September 10, 2025
Stella Puno (Bela Padilla) was now the CEO of Rainstar, a events company that specialized in singles-only parties. In one of her first events, Stella met aspiring singer Clyde Pelayo (Kyle Echarri) who asked her to choose which of two songs he had should be his lead-off single. Stella's choice was a winner, and Clyde became a star. He would tease his fans about having a crush on Stella, which made her a viral online celebrity as well.
When one of Stella's events needed a bigger venue, she was able to make a last-minute booking at a place called Bale Ganaka. It turned out that the present owner of this new venue was none other than her long-estranged friend, Fidel Lansangan (JC Santos). Fidel was still shy, stuttered when he spoke, and still into writing music and poetry. Stella felt that the lyrics of Clyde's songs sounded vaguely familiar. She soon realized why.
The first film about the relationship of Fidel and Stella was "100 Tula Para Kay Stella" (2017) released 8 years ago, also written and directed by Jason Paul Laxamana. They were freshmen back then, blockmates in AB Psych at the Pampanga Agricultural College. Fidel was a shy, nerdy honor student who stuttered and wrote poetry. His muse Stella was a tough chick who wore black lipstick and was the lead singer of a rock band.
The unexpected ending of the first film left a lot of fans wanting for a better resolution for their love story. This sequel picks up 15 years after college, 15 years without any contact with each other. Fidel and Stella were engaged in their own businesses now, and seemingly content at being single. They both had unsettled issues from their past that still haunted them -- Fidel with his mother Sandra (Yayo Aguila), Stella with her ex Von (now played by Albie Casino).
JC Santos and Bela Padilla fit very comfortably back into their characters, quirks and all. The fans in the audience react gleefully to their undeniable chemistry together -- they want them back together again. Kyle Echarri spent most of his screen time posturing for the camera, never felt like a serious threat as the third wheel. Clyde was also given the emotional burden of living up to a music legend father, but this was more told in words, than actually shown.
The title implies there will be 100 new songs, but of course that is not possible. We hear maybe four songs in full (sort of) -- #1 "Kamusta Na," #2 "Itim na Lipstick," #50 "Simoy," and #100 "Iisang Daan." There would also be snippets of about 20 more scattered throughout. All of these original songs were by Thyro Alfaro. A song from the original film is also prominently featured here -- Rivermaya's "Balisong" -- which surely brought back the feels. 7/10