El filibusterismo

El filibusterismo is the sequel to Jose Rizal's Noli Me Tángere. Thirteen years after Crisostomo Ibarra's apparent death, a mysterious man named Simoun appears, quickly gaining favor with the Spanish rulers and high society of 19th century Manila. Called Cardinal Moreno (Dark Cardinal), he was the informal adviser to the colony's Captain-General and tours the islands apparently as a jewel merchant. Basilio, the young boy from the previous book, is now a medical student at the college of Ateneo, and he gets drawn into a web of lies and deceit.

Like its predecessor, it is considered an important part of Filipino literature.


 * Attempted Rape:
 * Badass Beard: Simoun has one.
 * Banned in China: Obviously banned in the occupied Philippines.
 * Subverted in the current times, as the book and its prequel a required reading for High School students, and a course about the Author's life and works is a prerequisite in College.
 * Batman Gambit: Nearly everything Simoun does.
 * Best Served Cold: Simoun's revenge.
 * Betty and Veronica: Isagani and Juanito are this to Paulita.
 * Bilingual Bonus: The title itself is Spanish for "The Filibuster." Which aptly describes the nature of this novel.
 * Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Paulita Gomez, Isagani's sweetheart, is a stunningly beautiful orphan with immense riches, is intelligent, witty, and has a fondness for art.
 * Bittersweet Ending:
 * Blade on a Stick: Old Man Selo.
 * Bolivian Army Ending: Basilio.
 * Book Ends:
 * Break the Cutie: Juli, Basilio's girlfriend,  Basilio himself is too, after suffering setback after setback.
 * Chekhov's Gun: Remember when Maria Clara gave her necklace to the leper in the first book?
 * Continuity Nod: See Chekhov's Gun above.
 * Corrupt Church
 * Although the book does go out of its way to show more sympathetic clergymen like the Jesuits.
 * Darker and Edgier: Than its prequel.
 * Dean Bitterman: Father Hernando de la Sibyla, the Dominican curate of the town of Binondo in Noli, becomes the vice-rector of the University of Santo Tomas in the sequel. He then proceeds to make life hell for the students.
 * Dirty Old Woman: Dona Victorina, becomes the caretaker of Paulita Gomez, and is heavily implied to have the hots for Paulita's suitor, Juanito Pelaez.
 * Driven to Suicide:
 * Dying Alone:
 * Expy: Father Camorra of Tiani is very similar in personality to Father Damaso
 * The Gay Nineties: El Filibusterismo is most likely to be set in this decade
 * Go Mad from the Revelation:
 * Good Shepherd:
 * Heroic BSOD: Simoun has one after.
 * Ill Girl: Maria Clara.
 * Intrepid Reporter: Ben Zayb.
 * It's Personal:
 * Jade-Colored Glasses: Simoun's. They're blue!
 * Jerkass: Father Camorra.
 * Karma Houdini: Camorra's rape of Juli is hushed up and he's trasferred to another parish.
 * Kill'Em All:
 * Late Arrival Spoiler: Pretty much every Filipino knows that
 * Market-Based Title: The English translation was titled The Reign of Greed.
 * Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: When Basilio sees Isagani watching his beloved Paulita from a window at Capitan Tiago's house, he warns him to go away lest he be killed by an explosion (as part of Simoun's Batman Gambit). Because of this, Isagani is horrified by at the thought of seeing her beloved die right before his eyes that he came inside the house to take away the lamp and throw it into the water,  Nice job breaking it, Basilio.
 * Not So Different: Basilio is this to Ibarra.
 * The Ojou: Paulita.
 * Pedophile Priest: Father Camorra.
 * The Philosopher: Arguably, Sandoval.
 * Put on a Bus: We hear no more of Juli's brother Tano when the civil guard marches him off to wherever.
 * Rape as Drama:
 * Redemption Equals Death:
 * Ripped from the Headlines: At least a sizable portion of the book was written in the context of Spain's increasingly unstable rule in the Philippines by the 1890s. In addition, Simoun's touched-on backstory  in Spanish-ruled Cuba implied that he was involved in the revolutionary turmoil there leading up to Spanish-American War.
 * Romantic Runner-Up:
 * Scarpia Ultimatum / Sadistic Choice:
 * Self-Made Orphan:
 * Sequel Hook: A less-obvious one in current times, but.
 * Shout-Out: The phrase "Mene thecel phares" is used in a similar context to the original.
 * It also helps that it's one of Rizal's favorite novels.
 * Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism: Tends more towards the cynical end of the scale than Noli.
 * Spanner in the Works:
 * And he gets bonus points for basically
 * Sunglasses at Night: A very important piece of disguise.
 * Time Bomb: A 19th-century version.
 * Time Skip: Takes place 13 years after the events of Noli Me Tangere.
 * Uncle Pennybags: Makaraig. He financed the  school with his huge hoard of cash.
 * Villain Protagonist: Simoun..
 * Whole-Plot Reference: To The Count of Monte Cristo.
 * What the Hell, Hero?: Basilio is legitimately surprised when his petition to have Spanish taught to the indios is outright rejected, in part because of the supposed troublesome notions that might get introduced.
 * Wide-Eyed Idealist: Basilio.
 * Isagani, Basilio's best buddy, plays this straight until the end of the book.
 * Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters
 * Wide-Eyed Idealist: Basilio.
 * Isagani, Basilio's best buddy, plays this straight until the end of the book.
 * Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters