MANILA, Philippines — In a rare instance, the judges of "Pinoy Boyband Superstar" gave a standing ovation in Saturday's episode as Niel Murillo, Russell Reyes and Ford Valencia finished their performance.

The trio sang All 4 One's "I Swear."

It was clearly the best of the night, said comedian and judge Vice Ganda, who added that "itong tatlo, gusto kong magpasalamat sa inyo kasi kayo iyong nakinig sa lahat ng sinabi namin at ginagawa ninyo lahat iyon."

Vice Ganda said he thinks all three contestants deserve a spot in the boy band the show is forming. "Sa puntong ito ng competition, kaming mga hurado ay mayroon nang napipisil kung sino ang papasok sa lima . . . I swear dalawa na lang ang inaantay, may tatlo na."

Meanwhile, Yeng Constantino praised the singers for their vastly improved number.

"Ito ang sinasabing laban. Hindi lang nag-level up sa performance, pero nag-level up din kayo sa bosesan ninyo so I really liked it," she said.

The other judges, Sandara Park and Aga Muhlach, also agreed that Murillo, Reyes and Valencia gave the standout performance of the night.

However, as with the previous episode, one of them will have to sing a "survival song" on Sunday's live episode. The judges picked Reyes as the "weakest" of the group.

Reyes will join James Ryan Cesena and Allen Cecilio in the bottom three for this week.

Cesena was part of the group, which included João Constancia and Tristan Ramirez. They took to the stage an energetic performance of MAGIC!'s "Rude."

And while the group's production didn't draw out each singer's talent, the group still managed to earn praise for their showmanship.

Cecilio, meanwhile, was named the weakest among Tony Labrusca and Mark Anthony Oblea. They sang Ronnie Liang's "Gusto Kita."

Vice Ganda criticized the group for playing it "safe."