Though viewership remains small relative to broadcast-network dramas, it continues to grow, as does an ironic nostalgia for the setting of the series the smoking, boozingandwomanizing Manhattan of the 1960s.
After all, the ouster of the womanizingandboozing Estrada -- who built palatial mansions for his mistresses and received briefcases stashed with cash from illegal gambling operators -- paved the way for the rise to the presidency of Arroyo, who now stands charged with rigging her election and squandering public funds so she can stay in office.
His critics are quick to point out his supposed failings: his lack of an economics background, his seeming intellectual shortcomings, his less-than-perfect English and his alleged vices -- smoking, boozing, gambling, womanizing.