The Magnificent Century Muhtesem Yuzyil - Television Series Review

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The Magnificent Century (Muhtesem Yuzyil) - Television Series Review

Welcome to blast from the past, Turkish delights and tiaras…we're now going to experience some channel turbulence, so please hold on to your TV remotes, and don't let anyone disturb you!

If you're hooked to blockbusters like; Prince of Persia, Troy, Gladiator, Kingdom of Heaven, and Alexander, then you'd definitely fall for "The Magnificent Century"; aka "Muhte& #351 ;em Yüzy& #305 ;l". It's a prime time historical Turkish soap opera television series; don't get me wrong I am not a Turkish series' fanatic or anything, on the contrary I don't know Turkish and I hate dubbed series, but this soap opera is a hook up in every way.

It's an unusual tangle of history, war, passion, infidelity, jealousy and most of all harem (concubines) maneuvers; yes, it's a blend that you'd never find anywhere but on that TV in front of you without having to cash in.

The Magnificent Century is your own door to Narnia; it's an escape from our hasty tech life and everyday gadget to a much royal yet simple lifestyled place, where there were no computers, no phones, no cars and not even a fridge. You'd find yourself magically zapped into another realm of nifty customs, splendid citadels, sapphire stones, scattered gold, love stories, breath taking music, and a legendary figure of Turkish past.

The Turkish soap opera portrays the life of the legendary Sultan Suleiman and the Ottoman Empire, fixating on his personal life within the palace. I don't know if anyone knew this, but Sultan Suleiman was the longest reigning ruler at that time, he wasn't an ordinary king at all, but rather a lawgiver, a poet, a goldsmith and a great conqueror. He was able to build a more powerful, extensive empire than 'Alexander The Great' himself.

You can hear your heart beat as you watch the love between Sultan Suleiman and one of his harems, Alexandra, whom he later named "Hurrem" and broke centuries of tradition for her sake. You'd experience feelings of power, happiness and hatred as you watch Alexandra escalating from slavery to queen; the mutual hatred between her; and Suleiman's second harem and finally her jealousy of his be trusted vizier, Ibarahim Pacha. It's like a love triangle theme drama along with mysterious murders, near death experiences, war campaigns, plotting and endless secrets that keeps getting out of control.

As you dive in, the soundtrack really adds up to the escape mood, mesmerizing your ears and hogging your mind.
I will recommend you some music pieces that I myself found heart melting!

Skripka; the piano along with the violin is a romance hub.

Pargali Ibrahim Hatice Sultan - Guitar, Piano & Skripka; as you can see it's a blend of guitar and piano, feels like a sunny day with the one you love.

Parca 5; a sad heart-throbbing tune and I mean it.

Fox Project - Tarik Bugra Akcit; the real Turkish taste, as if you took a plane to turkey and returned in 38 seconds.

There are also a collection of Russian songs like
Ninni Goida;

In A Glade ;

And the most famous Ninni LuLu

Thanks to those three musketeers, I mean composers; Soner Akalin, Fahir Atakoglu and Aytekin G. Atas; they have created a special atmosphere that captured my heart right away and I guarantee they'd have yours too in no time.

I can't deny that sometimes the soap opera tends to get a bit cheesy and slow that I get distracted by flying linen, or caught up counting the ceiling tiles. But big picture here, it's really full of chain of events and disclosures that will keep your eyes popping for an hour and leaves you hanging till the next episode.

I finished Season 1 and I am now watching Season 2 on Dubai TV; it airs from Sat till Wed at 9pm (UAE local time).

You can watch the re-run on Friday from 2pm till 7:30pm (UAE local time).

You can catch up with me and watch the first season on youtube.com

Have a Happy TV Hour

Starring:
%%Halit Ergenç
Nebahat Çehre
Meryem Uzerli
Nur Fettaho& #287 ;lu
Selma Ergeç
Okan Yalab& #305 ;k
Mehmet Günsür
Written By:
Meral Okay

Produce by:
Tims Production

Location:
Istanbul, Edirne, Marmaris

#television
%wneverywhere