Month: October 2020

Menajerimi Ara 10. Bölüm Review: or the End of an Era

Let me start by saying that I have been hesitant to watch Menajerimi Ara ever since the introduction of Emir and Ekin Atalar taking over as the screenwriter. I didn’t want to judge Menajerimi Ara due to these changes, seeing I believe in giving people the benefit of the doubt.

However, being someone who watched Erkenci Kus and someone who is a huge fan of the DC superhero films, I know how new writers and directors can greatly change the original vision of a movie or show. Thus, though I wanted to enjoy the latest episode of Menajerimi Ara, I found it difficult to watch. In the words of @heviwillnot on Twitter, “the more I write [about episode 10], the more I’m realising they all end with “it doesn’t make sense”. 

Menajerimi Ara is a show that advertised itself as a look into the world of Diziland through the lens of a film agency. The first few episodes introduced and followed the lives of the various agents at Ego Agency all the while telling the story of Dicle and Barış (who some could argue were the main protagonists of the show). While it did all of this, Menajerimi Ara managed to have some pretty iconic Turkish talent guest star from the likes of Burçin Terzioğlu, Çağatay Ulusoy, and Gökçe Bahadır amongst many other huge names. From what I can tell, this is what drew audiences in and had them loving the dizi.

However, ever since the end of the 8th bölüm, the show has taken a turn that I cannot comprehend. The show seems to be revolving solely around Dicle, Beren, Emir and Barış (though he is being significantly side-lined in his own dizi).

We are seeing less and less of the rest of the agents at Ego Agency, unless their plots tie into Dicle, Beren, Emir and Barış’s lives. The guest stars aren’t as famous as the stars that came before the ninth bölüm, and they seem to mostly be written to advertise various products.

This has become more and more rampant in the dizi and makes me wonder if the show is having budgetary issues. The other issue that I had is that it felt like so many of the characters were caricatures of themselves.

Character Types & Menajerimi Ara

There are several character types in fiction. There are the protagonist and the antagonist. Some characters act as foils to other characters and other characters that are there to symbolise something. Two important character types groups include the dynamic and static character, and the round and flat character. 

A dynamic character is a character that goes through a significant internal change throughout the story. The change is typical because of the conflict the character faces. Typically this character is the main protagonist and their conflict is the conflict of the story. In comparison, a static character is a character that does not change or evolve. They maintain the same personality and outlook throughout the story and are usually secondary characters.

source : PlotBoilers

Then we have the round character versus the flat character. A round character is a character that is complex and layered. However, unlike the dynamic character, they do not go through any changes. A flat character, on the other hand, is a character that is one-dimensional and is often noted for having one or two traits that make up their whole personality. Flat characters are almost all static characters, but not all static characters are flat. 

source: flatriniami

While watching Menajerimi Ara the characters that I would expect to go through the most changes and be the epitome of a round character would potentially be Dicle, Barış, Kıraç, and maybe the other agents at Ego Agency. Meral and Emrah are some of the flat/static characters.

A great example of a round character in Menajerimi Ara is Dicle in the seventh episode. The episode plot shows the outcome of Dicle resigning from Ego Agency. By the end of that episode, due to her conflict with Kıraç, Dicle goes through her internal change and decides that she cannot prioritise the men in her life and must look after herself. We see Dicle grow and go through an internal change, that continues throughout the rest of the season. 

Watching the tenth bölüm of Menajerimi Ara felt like the complete opposite of that. It felt like seeing the definition of the phrase “one step forward two steps back” unfold in front of my very eyes. The writers establish one thing, before completely undermining it later, which left little space for any internal change. 

We see Barış, Feris, Kıraç all, rightfully, get upset at Beren for putting Dicle’s career and the agency at risk, only to later ask Beren for forgiveness.

We see Dicle stand up for herself against Beren, only to later ask everyone forgive Beren. We know that Barış has continuously prioritised Dicle’s opinion, yet in this episode, he listens to Beren instead of Dicle. 

So, to clarify, my apprehension about this episode is not about Emir, Dicle, Barış or my feelings about the lack of DicBar. It is not about a ship war for me, its about the fact that the story does not make sense because previously established plot points are being discarded to create drama.

I would also argue that one of the blunders of the tenth bölüm is how so many of the characters, including the previously established round characters, become flat characters. These characters who were previously written with nuance and layers are now written with one or two traits making up their entire personality. Dicle became a character that had strong moments but was sweet and kind to everyone. Barış lost his backbone and became a character that believed whatever others were saying. Beren and Gülin were depicted as just evil (with such strong sway over the plot). 

Beren the B*tch and Forgiveness

If there was one takeaway that various people I follow had about the 10th Bölüm of Menajerimi Ara it was that Beren’s character and plot largely overwhelmed the tenth bölüm… and that she is a bitch. 

Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind if Beren is depicted as villainous. Do I think it’s overdone when it comes to dizi plots? Yes. Would I like to see her character do something else? Yes. However, how Beren was able to put Dicle’s life and work at risk and face no repercussions was exhausting. The fact that Beren was able to get forgiveness from her father, Barış and keep her job, in @heviwillnot’s words, “doesn’t make sense”. The fact that Beren used the good graces and forgiveness given to her to continue meddling in Dicle’s life was tedious. 

I would argue that Beren being forgiven by everyone points at mischaracterization of Dicle, seeing it is Dicle that asks them to forgive her. Dicle has been established as a layered and multifaceted character. She is sweet and kind and doesn’t want to cause trouble. Yet, she is also established as a character that is willing to do what it takes to grow in the sector. 

Thus, having Dicle ask everyone to forgive Beren, makes no sense for multiple reasons. Mostly because Beren has wronged Dicle and put her job at risk. It would be one thing if Dicle didn’t want to irritate Beren because she didn’t want Beren telling everyone that she is Kıraç’s daughter. However, it is Dicle’s selflessness led her to forgive Beren. As previously established, in previous episode Dicle goes through a journey where she realises that she can’t be as selfless as she is. By having her act so selflessly, we see Dicle regress instead of progress. 

When it comes to Beren’s forgiveness we also need to talk about Barış. Barış has confusing romantic feelings for Dicle. That was the whole point of him looking through his album of pictures of her, that’s why he broke up with Beren and that’s why he wanted to meet up with Dicle. 

Dicle telling Barış that he needs to talk to Beren is what causes him to reconcile with Beren. However, this decision makes no sense when you take into consideration Barış kicking his brother out for hurting Dicle. Even when Dicle talked to him about his brother, Barış still didn’t want to forgive him. So to have Barış be the one asking for forgiveness is really strange and doesn’t make sense. Barış has previously been depicted as a person who was Dicle’s love interest, a protagonist in the show, and someone who would defend Dicle. However, as the episodes continue we see less of that Barış.

Emir the Hero and Housing Issues

A key issue of conflict in this week’s episode was the fact that Dicle is having housing issues. In the episode with Burçin Terzioglu, we learn that Dicle and Meral are being kicked out of their house. I could not help but notice the way that the audience learns of this information. It is situated right after Burçin Terzioglu makes a speech about women being told that they don’t understand things, about violent thinking against women, and about women existing, working, and not keeping silent.       

Right after this powerful speech, Meral is told she needs to move out because the landlord’s son is coming back. Meral knows this is a lie, which is her literally depicting Burçin’s word by showing that women understand what is happening. She is able to learn that her landlord wants to kick them out because neighbours have seen Barış stay the night. The housing issue has carried on through the past two episodes, with Barış offering to help Dicle out, but her turning down his help because she wants to deal with it herself. In the latest episode, Emir is able to fix Dicle’s housing issues and I hated it. 

Part of the reason that I didn’t like the fact that it was Emir that came to Dicle’s rescue, is that the reason that the landlord was kicking Dicle and Meral out is so common in patriarchal societies and is rooted in the patriarchy.

It is rooted in a society that believes women must be kept pure (instead of teaching men how to treat women), in a society where everyone has to say on female autonomy beside the woman herself, and in a society that doesn’t listen to the female voices. With this and Burçin Terzioglu speech in mind, I thought the writers of Menajerimi Ara would use this plot point to discuss important issues. 

You might be aware that I originally presumed Barış was going to help Dicle with her housing issues.

However, after much thought, I came to the conclusion that based on the fact that they made Dicle so independent and reluctant to get his help, this was unlikely.

I then thought how powerful it would have been if Feris helped Dicle because we could have seen two powerful women come together to slowly chip away at dated and patriarchal ideas. 

Another idea would have been to have Kıraç help Dicle and Meral. This would have allowed us to see Kıraç and Dicle bond, as well as showing another way for men to interact with their daughters. It would have shown that daughters are people that can be trusted and that it not them that needs to change, but society. 

However, by having Emir be the one to save Dicle in her housing issues we seeing all of Dicle’s characterization are thrown away so Dicle can exist as a damsel in distress who needs to be saved. 

source : unknown (translated by heviwillnot on twitter)


Menajerimi Ara the End of an Era

With the focus of Menajerimi Ara shifting and focusing more on the drama between Dicle, Beren, Emir and Barış and focusing on Peri Masalı instead of the guest stars we are seeing a new era of storytelling. We are seeing old plot point being discarded (e.g. Barış’s issues with being a celebrity, Barış and Dicle’s relationship, the focus on feminist issues etc.) to focus on relationship drama. 

While there is nothing inherently wrong with these elements of storytelling… they are not for me. I was drawn to the world of Menajerimi Ara due to the promise of seeing this spunky and happy character played by Ahsen attempt to conquer diziland with wondrous guest stars being featured every week. I was promised to see Barış be some form of the main character. I was promised important conversations of feminism. What we have been getting in the past two episodes is not that. 

That being said, I’ve decided to stop watching Menajerimi Ara (and obviously will stop blogging and giffing it) because all I have is anger and frustration to the way the show is being handled. I would like to thank you to everyone who interacted with me on social media about Menajerimi Ara and DicBar. Than you to those who read my blog posts and those who stole my gifs. You have made this experience beautiful.

To the original writers of the show thank you for adapting such a beautiful world allowing us to enter it. 

To Ahsen Eroğlu, Happy Late Birthday! I hope your life is filled with success and the number 22. Thank you for bringing such joy to Dicle. 

To Deniz Can Aktaş I hope you eat as much healthy food as you want. Look after your hands, arms and hair they are a gift. Thank you for playing Barış.

           

           

           

Menajerimi Ara 9. Bölüm Review: or the Art of Adaptation

The newest episode of Menajerimi Ara was perhaps the most successful episode that has aired in a long time. The change in the broadcasting day caused the ratings to skyrocket and put it on the top 5 trending things on Twitter.

📈 Ratings: Star TV’s #MenajerimiAra scores big moving to Sundays! Originally tweeted by Dizilah 🇹🇷 (@dizilah) on October 19, 2020.

However, responses to the episode and the İzleme to the next episode were less than positive. Many fans, myself included, were unhappy. The reason that the episode was so lacklustre could be attributed to various things. It could be due to the fact there was a change in airdate with the episode airing two days earlier than it was supposed to. It could be that this episode is supposed to be a filler episode. It could because Ekin Atalar took over as writer of the show.    

Another reason could be that the latest episode and preview were a marketing strategy to boost viewership and engagement by adding drama. The newest episode certainly did that, causing the show to trend and the İzleme certainly left audiences riled up and in arms. 

There could be various reasons for why the writing of the newest episode of Menajerimi Ara was so uninspiring. However, I believe that the secret to the latest episode of Menajerimi Ara and the İzleme is because Menajerimi Ara is a remake of the French television series, Dix pour cent. 

The Art of Adaptation and Fidelity

We live in a world where there is an influx of global remakes. Turkey has taken remakes by the horn, accounting for countless success and failures. Yet, the art of adaptation is not as easy as one would make it seem. In an article called “A Crime Drama Between Fidelity and Cultural Specificity: Audiences’ Reception of Cinayet, the Turkish Remake of Forbrydelsen” author Yeşim Kaptan studied the failure of Cinayet the Turkish remake of the Swedish series Forbrydelsen. 

She noted that Cinayet followed the same style, form, and content of the original Swedish show. Cinayet was a word for word remake of Forbrydelsen, which garnered much criticism. The same criticism was made of Galip the Turkish remake of Monk, which critics argued was a “translated replica, rather than a localised remake”.

 

While studying the reception to Cinayet, Kaptan noted that the Turkish audience wanted a remake that represented the culture of Turkey while remaining a faithful adaption of Forbrydelsen.1

According to Kaptan, a remake is only successful if the production is faithful to the original text while Turkish specific norms, values, and issues are represented.

Yet, Kaptan explains that a remake of a show will undoubtedly because of the choices made by the local production team, in an attempt to localise it. The local production team has to keep in mind copyright law, as well as the local financial and filming laws. Thus, even if a show is a replica, there will be some differences. 

İrem İnceoğlu article, “Gender Representation in Turkish TV”, expanded on how Turkish television changed details when adapting shows. LGBT characters, characters who were involved in affairs, or female characters often went through extensive changes to strip away things that could be seen as abnormal or immoral by RTÜK or Turkish audiences.2

A large portion of İrem İnceoğlu article focused on the way that dizis, regardless of whether they were remakes or not, portrayed female characters. She argued that female characters were either love interest, mothers, or women who were co-dependent and related to the home life. Men, on the other hand, were written as emotionless fighters who were violent to some degree. İnceoğlu study found that four-fifths of roles depicting violence were written for men and two-thirds of roles depicting crying were written for women.

Marriage is often depicted as the goal, with emphasis put on relationships. However, İnceoğlu argued that there has been a shift to depicting women existing in the workplace, and men being caretakers. Yet, she noted that female characters in power and money related jobs were frowned upon.

The Localised Remake or A Replica?

All of these ideas are important while trying to understand the success or failure of Menajerimi Ara. Much like Cinayet, Galip, or many other Turkish remakes that exist, Menajerimi Ara may seem to be a word for word remake of its French counterpart. The plot points of 1 – 7 Bölüm follow faithfully the first seven episodes of Dix pour cent. Exceptions were made for the 8th Bölüm, which followed the 6th episode of season 2 of Dix pour cent. This change was probably made to coincide the 8th Bölüm airing with the Turkish International Film Festival. 

As İnceoğlu pointed out certain things were written out of Menajerimi Ara to abide by RTÜK laws and Turkish values. In Menajerimi Ara, both Feris and Emrah are depicted as heterosexual. Jülide is not Black and facing discrimination. Gülin is not a middle-aged woman who is in love with Kıraç. Beren is Mayda’s daughter from a previous marriage, unlike in the French show. Kıraç’s character is also re-written to not have an affair, with Dicle mother while Mayda is pregnant with Beren.

In Menajerimi Ara we see a character from Dix pour cent being split into two different characters, Beren and Barış.

The Adaption as a Good?

However, the writers of Menajerimi Ara are capable of adaption, telling nuanced stories, and discussing important feminist ideas. They are also capable of not holding themselves to the tropes and plots that are so common in dizis.

We see all of this through Dicle’s character. Menajerimi Ara follows Dicle’s life. Dicle is educated and a resourceful young woman who is so endearing, making her an easy protagonist to like. Camille, Dicle’s French counterpart, is one of the many characters that the Dix pour cent follows. Additionally, unlike Dicle, she is not educated and floated between interests before working at the agency.

By making Dicle educated women the writers managed to subvert the trope that constricts so many female characters in Dizis, seeing she is not associated to the house. Dicle being educated is especially interesting because, in comparison Barış, she is the more cultured one in the relationship. Additionally, Dicle chooses to work over her relationship with Barış, pushing aside the idea that female characters must be in a romantic relationship. Dicle goal and desires to work is such a powerful decision and has garnered a positive response by the fans. 

We also see the writers ability to balance adaption, feminism, and Turkish values, through the way that Feris and Burçin Terzioğlu. Through Feris we see the writers work to abide by RTÜK laws by not making Feris gay or philandering. Instead, they focus their attention on another issue in Turkey, by depicting as a work orientated woman and her struggles.

Through Burçin Terzioğlu’s we see the writers ability to adapt a feminist speech to fit issues that women face in Turkey. The writers are capable of balancing adaption, feminism, and Turkish values.

In Dix pour cent when Camille starts working at the agency, she starts a tentative relationship with Hippolyte, a young actor who is signed at the agency, only to realise that he is her half-brother. When she learns that Hippolyte is her brother, she calls off the relationship and tries to avoid him, unable to tell him the truth about their shared father. The truth is eventually revealed when Mathias is caught talking to Camille by his wife and son who assume he is having an affair.

Catherine leaves Mathias when she learns of his affair and opts to not buy the agency. However, it is important to know that she and Hippolyte do not hold anything against Camille, knowing it is Mathias who had the affair.

The decision to have Dicle not fall in love with her half-brother in Menajerimi Ara makes sense because of the family friendly values that RTÜK tries to uphold. I would argue that the introduction of Barış Havas is perhaps the best decision in regards to adapting the show. I love love stories, and Dicle and Barış have such strong chemistry. Their love is truly enjoyable to watch.

The Adaption as a Bad?

As İnceoğlu points out in Turkish TV there is an importance placed on characters falling in love. The introduction of Barış Havas as a love interest is unique to Menajerimi Ara, as is the introduction of Emir as a secondary love interest. Both of them reflect a Turkish sensibility. 

When I learnt that Emir was being introduced as a character, I released the deepest sigh of annoyance. I was also very apprehensive to watch the episode due to the drama that I foresaw coming by introducing Dicle to another love interest. However, I did not think that I would hate it as much as I did. 

https://twitter.com/leosfemme/status/1317929348675129345
https://twitter.com/leosfemme/status/1317929628418379776

 As leosfemme put it, the introduction of a secondary love interest in very commonplace in Dizis and media in general. It can allow the relationship or character to be tested or to make a characters understand their feelings.

Due to the way that the dizis are written and function, the secondary love interest is often introduced as a cheap way add drama to the show. This is another over-saturated dizi trope. However, the issue with adding drama for the sake of drama is that it can take away from established character arcs and character growth. 

To establish Emir as a potential love interest in Dicle’s life is bewildering when you take into consideration her decision to focus on work. The audience response to Emir seems to be that his character is invasive. By having Emir brag that he is going to see all the sides of Dicle, implies that he is there to change her, and shows that Emir might have some form of power over Dicle. That there is a power dynamic disparity in their relationship. He constantly puts Dicle in uncomfortable positions to see different sides of her. This is a sharp comparison to Barış who continuously offers listen to Dicle and generally doesn’t demand it of her.

Depicting Emir as a potential love interest and an invasive character is also super perplexing in regards to the episode that came before, where Burçin Terzioğlu’s makes a speech about consent and listening to female voices.

Additionally, when it comes to the jealousy trope in regards to Menajerimi Ara is the fact that we are already seeing it through Beren. Having Emir be the reason for jealousy brings no creativity to the table and is a cheap way to cause conflict between Barış and Dicle.

Barış Havas (or the Part Y’all Have Been Waiting For)

Finally, because this is a blog post that I am writing, I will be talking about the love of my life, Barış Havas. Maybe me writing about Barış will be ours always. As previously established the introduction of Barış Havas is perhaps my favourite aspect of the adaption. I love Dicle and Barış so much! However, I hated episode 9.

The way that Barış is written is wild, which is to say that I hate it and it makes no sense. 

In the last episode, we see Barış trying on suits with the help of Dicle. It is clear from this interaction that he is deeply attracted to her. The whole montage of him standing outside and thinking about Dicle shows that he likes her. Him wanting desperately to talk to Dicle at the end of the episode shows that he cares that they are on good terms and that she is okay. 

So, to see that Barış Havas in comparison to the one depicted in the 9th episode is frustrating. One could argue that Barış comforting Beren at the start of the episode because they are friends and colleagues. Okay, that’s cool. Barış thinking about sending Dicle a message saying that she is not being a good friend could also be excusable because he trusts her and maybe is hurt that she doesn’t feel the same about him.

We also see Barış on very friendly terms with Dicle. All of the pining and attraction and love that were depicted in the previous episode just mysteriously vanished replaced with platonic comradely. None of the music or longing gazes that filled the previous episodes is present. Which could make sense because they agreed to be friends. This could also explain why Barış kisses Beren.

The final and important scene in regards to the way that Barış is written is at the wedding shoot. To have Barış know that Beren is upset at Dicle and have him simply watch Beren hassle Dicle without intervening is strange.

Especially because it came from the same Barış Havas who cheered Dicle up when Beren yelled at her.

The same Barış Havas who defended Dicle against Beren and his brother. The same Barış Havas who has repeatedly prioritised Dicle over everyone else. To have that Barış Havas not intervene on Dicle behalf goes against the way that his character was written up to this point. 

The other reason that I was upset lies in the fact that in the 8th episode, Dicle admits that she wanted a serious relationship with him, but him being out with Beren changed her mind. She also mentions the night at his house.

If you remember Barış took Dicle leaving to imply that she didn’t like him. If he truly likes Dicle, than why didn’t this revelation affect him? Regardless of whether or not he’s trying to be a good friend, wouldn’t the admission by Dicle that she liked him have some form of effect on him? Wouldn’t it make him reconsider his closeness to Beren? Especially, because he started ‘dating’ Beren because he thought Dicle wasn’t interested.

The last straw for the fandom was not in regards to the episode but rather the İzleme. In the İzleme we see the fallout of Dicle being accused of leaking information at the agency. Barış approaches Dicle and asks her if it’s true, which offends her, as it should. 

This doesn’t make sense, seeing Barış stated multiple times that he trusts Dicle and that he doesn’t believe she is capable of doing anything bad. By having him question her about this, we see all the work that they’ve put into Barış and Dicle be disregarded for the sake of drama.

Find the difference. Originally tweeted by claudia 🍂 (@goldeniaz) on October 20, 2020.

Granted the introduction of Emir and making Barış like this could be explained. Through these two characters, we see Turkish television norms and value represented in the adaptation. As previously established, Barış’s French counterpart, Hippolyte and Camille also have a very important conversation where they decide to be friends.

This decision is brought on by the fact that they are related to each other and explains why they go from being romantically involved to platonically involved so quickly. Barış on the other hand has no reason to stop showing some form of romantic interest or trusting Dicle. If anything his interest should have been grown due to Dicle’s confession from the previous episode. 

The Adaption as a Ugly?

Through introduction of Mayda, Beren and even Gülin is where we see Menajerimi Ara incorporate the worst of Turkish television norms and values.

In my review for the previous episode of Menajerimi Ara, I argued that Beren and Mayda are such different characters to the other female characters in the show because their entire lives are tied to men.

Mayda, unlike her French counterpart is incredibly suspicious of Dicle, as is Beren. She becomes a key character in Menajerimi Ara and unlike Catherine doesn’t leave her husband or and does buy the agency. Her entire story arc is tied to the men.

Gülin’s French counter part is also suspicious of Camille because she loves Mathias. However, Gülin’s character is not jealous or vindictive to Camille. All of her suspicions toward Camille vanish as soon as she learn the truth of Camille’s parentage.

By the end of the first season, both women are on good terms with Camille.

As previously established, Beren doesn’t exist in Dix pour cent. Hippolyte and Camille are on good terms with each other when they find out that they are siblings. He is also quite busy with his film career and is not a central character in the agency, and we are not shown much of him. The character that Camille has the most tension with is Emrah’s character, because she gets promoted instead of him. 

A huge issue for me about Episode 9 is the fact that Beren, Mayda, and even Gülin are such an antagonistic force in Dicle’s life. All of them are suspicious of Dicle and want to get rid of her for various reasons. The decision to have these characters behave in such a way cannot be attributed to their French counterparts because they do not exist in the same capacity. It reveals an aspect of Turkish television norms, pitting women against each other.

Feminism in Dizis

The act of pitting women against each other is a staple of Turkish television. For as long as I have watched Dizis, the female protagonist is always on the receiving end hate from other women. It occurs in period dramas, in Mafia stories, in romantic comedies, and in family dramas and honestly, I am so tired of it!

TURKEY! PLEASE! STOP!

Famed feminist and social activist bell hooks wrote an article called “Sisterhood: Political Solidarity between Women”. bell hooks noted that women are taught that relationships between each other diminish rather than enrich their lives. women are taught to see other women as their natural enemies.

“we are taught that women are ‘natural’ enemies, that solidarity will never exist between [women] because [women] cannot, should not, and do not bond with one another”

bell hooks

Another important idea that bell hooks articulated is that sexism teaches women to be sex objects for men, which then causes women to feel superior when they are in a relationship. For bell hooks, sexism is what teaches women to hate each other. We see this idea of women being taught to hate each other over and over again in media and we see .3

The way in which women are pitted against each other usually comes down to two things a man and Freud’s idea of the “The Virgin-Whore Dichotomy.”

Freud theorised that women are deemed good when they were chaste and pure and bad because they are promiscuous and seductive. Men objectify sexy women to avoid emotional attachment, however, treat them with contempt. Chaste women, on the other hand, might not be seen as someone to objectify, however, are thought to be good long-term relationship material.4

However, the virgin-whore dichotomy manifests itself in many ways. One example found in media is the sacrificing, pure, naïve women vs. the scheming, selfish, vain one.5 These women are often pitted against each other, to justify one as more morally upright.3 

Dicle and Beren, like many women in dizis, embody this dichotomy. Dicle generally speaking wears more conservative clothing and is an earnest young woman who is trying her best to make it in the industry. On the other hand, Beren is dressed in more revealing clothing.

This is why I hate how the writers of Menajerimi Ara write Beren, Mayda, and even Gülin. They are all pitted against Dicle and are all women who are seen as scheming selfish, and vain. Dicle on the other hand is the embodiment of the sacrificing, pure, naïve women.

For me, Mayda and Gülin’s characters are so much more annoying then Beren’s because they are characters that were not originally written this way. There was a conscious choice by the writers to have Dicle come in conflict with Gülin instead of Emrah and to have Mayda take over the agency and to keep her around to stir up trouble for Dicle. There was a conscious decision to leave Mayda out of the loop about Dicle’s parentage to draw out drama. It was a conscious choice to pit these women against Dicle.

Beren, on the other hand, received much contempt from fans for scheming against Dicle. I am fans. Her reasoning for scheming and being jealous of Dicle makes sense narratively. Why would you not be jealous of the person who has your crushes attention and who you learn is your secret stepsister?

However, as previously established the decision to depict her this way was a conscious choice by the writers. The writers chose to make Beren an original character, chose to make her jealous of Dicle, chose to make Beren’s entire life revolve around Barış, and chose to pit her against Dicle. This disappointment is heightened by the fact that at the end of the episode, when Dicle is accused of leaking information to the press, not even Feris defends Dicle. Thus, we see more examples of women being pitted against each other.

Though it may make sense to a condemn people who are selfish, vain, and bitter, it is very harmful when it comes to the dichotomy and feminist issues. As bell hooks points out, hating on other women is an issue rooted in misogyny. The concept of the virgin and the whore and benefits only the patriarchy and men.

Women are taught to hate each other. We use the Virgin-Whore Dichotomy as a means to do so. However, all this does is uphold patriarchal ideas and allows men to get away with the violence they inflict on women. It tears apart a collective sisterhood.

You spend your life seeking the approval of men and then you suddenly realise that, actually, you could get a quite exciting and fulfilling relationship from being friends with another woman and that that might be more interesting,” 

Emily Mortimer, Belfast Telegraph

It allows men to say what type of women have worth and gives men an excuse to perpetrate and defend violence against women.

In a patriarchal society that enforces the Virgin-Whore dynamic, woman who are seen with contempt, are seen to be deserving of the violence against her. Slut shaming is then justified and so are more atrocious acts of violence and assault.

This is why I abhor when women are pitted against each other. It is just another means to engrain patriarchal values. It is especially underwhelming because I feel like the writers of the show have proved that they are capable of depicting strong feminist characters.

For them to write Beren, Mayda, and Gülin in this, even if it shows Turkish television norms and value represented, is very disappointing. I completely understand that pitting female characters against each other is a norm for most media; I just wish that every female character related to Beren or who were about Dicle’s age was not immediately seen as a threat to Dicle.

Conclusion

I would argue that the dizifictaion of Menajerimi Ara, though it has given us some truly beautiful moments (Deniz Can’s hands + Dicbar + Dicle), it also shows how dizis and Turkish media continuously depict and enforce sexist writing.

However, another idea of adding drama for the sake of drama, is not good storytelling… If anything it gets in the way of good storytelling, ostracises fans, and throws away all the hard work put by the cast and crew.

Though the writers were capable of adapting the story to show us strong female characters and seem to be aware of the importance of feminism, they have continuously enforced misogyny in their writing.

References:

  1. Kaptan, Yeşim. “A Crime Drama Between Fidelity and Cultural Specificity: Audiences’ Reception of Cinayet, the Turkish Remake of Forbrydelsen” from European Television Crime Drama and Beyond.
  2. İnceoğlu, İ. (2020). “Gender Representation on Turkish TV.” In The International Encyclopedia of Gender, Media, and Communication (eds K. Ross, I. Bachmann, V. Cardo, S. Moorti and M. Scarcelli).
  3. hooks, bell. “Sisterhood: Political Solidarity between Women.” Feminist Review.
  4. Bareket et al. “The Madonna-Whore Dichotomy: Men Who Perceive Women’s Nurturance and Sexuality as Mutually Exclusive Endorse Patriarchy and Show Lower Relationship Satisfaction”
  5. Monsters & Muses, “The Virgin-Whore Dichotomy and Why Women Cannot Destroy it”

Menajerimi Ara 7+8 Bölüm Recap : Or A Woman’s Compromise and A Man’s Growth

Earlier this week I watched the trailer to Tessa Thompson’s new film, Sylvie’s Love. The film follows Tessa Thompson’s character, a young Black woman who has dreams of working in television and finds a job working as an Assistant Producer.

This job is not generally one given to a married woman, much less a Black Woman and it follows Sylvie, the titular character, as she attempts to live her dreams and struggles with her love life. In a scene, Sylvie’s dreams come into conflict with her husband, who wants her to be the perfect wife, so she tells him:

I can’t be the woman of your dreams while also trying to be the woman of my dreams.


This quote, I would argue, coincides with what the last two episodes of Menajerima Ara. In the seventh episode of Menajerima Ara we see Dicle giving up on her dream in order to make Kıraç’s life easier. As Dicle herself puts it, she is willing to risk her dreams to make Kıraç’s life easier, and yet he would not do the same for her.

Dicle’s Dream : 7. Bölüm

The seventh episode of Menajerima Ara was perhaps the most difficult to watch, and it largely has to do with the fact that Dicle gives up is giving up her dreams. She is hurt by her father, hurt by Barış choosing Beren over her, and hurt by Feris for not fighting to keep her at the agency. 

Yet, as the seventh episode unfolds we watch Dicle come to terms that her selflessness, though it is a great strength, is also causing her problems. We see Dicle establish boundaries and not compromise on her dreams. Firstly, she turns down Barış offers to be his assistant. As Dicle puts it her decision to turn down Barış’s offer didn’t come from a place of hating Barış, but rather because she wants to follow her dreams and establish herself in the sector.

The other moment that we see Dicle establish healthy boundaries comes from her decision to stay working at Ego Agency. This is a choice that Dicle makes because she realises that Kıraç would rather allow Mayda to believe that he and Dicle are having an affair than admit that Dicle is his daughter. While she was willing to give up on her dreams, Kıraç was not okay with being uncomfortable. Resigning and taking Barış’s job offer would be the selfless thing to do, however, we see Dicle grow and establish boundaries and think about herself to live her dreams.

Women & Compromise : 8. Bölüm

This idea of being the woman of one’s dream is carried to the next episode and is made prominent by the various women of the 8th episode. 

The entire episode focuses on the various women who exist in different areas of life who are all trying to live their dreams. There’s Dicle, who’s trying to establish herself in the sector, and Feris who is a very prominent manager who knows her place, and finally Burçin Terzioğlu who is a super famous actress. All of these women have different moments in the episode where they are put into a position where they are expected to compromise. 

For Feris, this comes through her work. Though Feris loves her work she feels like she needs to sacrifice it to be in a relationship with Nejat. She believes this so firmly that she thinks that Nejat would for her sure break up with her after her outburst at the restaurant when she tells him that she priorities her work. However, at the end of the episode, we see Nejat accept this aspect of 

Through Burçin Terzioğlu we see a different form of compromise, a compromise that would allow violence against women to continue to exist. As you can see from this powerful speech, women are expected to not speak up, to compromise their voices, which would allow the countless incidents of female violence to continue to exist. Though I hate to say it, it would have made sense if Burçin had compromised her voice to stay on good terms with the sponsor, because that is a thing that is so commonplace. However, she chose to speak up and not be silenced.

Lastly, we have the Dicle. As previously established, in the last episode we saw the fallout of Dicle compromising her dreams for men, and realising that she is not something that she is willing to do that. At the end of that episode, we also see Dicle promise herself that she won’t let the sector change her and make her heartless. We see the outcome of those decisions throughout the episode. On one hand, Dicle chooses to stay working at Ego Agency, yet she chose to be kind to Kıraç by not outing him as her father to Mayda. 

We also see Dicle establish better boundaries in her relationship with Barış by not willing to compromise her dreams to be in a relationship with him. She confesses that she did want something romantic to happen between them, however, because she is hurt by his decision to engage in a relationship with Beren. She makes it known that she wants to focus on her work and establish himself in the industry and Barış accepts that decision. 

Like Mother, Like Daughter

On a side note, I would like to add that this is probably why Beren, Gülin, Mayda are such unlikeable female characters. We see Dicle, Feris, and even Jülide struggle to establish themselves in the industry and follow their dreams. While all the other women are attempting to live their dreams Beren and Mayda’s are making decisions as a result of the men in their life. Mayda only bought the Agency as a result of her falling out with Kıraç and Beren’s whole life revolves around being close to Barış. 

As Barış and many others have pointed out, Beren’s relationship with Barış is superficial seeing she doesn’t listen to him. She has an idealised picture of their relationship and their connection seems very dependent on their work and their lives as celebrities. In the scene where Beren makes him dinner, she gets distracted from this cooking because she is afraid of what could be happening between Barış and Dicle. As we see from Kıraç’s outburst, she risked her job and the quality of her cooking to spy on them, which is almost directly the opposite of what Dicle does this episode when she decides to not risk her career for Barış. 

Barış’s Journey

In comparison, Barış is going on a completely different journey. I know that within the fandom there is much debate about Barış as a character and the decisions that he makes… But if you have read my blog post, you know that I believe that his decisions make sense and he is not “bipolar”.

Let me say that again for the people in the back, Barış is not bipolar, so stop labelling him as such.

I would argue that the quote that explains Barış’s actions and character arc is Dicle mother’s “Motherly Advice”. 

Dicle’s mother advises to Dicle to not to find someone who she loves, but rather someone who loves her. Someone who will love and appreciate her and who will carry her in their arms. Someone who won’t leave her behind in the same way that Kıraç left them. 

I know, I know, your thinking Erica, this is absurd advice when it comes to Barış. Barış is so selfish, he only thinks of himself. He has repeatedly thought about himself, completely disregarding Dicle’s (and even Beren’s) feelings. He says so himself in the club scene from the episode 7, he sometimes is insensitive and uncaring.

A Relationship Built on Lies (Not Really, But Still) : 7. Bölüm

However, before we start talking about Barış we need to establish something of Dicle and Barış’s relationship: it is one that is uneven and filled with miscommunication and misunderstanding.

Dicle entered the relationship expecting something romantic to grow out of it. Barış on the other hand, though he is attracted to Dicle, seems to see her more as a form of comfort. This all comes to head when Barış asks Dicle to stay the night, which changes their relationship, adding so much miscommunication. Their decision to forget about the night and move on is since Barış took Dicle not staying the night to mean she wasn’t interested in him, and Dicle took him saying that he was drunk and wanted to forget about the night to mean the same thing. However, neither character spoke to the other about their intentions and read meaning into the actions of the other without the other saying it explicitly. 

Another huge area of unevenness in their relationship comes from how they see each other. There is another aspect to their uneven relationship that comes from Dicle side. While Barış may feel like Dicle is the only person that he can be himself around, Dicle does not feel that way because she is hiding her feelings from him, as well as her secret about her father. Dicle is unable to be herself around Barış.

Yet, another area of complete miscommunication comes from the way that Barış sees Dicle. We know that he sees her as the only person in his life that understands him. This could explain him saying “I don’t want another, I want you” remark, especially because he has pushed away his brother and by his admission, Beren doesn’t understand him. However, in the club scene, we see more of this miscommunication. Barış laments the fact that he is being “insensitive and selfish” towards others (which is what caused Beren to be upset at the club), however, he tells Dicle that she would never do something like this.

Through this, we see an example of Menajerima Ara subverting tropes. When I suggested that my friend watch the dizi she explained that though she was enjoying the dizi, she found it made her anxious especially in regards to Dicle and Barış’s relationship.

She explained how she hated the status difference between Dicle and Barış and explained how exhausting she would find it if the drama revolved around Dicle not feeling good enough for Barış because of his fame. This is a common trope in stories where a celebrity falls for a normal person. Another common trope is that the normal person might have a romantised version of the celebrity that doesn’t reflect reality. Yet, in Menajerima Ara it is Barış who feels like he is inferior to Dicle and puts Dicle on a pedestal. He has a very idealised idea of Dicle, thinking that she is completely selfless.

In Dicle and Barış last interactions in the 7th episode, we see Barış’s insensitive nature furthered when he offers Dicle a job as his assistant. We see Barış impulsive nature through this offer and Dicle rightly turns down the offer leaving a confused Barış at the sidewalk. Later in the episode, Barış goes and apologies to Dicle for making the offer and she explains her reasoning. 

Barış Havas and a Journey of Growth : 8. Bölüm

In the 8th Bölüm, we see Barış is going on his journey and many of the scenes in this episode parallel ones that have come before in previous episodes and show Barış’s growth. 

The most obvious example comes from the scene where Barış is trying on clothes, which is a direct parallel to their first encounter, a thing that Barış brings up.

How it started. How is going

Originally tweeted by selo shelby (@gigiibebe) on October 10, 2020.

On one hand, I love this call back because it’s so cute and I love Dicle and Barış together. I think there is another element to it because as @heviwillnot, points out, the scene where Dicle is helping Barış with his clothes is such a call back to their relationship earlier where they laughed, joked, and there was warmth between them before all of the drama in episode occurred.

Dicle notices that Barış has been calling her by her name, instead of “Assistant Kiz”. While this may seem like a tiny step (and it is) it shows growth on Barış’s part it is a direct call back to the previous episode where Barış sees Dicle exclusively as an Assistant Girl without taking into consideration her dreams or desires. Here, however, we finally see Barış accept Dicle as she is. We see him further prioritise Dicle feelings by asking her if there is something wrong. 

https://twitter.com/menajerimiara/status/1316094968356909057

The other important scene that occurs comes when Beren tries to cook Barış’s favourite meal. This is Beren’s attempt to romance Barış, and it backfires and is lowkey the stuff of horror movies and a complete waste of food.

However, the Barış we see in this scene is the complete opposite of the Barış in the previous episode. In the previous episode, we see Barış go to the club, think insensitively about his words to Beren, and allows her to stay the night. We see him listen to the fans, his producers, and even Dicle who have all pushed him towards being in a relationship with Beren. 

Episode 7 vs. Episode 8

In this episode Barış makes it clear that though he will eat dinner with Beren he doesn’t want to go to the club nor does he want her to come back to his house with him. He is establishing some boundaries in their relationship and distancing himself from Beren. Much like Dicle, he is choosing to prioritise his work (reading his script) instead of focusing on relationships. Ultimately Barış does get distracted by a relationship just not his relationship with Beren, but with Dicle.

Originally tweeted by alara (@saudadeshipper) on October 16, 2020.

All of this leads to the final scene of the episode where Dicle tells Barış that she just wants them to remain friends with him and nothing more. While I understand that some might be upset by this decision, when it comes to the overall theme of the episode and Barış’s character arc, his decision to remain friends with her is important. 

Firstly, we get a parallel to the scene where Barış tells Dicle that he wants to forget about the night that he asked her to stay over and just remain friends with her. 

Most importantly though by having Barış accept Dicle request to remain, friends, we see him follow through with both Dicle’s mother and Burçin Terzioğl’s speeches. Burçin Terzioğl speech was about the importance of the women’s voices, Dicle mother’s advice was about the importance of finding a man who would prioritise Dicle. By listening to Dicle request to stay friends, Barış is prioritising Dicle, her voice, and her dreams, regardless of how it impacts his feelings. He is finally sacrificing for her and not thinking about himself.

However, throughout this episode we see something else occurring between Dicle and Barış clearer communication. Barış sees Dicle not think and say whatever was on her mind about Burçin Terzioğl dress. We also see better communication. Dicle tells Barış that she wants to be friends with him, not due to some hidden expectation she had of him, but due to her desires. She lays it out as it is and they are both on the same level as each other.

Furthermore, from the synopsis and fragman of the next episode, it seems like Barış might learn about Dicle’s secret, which would create even more clarity between them.

From the Episode 9 Summary: Learning that Dicle is Kıraç’s daughter, Beren decides to remove Dicle from their lives…. Barış, on the other hand, tries to stand by Dicle and stop Beren

Additional Thoughts/Questions:

  • I absouletly adore the way that the guest stars were integrated into the eighth episode. If you are unaware, Filmekimi and Istanbul Film Festival, two of the biggest film festivals in Turkey, were happening when the 8 Bölüm aired. Having Burçin Terzioğlu be preparing to present at the Istanbul Film Festival is very topical and shows the writers ability to integrate the very real aspects of the film sector in this very fictional show. The other guest star is Hazal Kaya, who much like the episode depicts, has recently signed on to be the ambassador of Cif Türkiye.
  • I really need Barış to admit his feelings for Dicle make a move. Up until this point, he has been a bit passive in their relationship… Additionally, if we are robbed of Dicle and Barış scenes because of the new dude… I will riot!
  • Lastly, I need Barış and Dicle to hug.

Mental Health in Diziland

If you’ve been paying attention to Turkish media in any form or capacity, you know that we are seeing lots of conversations about social issues. The strongest example of real-life issues being depicted in diziland comes from the ridiculous success of Masumlar Apartmanı or Kırmızı Oda and the rise of the psychological drama.

Various other pieces of media, even those that veer towards being melodramatic, have taken it upon themselves to depict social issues people face every day. This is evident through the accusations brought against Gülseren Budayıcıoğlu, the depiction of phobias in Sen Çal Kapımı, the depiction of suicide and depression in Sen Kiminle Dans Ediyorsun, and the consensus by fans of Menajerimi Ara that Barış is bipolar.

However, not every depiction or discussion of mental illness in media is edifying. Thus, I want to briefly discuss the way that mental health has been stereotyped in media and connect it to Turkish media.

Mental Health in Turkey

Research was conducted by two psychiatric nurses on the stigmas surrounding mental health issues in Turkey. Through their research, the authors, Fatma Öz and Gamze Sarıkoç found that a common prejudice about individuals with mental disorders includes the individual being considered unpredictable and thus dangerous. They went on to discuss how the negative labelling of the mentally ill can lead to deliberating issues such as housing/job discrimination and income loss, the feeling of isolation, friendship/relationship failures or conflict, an increase in depressive symptoms and a decline in social skills. Öz and Sarıkoç mention that these prejudices are established and generalised by mass media.

With this in mind, it is important to understand that though media is not real life, it does affect shaping people’s perception.

The Mentally Ill as Villains

Since the release of the 1960 Hollywood film Psycho, there has been a trend to stereotype the mentally ill as “homicidal maniacs and narcissistic parasites.” This has contributed to the stigmatisation of mental illness. This is why narratives like Masumlar Apartmanı are important. Through the character of Safiye in Masumlar Apartmanı we see OCD and acrophobia being depicted. Flashbacks are used to give insight into Safiye’s life, making her actions understandable and veers away from depicting her as one dimensional and simply “unpredictable”.

In Masumlar Apartmanı we are given a heart wrenching look at what it could be like to live with OCD and the effects it might have on one’s family. However, it could be argued (based on the first two episodes) that because Safiye is pitted against Han and Inci, she is cast in the antagonist role. Safiye’s actions, though comprehensible, have been depicted as dangerous and her control issues are troubling. Because the dizi is so new and the show is still airing it is too soon to make any judgement. This is especially true because Safiye is not the only character with a mental illness and there is so much to learn about all of the characters including Han, who might also be mentally ill.

Am I Mentally Ill? Or Am I “Quirky”?

Another common depiction of mental illness in media is that the mental illness is quirky and something that can be cured by love. In an article found in the Metro UK, writer Hattie Gladwell explains the problems with depicting mental illness as quirky is that it takes the severity away from the illness. It suggests that mental illness is not an actual illness, a belief that many people hold.

Being ‘quirky’ is something that is in your control. It’s something that you could change should you want to. Mental illness is not. Mental illness doesn’t care who it affects and it’ll do all it can to prevent the person living with it from recovering from it.

Hattie Gladwell, Metro UK

The belief that mental illness is quirky is dangerous because it leads it to be romanticised. This could lead to dangerous behaviours being romanticised or by making it so that it is not taken seriously. 

This leads us to our next issue, the idea that love can be the cure for mental illness. This idea is evident in the American hit film, Silver Linings Playbook. While many have applauded the film for its realistic depiction of living with a bipolar disorder, it was greatly criticised for implying that love can cure it.


While being loved and loving someone can create a positive impact in one’s lives, it does not cure one of mental illness.

Mental illness doesn’t rely on love or lack thereof.

Laura A. Barton, HealthyPlace

Believing that mental illnesses can be cured by love perpetuates the idea that it is not a real illness. It also can perpetuate the idea that those who are mentally ill are not trying hard enough to get better or that they are only a whole person when they are in love (and when they are not in love they are less than). This idea relates to Gladwell points, that mental illness is not taken as seriously it should be. 

The protagonist of Sen Kiminle Dans Ediyorsun is suicidal and depressed. Since the film is a comedy, the suicide attempt is played off as humour. While I understand that there is something to be said about comedy it is important to note that by playing it for laughs, the film does not take the issue seriously. 

Clinical Diagnosis in Everyday Vocabulary

Lastly, we have the character of Barış in Menajerimi Ara. In fan spaces, a consensus seems to be have made that Barış is bipolar. After some research, I concluded this has to do with Barış’s actions and fickle nature. He is an impulsive character and is often shown saying one thing, but doing something else. It is this act, I would argue, that has garnered the bipolar label. However, as you may know from my article, I do not believe that Barış is bipolar. The label seems to be caused by a misunderstanding of bipolar disorders.


In an article found in The Huffington Post, writer Jenna Birch advocates against using the label bipolar when discussing mood changes. In the article, Birch explains that bipolar disorders are often mistaken as a quick and intense switch between emotions and behaviours. Bipolar disorders are marked by the tendency of manic episodes to alternate with major depressive ones in an unending roller coaster. However, the change happens slowly.

Birch also points out that there exists an important difference between a bipolar disorder and a mood swing. Mood swings are normal ups and downs relating to things that occur in everyday life. In comparison, a manic or depressive episode of a bipolar disorder can last for days and be triggered by many things, which might not have to do with ups and downs of everyday life. 

BBC released an article discussing how clinical diagnosis terms have entered the everyday vocabulary. While some people may believe that a clinical diagnosis can be used jokingly or metaphorically, most agree that it would cause further misunderstandings of a widely misunderstood and stigmatised illness.

Andrew McCulloch, the chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation, argues that the problem with using clinical diagnosis to describe minor personality is that they all end up meaning the same thing.

For example, the fact that Barış is labelled bipolar when he is more likely having a mood swing creates a stigma that a bipolar disorder is just a mood swing. As previously established they are completely different things.

Therefore I really urge fans of the show to stop labelling Barış as bipolar, because it is not true and helps to create stigmas about the illness.

In conclusion there is a movement to acknowledge mental illness. However, there is still a long way to go and there are still many stigmas surrounding and perpetuated in media about mental health issues

Masumlar Apartmanı or the Secret to Success

If you have been following along on my blog, you know that I have been promising to write a blog post focusing on TRT1’s hit new dizi Masumlar Apartmanı. Masumlar Apartmanı is a promising new show that is totally annihilating the ratings on Monday nights and is an adaption of Dr Gülseren Budayıcıoğlu’s famous book.

There is something to be said of the way in which Masumlar Apartmanı, kills it every Monday night and has audiences coming back to watch more. It could be in part because of the phenomenal cast in lead actors Birkan Sokullu and Farah Zeynep Abdullah. However, when it comes to the cast, every member, regardless of whether they are the main protagonist or side character, give powerhouse performances. There is also probably something to be said about the way in which Turkish audiences have become more drawn to psychological narratives that dig into the nuances of the everyday person. For example, Kırmızı Oda, another psychological dizi based on the works of the good doctor Gülseren Budayıcıoğlu has also gained much traction. Whatever the reason may be, watching the first two episodes of the show was truly a refreshing treat.

In the first episodes, we are introduced to Han, his three sisters, Safiye, Gulben and Neriman, and their diabetic father. They live together in an apartment that Han’s family owns. It acts as both a home and an agony to the family. This is due to Safiye’s crippling OCD and agoraphobia that impacts every part of their home life. Being the matriarch of the house, she insists on everything being a certain way, cleaning everything precisely four times, and making sure nothing soiled enters the house. Han is the loving son and brother of the family who sacrifices to make sure that no one finds out about the way in which the household is conducted as well as attempting to keep everyone in the house happy. However, it is clear at the start of the episode that the issues in his home are taking a toll on Han, and that he has distanced himself from others to properly protect those in his house.

A screenwriting class I took mentioned two ideas that were important in order to write the perfect pilot episode. I do realise that the screenwriting class I took focused on Hollywood, however, I think these ideas are applicable to Masumlar Apartmanı). The first idea is that there should be a sense of cause and effect that allows tension and a rising action to grow. The events of the episode should react to each other, which allows the momentum and tension to be based on things that have previously occurred and not the whims and fancies of the writer. The second idea is that the character that you see in the final act of the episode should be one that is completely different than the one we are introduced to at the start of the episode. The rest of the show should then explore how this character has changed.

I would argue that the success of Masumlar Apartmanı comes from the execution of these two ideas. For example, while we know that Safiye has crippling OCD and acrophobia the episode allows us to see why these things have manifested in her life by showing us flashbacks to her childhood. Through this we see a very strict mother raised Safiye, and thus Safiye internalised her mother’s habits and idiosyncrasies.

The second idea of Han changing from the 1st Act of the episode to the final act comes in the form of him meeting Inci, the “angel” in his life. Han gets into a car accident with Inci, while driving home from work. Inci and Han go to the hospital, where they stay the night together to ensure that he has no complications due to his concussion. Though they spend a short amount of time together, Han and Inci have an instant connection. We start to see a slow change as Han is taken from the place of caretaker to being taken care of by Inci. This has a great effect on him as he becomes fond of her. The chemistry between Birkan Sokullu and Farah Zeynep Abdullah is electric and addicting to watch.

As previously established, this show is not one without nuance. Inci does not just play the role of the caretaker or love interest. She herself is going through a lot because of the proposal from her boyfriend that she turned down. Inci lives with her grandfather and younger brother. She is grieving the loss of her parents. Yet, she remains a warm and carrying person. Inci’s family need to move out of their apartment and are the stress of finding a new home.

The next morning when Han is released from the hospital, Inci and Han unhappily part ways with a single handshake. There is much that they want to say to each other, yet they cannot. When Han returns home, his house is in havoc with his family believing that he has a new girlfriend and his youngest sister Neriman being locked in her room as a form of ‘punishment’ by Safiye. Inci, on the other hand, returns and has to help her family move.


Tensions rise even more when Inci family tries to move into an apartment in Han’s family building. A distressed and angry Safiye refuses to let them enter the building and becomes more and more agitated when Inci and her family accuse her of being unstable. Han hearing about what Safiye is up too rushes downstairs to help and sees his angel who he thought he would never see again.

At this ending, we again see another major difference from the Han that is introduced in the 1st Act. Not only did he briefly think about himself and Inci when he spent the night at the hospital, a contrast to the man who sacrificed repeatedly for his family. We also see a man who has someone in his life seeing the realities of his family life and sister, a thing that he sought to keep a secret. Another thing to note is that at the start of the episode, Han tries to help Neriman by going against Safiye’s wishes, but ultimately does not follow through, allowing Safiye to have her way (this is a comment about the soiled bedsheets). However, at the end of the episode, Han does intervene to get Neriman free of room arrest. He also goes against Safiye’s wishes by allowing Inci and her family to stay the night at his house (a thing we see at the start of the next episode).

So, is that the answer to Masumlar Apartmanı, success? An understanding of Turkish audiences interest in psychological narratives, wonderful acting, brilliant production value, and excellent writing?

Probably.

However, as I said in my previous blog post called “A Dizi(ng) Week (A Recap) : Or A Week Of “Git Me” (Or Some Variant Of It)”, watching Masumlar Apartmanı reminded me a lot of the hit American TV show, This Is Us. As I said in that post, the comparison could come from the fact that Birkan Sokullu acts in the Turkish remake of This Is Us. However, after thinking about it for a bit, I realise that there is something to be said of the comparison.

Both Masumlar Apartmanı and This Is Us focus on the lives and relationships of a family. It delves into various social issues that are relevant to audiences. However, in my search for answers, I found an article published by The Seattle Times called, “Why is ‘This Is Us’ so popular? The answer is simple”. In the article, they discuss various things and a few of them stood out to me, because of its relevance to the success of Masumlar Apartmanı.

One recurring idea that was stated in the article was the prominence of cynical, dark, superhero narratives in the American television landscape. While I personally don’t think that Turkish television is being oversaturated with cynical and dark narratives, there is an abundance of romantic comedies and action, and thus Masumlar Apartmanı comes as a breath of fresh air in the genre of family dramas.

The creator of This Is Us, Dan Fogelman argues that the structure of This Is Us, which allowed audiences to see the characters in different points in their lives was a major aspect of the success. It also allowed for a structure of storytelling that gave us insight into various characters and for surprises to be written into each episode.

I would argue that from the first few episodes of Masumlar Apartmanı we see different aspects of the characters. Yet, the writers have weaved in mysteries and secrets that the audiences want to see more of. For example, why does Han collect paper or go out at night to rifle through trash?

The last reason that This Is Us was applauded as such a good show, is though the audience knows that the characters are struggling, they are good people at heart. Additionally, there is something to be said about the fact that audiences of This Is Us were able to see themselves reflected in these characters.

I would argue that because Masumlar Apartmanı gets into the psychology of all of the characters, we see them struggling and being in pain. Yet, this insight allows us to empathise with these characters and though psychological dramas may be new to Turkish television, the dizis and the characters still resonant with audiences who might be seeking from the overdramatic land of dizi-land.

A Dizi(ng) Week (A Recap) : Or A Week Of Cuteness

Okay, as you guys know, I wrote an entire blog post on this week’s episode of Menajerimi Ara as well as an additional post on my thoughts on Barış. So, if you haven’t read those posts, I highly suggest you do. I also haven’t caught up on Masumlar Apartmanı however, as previously established, I will create a post specifically post about it. Thus, this week of “A Dizi(ng) Week (A Recap)” will probably be shorter than usual.

On Wednesday We Watch Sen Çal Kapımı 

This week’s episode of Sen Çal Kapımı is literally the stuff of dreams (for all of us EdSer fans), but sadly also the stuff of really bad editing skills. The episode starts with Serkan telling Eda that he loves her. They kiss and honestly, I loved it… However, I also hated it. I know this might come as a surprise, however, I feel with the sun setting and Eda and Serkan finally being open about their affections for each other, Sen Çal Kapımı should have leaned into that period drama nonsense, and used that light for the sheer romance of it.

There is something brilliant about this scene + the fact that the sun is framed by their faces/

We see a very similar usage of the light in Far From The Maddening Crowd, however, in Sen Çal Kapımı we get the kiss from random angles, and while them kissing is really romantic, I would argue that the sun was not utalised to the best of its capacity and some of the angles were kind of un-aesthetically pleasing.

But what do I know? Perhaps the angles were a product of censorship laws.

Eda decides to postpone going to Italy for two months, to stay in Turkey with Serkan. After two months, Eda and Serkan will go to Italy together… Or will they? Something is happening with Selin and Feris and Engin and Pırıl but to be completely honest, I don’t really care. Alptekin finds out that his family is the reason that Eda’s parents died… drama is about to occur. Serkan and Eda decide to keep their relationship a secret because Ayfer doesn’t want Eda dating Serkan.

With Eda staying in Turkey, most people knowing that their engagement was fake, and their current relationship a secret, the episode follows Eda and Serkan sneaking around trying to be around each other. Honestly, I have no idea what to say about this, because it was so freaking cute, and because the Internet has already said so much about it. That being said, I will applaud the writers of this episode because we saw something that is almost rare in media. I read somewhere that:

“Real love, is not about grand gestures. It’s not about the non-stop-dialled-up-to-11 intensity. It’s about being the day to day today.”

I believe we kind of see this idea depicted in the newest bölüm of Sen Çal Kapımı. While there is something to be said of the intensity and drama that is depicted because Eda and Serkan are hiding their relationship, we still see them being awkward around each other… and it is cute and adds an element of realism. I love how Eda and Serkan just constantly want to be around each other. 

That being said that this episode reminded me a lot of the early Erkenci Kus episodes. In both EK and SÇK we see Can and Sanem and Eda and Serkan hide their relationship. While Serkan and Can both want to be open about their relationship, both Eda and Sanem want to keep the relationship a secret because of how their family will react. Both Eda and Sanem have dreams of travelling and work for the men in their lives.

Lastly, in this episode, Erdem reminded me a lot of Ceycey, purely because they were both characters that worked in the firm, knew of the relationship of their boss, and was forced into secrecy. One of my friends suggested that these similarities have to do with the writer, Ayşe Üner Kutlu, being drawn to writing certain things/tropes/characters, which could be an explanation. However, as the episodes continue I hope we see more subversion of common Dizi tropes, which is one of the reasons that I was drawn to Sen Çal Kapımı.

Additional Thoughts:

  • Okay, I am going to say this once and for all. While I know that Sarp is probably a cool person, based on the BTS stuff, I really don’t like what the show is doing with Erdem and Fifi’s character. While his initial interest in her was comical, the extent to which pursues her, which involves him inserting himself into her life, really bothers me, especially because Fifi has not shown any interest in him. It borders on him being a stalker, and it really bothers me. If you want to more about why I think this trope is troubling, I will direct you at this video that explains the trope on some level.
  • Okay, I know that various people are upset about the introduction of Ali Ersan Duru next episode, especially in regards to the drama that it will undoubtedly create in Eda and Serkan’s life. However, I am super excited! Partially, this has to do with the fact that I am total trash for drama… However, it also has to do with the fact that Kalbimin Sultani was my life during the summer of 2018, and I was so gutted when it got cancelled.
gif credit : @haticesultanas

So seeing, Sultan Mahmud on my screen again is going to make me so happy. However, what is happening with Ali’s hair… who allowed this? 

  • While respect Eda and her life decisions… her deciding to postpone school for a mans… Ooof, that couldn’t be me. Additionally, because I see so many parallels between EK and SÇK, I can’t help but wonder will never happen, just like it never did in EK.
  • Lastly, is if you are wondering what the pain of this episode is… it has to do with the fact that Eda and Serkan are so cute it hurts. But also the fact that the editing of this episode was so terrible. It reminded me of a lot of Bölüm 5… I don’t if I have high expectations of editing in regards to dizi-land, or if I’m just projecting my love Halka (which was edited so beautifully) onto SÇK, but this ain’t it chief.

Yeni Hayat or the Things I Do For Serkan Çayoglu

Oh, Yeni Hayat, what a show. To be completely honest, this week’s episode of Yeni Hayat was probably the one that I was most excited for since the show aired. Which is hilarious, because I am 99% sure, it had the lowest ratings of the bunch. Never the less, I was super keen on watching this weeks episode, for the scene™, and if you’ve watched it, you know EXACTLY what the scene™ is.

The episode starts with everyone sitting at the breakfast table eating. However, both Adem and Yasemin’s phone go off revealing video footage of their kiss. Both are shocked to learn that they are being blackmailed, especially since both of their spouses are in the room. They spend the next few minutes staring intently into each other eyes in shock, which was strange, because Timur the man, who beat his wife for simply looking at a man, did not seem at all suspicious by this. However, tensions rise even more as Timur’s phone goes off, thinking quickly Yasemin “accidentally” spills water his phone, allowing her to grab it. She deletes the message as Adem distracts Timur.

Regardless, Yasemin is now on the lookout, trying to find out which member of the Karatan household took the video of her kissing Adem. She eventually finds an ally in Fatma, one of the maids in the house. I was initially apprehensive about her opening up to Fatma about her kissing Adem because I most soap operas and dizis would have this be a grave mistake.

However, I really appreciated that the writers of Yeni Hayat allowed Yasemin to find an ally and friend in Fatma. Female friendships are important and I feel those women are often pitted against each other in media, especially dizis. So, to have Fatma become a friend and confidant to Yasemin was a breath of fresh air. 


Fatma and Yasemin decide that the video must have come from Gökçe and try to find a way to get Gökçe’s phone from her in order to look through it. While I understand that the show is trying to create suspense, this whole aspect of the Bölüm fell flat for me.

It was pretty heartbreaking to see, purely because the show established things that would make a great mystery. You have the mystery and the only possible suspect being someone who must work or live in the Karatan house. This, to some degree, is the set up of movies like Knives Out, Murder Mystery, or Murder on the Orient Express or the game Clue. Yet, the way that Yeni Hayat attempted to explore this set up felt felt way too dramatic, which took away the element of suspense. Even when they revealed that the message came from Yasemin and that one of the security cameras had been tampered with, I still felt underwhelmed. 

Adem and Timur are attempting to find Ahmet, whom they believe is related to Yasemin’s kidnapping. What they do not know is that Ahmet has been captured and tortured by Kunduzi. Yasemin’s revelation to Adem that Timur is abusive, has also taken a toll of Adem who know just sees an abusive man in his boss.

While all of this is happening, Nevin has decided to pawn off her jewellery to pay off Ferda. Adem and his crew have captured one of Kunduzi men and plan on using him to find out more information about Kunduzi. Adem also asks Ayhan to find out who sent him the video footage. (As a side note, everyone reacts to the kiss is too funny because it honestly just looks like Melisa just kissed Serkan on the cheek).

Timur is worried about his new shipment of guns because all of the other ones have been botched. Adem and Yasemin briefly meet and discuss the predicament they’re in, and we get another instance where I feel like we could have gotten a scene that I would have loved and have loved in other dizis… and yet the way Yeni Hayat executed it left me underwhelmed. And yes this scene is the scene in which Yasemin goes to talk to Adem and stumbles into a shirtless Adem. (Menajerimi Ara does it better is all I’m saying!).

Yasemin brings up a conference that she is going to be the speaker at to Timur, who allows her to attend to it. Kunduzi is doing something evil, kills Ahmet, and secretly meeting with Yasemin.

All of this brings us to one of the funniest and one of my favourite scenes in this Bölüm. I have no idea what the directors and crew were attempting when they filmed this shot, but let me tell they did not accomplish whatever it is they wanted because this shot just had me laughing.

Does this look like that RobPats Meme to Anyone?

However, the scene that follows it is almost cute, something is endearing about Yasemin joking with her brother about she doesn’t need protection because she already has a protector while standing in front of a stoic Adem.

Adem on the way back to his house bumps into Fatih who is fixing up his car to impress Fatma. When Adem tells Nevin about this encounter, she laments the fact that Adem and her never the early dating/flirting stage in their relationship. I feel like this was supposed to show a sort of contrast between Adem’s relationship with Nevin and his relationship with Yasemin. However, I don’t know, maybe its because I don’t ship Yasemin and Adem as much as the show wants me too… But I just don’t feel the emotions that the show wants me too. 

Timur gun business is not going as well as he wants it too, Nesibe is becoming suspicious of Fatma, and Gökçe is spending a lot introducing Ece to the world of Instagram, which made me uncomfortable. I know that this is just a dizi, but Gökçe really should not be posting content of a minor on Instagram (especially because she is an influencer) without the consent of the child’s parents. 

Though Timur told Yasemin that she was allowed to go to her conference, he tries to forbid her from going, when he is unable to go himself. However, when Yasemin insists, Timur sends Adem with Yasemin. Yasemin and Adem drive to her conference, with Yasemin lamenting that Adem hindered her escape, them eating breakfast together, and Adem opening up to Yasemin about his family. Yasemin also has this strange daydream about what her life would be like if she had escaped, and honestly, it was pretty, it also looked like it came out of a music video, and it was also a bit cringy.

Because Yasemin and Adem are going on an overnight together, Nevin has become jealous. Remember in the first episode when Nevin claimed that she wasn’t the lazy type that was fun, no? Her suspicion heightens when she calls Adem and misunderstands the situation thinking that they are sleeping together. Adem explains that Yasemin is sleeping in the car. When Berna makes sure that Adem and Yasemin are sharing a suite, tensions rise again due to the obvious chemistry between Adem and Yasemin. However, when Nevin calls Adem back and learns that Adem and Yasemin are sharing a suite, she becomes jealous. 

That night Yasemin has a nightmare of Timur attempting to kill her, Adem hearing her screams goes to comfort her. Adem leaves Yasemin’s door ajar and sleeps on the couch, allowing Adem and Yasemin to sleep watching the other. The next day we get my next favourite scene in this show. Yes, I am referring to the scene™. Adem invites Yasemin to the gym, insisting on teaching her self-defence, specifically how to escape a chokehold grip. Yasemin is initially annoyed at the lessons, knowing they are useless because she wouldn’t be able to use them against Timur. However, Adem explains it’s not about fighting, but instead making Yasemin feel like she has some control and power. Then we get one of my favourite lines, with Yasemin telling Adem that she doesn’t him to save her, and Adem reminding her “But I did, and I will continue to save you.” They eventually reach a point of friendly flirtation with Yasemin giggling as she bests Adem, and climbs on top of him.

https://twitter.com/blvckshadowX/status/1311774657754861568

The episode ends with Gökçe finding the dead body of Ahmet. Yasemin making her speech about how woman are abused by man, which angers Timur who is now suspicious of why Adem is teaching Yasemin self-defence. Timur drives really dangerously as they drive (they being Timur and Yasemin) and the episode ends with Yasemin tempting fate and Timur by asking Timur to crash the car as she grabs the steering wheel.

Additional Thoughts

  • Okay, this episode of the show made me realise that while I am enjoying watching Yeni Hayat, something about how it is executing its ideas fall very flat to me. As previously mentioned the mystery of who filmed the kiss could be so good, and yet it does not pique my interest. The tension between Adem and Yasemin could be intense and filled with all sort of sexual tension, and yet I don’t care or feel excitement about Yasemin and Adem like I do about Edser or Dicbar… I don’t know if this is cultural clash… but something feels off and I don’t know what.
  • I really love how Yeni Hayat has shown us a rare female perspective. On one hand the dizi has shown some tropes and events that I would argue are less than great (e.g. infidelity or abuse) however with this Yasemin’s speech this week we get an important message. I also love how we haven’t seen Yasemin and Nevin be openly pitted against each other.

Bonus : I Watched 1. Bölüm of Doğduğun Ev Kaderindir

Watching the first episode of Doğduğun Ev Kaderindir had me reeling. Many moons ago, I realised the irony that was me watching dizis when I judged/heckled my grandmother and mother for watching Indian serials. However, I told myself that the dizis I was watching were different than the serials the woman of my family watched… and to some degree dizis like EK, SÇK, and Halka are different… and than I watched Doğduğun Ev Kaderindir and than I ate my words.

This decision came about partially because I saw this photo-shoot of Demet Özdemir and İbrahim Çelikkol (and it was hot)…

partially because the Internet kept on going on about the show, and mostly because I love Demet. So watching it was an easy decision, especially because I was half asleep and barely coherent. To keep it short, watching Doğduğun Ev Kaderindir made me remember literally every over dramatic Bollywood/Tollywood/Kollywood/Mollywood/Sandlewood and every other wood of Indian cinema + all of the Indian serials that come with it. 

The plot of a young girl being raised by someone else to gain a better life is prevalent throughout Indian cinema. The women in Mehdi’s life being nosy and trying to find him a wife had me remembering various pieces of Indian media and conversations with family members.

Zeynep and Mehdi meeting and having an instant connection filled with prejudice as well as a little “something something” reminded me of various movies. Zeynep refusing to marry her boyfriend because he came from a different place, and instead allowing her biological mother to arrange a meeting with her husband, the man she met and connected with ages ago made me realise a truth.

I am my mother’s daughter. I have become my mother. 

Menajerimi Ara or the Dizi of My Heart 6. Bölüm Recap Pt. 1

Usually, this edition of “Menajerimi Ara or the Dizi of My Heart” would be pretty abridged and found with the rest of my recap at the end of the week. However, because I took notes of the newest bölüm and screamed with various friends about it, I’ve decided to dedicate an entire post where I talk about the show. And yes, in a surprising twist, I will just be talking about the show and won’t be mentioning Deniz Can Aktaş’s hands.

The Guest Stars & Making It in The Film Industry

We are introduced to Riza Kocaoğlu, who has decided to take on a role as what I can only presume is a homeless person with a developmental disability. To get into character Riza has decided to go method, which causes an issue seeing that he is also signed on to film a dizi at the same time. I don’t have any problem with method acting, however, I cannot help but think of what Robert Pattinson said about method acting

as well as the fact that there has been a protest against able-bodied actors playing disabled characters and the type of acclaim they get for doing so (especially when actors with disabilities often don’t have a place at the table).

https://twitter.com/JWLawson57/status/1217547439009222657

This phenomenon is also found in Turkey, with actresses like Ezgi Mola being celebrated for her role in the character Safiye in Masumlar Apartmanı. However, through Riza Kocaoğlu story arc we see one extreme in which actors get into the roles that they play, by going method.

Boran Kuzum makes his guest appearance. He is called to the agency to audition for a role and is to some degree ill-prepared. The audience is treated to a comedic and slightly embarrassing scene as Boran tries to get into the role, and fails because he can’t achieve what the director wants. He struggles to say his lines in the way that the director would like him too. When Çınar reveals to Boran that the director would probably be moving to another actor, Boran takes matters into his own hands. He manages to learn his lines and wear make-up to seem darker (seeing the character has tan skin and is short) and tracks down the director. Boran bumps into the director who doesn’t recognise him and manages to say the line correctly, getting him the role.

Jülide, though not a guest star, is also trying to make it in the film industry. Against the suggestions of her boss and manager, Çınar, she auditions for a role though it doesn’t pay. However, to make a good dizi or film, you need money. This act of going against Çınar to audition comes at the cost of her work relationship with him and he decides to stop being her boss.

Through all of these interactions, we see just how precarious the film industry is and how it makes no promises to those who are part of it, as well as the work that is needed to be put into work.

The Recap + Thoughts

I would personally make the argument that two ideas are mentioned in this episode that has thematic relevance. Firstly, Dicle’s confession early in the episode that Barış doesn’t see her when the lights and cameras are flashing, and secondly Barış explaining his “accumulated scream”. 

The first part is, of course, Dicle response to Barış when he asks her to stay the night. This idea is very relevant because it is a throwback to previous episodes where Barış ignored Dicle at parties or in the office. It also shows her belief that they exist in different worlds, him in the limelight and her behind the scenes, something she has told him previously. 

While this idea is important in regards to their past, it also carries a certain weight in regards to the rest of the episode. Dicle softens the blow of her rejecting him by a pressing a kiss to his cheek (AND LET ME TELL YOU IT WAS SO CUTE)!

After this interaction both Dicle and Barış need time to debrief their feelings. Both decide to talk to their roommates. While Dicle is willing to admit she has feelings for Barış to Meral, she also discusses her fears and hesitations about him, noting how fickle he is. She can’t help but compare Barış to her father. Dicle decides that she will only talk to Barış about her feelings if he is the one to bring up the kiss that occurred the night before.

Barış, on the other hand, is confused by the fact that Dicle didn’t stay the night. He admits to his brother that he enjoys spending time with her because she calms him down. He hints at the fact that when he is around Dicle he feels like he can be himself, seeing Dicle doesn’t see him as the famous dizi actor (as a lot of people do). However, Barış also considers the fact that he doesn’t feel like he is good enough for Dicle because he is not as educated as she is. Aydın tries to cheer up Barış by reminding him that his fans love him, and also his relationship with Beren. However, it is clear that this is not the response Barış wants, and that his brother might not understand Barış conflicted relationship with the limelight and Beren.

Beren is hurt by the fact that Barış turned down the role movie without consulting her. She feels isolated from him and tries to convince her father to become her agent again. However Kıraç, in a move that made me respect him, tells Beren she must live with the consequences of the decisions she makes. As an aside, did anyone realise that Beren was low-key dressed like Dicle, or was it just me?

Barış calls Dicle and it is clear from this interaction that Barış wants to ask Dicle about what occurred last night. However, neither Barış nor Dicle can ask the other one about their feelings and dance around the subject. Both seem discouraged by this outcome. 

While at the office Dicle approaches Kıraç, who admits to Dicle that he visited her in her childhood and found joy from being around her. Dicle reveals the reason she asked Kıraç to not visit as a child was that she felt like he was unhappy being a father. With this in light, we realise that Kıraç may have paternal feelings toward Dicle, which comes to conflict with his wife wanting Dicle fired. However, Dicle warm feelings towards her father are ruined when Kıraç reveals to the company that he plans on buying shares of it. Feris is upset by the fact that Kıraç maybe her future boss and confides in Dicle that Kıraç has asked her to fire Dicle on multiple occasions. 

Tensions rise as a new dizi’s ratings beat that of Barış and Beren’s. Beren and Barış take a drive to distract themselves. It is here that Beren brings up the idea that they should post more on social media to have a better audience response. She then admits to Barış that she is tired of pretending to be in a relationship with him, not because of the lies, but rather because she has real feelings for him. Beren seems almost embarrassed by her admission when Barış doesn’t respond. To save face she admits that she knows that Barış doesn’t feel the same, using Barış went to Dicle for advice as an example. When she attempts to leave, Barış pulls her in for a kiss. However, it is clear from their kiss that they are having different reactions to the kiss with Beren seeming hopeful and Barış confused. 

Barış visits the office, but with Feris out meeting all day, he decides to talk to Dicle. Dicle then asks the question on everyone’s mind, what was the meaning of Barış asking Dicle to stay the night. Though Barış has feelings for Dicle, he tells her that what happened the night before was due to the alcohol and says he doesn’t want it to affect their relationship. Dicle seems satisfied with the answer, especially because Barış tells her that they are “Good for each other”, asking her if they can go back to the way they were before.

Barış discusses that with his Dizi’s ratings falling he is having second thoughts about not taking the film deal. However, as always, Dicle encourages Barış telling him that he loves cinema, and “Love never goes unrequited,” which could potentially be fascinating foreshadowing. Dicle and Barış are interrupted by Feris’ return as well as the appearance of the show producer, Mr Jalal.

The meeting between Barış, Feris, and Mr Jalal is too funny because it seemed awfully Meta. Barış’s show has competition with way better ratings, which is causing everyone to be worried. Similarly, Menajerimi Ara has some serious competition in the form of Masumlar Apartmanı. Feris argues that Barış’s show is superior because Barış and Beren have such stronger chemistry, and argues that the other show will eventually fail because it will have repetitive storylines. This argument is amusing because anyone who has watched Menajerimi Ara knows that while Deniz Can Aktaş and Yaprak Medine are both beautiful, they do not have chemistry.

Moreover, if any dizi is repetitive it is Menajerimi Ara, as we see Dicle cry about either her father or Barış in literally every episode. 

https://twitter.com/bl_ph/status/1311044958007234560

Mr Jalal brings up the idea that the success of the competition dizi may be tied to the fact that the main lead actors post on social media. This comment had me thinking of the stars of Sen Çal Kapımı, a show with really high ratings and stars who constantly post on social media. However, this also had me wondering if Ahsen Eroğlu and Deniz Can Aktaş are going to take the advice of their show and post on social media since Menajerimi Ara’s ratings are going down so drastically. 

Barış and Feris are both upset by the comments by Mr Jalal, however, Barış takes them worse. Feris asks Dicle to follow after Barış to make sure he doesn’t do anything drastic. They end up on a clifftop over a beach, an odd parallel to the scene earlier where he and Beren kiss at the beach.

However, on the clifftop, Barış does the talking admitting to Dicle that sometimes when he feels his emotions rising and crushing him, he feels a scream accumulating. Seeing he can’t fight fans or others due to his public image he comes to this location to release all of the feelings that have accumulated. 

At home, Dicle explains her day to Meral. She describes Barış’s accumulated scream, as well as their decision to not think too much about Barış asking her to stay the night and their plan to forget about it completely. However, because Meral is the only one with the brain cells, she tells Dicle that Barış is probably reacting this way because his feelings are hurt. Meral is also sceptical of Barış and Dicle plan to remain friends (as she should be). Meral is doubtful about Kıraç being the type of person who would fire his daughter. 

Meral, Queen of the Braincells, done with her friends BS.

On the other hand, without Barış knowledge, Aydın invites Beren over to their house for dinner. As they prepared to eat togather, I couldn’t help but notice that Barış makes no move to serve Beren any food, a direct comparison to the fact that Barış both made Dicle toast and bought her pizza. By showing Aydın inviting Beren over and serving her food, we get the idea that it is Aydın who is invested in Barış’s relationship with Beren. 

As they eat Beren reads the news, revealing that the film that Barış turned down had found new leads, with news outlets making it seem like the director didn’t want Barış and Beren to star in it, not the other way. Aydın becomes agitated by the fact that Barış turned down the role, initially saying Feris is doing a bad job as his agent. However, he finds Dicle’s note on Barış script.

Both Beren and Aydın are hurt by Barış decision to go to Dicle for help, instead of listening to them. Beren is extremely upset realising that there may be more to Dicle and Barış relationship and laments his lack of honesty, wishing he had been straightforward before she confessed her feelings. Beren is hurt and so doesn’t believe Barış when he denies having a relationship with Dicle.

We are then treated with a heart-warming scene of Kıraç and Beren as he comforts her telling her that false news is the way of the industry, and tells her he will settle the issue. 

Barış, with nowhere else to go, ends up Dicle’s house. He eventually opens up to Dicle, explaining that while people may believe he fell into dizi-land, he worked hard to get to the place he is. He worked as a mover, a construction worker, and in a factory, and risked not being able to pay rent to follow his dreams. 

It is in this revelation that Barış levels the playing field, revealing a similarity between Dicle and him seeing they both have humble beginnings. It also may explain why Barış believes that Dicle is too good for him (that he is not as educated as she is), seeing he is implying that he might not have had the university education that she does. 

Barış than explains what fame and money have done for him. However, he acknowledges that though popularity brought him fame and fortune, it to some degree stripped him of his identity, seeing in most people’s eyes he is just Barış the popular dizi actor. He confesses to Dicle that he feels at peace in her house, remarking that with her he can be himself. 

He is, in essence, responding to her accusation that he doesn’t see when the lights are on, when the cameras are flashing, by saying that she is the only person that sees who he truly is. Dicle accepts this and opens her house to him inviting him to come over whenever he needs and is willing to be there for him in any capacity needed. Barış tells Dicle that he will sleep well with her in the next room because she makes him feel at peace. However, I cannot help but question what the cost of this peace is, seeing it puts Dicle in a precarious position. 

Dicle is about to sleep feeling elated, when Barış calls, only to tell her that she deserves someone better and more educated because he is bad for her, leaves her crying herself to sleep. 

The next day, Barış leaves without telling anyone and leaves Meral and Dicle confused. Aydın visits the agency to talk to Feris but decides to take out his frustration at Dicle instead, yelling at her for swaying Barış opinion on the film deal. Çınar and Feris eventually intervene, sending Aydın on his way.

https://twitter.com/menajerimiara/status/1311038660914089992

It is in this interaction that we see Kıraç’s fatherly instinct, as he becomes upset at the idea of someone, beside himself apparently, verbally abusing Dicle. Though Feris jumped to Dicle defence she is upset about Dicle giving Barış advice. She seems to become almost suspicious of their relationship. 

Through Beren talking to her mom, we see another instance of an accumulated scream. The show has established that Mayda is suspicious of Dicle and wants her gone. However, it is Beren revelation that Barış is willing to risk Beren and Barış’s job due to advice from Dicle that pushes Mayda over the edge. She calls Kıraç ordering him to come home, before releasing her accumulated scream and demanding that Kıraç fire Dicle to prove that he is not having an affair with her. Horrified by the accusation and unable to tell his wife the truth, Kıraç leaves the house potentially ending their relationship. 

Meral and Dicle talk again and Meral advises Dicle to tell Barış how she feels, even though it may end badly. Dicle however, is afraid that it would change their friendship if Barış doesn’t feel the same. Yet, she listens to Meral’s advice and goes to his house. Though she is hesitant to approach the door, Dicle manages to ring the doorbell and tries to explain her feelings. Dicle manages to stammer something about the previous night (the night when he slept over) when in classic dizi fashion, Beren interrupts.

We see the brilliance in Ahsen Eroğlu’s acting as her expression changes from anxious/hopeful to being sad and dejected in mere moments.In Beren’s presence, Dicle changes her story, making it seem like she escorted Barış home and lost a notebook, instead of him staying at her house. This scene is charged with the unsaid, with Dicle lying to cover her story and Barış completely aware of it.

Barış almost seems hurt or sad that Dicle changed her story, and seems aware that her general demeanour has changed. Beren unaware of the lie uses this opportunity to kiss Barış and we again see such different responses to the kiss. Beren seems satisfied as seen by the fact that she later thanks Dicle for bringing her and Barış together. Barış, however, did not kiss Beren back and seemed more confused.

After the women leave, Aydın comes downstairs and misunderstands Dicle intentions for coming to their house. He believes that Dicle is there to tell Barış about him confronting her. However, Barış is shocked by the revelation and becomes visibly upset by the fact that Aydın yelled at Dicle.

This was fascinating to me for two reasons. Partially because we see the theme of the accumulated scream again and it reveals something of the brothers and their relationship.

The show establishes that while Barış and Aydın, love each other, their relationship is troubled. The brothers disagree on certain things with Aydın having certain ideas the decisions Barış should be making in regards to his fame, and Barış being frustrated by Aydın monetising on said fame. These are all aspects of Barış’s soon to be accumulated scream, and yet they are not the tipping point, seeing the brothers seem capable of moving past these issues.

The thing that pushed Barış to his limit is Dicle. The idea that his brother verbally abused her is what sets off Barış accumulated scream. Yet, his scream doesn’t manifest in yelling or fighting, as it has done in the past. Instead, Barış calmly kicks Aydın out. Through this, we see Barış involuntarily admit something that we’ve wanted him to admit this entire time, the importance of Dicle in his life. We have seen that he is willing to lose work opportunity because of her advice (as seen by the fact that he rejected the movie). However, here we see him choosing her over even that of familial ties. Both brothers are clearly hurt by this decision, and it seems that Barış regrets it, yet he ultimately allows his brother to leave.

It is also interesting to see how the rest of the show will deal with this decision… What else would Barış risk to keep Dicle in his life and happiness? How will he react when he learns of Beren’s mother’s campaign to get Dicle fired, or when his job is at stake because of whatever relationship he might have with Dicle. 

Dicle encounters Kıraç who has spent the night in the office. He reveals to Dicle that his marriage is failing and this only started occurring when Dicle entered their lives. However, Kıraç also admits that it is not Dicle fault seeing that he knew that this would happen regardless of whether Dicle was part of his life or not. Dicle has her accumulated scream and goes to the roof of the building screaming, before deciding to quit.

Menajerimi Ara 6. Bölüm Recap Pt. 2: or In Defense of Barış

When I initially watched the sixth episode of Menajerimi Ara, I watched it without English subtitles. Needles to say, I was pretty upset with Barış. The accusation that he is using Dicle and leading her own seemed relevant and Dicle’s belief that Barış goes from being hot to cold, seemed truthful AF. However, now that I have watched the episode in its entirety (with English subtitles) I cannot help but feel for Barış. However, that being said I do not forgive him or the writers for the repeated offence of him leading Dicle only to break her heart.

Barış has a lot on his plate. Though he wants to be the type of actor who cares about his craft rather than money (an admirable trait in the world of capitalism), this decision does not come without problems. His choice to turn down the film offer is tested in this episode because his Dizi’s ratings are goings down, and anyone who is an avid dizi watcher knows that could mean a sudden cancellation. Bay Yanlış anyone?

If he had taken the film role, he would have some certainty of a job and income. Additionally, a lot of people in his life are pushing him towards Beren from the fans of the show to his brother to Mr Jalal.  

With all of this uncertainty, Beren promises some form of certainty. Due Beren and him have such strong chemistry, their dizi is popular and has the ability to continue airing. As you might have noticed from the show, or my previous post, Barış is being pressured to be in a relationship with Beren for the sake of dizi ratings.

His brother also keeps on pushing them together. This idea is seen through the fact that when because when Barış tries to talk to his brother about Dicle, his brother doesn’t seem to understand. Instead he point out all of the fans that love Barış, and and points out Beren and Barış’s chemistry, ignoring the fact that Barış denies it saying its an act. Instead, Barış’s brother insists that Barış should give up Dicle and instead focus on Beren.

This is what could be happening when Barış and Beren kiss on the beach. When Beren admits her feelings for Barış, Barış doesn’t really react. It is only when Beren name drops Dicle that something seems to overcome Barış and he goes for the kiss. However, the kiss seems to confuse him more than entice him. It is almost like he is testing the waters to see if there is really something there.

I think that all of the voices in his head have confused him. However, I feel like he is not a complete idiot and is aware of his feelings for Dicle as well as her feelings for him. Yet, to me, it seems like he is afraid to act on these feelings for various reasons. We see this early on during the phone call, when he is hesitant to ask her about the night before.

Barış does thinks highly of Dicle, though, and wants her in his life. As he has told her multiple times, the fans expect to see the actor Barış, and not the person. His brother, to some degree expects the same. As far as Barış is concerned, Dicle doesn’t care about his fame, beside the way in which it affects her work, and that’s why he’s so drawn to her. So maybe, Barış is hesitant and doesn’t want to ruin this “good thing they have” by acting on their feelings. 

However, another area of the frustration fans have seems to come from the fact that Barış went to Dicle house, told her how important she is to him, before breaking her heart by telling her that they wouldn’t work, because she’s too good for him. 

At this revelation, I completely understand fans frustrations. However, I want to add that I have a love/hate relationship with Barış thinking he’s not good enough for Dicle. On one hand, it is such an overrated trope, and if Barış truly believes that Dicle deserves better than he should be better instead of giving up. 

And though I hate this trope, I also love it (blame it on my One Tree Hill days, Naley anyone?). The reason that I love it in regards to Menajerimi Ara  it kind of subverts a common dizi trope. In Dizi-Land it is not uncommon to find narratives where the rich, successful, cultured man falls for a woman who does not come from the same means. Erkenci Kus is a perfect example of this, with Can being the rich, cultured and successful man and Sanem being significantly more disadvantaged and less cultured than him. 

In Menajerimi Ara we see this parallel on a surface level. Barış is the epitome of that rich and cultured man, and Dicle is clearly poorer and works for him. However, unlike the Can Divit and Serkan Bolat’s of the world Barış isn’t born into money and probably doesn’t have a university education. Instead, he worked menial jobs as a construction and factory worker and a mover. With his dizi ratings going down, his job may not be as successful as it seems. 

On the other hand, Dicle is the character that went to university. She is cultured one of the duo. While we still see a power structure at play, we still see some subversion of this trope. Though her job at the agency is not perfect, job security is not something she needs to be worried about, and by all accounts, she is successful in her jobs. 

I would argue, because Barış is so rich and confident, his insecurity in pursuing Dicle romantically is probably hard to watch. However, it has the ability to be understandable, because of everything he is going through.

It is also important to note, that Barış does seem to like Dicle and be willing to make exceptions and do nice things for her. I made a gif set if anyone needs references to the moments I speak of. One of these examples, comes from the fact that Barış is described as a character that cares about his work, and yet turned down work because of Dicle.

Another example comes from his relationship with his brother. As everyone knows, Barış and Aydın relationship is rocky. The brothers disagree on certain things with Aydın having certain ideas the decisions Barış should be making in regards to his fame, and Barış being frustrated by Aydın monetising on said fame. Barış, it seems to me, feels like his brother doesn’t understand him.

As I explained it in the previous blog post, the episode is filled with accumulated screams. This comes to fruition in Barış’s relationship with Aydın, when Aydın reveals he confronted Dicle. For Barış this is the tipping point. While he was able to live with his brother when his brother was pushing him towards Beren, or monetising on his fame, he can’t condone the idea of Aydın verbally abusing Dicle. The idea that his brother verbally abused her is what sets off Barış accumulated scream. Yet, his scream doesn’t manifest in yelling or fighting, as it has done in the past. Instead, Barış calmly kicks Aydın out.

Through this, we see Barış involuntarily admit something that we’ve wanted him to admit this entire time, the importance of Dicle in his life. We have seen that he is willing to lose work opportunity because of her advice (as seen by the fact that he rejected the movie). However, here we see him choosing her over even that of familial ties. Both brothers are clearly hurt by this decision, and it seems that Barış regrets it, yet he ultimately allows his brother to leave.

With this being said, Barış’s reaction when he thinks Dicle is coming to set makes sense. He, has on some level isolated himself because of the way that people are treating her. However, that being said Barış should know its okay to have friends beyond your love interest. In fact its healthy.

It is will also be interesting to see how the rest of the show will deal with this decision… What else would Barış risk to keep Dicle in his life and her happy? How will he react when he learns of Beren’s mother’s campaign to get Dicle fired, or when his job is at stake because of whatever relationship he might have with Dicle? Or when it is revealed who her father is?