Caray, Caray!

Loli Final Episode

Hello all, the recap for the gran final will be up late this morning on the West early afternoon on the East.
 

OT:

Carmen Villalobos has tested positive for COVID-19.
 

Loli – Final Episode (#103)
Part 1

We begin with Loli, who is on the phone with Rafa, encountering Vicente in the dining room of her home “helping” Nicky with a crossword puzzle. A stunned Loli, tells Nicky to go find Norita. Nicky tells her that Norita is out on her morning walk. Then Loli scolds Nicky about answering the door to a stranger, Nicky informs her that Vicente is not a stranger, he is his “Abuelo” Rogelio’s son. She asks, Vicente, what are you doing here? Chente says that he is there to see his Hermana and visit with this nephew.

Rafa is still on the phone concerned saying: Loli, is Vicente there? Loli does not respond somehow disconnects the call and then does not answer Rafa’s calls. Rafa is now driving quickly to Loli’s.

Loli tells Nicky to go upstairs and get the telescope Octavio gave him to show Vicente. Reluctantly, Nicky heads upstairs. Again, Loli asks Chente what he wants, why is he there at her house? Chente says he is there to ask her to do something.

Chente then dives into the darkness of his twisted minds’ abyss and tells Loli that he was always jealous of her and he didn’t know exactly why, but deep down in his (black) heart, he knew Don Rogelio always preferred Loli, even though Chente was his son. She always got her way with Don Rogelio and he cared for her more than Chente. Once Chente discovered Loli was his sister, it all became clear to him. Loli can get Don Rogelio to do anything.

Chente wants Loli to call Don R and get him to drop all the charges against him and to unfreeze his bank accounts. Chente says he will leave quietly if she does. Loli, who in 103 episodes still hasn’t leaned to keep her mouth shut, tells Chente that even if she does call Don R, Chente has an international warrant out for his arrest. This clearly comes as a shock to him and the reaction is immediate and aggressive.

Chente grabs Loli’s phone telling her she can’t call the police on him; he grabs her phone and flings it across the room. She tells him to calm down and not to cause each other harm. He says that he would never hurt family, but she still needs to get Don R to help him! Suddenly, we hear police sirens (clearly Rafa had the sense enough to call them) Chente freaks out yelling at Loli that she called them. Nicky comes into the room with the telescope and of course, Chente grabs him and says they are going for an outing. Chente runs out the back door as the sirens sound closer and closer.

Chente tosses a yelling Nicky (this poor kid!) into the back of his car and speeds off. Rafa, followed by two police cars, drive up. The police cars follow Chente and Loli hops in with Rafa. The police chase is on.

The scene changes to Rox’s apartment, where she summarily dismisses la loca de Dulce. Romeo says he will return another day when things are calmer. All he wanted to do was bring Rox some breakfast. Dulce says all she wanted to do was bring Cesar his boxer shorts. Rox shuts to the door in both of their faces. Rox goes off on Cesar about having atole in his veins and no guts to stand up to Dulce and say she is one full plate of crazy. He says that yes, he knows Dulce is crazy, but what about Romeo just showing up like that with breakfast? After some arguing, they both agree to pretend that this encounter never happened. Rox heads off to work.


 

Loli – Final Episode (#103)
Part 2

Back to the police chase, a rather calm Nicky want to know why Vicente is being chased by the police? Is it because he abducts child? Vicente says, I am not abducting you! Then why are the police chasing you? Did you do something wrong? No! Says Chente, they are the ones who did me wrong? Then why didn’t you call the police on them, ask Nicky? Chente has no response and Nicky pressing on with, so you are abducting me? Chente tells him to stop asking so many questions they are just going on an outing. Nicky tells him that he might just be 9 years old, but he is not stupid. Chente says, yes, I am abducting you, so stop talking so I can think! Nicky says, well think quickly because I have to go to the bathroom! (I just love this kid!).

Bruno and Melissa are eating breakfast. Melissa cannot believe that Bruno is actually thinking about resigning from Global Radio! Bruno says that no one appreciates him or all the things I did to help bring Vicente down! Melissa gets angry, talking for the 103rd time about how they don’t have money to support themselves let alone the triplets, but go ahead and resign. She hits the table with her hand and leaves to the kitchen. This somehow manages to activate the Paulina/Chente conversation on Bruno’s phone, clearly indicating her alliance and involvement in bringing down Loli, Rafa and Global Radio. Bruno is once again excited to be the Hero!
Back to the Chente chase! Chente turns a quick corner and the police drive right by but Loli and Rafa are still on his tail. Chente is gleeful that he lost the police, Nicky tells him he really has to go to the bathroom and not just number one, but number two. Chente is not pleased but pulls over and tells Nicky to hurry up and go! Loli, Rafa and the police arrive and surround Chente who once again grabs Nicky.

Loli and Rafa plead for him to let Nicky go. A childlike Chente tells them that all he wants to do is flee and get away from everything. He is tired of everyone thinking he is a loser and has done things wrong. Loli tells him she will help him, that he isn’t alone he has his girls, his dad and her. Chente spits venom saying he wants nothing to do with her, she is the worst thing to ever happen to him, the cause of his demise! Rafa tells him that this is not who he is, let Nicky go and they will have Don R drop all the charges. Chente reaches for his phone to give to Loli so she can call Don R. Rafa, fast as lightning, smashes Chente’s arm against the car and grabs Nicky.

The police, in English, read Chente his rights, slap on the handcuffs and Loli tells him that she never backstabbed him. She wanted to make things work. He brought this on himself. Loli hugs Nicky, he says he was never worried or scared. (I am not sure, but I think Nicky made up the I gotta poop now story to get Chente to stop the car. He seems fine once rescued).

Chente is shoved into the police car. Anvil #1: Check!


 

Loli – Final Episode (#103)
Part 3

At Global Radio, Don Rogelio is on the phone with Rafa. He is surprised that Vicente would stoop so low as to abduct Nicky. He tells Rafa that for now not to say anything to Norita so as not to cause her any stress. Bruno rushes in to the conference room with this recorded proof that Paulina certainly must know where Chente is as she has been helping him. Don R says to save it because Rafa just informed him that Chente has been arrested. As much as it pains him, he hopes that Chente can find the right path back, but in jail. Bruno is once again foiled to play hero.

It is book release night! The publisher representative is very excited for Rafa and Paulina. There are a lot of media members and Paulina is just gushing and so full of herself! Rafa looks very uncomfortable wearing black as if he might be attending a funeral. Pau is wearing a strange white dress complete with dog collar, fitting of the perra she is. Paulina starts the release by saying how happy she is to share her journey of recuperating her family and husband. While she is talking, Loli is on her way into the event room while on the phone with Rox who encourages to go for it with Rafa, just get rid of Paulina and move her to the side says Rox.

Loli enters the event room just as Rafa starts to say that the inspiration/idea for his book was thanks to his brother Leo. He sees Loli in the back of the room, she is head talking to herself saying stop Loli, he is married, here with Paulina. She turns to leave. Rafa leaps off the stage and runs to her outside the event area. He talks over all her protests tells Loli it is over with Paulina, it will never work, he only loves Loli.

Paulina is completely put out by Rafa running out, she asks everyone to wait for a moment as she goes to find Rafa. Of course, just as she exits the event room she sees Rafa passionately kissing Loli, her look of fury rivals that of Medusa. Rafa tells Loli that he loves only her and drags her back into the event room to tell Paulina that the farce is over.

Paulina is talking to Angie and when she sees Rafa with Loli in tow, she call Loli out say that how dare she show up at this event and try to ruin it by kissing HER husband. The reports all gasp in disbelief and the cameras start running. Paulina says all sorts of not nice things to Loli and Rafa defends Loli by telling Paulina not to talk to her that way HE kissed Loli. Another gasp! Rafa (and Angie, who I am so disappoint is still there kissing Paulina’s you know what!) says lets go outside and talk. Paulina demands that he say what he needs to say in front of everyone. He says, “it is over between us.” Paulina hauls off and slaps him, ranting that he is nothing without her, she did everything for him, supporting him, encouraging him, blah, blah, blah. She storms out of the event room telling both Loli and Rafa that they have no shame. Angie, the support dog, runs after Paulina.

While everyone is distracted, Bruno finds his way into the event sound system area and attempts to plug in his cell phone to play the Paulina recording with Vicente. Instead, the babbling, braindead, buffoon does something better by accidentally activating the wireless microphone Paulina is wearing. Paulina is ranting to Angie and of her own accord, runs down the list of all the nasty things she did over the last 103 episodes.


 

Loli – Final Episode (#103)
Part 4

Everyone in the event room is stunned by her revelations, especially Rafa and Loli who finally put all the pieces together that Paulina was the key behind the video given to Bertha, deleting the email from Sam about the donor family and especially allowing Vicente to escape! Paulina comes back into the event room. Rafa calls her out saying she is the one who did all these things to hurt Loli. Paulina tries to put on the angel face again but the horns and tail are giving her away.

The publisher tells Paulina how much she used to admire her, but not anymore. Effective immediately her book will be halted from distribution and her contract with the company ended. Rafa tells her he cannot believe what she has done especially to Sam, he says she owes Sam an apology and for him, he wants nothing more to do with her and leaves the room. Loli and Paulina have one last stare down, to her credit, Loli just growls and leaves. Everyone leaves the room and file past Paulina as if she never existed.

Paulina is completely confuddled, how did this happen? Then she realizes that her mic was hot and everyone heard what she was saying! But how?? She looks up onto the stage and there is Bruno, sitting comfortably in what was her chair of honor, smiling and waving. The second anvil drops hard as Paulina’s demise was orchestrated by the idiot, but now hero, Bruno! Boom!

Back outside of the event room, Rafa again tells Loli he loves her like he has never loved anyone else. He gets on one knee and says after 2 months, will you marry me? Loli does not break out in a scratching episode and just looks down on Rafa with much love.

We move one last time to Hunky Bar. Gabriel is there with Christe and telling her that Octavio has left them his apartment. Indeed, we are shown a beautiful scene where Octavio is packing to leave to Mexico and giving Gabriel the transfer of property document. Gabriel promises to water the plants and visit as long as Octavio is happy with Victoria and Andy. Octavio says, he will try. (Ugh…I hate it that Victoria was the one). I have no more to say about this.

Suddenly we are put in the time machine and two months have passed. We are at Loli’s house clearly getting ready for a wedding. Nicky, all decked out is with Domingo confessing that he is afraid that a dream he had where he slipped and lost the rings might come true. Domingo tells him it will be fine, they hug.

Loli and Bruno are in the storage area of the house as Bruno is brining in a box of whiskey. Behind a box he finds a painting that Mariana did of Loli. It is actually quite good and depicts Loli as rather serious looking. Loli thanks Mariana for giving her the opportunity to have this wonderful life. Rafa, looking dapper in a suit comes in an asks her if she is ready? Yes? They head off arm and arm.

Viewerville is not at all surprised when we see that the actually wedding is not for Loli and Rafa, but for Rogelio and Norita. What we are surprised about is that Bruno is officiating the wedding! Everyone looks on lovingly, including Sam and Gabriel as Norita and Don R are married.

After the simple ceremony, Don R receives a collect call from the slammer. It is Vicente offering his congratulations and apologies for being a loser. Don R is gracious and says he has already forgiven him and thanks him for the well wishes. He and Norita hug. Don R gives Bruno a job as his real assistant.

Rafa has a surprise that he was able to rescue a couple of the Mariana videos form the phone that Vicente destroyed. He shows them on the TV, including the one from Mariana’s birthday night, before she dies, where she tells Loli that Rafa was the one!

Sam tells Loli that she and Rafa should take advantage of Uncle Bruno’s new authority to marry people (I have no idea how) and marry Rafa! Rafa says yes let’s do it right now! Loli immediately gets a fit of the itches and is saved by big bellied Melissa’s water breaking and going into labor with the triplets!


 

Loli – Final Episode (#103)
Part 5

Suddenly we are put in the time machine and two months have passed. We are at Loli’s house clearly getting ready for a wedding. Nicky, all decked out is with Domingo confessing that he is afraid that a dream he had where he slipped and lost the rings might come true. Domingo tells him it will be fine, they hug.

Loli and Bruno are in the storage area of the house as Bruno is brining in a box of whiskey. Behind a box he finds a painting that Mariana did of Loli. It is actually quite good and depicts Loli as rather serious looking. Loli thanks Mariana for giving her the opportunity to have this wonderful life. Rafa, looking dapper in a suit comes in an asks her if she is ready? Yes? They head off arm and arm.

Viewerville is not at all surprised when we see that the actually wedding is not for Loli and Rafa, but for Rogelio and Norita. What we are surprised about is that Bruno is officiating the wedding! Everyone looks on lovingly, including Sam and Gabriel as Norita and Don R are married.

After the simple ceremony, Don R receives a collect call from the slammer. It is Vicente offering his congratulations and apologies for being a loser. Don R is gracious and says he has already forgiven him and thanks him for the well wishes. He and Norita hug. Don R gives Bruno a job as his real assistant.

Rafa has a surprise that he was able to rescue a couple of the Mariana videos form the phone that Vicente destroyed. He shows them on the TV, including the one from Mariana’s birthday night, before she dies, where she tells Loli that Rafa was the one!

Sam tells Loli that she and Rafa should take advantage of Uncle Bruno’s new authority to marry people (I have no idea how) and marry Rafa! Rafa says yes let’s do it right now! Loli immediately gets a fit of the itches and is saved by big bellied Melissa’s water breaking and going into labor with the triplets!

We are time warped ahead another six months. Loli is doing a podcast about how hard but interesting it is to reinvent oneself. (I did not have time to capture everything she said so I took a few liberties).

Being fearless and kind is key to success. As she talks of life and those triumphs and failures, we see Sam looking at medical schools and taking a call from her dad, Rox and Cesar have opened up a new business called D.O.Gs. Bruno, Melissa and Carol are with the triplets. One is named Mariana. Bruno is the happiest man ever. Mati and Art receive word that they can adopt a beautiful 2-year-old little girl, they hug. Nicky is writing an essay about Australia and gets a facetime call from Octavio. Domingo is thrilled to have passed his class in statistics.

Then there is Paulina, who is promoting yet another book, with about 5 people in the room, entitled: Not the Perfect Mom. She is lucky to have the support of Jessica.

Finally, we are in a park with Nicky, Sam and Jessica officiating the non-wedding of the non-esposos. There are lots of nice words between Rafa and Loli and cute, funny wedding vow questions from the kids. In the end, as the family dances and rejoices in life. Loli remembers her friend Mariana and is happy that she doesn’t have to get married or have a man just to be happy. She is with Rafa because she loves him. Loli is grateful for the people around her, that is more than enough! 😊

The End

I want to thank Juanita, novelera and dondi356 for welcoming me into the world of commenting and recapping! Your supportive comments helped me get through those dark days of the pandemic when this novela first started. I am also grateful to Victoria, Kelly, HALIMACANDY and the couple of Anonymous folks who provided comments and feedback. I appreciate all of you! To those lurkers out there: Come join the fun!!



 

Loli

Simply a brilliant, exquisitely written recap, VVS. Take a bow.

Liked how you kept bringing up the “103 episodes”, especially, “Loli, who in 103 episodes still hasn’t learned to keep her mouth shut” and “Melissa gets angry, talking for the 103rd time about how they don’t have money to support themselves“ So true, and may I add your final recap made it worth viewing all “103 episodes”.

What a description: “Chente then dives into the darkness of his twisted minds’ abyss” Stupid police drive up with sirens and tip off Vicente.

“Pau is wearing a strange white dress complete with dog collar, fitting of the perra she is” “Paulina tries to put on the angel face again but the horns and tail are giving her away.” Pau’s end wasn’t harsh enough for my liking. Too bad they couldn’t get her on a crime. It would have been nice to see her in an orange prison suit.

Bruno and Mel and Carol, annoying to the end.

They tried to play a trick on us with Nora and Rogelio getting married. I admit I wondered about that until I saw Loli walking “down the aisle” with Don R instead of Domingo. I noticed Domingo looked a bit sad, like he lost the girl to Rogelio once again.

Not because of Octavio but liked that Loli stayed true to herself and did not marry Rafa.

I will add: “(Ugh…I hate it that Victoria was the one)” Octavio fans, she didn’t marry Rafa! In the sequel in my mind, Octavio dumps Victoria, returns from Mexico and sweeps Loli away from Rafa. Rafa goes back to Pau for the third time and this time it sticks.

This was another TN that I had high hopes for but it left me a bit disappointed. Could have been better. I think COVID had a part in it.

My Caraymates made it all worthwhile. So happy you joined us on this TN, VVS. Thanks so much. I enjoyed all your recaps and comments. Hope you stay with us.

dondi356

 

Loli

Ooops, I meant to thank Juanita and novelera, too, for their masterful recaps and insightful comments. Always fun to watch a TN with you.

dondi356
 

Loli

Thank you so much dondi356! I appreciate your gracious comments and the overlooking of all my mistakes in this recap including recopying part 4 twice! This novela did get a bit tiresome but overall, I enjoyed most of it.

You know, I did not notice that Domingo looked sad when Norita got married! I will have to go back and watch that again. It would make total sense; glad he was concentrating on school!

So agree with you that Paulina got off way too easy! I thought for sure Jess would be upset with her and all the deceit!

I really like your sequel theory and the fact that Loli did not marry Rafa and Octavio was going to try and make it work with Victoria. He certainly wasn’t head over heels about it.

I do plan to stay on to comment especially now that I know the amount of time and effort that is put into each recap no matter how short. I might consider recapping again as I have really enjoyed it. Being part of a team is something I enjoy most!







 

loli

My Goodness, VVS! Your recap was simply brilliant. I loved so many comments, especially describing Pau's horns and tail! And the stare rivalling Medusa: perfect!

Regarding Bruno marrying Norita and Rogelio, he probably became official by the following organization. I have been to a couple of weddings legally officiated by people ordained by this organization (from the internet):

"The Universal Life Church is a non-denominational religious organization founded in 1962 by Kirby J. Hensley, under the doctrine: "Do that which is right". The Universal Life Church advocates for religious freedom, offering legal ordination to become a minister for a small fee, and in many cases free of charge, to anyone who wishes to join."

I could have done without Rogelio so easily forgiving Vicente. After all, he had it made public, IIRC, that his father was losing his marbles.

I was very glad the truth about Pau giving Bertha the recording of Loli and Rafa came out.

They sort of glossed over Jess finding out all this stuff about her mother. Was Jess at the book launch?

So...if they can do an unbirthday, then why not a non-wedding. It was cute.

Again, a million thanks for all your FINE recaps, VVS. You are the Rookie of the Year in my book.

It was great fun to be part of a group of clever, witty recappers. This novela might not have been great art, but we had some fun with it.
 

LOLI FINALE

THANK YOU! THANK YOU TO THE RECAPPERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!AWESOME JOB!
I had to catch it on the QUICK TIP... because I was on the J.O.B.. and had to rely on your summery mainly!!!!
excellent......EXCELLENT!!!!!!! I REALLY ENJOYED IT..

SEE YA'LL at the lastest TURKISH novela.!!

 

loli

Wow! What a terrific recap! The novela's ending wasn't bad, but I think I liked your recap even more, thanks in part to your wonderful asides and turns of phrase. dondi356 has already cited most of the ones I especially liked, so I won't repeat them.

And yes, VVS, you made terrific use of the repeated reminders that there were 103 episodes. However, I'd amend one. You say "Melissa gets angry, talking for the 103rd time about how they don't have money to support themselves..." I'd change "103" to something more like "412," since just about every other time Melissa opens her mouth, it's to complain about not having enough money.

Like you, I loved Nicky's clever way to get Chente to stop the car.

I really disliked Bruno and Melissa throughout most of the novela, so I was a bit disappointed that they emerged happy at the end. Oh well, given Melissa's mercenary nature, I suspect it won't be long before even Bruno's augmented position and salary won't be enough to permit the six of them to be content.

As for Octavio--what can I say? VVS and dondi356, count me in among the disappointed. But mostly, count me in among those grateful for your amazing recaps, and novelera's as well. And VVS, I agree with novelera, you were definitely the Recap Rookie of the Year! I'm delighted that you're considering recapping again!
 

Loli

Juanita, novelera and HALIMCANDY thank you for the comments! I am honored to be considered Recap Rookie of the Year (or at least for this TN!). As I mentioned earlier, I enjoyed being part of the recap team and learned so much from all of you!

Novelera, thank you for clarifying how Bruno was able to marry Don R and Norita. I did not realize there was such a simple avenue for those interested in working with others in this way. Yes, Jess was at the new book launch with Paulina, she was her kind loving self so the sins of her mother must have been forgiven.

Juanita, I also was hoping for a less happy ending with Bruno and the bunch, 412 times is definitely the correct number for Melissa and her complaining! The writers left the Marcelino story hanging especially since Carol contacted him only a few episodes ago.

HALIMACANDY any time you comment on a recap it sure makes us recappers feel appreciated, so thank you for taking the time away from your J.O.B. lol, to add those few precious grains of recapper fertilizer!

I thought the ending to Loli and her Suerte was good and true to Loli.


 

herc

Hercai, Amor y Venganza - #1 – Parte 1 de 5

We begin somewhere in Turkey, but not in a big city. I am a bit confused with some of the almost medieval aspects of this novela and its plot.

At the beginning we hear a young woman’s voice introducing the place where the story begins. She says that this is the Sadoglu mansion. It has 14 bedrooms and four gardens. “To others this might seem like a palace, but for me it’s a prison. I was born here, but it’s never been a real home for me. I’ve never felt like a granddaughter to my grandfather, nor a member of this family. My grandfather, Nasuh, never loved me. I’m just a child that everyone pushes and kicks.”

We now see Reyyan Sadoglu, the woman who spoke, riding at a fast gallop away from the place she described. “One day I’ll fly far away and find my true home!”

We see a man putting on his shirt, preparing to leave his house.

Reyyan talks to her horse saying that they need to leave; the sun’s about to come up and she needs to be home when they wake up. “You know grandfather.” She imitates a grumpy old man’s voice: “You can’t do things without my permission.”

We see the young man who was putting on his shirt in his car. He’s remembering what his grandmother told him when he was a child and in bed. “You want me to tell you the story of the Sadoglu. It begins with a man called Hazar, with eyes as blue as the sky. He was a bad man. One day he arrived in the morning and killed the father of a small child and tried to kidnap his mother. He wanted to possess this woman and, because she refused to go with him, he also killer her, without pity. This poor innocent child ended up as an orphan. This beast not only took his parents, but his brothers and sisters yet unborn, as well as his future happy family. You know the name of this awful person!”

The boy responds: “Sadoglu. I will avenge my parents when I grow up. I’ll kill him!” His grandmother replies: “No, my boy, you won’t kill him. One can only die once. He has to suffer to the point that the prays to die.”

As Miran Aslanbey leans forward to turn off the car radio he brakes suddenly. There was a woman on a horse on the road and he came close to hitting the horse. Reyyan is thrown from her horse. Miran comes to where she lies; at first she doesn’t come to. He puts her in the backseat of his car, intending to take her to a hospital.

At the mansion we meet Gul, the much younger sister of Reyyan. She tells her mother, Zehra, and another woman, who looks like domestic staff, that her sister is not there. Zehra sees that her daughter’s bed is empty. Another young woman, whom we later find out is Yaren, Reyyan’s cousin, overhears this.
 

herc

Hercai, Amor y Venganza - #1 – Parte 2 de 5

In the car Reyyan wakes up and asks who the guy is. She asks him to stop the car and let her out. He drives on for a while, but she tries to grab the steering wheel. Eventually he lets her out and she runs away, saying he’s kidnapped her. He explains what happened. She tells him “they” will kill her. He can’t convince her to go to the hospital and gets back into his car. She thinks better of being left in the middle of nowhere, and gets in the car.

Nasuh, the grandfather of Reyyan is meeting with Reyyan’s father, Hazar. They are talking about a meeting that day in the hotel with Miran Atsoy. [I am confused; google said his name was Aslanbey, but that’s not what Nasuh called him.] Nasuh tells his son, Hazar, to go to the meeting and invest what little they have.

Yaren, the other granddaughter, brings some coffee to her grandfather and uncle. She pours on the flattery to Nasuh. Then she calls their attention to the horse outside that is not tied up. Nasuh immediately growls: “Where’s Reyyan?” Reyyan’s father is well aware that Yaren tried to get her cousin into hot water.

There’s a big fuss in the courtyard over her absence. It seems that Cihan, Hazar’s brother and Cihan’s wife gave Yaren the nasty DNA we’ve seen so far.

Reyyan tries to convince Miran to let her off before they get too close to the mansion, but he insists on taking her to the door.

Nasuh raves on and on about what an awful, disobedient girl Reyyan is. Cihan sends his son Azat to look for her.

Reyyan tells Miran that they’ll cut off her head if they see her with him. He smirks that then he’ll have to marry her. The door opens. He explains that Reyyan had an accident and he brought her home. Someone asks Yaren if this is the guy she was interested in.

Yaren drags her cousin to a room and accuses her of bringing men to the house. She also says that Miran is doing business with Reyyan’s father. She grills her about what they talked about in the car. Yaren tells her that she’s in love with the guy and to stay away.

Yaren brings coffee to the men. Miran doesn’t even look at her.

At the table Miran announces that their business has been going well and, as they know, his father died. “If you’ll permit, I’d like to bring my mother and my sister to ask for the hand of your granddaughter.” The old tyrant smiles. “I have two granddaughters in my house. Miran: “I refer to Reyyan.” Yaren is eavesdropping.

Hazar questions Miran. You just met Reyyan, and now you want to marry her? He says it’s not the first time he’s seen her. He’s been thinking about it for a while. What happened today was just a coincidence. Nasuh is furious, but says they’ll have to discuss it within the family.
 

Hercai, Amor y Venganza - #1 – Parte 3 de 5

Unbelievable! The men talk, and the old tyrant says he’ll give Miran Yaren instead.

In the kitchen we learn a bit more about Yaren’s dear mother, Handan. She starts criticizing Reyyan for riding alone, like a man. And she goes on to criticize Zehra for having a child at 17. Yaren comes in and says that Miran came to ask for someone’s hand. “Who do you think? Mine!”

When they are alone together Nasuh tells Hazar that Yaren is his blood. Reyyan is illegitimate. “You brought the widow of another man here and married her. You accepted the child and I agreed.” Hazar tells his father that he’s rubbed his nose in this for years. “If you think you have the right to order her around, then you have to treat her like your blood.” The tyrant says that Miran will marry Yaren.

In the courtyard Nasuh slaps Reyyan and accuses her of being in a car with a man she doesn’t know. He says to all that Reyyan is not permitted to leave these walls. He says he’ll bury her if she disobeys. [That’s what the sub-titles said; see what I mean about medieval!] Then he announces that Miran will come for the blessings to marry Yaren.

Miran meets with, I think, his lawyer. I didn’t get the guy’s name; but he seems like a nice person. Miran tells him that he has worked 2 years to gain their confidence. He shared his land with them and signed million dollar contracts. “They trust me. I patiently cultivated them. It was the right moment to ask for a marriage. I’m sure that his daughter will be mine, and after this, the name Sadoglu will be wiped off the map.”

Nasuh asks Yaren if she wants to marry Miran. He tells her he wouldn’t ask her to do anything against her will. She says yes. But she then tells them she overheard Miran say he wanted Reyyan. Nasuh scoffs and says that Miran only wants to be a member of their family.

The Sadoglu are having dinner, but the tyrant announces that Reyyan has to eat in the kitchen. Hazar gets up and leaves the table. He sits beside his daughter on the steps. She asks why her grandfather treats her that way. He says that his father is just like that; never even ruffled his hair when he was a child. Reyyan: “No. he doesn’t treat Azat that way, nor Gul. Only me.”

Miran comes to see his grandmother. He tells her she’ll soon be able to take the black tunic off her head. “You’ll return to Midyat with your power and dignity restored.” His little sister and another woman come in and one Gonul.

Hazar tells his wife Zehra about Miran asking for Reyyan and his father substituting Yaren. She says it’s because her daughter doesn’t have his blood. Hazar says it would cause resentment if he spoke up.

Miran’s bitter grandmother says that at last she’ll have her revenge and his parents can rest easy in their graves.
 

herc

Hercai, Amor y Venganza - #1 – Parte 4 de 5

The Aslanbey family arrives for the big ceremony. As they walk inside Miran’s lawyer gives Yaren an admiring look, but she doesn’t even notice him.

Sultan Aslanbey says that it’s an honor to be there. They don’t have their parents or grandfather with them, but it’s her duty as Miran’s mother to be here. She asks for the hand of Reyyan for her son Miran.

Reyyan? Yaren drops a tray in another room. Cihan gets huffy. The tyrant seems to think that Hamit told Miran about choosing Yaren. Hamit is Yaren’s other grandfather, on the mother’s side.

Miran: “Listen, when I came to the mansion I said I wanted to marry Señorita Reyyan, and I still want to marry her. It’s true that Señor Mustafa Hamit came and said he wanted to offer me Yaren. I sent a message saying I’d come on Friday for Nasuh's granddaughter, the one I always meant.

Hamit says he can’t give his granddaughter to someone if she’s not wanted, as if she had no other option. Hamit asks Hazar if he wants to give his daughter to Miran or not. [I think he’s figured out Nasuh’s game.]

Azat, Yaren’s brother, comes to see Reyyan in the stable. You can see he’s fond of her. I suspect he’s interested himself. Not sure how marrying cousins is viewed in Turkey.

Nazar says he needs to speak to his daughter to ask her how she feels about it. But he gives his blessing.

Yaren tries to tear out Reyyan’s hair, but Azat stops her.

Zehra tells Reyyan that she doesn’t have a choice. We see the ceremony of the rings. Nasuh puts rings on Reyyan’s and Miran’s fingers. They are joined by a ribbon and he cuts the ribbon. Then Miran puts a big ring on Reyyan’s finger. Azat looks miserable.

Reyyan tells her mother she can’t feel that this is right. Yaren is between she and Miran.

The women have some sort of celebration with gifts. Gonul talks to Reyyan on a patio and asks her if there’s another man she would have preferred. “If you don’t love him, speak up; the engagement can be broken.” Reyyan says that she doesn’t want to marry. Gonul says she’ll talk to Miran. We then see Gonul talk with Miran. She tells him: “The girl doesn’t’ care for you. We’ll all be hurt by it.” He replies angrily: “You’re trying to ruin our plan! I don’t care one whit what she thinks!”” He glares at Gonul and tells her not to interfere.

While Reyyan is in an outdoor market with her mother she walks away and ends up in some area where all the doors close behind her. Miran comes in. “So you don’t want to marry me? Can’t we tear down the wall between us. Why don’t you want me as your husband?” Reyyan: “Because you’re not trustworthy. You gave Yaren hope and then my father had no choice but to accept.” Miran replies that he never wanted Yaren; she pushes him away. Azat looks on and says to himself that she doesn’t love Miran.
 

herc

Hercai, Amor y Venganza - #1 – Parte 5 de 5

Reyyan talks to her mother, who admits that Miran ever only asked for her. Reyyan says that she feels something for him, but feels guilty about Yaren.

That night Miran comes to see Reyyan and they ride off together on a horse. Apparently she said something before about un columpio en el cielo (a swing in the sky). He has set up a big swing fairly close to the edge of a cliff. He swings her over and over again and, when she’s at the highest point she appears to be in mid-air. He pulls her in and tells her he’ll always be there to stop her from falling. When he brings her home, he gives her a very quick kiss on the lips.

Azat comes to tell Reyyan that he will speak with his grandfather. They will get her out of the engagement. He knows she doesn’t want to marry the guy. She tells him not to talk to their grandfather. He’s mistaken; she does want to marry Miran.

The woman are in a jewelry shop and Miran comes in and tells the jeweler to get her whatever she likes, no matter the cost. There was also something about a red dress. Gul says that her sister wanted it, but Gonul talked her out of it. Miran tells one of the household employees to go get that dress. He puts an ankle bracelet on her and Azat erupts and even punches Miran.

Yaran confronts Reyyan on a balcony, saying that she stole her boyfriend. Reyyan says that she loves him. And besides, he wanted her from the first and Yaren lied and said she was the one he wanted. “I didn’t steal anyone’s boyfriend.” Yaren swears on a couple of powerful things that Reyyan will never be happy.

At another gathering of woman Reyyan opens a huge box and there’s a wedding dress inside.

Reyyan puts on that red dress she wanted for the women’s party the night before the wedding. There’s some sort of henna ceremony. [I’m running out of steam if anyone else would like to describe this in more detail.] During this event a woman tells her that Miran has come to see her. She goes outside. He says he wanted to see her in that famous red dress. She looks at his hands and says he doesn’t have any henna. She gives him some of hers.

After she goes inside Gonul approaches and talks with him. She asks him how anyone could be expected to bear this. “Don’t forget that I am your wife and you are my husband.” Reyyan has come back out and it’s not clear to me whether she heard this or not.

So…it appears to me that Sultan Aslanbey is pretending to be Miran’s mother, while Gonul pretends to be his sister. From what we heard the grandmother say to the little boy, his parents were both killed by some Sadoglu; I think they might have said Hazar, but I don’t think it’s Zehra’s husband. He doesn’t seem like the brute the grandmother described.
 

Hercai

Thank you so much for getting us started and explaining all the family dynamics novelera. This will be my first Turkish novela and I have to admit, I was enthralled by the actors with the dark, passionate looks and some different customs that I will need to explore a bit more like the henna significance and wedding customs.

I thought I would have a hard time understanding the Spanish dubbing, but I actually was impressed by the clear (for the most part) enunciation of words. Not like Café that is almost impossible to watch without waiting for the Telemundo app to allow viewing with subtitles that actually work.

It will take a bit for me to catch on to all the different names. I did not realize that Mustafa, the messenger to Miran, was actually the maternal Grandfather to Yaren. No wonder he was so annoyed with Nasuh. “Cihan’s wife gave Yaren the nasty DNA we’ve seen so far.” What a bratty, unpleasant young lady.

I liked Reyyan’s mother Zehra and of course Gul was adorable. I agree with you that Hazar, Reyyan’s father does not seem like the killer described by Miran’s grandmother.

Although there was a lot of medievalness about this first episode, I found it interesting that Reyyan had a cell phone and was texting back and forth with Miran about the “swing in the sky” yet she isn’t allowed to go horseback riding or leave the walls of the mansion.

Are you, dondi356 and Juanita planning on recapping this TN novelera? If so, I am willing to continue my Monday recap like I was doing for Loli. Thank you again for the great recap!




 

herc

Wow, novelera, what a superb recap! My head was spinning last night trying to figure out who everyone was, and your recap was immensely helpful! And yes, they did say that it was Hazar who killed Miran's parents, but as you say, Hazar seems like too decent a guy to have done what the grandmother described.

Your final paragraph helped clear up one of my major confusions. I rather doubt that Gonul is really married to Miran, since it does seem that Miran and Reyyan are ultimately destined for each other in true telenovela fashion (i.e., after endless tumultuous episodes). But then why did Gonul say she was his wife and he her husband? I guess we'll eventually find out. Indeed, I assume that a good deal of what we gather from the opening episode will eventually prove to be false or misleading.

BTW, I too was confused by Nasuh's referring to Miran as Miran Atsoy.

I'm enjoying what for me are the rather exotic setting and customs. And your recap has given me the courage (or foolishness) to volunteer to recap tonight's episode.

Again, MANY THANKS for this amazing, heroic recap!
 

herc

VVS, I'm delighted that you're willing to do Monday recaps for Hercai! I think dondi356 has said she could continue to do Friday episodes, with the recaps appearing over the weekend. I've volunteered to recap tonight's episode, though I hope to switch back to Tuesdays starting next week. I can't speak for novelera, but I'm hoping she too will continue. If she does, we'd need just one more person to have a full complement of recappers.

I see you've discovered this wonderful secret about Turkish novelas. Like you, I thought I'd have trouble understanding the Spanish dubbing, but I found to my surprise that the Turkish novelas are somewhat easier to understand, probably because the dubbed Spanish is spoken more clearly and with a lot less slang, bleeped curse words, and people talking over each other, features I see a lot in regular Spanish-language novelas.
 

Hercai

Hi Juanita! Okay, it is a plan. I will start my sophomore recapping season next Monday with this TN!

I totally agree that the conversations were much easier to understand, that was the only thing keeping me from jumping right in to say I would recap again. Plus I was fascinated with the Turkish theme and story.

I would like to help out with Café but it is on too late and I can't understand half of what is being said. So this is a good option for me.

Yes, I hope someone else offers to help recap or at least comment. It is so much more interesting having others to discuss the episode with!
 

herc

Just a quick note about "labels," the short indication everyone should put on their messages about specific telenovelas. Since I put up this week's Telemundo y Más pages, I was the one who had to decide on a label for Hercai: Amor y venganza. I decided to keep it short, so I chose the 4-letter label herc. Novelera and I have been using it, and I'd like to encourage everyone else to do so, too, when commenting on or recapping that novela. ¡Muchas gracias!
 

herc

Thanks for the kind words! I thought the novela was beautifully filmed and the Sadoglu mansion beautiful. It reminded me of the Moorish architecture I saw in Granada and Córdoba in Spain (Andalucia).

I am torn. I sort of hate to dump Cafe, even though it's driving me nuts now with the awful treatment of Gaviota and Carmenza by the Vallejo family.

So I did the premiere, and I'll stick it out the rest of the week with both and decide then. I do not want to do a full recap a week of two different novelas.
 

Loli
Thanks for the great recap of the gran final. I liked the way it tied everything up at the end. Although it was a bit silly and disconnected at times I enjoyed a light hearted novela after the dismal and depressing Imperio de mentiras. I hope someone comes up with another happy novela.
 

herc

herc it is Juanita! Thank you for explaining the labeling. I just thought you were being extra clever!

novelera, you certainly have done herculean work on recapping and commenting with Café, Loli and now herc. I don't blame you for not wanting to do two full recaps of two different novelas. It is a ton of work. I always appreciate any quick synopsis that anyone does for any novela. Maybe a few more folks will jump in to help on Café.


 

Loli

Thank you Anonymous at 3:24 pm! I am glad you enjoyed the recap and how Loli ended. I also needed a TN that was a bit light-hearted and this worked well, silliness and all. As you can see, we are putting together a team to recap the new TN that replaced Loli. I hope you will join us to watch and comment. 😊

 

Herc

I haven’t watched the second hour of this yet so I haven’t read the recap and I’m not prepared to fully comment.

I can tell you that the setting is Midyat in southwest Turkey, Mardin province. It is close to the border with Syria. Very conservative, very traditional people. A lot of Arabic influence. I have seen other Turkish shows set in this area. In fact, I have seen this mansion before. I have seen a couple of the supporting actors before, too.

A real culture shock after watching Todo Por Mi Hija, set in cosmopolitan Istanbul.
I’ll be back to comment later. Thanks for doing the gran estreno recap novlera!

dondi356

 

Herc

Didn't catch my mistake before I sent. Midyat is in Southeast Turkey!

dondi356

 

Loli / Herc

Thanks for all the great recaps! I didn't hate this one, but it's really not great when they save every single thing to solve until the very last episode. It really should be spread out over the week. Mati and Art and Rox and Cesar could have been dispatched with last week to give more time to the main issue: why is Octavio moving to Mexico with Victoria instead of pawning her off on Romeo and finding someone new in Rosarito? Not sure I can pick up on Hercai. I missed last night and not sure a Turkish novela is worth it without the fabulous sultana tiaras. But if I can't figure out those Colombian accents, or they plan on spending the next 100 crapping all over Gaviota and Marcela before it all gets worked out, then I may have to make some changes.

Kelly
 

Cafe

Since we didn't have a Monday recap, here is what I remember in case anyone is still trying to stick with it: Sebastian's family spends the whole thing crapping all over Gaviota and Carmenza, blaming them for the kidnapping and everything else they can think of. The whole Vallejo family (less Marcela who blessedly left to hang out with Lemarcos's family) seem to think Sebastian's love life is their business and no intention of letting him look into the kidnapping situation further. They want Gaviota so gone that they are willing to pressure other fincas to not hire them. I don't think Aurelio is telling anyone about why they were forced out. They may still be looking for work and trying to figure out how to get ahold of Sebas?

Ivan, being all Ivan-y, takes Lucrecia's (the bride is Lucrecia, right? Can't keep Luc/Lu straight) birth control pills and she does not punch him in the face like he deserves. He later apologizes and smooth talks her about how much he wants to have an inheritance- I mean, baby- with her. She buys it. He also doesn't want her to redecorate his bachelor pad. She doesn't argue with him. She's not as smart as I once thought she was.

I hope the rest of this show isn't everyone being mean to Gaviota and Ivan getting away with all his nonsense or it's going to quickly get old. When does Leo come back? He'll fix things.

Kelly
 

Herc

Great recap, novelera. I know how difficult it is to do a premier and especially two hours. Very helpful and thanks so much!

A whole bunch of unrequited love here. And a whole bunch of lies! I have a feeling that the granny is bad, bad, bad.

I think Miran is using an alias for his revenge mission.

Miran met with Firat, who might be a family member, could be a lawyer, too.

I’ve seen other shows based in this part of Turkey where cousins marry.

What a coincidence, I just recapped a henna night in last night’s Embajador episode.

The ladies sang the traditional “Yuksek Yuksek Tepelere” as they circled Reyyan. The ladies sing this song because the bride is leaving her home for her married life. Supposed to make the bride and her mom weepy.

The gold coin signifies that the groom’s family takes responsibility for the new bride, especially financially. Sometimes the groom gets henna, too. That’s why Reyyan did it for Miran.

You all know I love Turkish shows. I'm in!

dondi356

 

cafe

Thanks, Kelly, for putting up a recap of Monday's show. You and I are on the same page. I just don't know if I can continue to watch the horrible treatment of Gaviota and her mother. I especially like the actor playing the mother. And I'm glad it was cleared up that she had nothing to do sexually with Don Octavio. Of course, he could not be Gaviota's father because...incest! But Julia appears to have been pretty territorial about her man, and the fondness he felt for Carmenza bothered her.

Now they seem to be going with Gaviota never being able to get hold of Sebastian's phone number. Please.

I'm sticking out the week, but we need recappers to make this worth all the suffering and we don't seem to have enough interest.
 

herc
Hercai: Amor y venganza - #2 - p 1 de 3

The fragments from the opening episode end with Gonul and Miran standing in front of his car, as she reminds him, "You are my husband, and I am your wife." Reyyan opens the door and sees them, but she apparently doesn't hear what Gonul has said. She's simply surprised that Gonul is present, since she was supposed to be sick. Azat comes and pulls Reyyan back inside. Miran and Gonul continue to talk. Gonul tells him that she knows what he's doing is for vengeance, but she never thought he'd fall in love with her (Reyyan). Suddenly she shouts, "I am the wife of Miran!" Miran orders her to get into the car. He drives off with her in the back seat.

Meanwhile, Azat brings Reyyan to a place where they're alone, and he unburdens himself to her. "I have to say what's in my heart, and you have to listen. I love you, Reyyan. Leave him and marry me." Reyyan is taken aback. "You're like a brother to me." This goes on for a while. When Azat gets nowhere with Reyyan, he goes off to find her father. Hazar is seated with other men of the family, as musicians play. Azat asks Hazar, "Can we talk?" Nasuh, sitting nearby, gives his permission for Hazar to leave.

Reyyet tells her mother that Azat has told her he loves her. Reyyan fears that he will ruin her wedding. Zehra assures her daughter that there's nothing Azat can do, not even Nasuh can stop the wedding. Reyyan tells her, "You didn't see the anger in his eyes." Zehra tells her not to cry.

Hazar asks Azat, "What's the problem." A frantic Azat pleads, "Don't let Miran have her." Hazar responds, "You think you know what's right for my daughter? When it comes to family matters, you have no voice." Azat insists, "I love her. If you let Reyyan marry him, I'm as good as dead." Finally Hazar tells him this conversation never happened.

Hazar leaves. Azat cries. Yaren comes into the room. "You're secretly in love with Reyyan. Why didn't you tell me? I could have called her attention to you when she wasn't thinking about anyone." Azat replies that it wouldn't have done any good. "Reyyan wants to leave. She wants to get away from Grandfather. That's why she's marrying Miran." Yaren is angry with her brother. "The man I love is marrying the woman you love. Because you're a coward" (presumably for not speaking up sooner?).

Miran finally stops the car and orders Gonul to get out. "What's your problem?" he asks "We talked about this, we planned this. You accepted it at the start. Why are you now an obstacle?" He tells her she shouldn't have come, and she should leave. She replies, "We're married, but you've never slept with me. You've never even touched me." She then says something that confuses me. I think she says, "Your abuela said if we have a child, your heart would soften and you'd give up your revenge." (Why would the obsessed abuela say this? Or did the abuela instruct Miran not to sleep with Gonul until the vengeance was completed because a child might weaken his resolve?) Anyway, Miran tells Gonul that he has waited for this day for years (presumably, the day his revenge will start). Gonul asks him where she fits into this vengeance. She proposes, "Let's go away, just you and me. Maybe you could love me." Miran replies, "I can't love anyone. I'm so filled with hate that I don't know love any more."

Zehra tells Reyyan that Azat talked to her father, and her father silenced him. "It's all in the past now. Your agony is over. After tomorrow, you won't have any problems." (Yikes! She didn't even say "knock on wood," or "salt over my shoulder.")
 

herc
Hercai: Amor y venganza - #2 - p 2 de 3

Gonul enters the house. Her grandmother is there. Gonul is surprised. She asks her grandmother when she arrived, and she then goes on to tell her that Miran is dying to be with Reyyan. The grandmother replies, "I don't believe these stupidities. Don't ever repeat them again." The grandmother then tells Gonul, "We'll continue with my plan and have vengeance. And then Miran will be yours." (So Azize is the grandmother of both Gonul and Miran? Are they cousins? I'm still having a hard time figuing out the family trees.)

Probably the happiest person in the entire novela at this moment is Reyyan. She looks lovingly at her wedding gown, and she texts Miran "My last night without you." She kisses her phone, suggesting that perhaps Miran has texted her as well. She goes to bed with a grin on her face.

Meanwhile, Grandma Azize confronts Miran. "Gonul was right. Your eyes tell me. I need to show you something. Your mother's ring. She wore it until she died. You can see blood on it." She recites the gory details of how Miran's mother was kidnapped, fought off rape, and was killed. "She resisted with all her force. She never took off this ring. Will you allow your mother's death to go unpunished? You must avenge them. Don't let your heart get in theway of your objective. Don't let emotions cloud your reason. Keep this ring with you. Let your mother's blood inspire you."

We then get two starkly contrasting scenes. First, we see a very happy Reyyan thiking, "Tomorrow I'll be yours." This suddenly gives way to an enraged, out-of-control Gonul smashing dishes and everything else in sight. Her mother enters the room and joins in the smashfest. Gonul tells her mother, "Grandma said Miran will be mine, but he'll be that bitch's first. I can't take this, Mama. It's driving me crazy!" Her mother holds her and asks, "Who are you?" Gonul replies, "I'm your daughter." "No," the mother replies, "first, you are Miran Aslanbey's true wife." She then assures Gonul, "Your mother will protect you. No one will hurt you." Gonul tells her, "We're being used. To Azize Aslanbey, we're just puppets." The mother replies, "Azize will die one day, and you and I will be free. But we need one thing. You need to give birth to an heir. Miran is the only one who can give you an heir. You'll do what you're told until that day has come. Now dry your tears. Tomrrow will be a difficult day."

The next morning, Reyyan looks at her wedding dress with joy. "All problems will be left behind. I'll fly away from this mansion like a bird."

Miran looks in the mirror and thinks, "We've waited 27 years for this day. We suffered, and they will suffer." We see that he's wearing his mother's ring on a cord around his neck.

Zehra cries with happiness. She tells Reyyan, "Today is the best day of your life. Enjoy it." Yaren hears her say "The best day of your life." She's enraged. She goes into the room where the wedding gown is and starts tearing it. Reyyan comes into the room and sees what Yaren is doing. "You've destroyed my dress!" Yaren gloats and continues to tear the gown. Gul sees this and screams at the top of her lungs for people to come. Hazar and Nasuh arrive in response to Gul's call. Gul immediately tells Nasuh, "Abuelo, Yaren destroyed my sister's wedding dress." Hazar says to Nasuh, "You were always so proud of your granddaughter's sweetness. It's time you opened your eyes."
 

herc
Hercai: Amor y venganza - #2 - p 3 de 3

All Nasuh is concerned about is saving face. "No one will know about this. I don't want any scandal! Buy another dress." Reyyan explains that Miran picked it out and bought it for her. Someone suggests they say it accidentally got burned by an iron. Handan (Yaren's mother) comes into the room holding a wedding gown. She tells Reyyan not to go shopping, she can have Handan's. She had been saving it for Yaren, but Yaren should have thought of that before she ruined your gown.

Gonul and her mother arrive. They wait for quite a while before any of the family greets them except for Gul. Finally, Reyyan appears in Handan's gown. They notice that that's not the gown Miran bought. They're told that Miran's gown needed to be adjusted by a dressmaker, and she accidentally tea spilled on it.

We then see a dowry (dote) ceremony. Miran knocks at the door. Melike comes to the closed door and says that it's stuck. She opens it a little, and Miran hands her a fistful of cash. She's quite overwhelmed by how much he has given. But she continues the game, saying that door has budged a little. Miran then forcefully pushes the door open, almost knocking Melike down. He sees Reyyan in her gown. The two of them stare at each other, as the novela theme song plays. Miran's "mother" then reminds him, "Miran, the dowry." She tells him to make a deal with the sister of the bride. He goes over to "Señorita Gul," and asks her how much she wants for the dowry. Gul replies, "Not too much, my father said not to ask for too much and to be generous. My father gave me some money, so now I'm rich. I'll lend you some if you'd like." Everyone laughs. Miran then gives some money to his "mother," who gives it to Gul and asks whether they may now take the bride." "Go ahead," says Gul. Azat watches from the balcony, looking very unhappy.

Hazar then steps forward and addresses Reyyan. "When a daughter leaves her house to get married, the father feels winter and summer at the same time. Whoever wrote that was right. Your father is like a mountain always behind you. Never forget this. If you're sad or hurt or need protection, your father is always here. Call your father and I shall come, because I love you with all my heart. May God bless you with much love and happiness." He then ties a red ribbon around Reyyan's waist. Hazar then turns to Miran. "I'm entrusting her to God and then to you. Take care of her, don't disappoint me." Miran takes Hazar's hand, kisses it, and brings the joined hands to Hazar's forehead.

Nasuh then gets into the act. He addresses Miran as Miran Aksoy and says he wants to ask for a promise. "With God's permission and the will of our prophet, I want to ask for the hand of your sister Gonul for my nieto, Azat." On that unexpected note, the episode ends.
 

herc

What a beautiful and splendidly detailed recap Juanita! I thought you did a marvelous job with all the vivid descriptions and conversations.

I found the wedding preparations rather fascinating and did do some research on Turkish wedding customs. Apparently, the red ribbon wrapped around Reyyan’s waist by her father is a symbol of virginity. I appreciate your explanation of the dowry (dote) ceremony. That little Gul is adorable. Unfortunately, these minor things were the only positives from the episode.

Zehra did seem to be almost cursing Reyyan with her declaration: "It's all in the past now. Your agony is over. After tomorrow, you won't have any problems." (Yikes! She didn't even say "knock on wood," or "salt over my shoulder.") She sure should have done something!

So our instincts that Azat is madly in love with Reyyan was definitely on full display. Yaren’s vindictiveness was also on full display. Not even tyrant grandpops could defend her ripping up that beautiful wedding gown. Interesting that Handan was almost nice in giving Reyyan her wedding dress to save the day and the family name.

I am with you Juanita, the whole Miran/Fake Mom/Fake Sister but Wife and bad, bad granny is very, very confusing. (So Azize is the grandmother of both Gonul and Miran? Are they cousins? I'm still having a hard time figuring out the family trees.) Miran telling Gonul that he can never love because he is full of hate was just awful as was bad granny telling that horrific story about Miran’s mother to keep Miran fired up and on mission. Granny Azize is definitely hiding something.

So it is going to be a surprise for the Miran family to learn that Reyyan is not actually a real Sadoglu family member by blood. Does this mean the venganza is meaningless without that blood line?

Gonul and Azat, now that is an interesting match up!

This is definitely a good start to the TN. Thank you Juanita!


 

herc

Thanks VERY much, VVS, for your terrific comments. And special thanks for explaning that the red ribbon Hazar tied around Reyyan's waist is a symbol of virginity. I was sure it was symbolic, but I didn't know of what.

I agree that Gul was adorable, and provided one of the few bright spots in this episode. It's interesting that the last three 9 PM Telemundo novelas have all included delightful child characters. I'm thinking of Oyku in Todo por mi hija, Nicky in La Suerte de Loli, and now Gul. (I also remember being being blown away a year or so ago by Teresa Mendoza's daughter Sofía in La Reina del sur 2).

I'm relieved to know that you too are somewhat uncertain about the relationships among the characters in Hercai. And I'm puzzled about just who Miran is, since Nasuh refers to him as "Miran Aksoy" and I think he was referred to that way once in the opening episode as well.

You raise a terrific issue about Reyyan not being a Sadoglu by blood, and what effect if any that will have on the venganza!
 

(Adriana Noel here) CAFE

Hi! Can anyone make a quick comment letting me know where Wednesday's episode finished? I'm not sure where to start tonight's recap, since the site I follow has different episode endings.

I agree with Novelera that if nobody else shows any interest in the show, I might give it up, too. My episodes have different endings than US ones, which in itself is difficult to follow, and recapping is fun, but time-consuming. So, I guess we'll see.

I can't, for the life of me, understand how it is possible, in this day and age, for Gaviota to have no other way to contact Seb aside from that phone that HE gave her. She looks smart, she wants to learn stuff and yet, she never owned her own phone? In 2021? This story made more sense in 1994, when OG Sebastian went back to Europe and he and Gaviota were left without a way to keep in touch, but nowadays it just looks so unrealistic.
Lucrecia accepting Ivan's behavior is another WTF moment for me, but I guess we can all agree that she's the worst and she deserves it.
 

Herc

Excellent recap, Juanita, thanks so much. I found it very helpful to read after watching.

Whenever I see a novela that takes place in the Southeast Turkey, I know we are in for some heavy stuff. Prepare for emotional, verbal and physical abuse. For me, the way women are treated is especially hard to watch. Notice how even the adult sons must also obey Nasuh or else.

Yet there is something compelling about these stories. The landscapes, the buildings, the culture and traditions. Hopefully a good script and a lead couple with chemistry. We are all set.

“Or did the abuela instruct Miran not to sleep with Gonul until the vengeance was completed because a child might weaken his resolve?” Could be but I really think that granny might have other reasons.

The revenge starts with Miran’s marriage to Reyyan. I think Miran uses the alias Aksoy to hide his true identity.

“Hazar says to Nasuh, "You were always so proud of your granddaughter's sweetness. It's time you opened your eyes." He also mentions that Yaren knocked Reyyan of a horse and stole Nasuh’s watch and blamed it on Reyyan.

“Gonul tells her, "We're being used. To Azize Aslanbey, we're just puppets." I totally agree with Gonul.

I will repeat what I said yesterday—that granny is bad, bad, bad! The way she treats Miran, I don’t think she loves him at all. She’s just using him for revenge. I agree there must be a huge secret she holds, VVS. I just wonder how long we will have to wait until it’s revealed.

I’m unhappy it seems they are not going to use the original Turkish soundtrack. Those songs add so much to the story.

Thanks again, Juanita!

dondi356

 

cafe

Sorry, Adriana Noel. I fell asleep on the sofa. I woke up and decided to watch Hercai and let Cafe wait until Thursday evening.

Insofar as putting up things that would be different from what we see on Telemundo East and West, I would not worry about it. The people watching seem so few that I wouldn't worry about it. I'm pretty sure Gaviota's baby won't have been born last night!
 

herc

Late to the party. Dealing with plumbing issues here. Gah!

Juanita, that was a masterpiece! I had some difficulty with the Spanish captions being behind the words being spoken last night. So, your recap is especially helpful.

I got the feeling that they are going with Bad Grannie having accused Hazar Sadoglu, Reyyan's adoptive father (which I don't think she knows about), of being the man who lusted after Miran's mother and killed her. That name was mentioned in the first scene where Miran is a boy in bed. And, they kept showing Miran and Hazar with their hand clasped and Miran, IIRC, not letting go right away. He had one of those burning, revenge eyes moments while he was holding his father-in-law's hand.

I guess we're all in agreement that Bad Grannie has something up her sleeve. If it were not for the supposed age difference, I might think she was rejected by him and he chose Zehra instead. But, wouldn't she then know that Reyyan is not a Sadoglu by blood?

Another problem I was having was, to me, the loud background music almost drowning out the dialog. Anyone else notice this?

Dondi, you mentioned the contrast between Todo por mi Hija as being cosmopolitan and this novela, where it could almost be the 16th century if you didn't see the cars and cell phones. I am gobsmacked by the power Nasuh has over his entire family. And what chutzpah to insert that other marriage plan during Reyyan and Miran's big moment. I suspect he's thinking of that to cement even more the ties between the two families. He mentioned once to Hazar that he should invest what little money they had with Miran. So, he must be in financial difficulty and perhaps wants to save himself by an alliance with the "Atsoy" family who are apparently loaded.
 

Café

Hi Adriana Noel. I do appreciate that you and novelera are trying to keep the Café recaps going. So I just finished watching the episode and the last scene is Ivan in the Café Elite conference room on the phone with Carlos Mario. Ivan hangs up and asks Aura for Pablo (what's his bucket) only to find out that he is not at Café Elite. Unbeknownst to Ivan, Pablo was with CM.

I for one do hope that we can somehow manage to keep some conversation going on Café. It really is a good story and novelera is right, Gaviota did not have the baby last night, but did almost puke up the poor baby several times!
 

herc

Many thanks, dondi356 and novelera, for your excellent comments.

dondi356, my guess about what the evil abuela may have said to Miran was an attempt to make some kind of sense out of what Gonul reported. She tells Miran,""Your abuela said if we have a child, your heart would soften and you'd give up your revenge." Why would the abuela, who is so obsessed with revenge, say this to Gonul? The only explanation I could think of is that the abuela was warning Miran NOT to sleep with Gonul, since she might become pregnant and that might make Miran less intent on fulfilling his vow of revenge. Admittedly, it's a stretch, but it was the only thing I could think of that would make the abuela's words make sense. If you or anyone else can make sense of these words in another way, please let me know. And thanks, dondi356, for adding the other bad things Yaren did to Reyyan that Hazar reminds Nasuh about.

novelera, I was stunned when Nasuh made that request to Miran during his wedding with Reyyan. What chutzpah indeed! And you raise an interesting point about the Sadoglu family's finances as one possible reason that Nasuh made his request.
 

Loli

So disappointing.....