also conceives a daughter with an unmentioned soldier. The child is named Mira and is born the same time as Lira.

By this time Pirena has joined the Hathorians and is plotting with them against Amihan. Since she sees the newborn Princess Lira as a major hindrance, she "kidnaps" the baby and tried to kill her, however she fails because the baby surrounded her self with a wind-like shield (one of Amihan's favorite techniques) and her dagger just won't hurt the baby so instead she sends her to the mortal realm through the Tree of Asnamon. She then replaces the real Princess Lira with her own child.

The real Lira is adopted by a poor couple and they name her "Milagros" (because once their hut catched fire but to everyones amazement the found the baby still safe even after the hut fell down). Because of a railroad accident that killed her foster father, Mila, as she is now known, not only grows up poor, but hated and abused by her foster mother, who blames the accident on Mila, and her spoiled-rotten daughter.

When she grows up she finds a job as a maid for a rich family, headed by the overbearing, bitchy Carmen, and her son Anthony (whom Mila once met when they were kids and they ran away together for a while). And though Mila and Anthony reunite and strengthen their relationship, not as friends, but as lovers, Mila has to endure the torture her adoptive mother and mistress put her through, along with the taunting of her nemesis, spoiled, scheming Marge. There are also the problems of the manifestation of her powers, and a thought that haunts her everyday: the thought that she might have a screw loose, because she sees things that, though real, cannot be seen and are deemed fictitious by humans.

Meanwhile in Encantadia, Pirena goes on with her diabolical plans which affect both her family and all the diwatas in general. Some of these include:

• Disguising herself (because she has shapeshifting abilities) as Bathala (a Philippine mythical god) and showing herself (as Bathala) to Alena, urging her to give up her gem of water to "ease her pains" and to stop thinking about his lover (Alena thinks Ybarro is dead after a fight and is stricken with grief), causing Alena to temporarily lose her memory. She did this while Alena was contemplating of suicide and was emotionally unstable. She later disguised herself as a dead Alena whom her sisters grieved upon and burned on a funeral pyre while the real Alena was taken away by Bardano (this is the reason why she's not present in the funeral, though no one would be suspecting anyway for they are all sad).

• Disguising herself as Danaya and making an attempt on Amihan's life, which leads to the real Danaya's exile. At first Amihan won't believe but she later changed her mind. Pirena' plan would have been foiled when Aquil told Amihan that it was possibly Pirena, remembering an event when someone, disguised as him, entered the treasury and stole the fire gem. However when they looked up Pirena in her room, they found her (whoever it was) peacefully sleeping.

• Lying to her daughter (now known as Lira) about Mila, whom Lira has befriended, making up lies that Mila is the last member of a cursed royal clan that is banished unto the mortal realm and would be a barrier to Lira's ascension to the throne. She then encouraged Lira to kill Mila but Lira failed to do this on the last minute because she loved her friend. When Anthony suddenly came in (Lira hid) she realized Mila was the girl that Anthony was talking about and felt that she should have really killed her. She later told Pirena that if she (Pirena) want to get rid of Mila, she have to use her own ends for she have no interest of seeing Mila again.

Now Danaya, who has been wrongfully banished from Lireo comes upon the Tree of Asnamon, and, seeing Lira open the portal, decides to follow. She lands in Carmen's backyard and first meets Mila, but is soon driven out by Carmen and her stooge.

Because she is not familiar with the mortal world and its laws, she strikes people who anger her for whatever reason and thus gets into a couple of run-ins with the police. In the mortal world, she meets another diwata, Muyak (who has been gone for something like 18 years to watch over Mila). At first, Danaya doesn't recognize Muyak, but she soon remembers Muyak and they set off on a quest to find Mila.

A bullet wound, a trip to the hospital, and a failed attempt to convice Mila she is a diwata later, they decide to go back to Encantadia but realize that the portal is closed. They are stuck in the mortal world.

Meanwhile, Asval (Bobby Andrews) with some surviving Sapiryans (Brad Turvey at Gerard Pizarras) continued to test Ybarro/Ybrahim to see if he is worthy to be the heir of King Armeo, the old king of Sapiro. They believed that Asval is the most brave Sapiryan warrior, but no one knows how did he escaped in the Great battle of Encantadia.

Amihan told Alena that Ybarro is alive. Danaya and Muyak will see face to face, and Pirena goes to the world of mortals to see if Mila (Jennylyn Mercado) is still alive, and they will come face to face.

There will be confirmation that Mila is the daughter of Amihan. Mila is getting crazy, so many things plays on her mind— one of which is that Anthony is also getting insane. The Hathor will take care of Mila, and Lira will find out that her "medallion" is with the Hathor. The Hathor will land the world of mortals to kill Mila.

Anthony asks psychiatric help from Mila, and see the powers of love in the process.

Pirena ruins Mila by telling Lira that she is also a 'diwata' with bad blood, and because of this, Lira may not become a queen. Cassiopeia (Cindy Kurleto) is bribed by Pirena.

Amihan sympathizes with Ybarro. Hagorn tells Pirena that he volunteered to go to the world of mortals and kill Mila. Amihan declares war against Hathoria and war ensues.

Hagorn is able to weaken Mila to near death but the Mulawins help to revive her. With the help of Bagwis, Danaya and Mila are able to go back to Encantadia through a medallion that was hidden in the tomb of Avilan who founded Avila — the kingdom of the Mulawins.

To end the conflict between kingdoms, Ybarro must go to fight Cassiopeia and possess the Kabilan, a bolo knife. Numerous persons in the past failed to defeat Cassiopeia. But for the first time, Ybarro defeated Cassiopeia and she has no choice but to show the location of the Kabilan. The Kabilan had been hidden at the center of three tall white stones guarded by dementor looking spirits.

Pirena transforms herself to look like Amihan and spins a different tale that makes Danaya look bad and herself, good. She then leaves the unsuspecting Lira in a tower and seals the entrance so that only she with her fire crystal can pass through the stairs.

(The story is still running its course, and this article will be added to as the series progresses.)

The Kingdoms

Adamya

Situated in the Southern tip, the Kingdom of Adamya is the home of the little people. Small yet intelligent creatures called the Adamians. The kingdom is headed by its wise and faithful ruler Imaw, who is the keeper of the water gem.

Sapiro

On the North is the Kingdom of Sapiro. The land of great valiant and cunning warriors, the Sapirians. A vast kingdom under the rule of King Armeo and his queen who bears the future heir Prince Ybrahim. This is the kingdom where Prince Raquim, King Armeo's cousin and Amihan's father, hails. Armeo is the keeper of the earth gem.

Lireo

The land of the enkantados and diwatas is the Kingdom of Lireo, bounded on the east. It's ruler is Minea or dearly called Ynang Reyna (Queen mother). She is the keeper of the wind gem and mother to the four elemental goddesses who will carry the magic that the four jewels bear.

Hathoria

On the western border is the Kingdom of Hathoria where the greedy, viscious and power-famished Hathors abound. It is home to orcs and dangerous beings, bounded by treacherous terrains and taverns. After the Hathorian King died, it's successor Hagorn took hold and embarked on what was to be the battle cry for Encantadia's chaotic era.

The Royal Family

• Cassiopeia; The first Queen of the fairies.
• Minea; Mother of Pirena, Amihan, Alena and Danaya.
• Aquil; Minea's Brother/ The head of the Royal Army.
• Pirena; The fairy of Fire.
• Amihan; The fairy of Wind.
• Alena; The fairy of Waters.
• Danaya; The fairy of Earth.
• Lira; Amihan's Daughter.
• Mira; Pirena's Daughter

Language

The show features Enchanta, a fictional language, that was devised for the show. Although, it is not detailed as the languages of Middle-earth of J. R. R. Tolkien's work or Star Trek's Klingon language.

Samples

Words

• Enchan (en-syan) — The alphabet of Encantadia. Somewhat similar to the Baybayin script.
• Enchanta — the language of Encantadia.
• Enkantado / Enkantada — the denizens of Encantadia’s world.
• Sang’gre — royalty.

Sentences

• Asnamon Voyanazar — Encantadia’s version of open sesame.
• Avisala — Greetings (their version of: How are you?)
• Maste Lesnu (name of person) — Peace be with (name of person).
• Hasna Lesnu Maste — And may God help me be the champion of peace
• Ssheda — Stop/Halt/Desist.
• Ssheda Musti Maste — We will not give them peace.
• Hasna Verom gashne vo — If you do not give me that, I will kill you.
• Ssheda Musni Verom — I will not give this to you.
• e correi diu — I love you.

Numbers

• Iri — One
• Due — Two
• Kaskil — Three
• Pevis — Five
• Way Asni — Ninety-seven
• Way Ise — Ninety-eight
• Way Asno — Ninety-nine
• Avento — One Hundred

See also

• List of Philippine television shows

External links

• Encantadia's official site
• Encantadia on IMDB

• Encantadia
• Television shows in the Philippines