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Pretty, But Forgettable
Much has been said about the National Costume of Miss Philippines, Rabiya Mateo. even prompting Rabiya to go live in one of her social media accounts to apologize for supposedly not living up to fans' expectations on her costume. While previous Philippine title holders like Pia Wurtzbach and Catriona Gray defended Rabiya from the negative feedbacks.
Verdict: It has been an anonymous observation that the national costume, albeit a huge improvement from previous designs spanning 2010 (Barazza era) down to present - still lacked character and X-factor. In other words, the costume is a Victoria Secret material at best but remains forgettable. Years from now, pageant fans will look back and ask, what did Rabiya wear again for National Costume?
It's not the head piece. It's the costume itself. You look at the lackluster feathers (the most common material in the history of pageants) and you easily get tired. Before you know it, you start asking - that's it? As if we are waiting for some grand gimmick to suddenly appear from somewhere.
