"Pinoy Fear Factor" Remaining Participantes Deal With Rats And Spiders

The game is on for Pinoy Fear Factor's (PFF) ronda sin de eliminacion in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The second non-elimination round of continues, but with a new twist.

"Iibahin natin ang laro. Hindi nyo na pwedeng panoorin ang mga kapwa participante nyo na gagawin ang hamon," host Ryan Agoncillo reveals at the beginning of the December 16 episode aired last night. All three boys of the pump squad--Manuel Chua Jr., Marion dela Cruz, and Jommy Teotico--were asked to leave the set and wait for their turn. Only, Janna Dominguez and LJ Moreno, the two remaining female participantes, were allowed to stay within the vicinity of the set.

Despite the idyllic setting of Argentina's Laguna del Pilar, the PFF episode featured a novel challenge that included some of man's oldest fears: spiders and rats. There were three cages in the game, with the right box completely filled with 10 white mice and 15 dirty rats. The participantes had to transfer the 15 dirty rats from the right cage to the left cage as quickly as they could, while their heads were slipped into another cage crawling with black tarantulas.

LJ Moreno was the first to try the stunt. "Tinatanggap mo pa rin ba ang hamon?" the host asks. Despite the screams of Janna, LJ nods. "Let's get it on," she says determinedly. The challenge begins for LJ, who was obviously fighting fears as the cagemaster placed the tarantulas on her head one at a time. Janna, being the comedienne that she is, jokes around, "Kainin mo na lang sila para maubos, LJ."

As soon as the timer started ticking, LJ immediately got to work. She held the dirty rats from one hand to another while 7 tarantulas were crawling on her head and face. LJ finishes the transfer in 1 minute and 30 seconds--an impressive record. "Nanginginig pa ako. Tapang lang during that time, tapos lahat ng takot, after [the challenge]," says LJ.

Janna was next. Like LJ, she also had to struggle with her own fears. She was grimacing and grumbling as the cagemaster placed the tarantulas on her head. But both girls were determined to take home the P50,000 cash prize. Janna then finishes at the same speed as LJ.

"Ngayon, bibigyan ko kayo ng pagkakataon na panoorin ang mga lalaki na pagdadaanan ang hamon na ito," the host tells LJ and Janna, "Sino sa tingin nyo ang dapat sumunod?"

"Si Marion," says Janna without hesitation.

Janna explains that Marion has an intense fear of rats. "Kasi pinagkwekwentuhan namin ang fears namin. So nakwento niya na takot siya sa daga."

Marion was then called into the set. "Bakit ka ba takot sa daga?" Ryan asks him. "Di ko alam. Bata pa ako e, talagang kinakalibutan ako kapag nakakakita ako ng daga," he explains. Marion almost backs out of the challenge while recalling his childhood fears, but later changes his mind. "Huwag mo silang hahawakan sa buntot," Janna advises him. He bravely proceeds with the challenge.

In the midst of the challenge, Marion encounters some complications: a tarantula crawls out of the cage and makes its way into Marion's hand. Marion freezes in fear as he grapples with both the tarantula and the rats.

The fate of the other participantes will be revealed in the next episode of Pinoy Fear Factor: Argentina, South America. It airs from Monday to Friday after Eva Fonda on ABS-CBN. Catch the highlights of the week on PFF: Special Edition every Saturday at 7:30 pm on Studio 23.

~Alaysa Escandor