From Encantadia’s sang’gres and magical kingdoms, the gore of Shake, Rattle & Roll, and the giant mechas of Voltes V that generations of Filipinos grew up watching, speculative worlds have long been part of our imagination. 

We’ve always told stories that bend reality a little — or perhaps more than we’ll ever know — whether through fantasy, science fiction, or the creepy tales our grandmothers used to scare us with when we refused to sleep at night.

When it comes to Filipino speculative fiction as a literary genre, however, many readers still aren’t sure where to start.

What is speculative fiction?

Speculative fiction or spec fic refers to stories that involve speculation about society, the future, and everything in between. It is an umbrella term for stories that ask, “What if the world were different?” Genres such as fantasy, science fiction, horror, alternate histories, myth-inspired tales, and magical realism all fall under speculative fiction.

In the Philippines, while fantastical and non-realist stories have always been present, the concept of Filipino speculative fiction and its formal definition are relatively recent. Writers such as Dean Francis Alfar, through the Philippine Speculative Fiction anthologies, along with many others, helped name and champion the genre in the 2000s, encouraging writers to explore stories beyond Philippine literature’s strong realist tradition.

Filipino speculative fiction offers a rich and exciting landscape for new readers. Understandably, it can also feel a little daunting, and it isn’t always easy to know which story to pick up first. If you’re just beginning to explore Filipino speculative fiction, here are five picks that may just be your gateway to the rest of this otherworldly genre.

Elizabeth Yu is a Universal Constant by Sydney Paige Guerrero

Ever wondered how you’re doing in other universes? In this story, multiverse people-watcher Elizabeth Yu secretly peeks at her alternate selves. But while her coworkers delight in discovering the best versions of themselves, every other Elizabeth Yu she finds is just as average, boring, and disappointing as she fears she is.

While science fiction at heart, is there any worse horror than discovering you’re not extraordinary at all?

Elizabeth Yu is a Universal Constant is featured in Fusion Fragment’s June 2024 issue.

Naermyth by Karen Francisco

If you lean more towards dystopian stories, this one’s for you. In a post-apocalyptic Philippines, Naermyth — monsters and creatures from myth and legend — plague the cities and assume dominion over the country, pushing humanity to the brink of extinction.

Among the survivors is Aegis, a seasoned soldier who has built her life around hunting these very creatures. Everything changes when she rescues a mysterious stranger — who is clearly not human — and saving him sets off a chain of revelations that makes Aegis rethink everything she knows about monsters and the world she’s fighting for.

Naermyth is a novel published by Avenida Publishing in 2006.

The Apollo Centennial by Gregorio Brillantes

Set in the year 2069, The Apollo Centennial follows poor farmer Arcadio Nagbuya as he takes his children to an exhibit celebrating 100 years since the Apollo moon landing. Their journey — across rivers, buses, and military checkpoints — reflects life in a Philippine society shaped by decades of repression under the Marcos regime.

Though labeled science fiction, the story isn’t about astronauts, mechas, or futuristic technology. Instead, it critiques Philippine society under the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos while reflecting on the vast economic and technological gaps between the First and Third World.

The Apollo Centennial was published in 1980 and is considered one of the best Filipino short stories in English.

Mythology Class by Arnold Arre

Set in UP Diliman, Mythology Class follows a group of college students recruited by the mysterious Mrs. Engkanta for an unusual mission: to capture supernatural creatures from Philippine myth who have crossed over into the human world.

What begins as a strange school assignment soon turns into a dangerous journey into the world of engkanto and aswang, where they learn that old myths are very real and, well, not always friendly.

Mythology Class is an award-winning Filipino graphic novel that brings Philippine mythology into modern life.

The Kambubulag by Catherine Batac Walder

A folk horror that revolves around urban myth, The Kambubulag draws on the Filipino symbol of bad luck associated with the kambubulag — the Kapampangan term for “native moth” — a supernatural entity believed to be a harbinger of death, misfortune, and “blindness” through illusion.

The story centers on the fictional Kambubulag Road, where residents have come to believe they are more likely to die there than anywhere else due to superstitions surrounding encounters with the kambubulag.

The Kambubulag appears in Demons of the New Year: An Anthology of Horror Fiction from the Philippines, edited by Karl de Mesa and Joseph Nacino, and published by the UP Press in 2013. – Rappler.com

Angel Baleña is a Rappler intern studying Creative Writing at University of the Philippines Diliman.