Due to the nature of Channel 10 - Manila and Analog Horror in general, all spoilers are unmarked, as this would make discussion impossible. Please watch the webseries HERE
before continuing.

Trope Describing Date: October 3, 2024, 12:30 AM
Channel 10 - Manila
is a Philippine Analog Horror Web Video series created on September 18, 2023 by an anonymous team. It's presented as a collection of VHS recordings of KTKT-TV, aka the titular Channel 10, a local broadcast TV station whose offices were based in Manila. Originally planned to launch in 1983, the channel's release date was suddenly moved to five years later, in September 1988.
After KTKT was launched in the stated date, the network only lasted two months before being suddenly taken off the air for undisclosed reasons. However, anonymous testimonies from the network's former employees reveal that the channel's signal, as well as the company itself, were cursed. Therefore, the recordings shared in this channel show horrific supernatural phenomena happening during Channel 10's short-lived airtime, as well as how Philippine society almost came crashing down because of the channel.
As of writing, the channel released several episodes:
- "Shortest (and Cursed) TV Test Broadcast, August 1988"
: As the name indicates, it's a short broadcast by Channel 10 to test the quality of the signal in which is transmitted. - "Metrocom PSA, September 1988"
: After the channel signs off, a sudden PSA from the titular organization Metrocom alerts on the disappearance of a woman named Ana Orosa Bulingan, which was aired without the permission of the channel and with no one in the station's control room. - "1988 Haunted Shampoo Commercial + Station ID"
: A recording of the news show Alas-10 sa 10 ending followed by a preview of Labyrinth in the channel's movie block titled Cinemasaya, a commercial for Jergens Total Care shampoo shows things it shouldn't. - "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988"
: The commercials for Maharlika Airline System and Miwon seasoning take a dark turn with creepy images of women smiling, with the station warning the viewer not to smile while watching. Then as the channel starts airing Tahanan TV, a ghastly presence hijacks the signal. - "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
: A recording of KTKT's broadcast sign-off which starts normal as the narrator introduces KTKT Corporation and the four staff members managing the signal. However, it takes a dark turn when the viewer changes the channel, setting off the titular system. - "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
: A recording of a rare ident for Channel 10 titled "Archipielago", originally intended to be used for 1983, followed by the channel's hymn with an image of the President of KTKT with the Viewer Retention System in effect. Afterward, it advertises a playhouse/convention center and a new show starring the viewer in their kitchen. - "Leaked Operation September 1988"
: A recording of a glitched-out ident of Channel 10 that gets interrupted by a transmission from the Department of National Mindset, which runs the viewer through several tests and hypnotizes them before the channel continues its usual programming. - "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
: A recording of the final minutes of Dance-o-Rama followed by a creepy commercial and even creepier discount promos for PHILSACOR's newest TV model, the Maligaya T-666, which is implied to have caused demonic effects on viewers.
The channel also has a Ko-Fi page
where the admin publishes future updates, yet it's on hiatus since 2023.
"Anywhere you go... tropes will be with you!"
- Abandoned Playground: "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
The commercial after the sign-on card advertises a playhouse/convention center which is implied to be abandoned because of the dark environment and the empty venues. - Anachronism Stew: The Jergens commercial used as the basis for the haunted commercial in "1988 Haunted Shampoo Commercial + Station ID" originally aired in 1995.
- Big Brother Is Watching: "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
implies that the President of KTKT has established a tyrannical regime in the Philippines by hijacking people's televisions into airing his network and nothing else, allowing him to watch over everyone and make sure to keep them in line, going as far as creating shows that revolve around viewers' personal lives at home. - Black Eyes of Evil: In "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
, the President of KTKT's portrait is monochrome and shows him with black, soulless eyes and a toothy smile, which makes him look otherworldly. Given that the station is cursed, this is not surprising. - Bloody Handprint: In "1988 Haunted Shampoo Commercial + Station ID"
, a bloody handprint appears on the photo in the final shot of the Jergens Total Care commercial, along with blood on the shampoo bottles. - Business Rival Sabotage: "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
features a supernatural example — after KTKT signs off the air, the viewer proceeds to change channel. However, this triggers the titular system, which replaces the other channels' programming with a warning screen instructing them to watch KTKT only, displaying a hotline and the logos of the main four channels in the Philippines, which are crossed out. Eventually, their failure to call said hotline causes KTKT to hijack the TV and become the only channel in its programming. - Clock Tampering: A virtual example occurs in "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
. When the video displays Channel 10's analog clock, it's 4:59 until the minute hand moved into the 5:00 position for a while before clicking back to 4:59, implying the channel can also alter the flow of time to gain more for their programming up next. - Crapsack World: It's implied that the Philippines, having recovered from the sequels left by the Marcos government, ended up in a worse position after KTKT-TV was launched. The President of the network, who may not even be a human, uses it to establish a tyrannical regime by hijacking TVs all over the country into only airing KTKT, allowing him to watch people's actions and punish those who don't pay respects to him.
- Deliberate VHS Quality: This being about a cursed TV station from The '80s, the videos are presented like VHS recordings.
- Do Not Adjust Your Set: "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988"
shows a minor one occurring during an airing of Tahanan TV (Home TV). After showing two houses for sale, a prompt to press OK on the remote appears right before it could show the third house. After the footage of the inside of the house is intercut with the "For Sale" screen, it eventually turns pitch black with only the message, "Tulungan mo ako" ("Help Me") and the monochrome picture of a smiling girl with empty eye sockets, before cutting to a red screen with the same message before the channel cuts to its technical difficulties card.ANG SABI KO (I SAID)
TULUNGAN MO AKO (HELP ME) - Droste Image: In "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988", when Channel 10 shows a live-recording of the viewer's living room, the TV in the room shows the recording inside the recording, with the screen turning red before the image does.
- Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette:
- "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988"
shows the creepy image of a hollow-eyed, pale, black-haired girl midway through an airing of Tahanan TV, after the "For Sale" prompt on the third house turned pitch-black with a caption reading, "TULUNGAN MO AKO" ("HELP ME" in Tagalog). - "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
shows the face of a pale black-haired girl inside a PHILSACOR Maligaya T-666 screen in one of the 680 Department Store's promos for the TV set.
- "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988"
- Eldritch Location: The KTKT-TV building is implied to be one, judging by the supernatural phenomena occurring onscreen, and the fact that the lore states it was condemned and demolished
soon after Channel 10 was taken off the air. - Face on a Milk Carton: This video
presents an In-Universe TV-style of this. After the channel signs off, an organization named Metrocom airs a report on a missing woman named Ana Orosa Bulingan, aged 27. However, the ad glitches when about to repeat its spiel, causing Bulingan's portrait to smile, distort, and even disappear from the frame before flashing with a scary smile. - Four Is Death: "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
reveals that KTKT Corporation, the company responsible for launching the cursed Channel 10, is headed by four staff members: Erwin Jim Reyes, Carlos Abalo, Pamungas Zabarte, and Zossimo Sapangorio. - The Fourth Wall Will Not Protect You: The titular TV channel has the power to hijack people's TVs and wreak merry havoc in the viewers' lives in several ways:
- "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
showcases Channel 10's titular system, which hijacks the viewer's attempts to watch any channel other than KTKT by replacing their programming with a warning screen showing and crossing out the logos of the country's main four channelsnote and a hotline onscreen. Failing to call this hotline results in KTKT chastising the viewer and switching to live footage of their living room before the screen turns red. Afterward, it shows another message telling the viewers that they're now configured to only watch KTKT forever, with the aforementioned logos appearing with a caption reading, "REST IN PEACE" below. - "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
reveals that the channel can not only hijack TV screens, but also create new shows on the fly in which viewers are forced to star and be mocked by canned laughter while at home.
- "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
- Fun with Acronyms: According to an official YouTube comment, KTKT, in addition to being Channel 10's callsign, is an acronym for its founding company, Kumpanya ng Telebisyon sa Katimugang Tagalog (Southern Tagalog Television Company).
- Getting Smilies Painted on Your Soul: Implied in "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
, in which the commercial for the Maligaya T-666 TV set exhorts the viewer to "try it so [they] can love it". Moreover, Maligaya means "happy" in Tagalog, which along with the subsequent promos implies said appliance will distort the face of whoever buys it into a horrifying smiley face. - Haunted Technology:
- Ever since it was launched, the signal of KTKT was riddled with supernatural phenomena in their programming, commercials, and idents to the point of interrupting programming and writing it off as "broadcasting errors". Moreover, the signal can also hijack television screens and reconfigure them into only airing Channel 10 and nothing else.
- In "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
the advertised TV model, Maligaya T-666, is implied to be haunted given the horrifying imagery in the ad and promos, on top of the video's description explaining that it became the most questionable product by PHILSACOR, "citing demonic effects on owners".
- Humanoid Abomination: It's implied that the President of KTKT isn't even human. He's able to discern (and probably torture or kill) whose viewers don't pay respects to him or the hymn throughout the whole Philippines, hijacking people's TV screens into only airing his network and nothing else, on top of airing footage of viewers at home as part of their programming. Moreover, the President's supernatural influence is such that KTKT remains a member of the KBP despite their blatant ethics violations.
- It Won't Turn Off: "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
shows a picture of the President of KTKT zooming in as a distorted version of "Marangal na Dalit ng Katagalugan"
(a Philippine revolutionary anthem) plays in the background. The viewer attempts to turn down the volume, but this only distorts the screen and causes the hymn to blare at full volume. Not that turning the TV off is an option, as KTKT has hijacked all the country's TVs. - Laugh Track: Played for Horror in "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
. After the Silipbuwan (Moonpeek) segment, the video cuts to distorted shots of what's implied to be a viewer's kitchen accompanied by canned laughter. Moreover, the first show in the channel's "Up Next" screen at the end is titled Ikaw at ang Kusina (You and the Kitchen). - May Contain Evil: "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
shows a commercial for a TV set from the titular company, whose visuals and subsequent promos imply it could afflict its buyers with demons. - Mood Whiplash:
- "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988" is rife with these. The MAS Golden Holidays and Miwon seasoning commercials start off cheerful and innocuous, but turn scary the moment their sponsorship is mentioned: the woman in the former's final shot turns deathly-pale and with bloodshot eyes, while the woman in the latter literally loses her head. After a technical difficulties message appears, the channel airs Tahanan TV, which starts off like an average house-selling program, but takes a frightening twist when it shows the third house, showing what's implied to be footage of its inside. Afterward, the "For Sale" screen turns pitch-black with a "help me" message, and instead of the house it shows a smiling, eyeless girl before cutting to a red screen with the same message and an electronic scream blaring.
- "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
starts off normal with the last minutes of an airing of Dance-o-Rama, with special thanks at all. However, it all goes to Hell with the subsequent commercial and 680 Department Store's promos for the PHILSACOR Maligaya T-666 TV set, which become increasingly nightmarish. Moreover, the last "promo" starts off normal with an image of just the TV and a cheerful tune playing until the grinning woman appears and the ad cuts to a close-up shot of her with both eyes open.
- Network Sign Off: KTKT signs off with a card reading, "Good Night!" in big letters and the channel's logo. What precedes it can vary:
- "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
starts with an introduction for the channel's inner workings and the four members of the staff managing the channel before showing a shot of the KTKT lobby and then a message reading, "PLEASE STAY WITH US" in red before the sign-off card. - "Metrocom PSA, September 1988"
starts with footage of the Philippines flag waving to a distorted version of "Lupang Hinirang", the country's national anthem, only fading to the sign-off card when it finishes playing. - Inverted with "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
, which shows Channel 10's sign-on card, which starts with a "hour to pay respects" in which the President's portrait zooms in against a red background to a distorted version of "Marangal na Dalit ng Katagalugan"
.
- "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
- Network Death: Channel 10 was short-lived and suddenly shut down two months in for undisclosed reasons. However, reports from anonymous employees reveal that the channel's frequency and company were actually cursed.
- Nightmare Face:
- "Metrocom PSA, September 1988"
starts off normal with the titular PSA for a missing woman named Ana Orosa Bulingan. However, Bulingan's portrait starts to smile and distort into scary forms until it ends with a split-second shot of Bulingan's face distorted to nightmarish levels. - "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988"
ends with the airing of Tahanan TV being hijacked into showing footage of what's implied to be the third house until the "For Sale" screen turns pitch-black and shows the monochrome image of a girl with empty eye sockets and a toothy grin. - "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
starts off normal until we get to the PHILSACOR discount promos for the Maligaya T-666 TV model, which show a winking woman with a distorted face flashing an impossible ear-to-ear grin, then it ends with a white screen with just the TV until its screen shows said grinning woman with both eyes open.
- "Metrocom PSA, September 1988"
- Number of the Beast:
- At one point during "Metrocom PSA, September 1988"
, the phone number to contact with details on Ana Orosa Bulingan's disappearance is replaced with "666-666" as Ana's picture disappears. - "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
is a promo for the "Maligaya T-666" TV model by the titular company, which is implied to be haunted by demons judging by the Nightmare Faces shown.
- At one point during "Metrocom PSA, September 1988"
- Off with His Head!: This broadcast
shows a commercial for Miwon seasoning, which ends with the woman shilling it having her head disappear, complete with a ghastly scream as the camera lingers on her headless body holding the Miwon bag. - Ominous Visual Glitch: In "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
, the first 680 Department Store promo for the PHILSACOR Maligaya T-666 TV set ends with the shot of said appliance against a white background lingering until a red label with a glitched "666" number appears, shortly before ending with the PHILSACOR logo card. - Parody Commercial: This being an Analog Horror channel about a discontinued, cursed TV station, it's a given these recordings would have commercials, repurposed from real commercials that sometimes were tweaked to make them look like local ads. For example, "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988"
repurposes this Malaysia Airlines ad
as a commercial for the fictional "Maharlika Airline System". The Miwon seasoning commercial
, on the other hand, is only cut to show the woman singing the product's name. - Punny Name: Channel 10's call sign, KTKT, is a play on the Tagalog word katakot, which in turn is used as shorthand for katakot-takot, which means "scary". Given the nature of the titular TV station, it's not surprising it would have such horrific programming.
- Red and Black and Evil All Over: In "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
the Maligaya T-666 commercial from the titular company, PHILSACOR, is shot in a black background with a red gradient, with the closing logo itself being the company name in red letters over a black background, implying it's a demonic corporation. That said, the bar under the company name has a white gradient and the promos for said TV model are mostly monochrome over a white background, overlapping with another similar trope. - Removing the Rival: "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
has this in the form of the channel's titular system: When the viewer changes channel after KTKT signs off the air, they're met with a warning screen telling them to watch KTKT only. When they fail to call the hotline appearing onscreen, the station hijacks their TV screen and configures it into only airing KTKT forever. In other words, said system is designed to trap people into watching Channel 10 while starving the other TV networks of viewers. - Repetitive Audio Glitch: "Metrocom PSA, September 1988"
is a recording of a PSA by the titular organization on a missing woman named Ana Orosa Bulingan. After repeating its spiel for two times, it skips and stutters at the third time until it stops before showing a Jump Scare of a horribly distorted picture of Bulingan's face. - The Rival: As "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
implies, the titular channel is set up as the rival to not only ABS-CBN and GMA Network, but also to RPN 9 and IBC 13. However, thanks to KTKT-TV's viewer-retention system, these four channels are reduced to nothing but forgotten annoyances, at least for two months. - Saved from Development Hell: According to the channel's backstory, it was planned to launch in 1983, but for some reason its release date was moved to September 1988, five years after. While the channel did launch in that date, it shut down two months in for undisclosed reasons.
- Secret Police: Implied in "Leaked Operation September 1988"
, when the recording cuts to a transmission from an organization named Kagawaran ng Pambansang Pag-Iisip ("Department of National Mindset" in Tagalog), which runs the viewer through several tests and hypnotizes them before the channel continues its usual programming. Moreover, it also has "1968" in the legend, implying that it was established by the Marcos government. - Shout-Out:
- "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
has the titular sign-on card be a reference to North Korea's KCTV sign-on card; it shows a portrait of the President of KTKT zooming in against a red background while a distorted version of "Marangal na Dalit ng Katagalugan"
plays in the background. - "Leaked Operation September 1988"
shows, among the image tests done by the KPPI, an image of a woman holding a flower while flashing a distorted grin. Said image is a reference to the infamous lost ad for Encarnacion Bechaves, a Real Life flower shop based in Manila.
- "Sign On Sequence + Advertisement and Clock, October 1988"
- Show Within a Show:
- "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988"
features a show named Tahanan TV (Home TV) which as its name suggests, is about showcasing houses put on sale to the viewers. - "1988 Haunted Shampoo Commercial + Station ID"
starts with the final credits of the channel's news program, titled Alas-10 sa 10 (10 o'clock at the 10), followed by a preview of Labyrinth in the channel's movie block titled Cinemasaya.
- "Possible Broadcast Hijacking, October 1988"
- Signing-Off Catchphrase: In "Sign Off & Viewership Retention System, October 1988"
, after the narrator finishes introducing the channel and the four staff members heading it, the narrator says a rather ominous one:"We wish you a good night's sleep. We wish that even in your dreams, you are still watching us. Please stay with us. This is Channel 10 Manila, KTKT-TV. We are signing off." - Station Ident: As expected of a story of this nature, Channel 10 has idents like a real TV station, although they can be unsettling like the rest of their content.
- Special Thanks: In "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
, an airing of the ending of Dance-O-Rama thanks both Sarsi and Lagerlite (real-life Filipino brands of soda and beer, respectively) for sponsoring it. - Trail of Blood: In "1988 Haunted Shampoo Commercial + Station ID"
, after the Jergens Total Care commercial ends and the sponsorship message starts, it cuts to the ad's set as blood stains suddenly appear on a window, lights go off, the book is stained with blood, and after the technical difficulties card shows, there's blood on one of the shampoo bottles. - We Are Experiencing Technical Difficulties: Occasionally pops up in the videos whenever a supernatural mishap happens onscreen."Paumanhin po sa pagkakaantala ng inyong panonood. Nilulutas na po ang error sa broadcast."Translation
- White and Red and Eerie All Over: "Dance-o-Rama PHILSACOR Promo September 1988"
has 680 Department Store's discount promos for PHILSACOR's Maligaya T-666 model shot in a white background, with the cursed TV and other appliances in a monochrome color scheme while a red label at the top right appears. Moreover, the bar underneath "PHILSACOR" has a white gradient.
- PLEASE STAY WITH US
