Hybrid fitness racing has been picking up steam globally for a while now, and until recently, chasing it meant booking a flight.

That changed on July 28, when Spartan DEKA officially launched at the Grand Atrium of EDSA Shangri-La Plaza in Mandaluyong City. Spartan Philippines has built its name on trails and mud pits, but the fitness world has shifted, and DEKA is where the brand is meeting it.

Athletes here no longer need to travel abroad to test themselves against a global leaderboard in this format. The arena’s home now.

The afternoon opened with a live drumming performance that set the tone, followed by a look at the roadmap through 2026 and 2027, and a full demonstration of all 10 standardized DEKA functional fitness zones.

Three formats, six ambassadors

The launch also introduced the first six DEKA Philippines Ambassadors, two representing each of the sport’s three race formats.

DEKA Strong strips out the running entirely and leaves 10 zones of pure output, represented by Yzah Umlas and Alex Diaz. Meanwhile, DEKA Mile adds a 160-meter run before each zone, represented by Marline Capones and Coach Don Velasco.

DEKA Fit pushes that run to 500 meters, represented by Kaizen Dela Serna and Justin Hernandez. Together, the three formats give the sport a range that fits different kinds of athletes.

Sports tourism gets a boost, too

The launch also carried a partnership with the Department of Tourism’s Office of Special Concerns. Spartan Philippines is rolling out its Love The Philippines APAC Ambassadors program next, aligned with the DOT’s own campaign of the same spirit.

The plan brings in Spartan athletes from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Korea, Japan, Australia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, China, and Cambodia, all of them positioned to encourage international racers to fly in and compete here.

Shangri-La Plaza and Fenix/FITIQAsia backed the launch, with Fenix/FITIQAsia supplying the equipment that made the live zone demo possible.

Mark your calendars

If the launch got you curious, there’s already a lot to look forward to. A DEKA Strong Road Show hits the PhilFit Expo from August 19 to 21, and the first DEKA Fit Arena event follows at Space at One Ayala on October 3 and 4, where organizers expect more than 5,000 runners on course.

The Holland-led Spider-Man trilogy is one of my favorite franchises in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Compared to other series with admittedly disjointed plots, all of Spidey’s storylines have a clear thread leading from one to the next. Since the fourth entries after trilogies are historically lackluster, I had a lot of trepidation heading into Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

Thankfully, all those worries were unfounded. Brand New Day follows the same throughline as its predecessors, once again reinforcing Spider-Man as the strongest franchise that Marvel offers fans today.

A brand new day indeed

Coming from No Way Home, Brand New Day still has Peter Parker live a new life as a literal nobody where no one remembers who he is. So begins his existence as just Spider-Man with no friends or family.

When a new and unseen threat ravages through New York City, Spidey starts to wish that he still had friends to help him out, which leads him on an inevitable collision course with Ned and MJ. Ironically, it also leads him to other characters in the city, including the Hulk and the Punisher.

A cacophony of villains

When I first saw the trailer, I was worried about the astounding number of villains from the get-go. After all, one of the biggest problems in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3, the most maligned entry in Spider-Man movie history, was the villains. Though far from the movie’s biggest problem, having too many bad guys without a solid plot led to its terrible reception. You can see why Brand New Day’s trailer raises some flags.

If you were thinking the same thing, Brand New Day does indeed have a cohesive plot. Everything flows neatly into one another. Each emotional beat of Peter feeling for his solitude mixes well with the action. In here, fight scenes feel like they have a purpose.

And there is a big bad here. It’s not just a collection of guys that Spidey has to go through. That big bad, who shall not be named at this time, doesn’t feel like just a placeholder for Peter’s internal struggles. They have a character of their own and their own struggles to solve. I wouldn’t say they’re at the level of Loki just yet, but they definitely have a better go at it than most of the MCU’s other villains.

Marvel’s New York City finally debuts

Despite being a prime location since 2012’s Avengers, New York City never really felt like the quintessential city for superheroes in the comics. In the movies, the city was just another city to be ravaged when a new villain comes along.

For the first time, Brand New Day makes the city feel like a lived-in world with a bunch of superheroes living in the neighborhood. And they do pop up.

Does Peter have a scientific problem that only a very specific hero can solve? It’s a good thing Bruce Banner is just around the corner. Does he need some muscle? Well, the Punisher is skulking around somewhere. Plus, there’s even a succinct reason why other superheroes can’t help out.

In this way, Brand New Day presents itself more like a comic book series than a one-off movie. It’s like following the story alone from issue to issue. It’s not the most perfect adaptation of the landmark city, but it goes a long way from just another ravaging of New York.

Peter’s sadness

Everything here hinges on Peter’s loneliness. Despite meeting a trove of characters across the cinematic universe, Peter yearns for time with his loved ones. But they’re gone.

Unlike the past three films where he always had someone to go home to, he has no one here. Tony Stark is dead. Aunt May is gone. Happy has gone to parts unknown. Ned and MJ have no memory of him. Brand New Day has a way of making you feel for his aches, whether the way he still keeps track of MJ or some physiological changes as a result of his predicament.

It also helps that the movie’s big bad has similar motivations. Both serve as perfect mirrors against each other, elevating both their stories effectively. And that’s all I’ll say about that.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a few steps behind from being a perfect Marvel movie, but it’s still an extremely strong part of the Spider-Man mythos. The trilogy, now quadrilogy, remains Marvel’s most consistent franchises to date. It’s an absolute must-watch.

For so small of a game, UNDERTALE quickly made it into the gaming world’s hall of fame. Despite being only a decade old, the small title has had a major influence for modern-day gamers because of its unique gameplay, its lo-fi art, and, of course, its catchy soundtrack. If you’re a fan of UNDERTALE’s soundtrack, a unique concert experience is headed your way.

On October 17, Film Concerts PH, in partnership with SOHO Live, is hosting UNDERTALE: The Determination Symphony at the Proscenium Theater in Rockwell, Makati.

The concert will be performed by the Filharmonika Orchestra and conducted by Thanapol Setabrahmana. Personally curated by creator Toby Fox and developed by Lambert Jackson with Materia Music, the concert experience showcases the game’s most recognizable tunes laid over gameplay footage playing simultaneously. Plus, for the world tour, the experience will have expanded scoring.

In the game, you play as a small child stuck in the mysterious Underground filled with interesting characters and monsters. Unlike traditional RPGs, UNDERTALE asks players to choose between building relationships and chasing after wins. It’s a unique experience that’s defined by whether you chose to make friends or fought your way to the top. It teaches players to value different ways to solve problems, all while showering them with its one-of-a-kind humor.

Pre-sales for the concert, exclusively for members of the Film Concerts PH community, start on August 4. Public sales, however, will start on August 11 via Ticketmelon.

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