Caray, Caray!

"ESDLC":

Novelera: Interesting to see if the Casillas family FINALLY whacks El Capo & Co.,
 

Sultan

hmm, would Viktoria be the bride who's husband Sulieman killed?

 

Sultan #14 part 1

Never a dull moment with Hurrem.

Nurhan is being treated. Daye asks Asye what happened. She’s not sure but Nurhan wore her fur to bed. She says, I was awakened by her screams. Daye wants to see the fur and has the doctor test it. It was treated with poison! Who gave the fur to Nurhan? Firial brought the fur.

Word on Nurhan gets back to Hurrem. She asks, how’s her face? It’s awful. Meanwhile, Daye confronts Firial about the poisoned fur. But, but, Hurrem gave her the fur to deliver. Daye will take care of it—and don’t mention this to anyone else.

Daye brings the Nurhan incident to the QM’s attention. QM wants the person punished and expelled from the palace. Who could do such horrific thing? You can see the disgust on her face when she hears Hurrem is responsible. She is tired of Hurrem’s machinations and she must be punished this time. Daye says what will the sultan think of punishing Hurrem? QM says her son would never condone such a crime. They are interrupted by the news that Hatice has taken ill with a fever.

Firial enters Hurrem’s room. Hurrem plays innocent but Firial is not buying it. Why did you poison Nurhan? Hurrem makes a weak attempt at denial. Firial is angry, she says you dragged me down with you this time; you made me deliver the fur. You can’t get away with this. Hurrem tries threatening Firial—I’ll hurt you. But Firial stands firm; she won’t trust Hurrem. All out of arguments, Hurrem asks Firial to leave. Before she leaves, Firial says, You’ll pay dearly. Allah does not tolerate injustices.

Sumbul tells Ibrahim about Nurhan. Who did it? No need to tell, it’s understood. The conversation switches to Hatice’s illness. The sultan walks in on this convo. He'll visit his sister. He's not told about Nurhan.

Hurrem visits the bandaged Nurhan. Nurhan won’t look at Hurrem. She cries, leave! leave! Hurrem puts on the act and tells Ayse to look after Nurhan, she means a lot to her. Ayse sees right through the act. Before leaving, Hurrem leans over Nurhan and says, it’s over for you. You will never be a sultana only a servant and you’re mine.

Hurrem visits Hatice. Mahi is there at the bedside and not happy to see Hurrem. Will Hatice recover? Inshallah! Hurrem asks for ice to treat Hatice’s fever. Mahi countermands, we don’t need your advice.

Baby Mehmed is crying. QM is worried about his health. The doctor assures her he’s ok. But why has he been vomiting? Is it the mother’s milk? QM says take the baby immediately to a wet nurse.

Hurrem gets ice and treats Hatice. Mahi accuses Hurrem of Nurhan’s poisoning. Pot, kettle, black, says Hurrem, you poisoned me; I almost died. Mahi continues, who do you think you are? You will always be a concubine, I’m the wife—respect me! Ok,let’s ask the sultan if he thinks it so—only then will Hurrem respect her.

Sultan asks Ibrahim about Piri Pasha’s son, Mehmed the teacher. Ibrahim knows nothing but they will investigate.

Hurrem finds out that Mehmed has been taken to the wet nurse. She bursts into the room to see her son being nursed. Well, the boy wasn’t doing well. Daye calls Hurrem’s milk poisoned. Hurrem yells at Daye. QM tells her to shut up and grabs her face, don’t raise your voice or you will never see your son again! Get out!

Hurrem runs to see the sultan. Ibrahim stops her from entering. Hurrem explains why she’s there. Ibrahim cautions her not to say anything against the QM. Go back to your chamber. You can’t go in now. Hurrem accuses Ibrahim of being a member of an alliance of evil that is against her. He asks her to repeat this. Hurrem says, you protect Mahi and throw me to the wolves. You sent my friend to the sultan. You started the fire but I will not burn, you will. Ibrahim orders Sumbul to take Hurrem away!

Nasuh finds a young man unconscious on the street and scares some others away who are overlooking from the rooftop right above. Cut to the Sultan asking about Nasuh and Rhodes. Nasuh carries the boy to his place.

dondi356
 

Sultan #14 part 2

Hatice is doing better. QM can’t figure out what is troubling Hatice. Nice that Mahi is always by her side. Mahi is walking in the gardens with Hatice. Mahi sees Ibrahim lurking and walks away. Ibrahim walks up to Hatice. She’s alright now because she sees him but she feels suffocated in the palace. Ibrahim says, stay strong for me, for us, sultana.

The boy is still unconscious. Nasuh starts to undress him…. uh oh, it’s not a boy, it’s a girl! Nasuh looks shocked and worried. When the woman comes to, she’s freaked out. Nasuh says, calm down, you fell from the roof. I took you here but when I realized you are a woman, I stayed away. She claims someone tried to rape her. She has no one. Viktoria is her name. (She is the bride at Luis' castle the night of Suleiman’s attack!)

Hurrem visits Hatice. Daye wouldn’t allow it but she wanted to check on Hatice anyway. Hurrem says, I know you’re lovesick. Hatice denies it. Tell me, says Hurrem. QM plans to marry Hatice to Piri Pasha’s son. Hurrem wants to know what Ibrahim says about that. No answer from Hatice.

Ibrahim knocks at Nasuh’s door. Do you have company? Yes, but he’s gone now. There is a noise and Nasuh says it’s just a cat. Nasuh tries to stop Ibrahim from looking but he discovers Viktoria in her hiding place.

Hurrem is waiting for Suleiman. Nurhan is with her, her face is covered. Suleiman shows and Nurhan leaves. He asks, who is the odalisque? Don’t you recognize Nurhan? Why is she covering her face? Oh, says Hurrem, she burned herself with hot water in the bath. The sultan seems not to care. He wants to see his son. Hurrem says, QM has taken him away because she thinks my milk is poisoned! Suleiman orders Nurhan, bring my son and be quick! Hurrem says it’s such a shame what happened to Nurhan, so young. Suleman just smiles at Hurrem. She leaps at him and hugs him tightly. We see her smile turn to an anxious look. She’s desperate to hold onto him for herself.

Pobre muchacha, Viktoria. Nasuh says she’s looking for relatives to stay with. Ibrahim says she better find them before we leave for Rhodes. Nasuh proposes that they take her in, perhaps the sultan can help her.

Suleiman is holding the baby while Hurrem looks on. He is adorable, he looks like you, Hurrem. She wants him to be like his dad. She says, we are nothing without you. Hurrem brings up Hatice, she looks so tired. What a pity she’s young and beautiful but sad and lonely. Not to worry, Suleiman has found the right man for her. He’s an excellent man but don’t tell anyone. Hurrem asks what does Ibrahim think about it? Puzzled look on Suleiman’s face, he’s thinking.

Ibrahim & Nasuh bring Viktoria and ask Sumbul to take “him” to the harem. Sumbul thinks they are crazy! This is big trouble! Is he emasculated? Yes. The truth is revealed—this is not a man, but a woman. Sumbul brings her to the harem. He advises, do what I say, don’t fight, don’t be insolent, don’t talk too much. Firial, take this woman in!

Suleiman wants to see what Nasuh has brought from Rhodes (that was a quick trip). He has drawn lot of pictures of high, fortified walls. Men digging ditches. Those working the ditches will win the battle (whatever that means). They talk strategy about placing men. Solomon the Jew and Andrei’s cavalry will support. They have spies who told Nasuh where to dig to break into the castle.

In the bath, Firial introduces Viktoria to Ayse, you will live together she will be your servant. First she’s hesitant but then Ayse says, ok, come with me. Victoria takes a seat and someone starts to wash her. Viktoria thinks back to Luis telling her, your mourning will end soon. She tells him, now I will get revenge with my own hands. And we’re out.

dondi356

 

Good Morning Dondi356. I'm assuming you've watched "ESDLC" last night ?
 

Señor7

We are up to #46!

Thanks, Steve, for keeping me updated. I’ve been watching but I’m a little behind.

Volpi’s gone so quickly and easily. I thought he’d be around a little longer. His fondness for blondes did him in.

So sorry about Red. And I thought Athina would be around until the end.

Colon found out Dalila is working undercover to get Ojeda, but somehow she’s fallen for his freaky sexcapades. Ha, she turns it on Colon, he fell for Corina, no?

Luzma wants to take over the financial accounting for Los Casillas with Greñas’ help.
Interesting, Jaime wants to use Joaquin to get rid of Cabo.

Ambar disguises herself as Edith to escape and meet with Valdes. It took a lot of padding, lol. Valdes had a good laugh, too.

Nice that Tata and Dalvio are back in the mix. She’s the MIL from hell. Dalvio is as cool as ever.

Carla and Amaranta get catty with each other. Colon calls them two badass ladies.

Chatarrero catches Alejandra trying to steal Athina’s diamonds. He tells Dalvio and Dalvio takes the diamonds for "safekeeping". What’s Dalvio going to do?

Dylan and Cecilio try to keep Pio and Evelina separated from the Casillas kids (wearing Carnivale masks) when they both show up to party. Good cliffhanger with Amado and Diana making their entrance into the club undisguised.

dondi356

 

Sultan

always a pleasure to read your recaps dondi, you are so good at doing these, so smooth!

"Never a dull moment with Hurrem."

it's interesting to see Hurrem getting along as she never misses a chance to alienate someone, she gets every inch she can out of her ties with the Sultan.

Sulieman does take his family seriously, I imagine it's hard to keep up with the women's world in the palace.

Nasuh's drawings are more like artwork than military maps, yes what's with the ditches?

Viktoria, now Ayse's servant, is a twist.

this was a big production, I imagine Telemundo has been cutting all along.

 

sultan

Muchísimas gracias, dondi356, for this superb recap! You've captured everything clearly and concisely.

I have very little to add. I do wonder why they use the same name--Mehmed--for Hurrem's baby and Mehmed the teacher. Were both of these characters so important in history that the novela couldn't use a different name for one or the other? I think when Mehmed the teacher was first mentioned the captions spelled his name Mehmet, but last night he was Mehmed, just like Hurrem's baby. (Admittedly, the captions can't really be trusted--I think they've spelled Firial's name at least three different ways.)

I found it interesting that Ibrahim finally talks with Hatice about "us."

From the first closeup of "Viktor's" face, I was pretty sure that "he" was a woman. The fine and hairless facial features gave her away. Of course, I had no idea who she was until the flashback with King Luis. It seems crazy that Telemundo would show these new developments (Ibrahim's finally speaking to Hatice about "us" and the arrival of Viktoria hell-bent on revenge) only to shut down the novela after tonight's episode. I wonder whether there will be any statement about this tonight.
 

This comment has been removed by the author.
 

sultan

Terrific recap, dondi! I loved all the clever asides.

I think I saw a look of, if not actual fear, perhaps assessment of the power of an enemy on Ibrahim’s face last night during the confrontation in the corridor. And Hurrem seems to be moving toward getting rid of Ibrahim by hinting to Suleiman about his feelings for Hatice. And she called the proverbial spade a spade, telling him to his face that she knew he was the one who sent Nurhan in an effort to replace her with Suleiman.

Wow, I had no clue about Viktoria being the bride at the wedding. Even when Luis told her she’d get revenge, I sort of thought she was a random woman Luis had sent to get close to Suleiman

Hurrem is such an interesting character. Sometimes, like when she taunted Nurhan about only ever being her servant, I dislike her. Other times, when the QM punishes her by taking away her child, I have sympathy for her. And I like the way she manages to get under Mahidevran’s skin. Mahi knows the sultan prefers Hurrem and has made it abundantly clear that he’s done with Mahi.

I don’t even bother to figure out the Rhodes plans. While having a quite intricate plot, this is still a telenovela. And the bulk of the plot concerns Hurrem and her machinations and rivalries.

The scene with Hurrem and Firial was interesting. And I thought I saw a hint of fear cross her face when Firial mentioned Allah punishing her. It’s always hard to tell if there’s any conviction in her conversion to Islam. Although she certainly gave a good impression of faith in her thanks to Allah upon confirmation of her pregnancy.
 

SULTAN

Everyone, like the rest of you, I checked Zap2it and Telemundo upcoming schedules and could find no new episodes of Sultan in any of the time slots, even though Telemundo has plenty of wasted hours on paid programs and repeats of prime time shows. It's still possible Sultan will return on weekends or replace morning or afternoon or after midnight repeats after the holidays. Even though I haven't been watching it, it's infuriating that Telemundo jerks viewers around with no explanation. I also googled for cancellation news and nothing came up.

I still think actress Meryem Uzerli playing Hurrem looks like Russian spy Maria Butina.

-MCM
 

Sultan

Thank you, deb, Juanita, novelera and MCM for your kind words and comments.

deb, I agree Suleiman takes his family seriously. I think he cares about his children as much as any Ottoman sultan could. But I don’t think he really cares to know much about the harem. These women are slaves who are there to serve the sultan and his household. The harem staff is smart enough to keep much of the unsavory details from him because there’s a price to pay if they don’t keep control.

I think Suleiman will ignore or quickly forgive Hurrem’s wickedness. He’s absolutely bewitched by her!

As previously mentioned by deb, these shows originally aired (in Turkey) once a week, the length anywhere from 90 min to 150 min. Telemundo would have to make edits to have them fit in the 43 min time slot each night. So we could be losing some details in the cuts.

Yes, Juanita, the names! I could have made a mistake with the baby and teacher names. I went with what I saw on the caps last night. As for Firial, she started out as Nigar Kalfa. As far as I remember, there was no explanation for that change.

Novelera, I feel the same way about Hurrem. But it’s getting harder for me to find any redeeming qualities in her. The two scenes that stood out to me, were Firial confronting Hurrem about the poisoned fur and Hurrem accusing Ibrahim as a member of the evil alliance. Very well done.

I really hope they keep showing this in the evening. I was hoping they could at least finish the first season, like they did with Kosem. What’s the point of airing less than a month’s worth of episodes

dondi356

 

sultan

dondi, I hope you didn't think I was blaming you for the fact that the baby and the instructor were both named Mehmed. ¡Para nada! I just found it rather strange that the novela used the same name for both. When the instructor first was mentioned a day or so ago, I think the captions spelled his name slightly differently (ending in t rather than in d), but you are absolutely right that last night the captions used the same spelling for both the baby and the instructor.
 

TELEMUNDO...

ok, this is my best guess, and the schedule now reflects it.

“La Doña, Edición Especial” premieres Monday in the 9pm slot (a highlight series of the first season)

“Decisiones, Unos Ganan Otros Pierden” is bumped to the 8pm slot.

“El Sultán” will be available on the Telemundo Now app.

https://www.nbcumv.com/node/7205018?network=33144

 

"ESDLC":

Dondi356: At least Athena is reunited with her husband Nikos & daughter Irene now.
 

Sultan

No worries, Juanita! We all strive for accuracy in our recaps but the name changes and the inconsistent captioning are making it difficult. For better or worse, I decided to go with the flow of the evening. I just hope it's not too confusing to readers.

dondi356
 

sultan, telemundo

As deb has mentioned, the only way we can continue to watch El Sultán is by installing the Telemundo App. I didn't like that idea, but I was tempted to download and install it on my tablet and see how well it works. I went to Google Play Store, found the app, and decided to read some of the reviews. Wow. Some people are very happy with the app, but at least as many seem to be very unhappy with it. Here are some of the complaints:

1) Often fails to work. Have to uninstall and reinstall frequently
2) Need to provide the name of your cable provider in order to use the app!
3) Doesn't stay up-to-date with episodes, sometimes mixes them up
4) Excessive ads
5) Closed captions not working
6) Have to give it permission to access your photos, files, and media in order to watch the episodes. Even if it worked well in other respects (which it apparently does not), this would be a deal breaker for me. I see frequent warnings to beware of apps that make unreasonable permission demands. Why should the Telemundo app need to be able to access my photos, or even worse, all my files? No thanks! Bye bye, El Sultán.

Needless to say, I'm VERY disappointed in Telemundo.
 

"ESDLC":

Dondi356: Tata is upping the ante even further against Nurse Chick.

1.) I see that Dalvio told Izzy about Alejandra stealing the diamonds.

Hmm: sounds like Alejandra might be around much longer.

2.) The Casillas kids & Co., partying at the nightclub.

3.) Alejandra's druggie daughter vomits on the dance floor. Sounds like she might have taken too many drugs.

4.) El Chema's son had a similar experience too.

5.) El Capo & Evelina are in the private inbox at the nightclub having fun.

6.) Joaquin & Violeta still strategizing ?

7.) Super Javi & his "cousin" Alejandra get freaky & make out.

8.) Nurse Chick & Tata clash non-stop as usual.

9.) Tata tells Izzy that Nurse Chick is worthless along with other snide remarks.

10.) Izzy needs to grow a backbone & tell his Mommy to shove it.

11.) Ojeda getting horny seeing Dalila's naked body.

12.) Rutila, Nurse Chick, Diana & Co., work to save the life of Super Javi's so-called daughter.

13.) While that's going on, Navarro meets with Amaranta at his hotel room.

14.) El Capo threatens Jaime once again. Sounds like he informed Jaime that Mayra's body has been found & also threatens to expose him & disgraced former Mexican President BPN.

15.) Castillo finds out Mayra's body has been found, which annoys Carla.

16.) El Capo & Evelina leave the nightclub amid the chaos.
 

I meant to say Alejandra might NOT be around much longer.
 

Sultan #15 part 1

Nasuh is looking at drawings. He’s wondering aloud about Viktoria. He asks Ibrahim, what has she done? Ibrahim does not hear or answer. He is looking out the window, far away in thought. Nasuh asks, who’s behind that light in the window? Ibrahim answers, my sultana, Nasuh. Nasuh is puzzled.

Mustafa is in the QM chambers along with Mahi and Hatice. Yay, Dad’s here! The boy runs to greet his father. Mahi smiles to see Suleiman with his son. Suleiman is getting ready to leave for Rhodes soon. Mustafa wants to go on campaign with dad. Next time you will go my son, and have your own armor and sword.

Suleiman is really there to ask his mother for permission. He is considering that Hatice should marry the teacher, Mehmet Celebi. QM approves. He says to prepare the engagement and he will talk to Piri Pasha. When he returns from Rhodes, Hatice will marry. Suleiman
will do anything for Hatice’s happiness but this was the worst thing he could do to her.

Nurhan brings Hurrem the news that the sultan is in a room alone with Mahi (but Mustafa is there, too). Hurrem is worried. Nurhan’s veil accidentally falls from her face, revealing face is healing well. This surprises and further upsets Hurrem.

Hatice hopes she dies before having to marry Mehmet.

Firial is tending to Viktoria. She finds out they are from the same region of Europe. Viki says her family was killed in the war and she’s come to find relatives that relocated here. Ayse does not believe anything Viki says. Firial says she believes her.

Cut to Mahi watching Suleiman cradling his sleeping son. She recalls Manisa and how happy they were there. She wishes they could still be as happy. Suleiman hears and tries to ignore. She kisses his hem and asks when will her punishment be over. She’s apologized a million times. He touches her face and lifts her up. He would have forgiven if she didn’t meddle in his affairs and poison his food. He lost respect. He touches her face again and leaves. Very moving scene.

A charm maker has talismans for Hurrem. (she keeps staring at some food on a platter) There are some for clothes and some to be stirred in water, which Hurrem will drink.

Piri Pasha visits Suleiman. Ibrahim is excused from the room. Suleiman asks Piri if he would agree to an engagement between his son and Hatice. Of course! Piri is honored to become a part of the sultan’s family. The sultan asks if Piri would agree to the announcement before the campaign.

The charm maker is stirring the talismans in a pot of water, mumbling to herself. She sprinkles some water all around. Hurem takes a dipperful of water to drink but the charm maker stops her. She explains that Hurrem is having a baby! Hurrem laughs with joy. Nurhan, call Firial and ask her to get the doctor!

I don’t remember this servant’s name but she enters Hatice’s room to wake her up. Sultana? Wake up! Hatice won’t wake up. Hatice has taken something! A doctor comes, revives Hatice and gets her to throw up the poison. She will be ok. Daye says to tell everyone Hatice ate something bad. Ay, Hatice how could you commit this sin? Hatice says she wanted to die. Daye says not to tell the QM.

dondi356

 

Sultan #15 part 2

The sultan summons Ibrahim. I suppose it’s to tell him the “good” news.

The doctor has examined Hurrem. She doesn’t say anything until Hurrem gives her some money. She then confirms the pregnancy. Hurrem is sure she’s having another son. She says everyone must know.

Piri shares his good news with his son. Mehmet will try to live up to the honor. He starts coughing. Uh, oh, Hatice may get her wish and not marry or she will soon become a widow again.

Ibrahim’s soliloquy: He’s looking in the mirror. It’s over, Ibrahim. The sultan has decided and with your hand, you confirmed it. You’ve written your death sentence, Ibrahim. You have dared to get close to the sultan’s sister. She’s out of your reach. The sultan would never allow it. He smashes his violin.

QM and Daye meet in the hall. QM is on her way to see Hatice to start the engagement arrangements. Daye, have the seamstress take fabrics to Hatice’s room. Daye tries to stall. What is she hiding? Meanwhile, Mahi is trying to comfort Hatice. She says your brother loves you and he wouldn’t force you. Tell him how you feel. Hatice thinks it’s useless.

Ibrahim stops Hurrem from entering the sultan’s chamber. She has important news and brushes past him. Hurrem complains to Suleiman that Ibrahim wouldn’t let her in. It’s ok, says Suleiman, what is it? She has good news; she’s having another baby! (points for hurrem.) Sultan is pleased but not enough for Hurrem’s satisfaction. Well, he explains he’s busy at the moment, go now and he will visit her later. Hurrem reluctantly leaves. (points for Ibrahim.) Ibrahim offers his congrats to the sultan. Outside the chamber, Ibrahim silently lords it over Hurrem. Hurrem counters, I’m going to offer congrats to Hatice, have you congratulated her on her engagement yet? (Big score for Hurrem!)

Nurhan is getting treatment from Ayse. Ayse explains to Viki what happened between Hurrem and Nurhan. Viki asks about Hurrem. Firial interrupts and says mind your business.

QM was fed the BS story because she tells Hatice to be more careful with what she eats. And freshen up, it’s time to make arrangements! The women pick out fabrics. No one looks very happy, least of all Hatice. Hurrem enters to stir the pot once again. She congratulates Hatice and announces she has good news of her own. She’s pregnant! The room goes stone cold silent.

Firial takes Viki to see the doctor for her arm. Sumbul needs Firial immediately so Firial leaves Viki with Mahmut Aga. This works out well for Viki. She says to Mahmut, do you remember me? You saw me at the harbor. She flashes him a butterfly tattoo on her neck. They leave to go someplace out of sight and earshot.

Ibrahim tells Suleiman the ships are ready. Good, we will leave tomorrow. The sultan notices Ibrahim looks sad but Ibrahim says noting is wrong.

Gulsah returns and has a happy reunion with Mahi.

Hurrem returns to see Suleiman while he is still with Mustafa. She tells the boy she is carrying another brother for him. He doesn’t look happy. Suleiman tells him, as the oldest, you must love and take care of your brothers. Mustafa says his mom must be mad, he has to go to her.

dondi356
 

Sultan #15 part 3

It looks like time has passed. (but did it? I thought Suleiman was leaving for Rhodes? What happened?) We see baby Mehmet is ready to crawl. Hatice has written something that her servant takes to Ibrahim. He goes to his room and reads:

The words that get lost in the sea of love live forever. I’m writing this letter, holding my breath and with my bleeding heart in my hand. No, it is not a farewell letter. It is a song for you. I’m walking towards death, dragging my soul, into my destiny’s hands… hoping we’ll meet again in the afterlife. Begging the wait won’t be long. Ibrahim, I wish you all the joy and peace. We see sad Hatice getting ready for the celebration. Ibrahim is crying.

It’s party time! Fireworks go off. Suleiman is announced and enters the room. Viki stares at him. We see a flashback to Luis’ castle with Viki kneeling over her dead new husband.

Suleiman places a necklace on Hatice and says, may Allah bless you with happiness my dear sister. As festivities are about to start, Viki sneaks off.

Mehmet joins Ibrahim outside on the balcony and talks about his feelings for Hatice. He starts coughing again. He’s ok, just nervous. Ibrahim turns the subject to the impending campaign in Rhodes.

Mustafa, his little bro and a few girls (are they Suleiman’s daughters?) are watching a puppet show. Viki enters quietly and knocks over a candle starting a fire.

A servant bursts in on the women’s celebration---Fire! Fire! The sultan’s children are in danger! And we’re out!

Confirming what deb said, the show is now exclusively online, moving to the Telemundo app starting Monday. Wondering if that means the Telemundo Now website, too. Is anyone going to continue to watch? I found the episodes on YouTube in Turkish with English subs. I might watch when/if I can find the time.

Thanks to all. It was good while it lasted.

dondi356

 

sultan, telemundo

MANY THANKS, dondi356, for this excellent recap. Like all your others, it's wonderfully clear, complete, and very interesting.

I missed Firial's saying that she and Viktoria were from the same area in Europe. That too could come to figure significantly into the plot. I'm not sure we'll ever know. Sigh.

Thanks too for mentioning Telemundo Now. For all the reasons I explained in my earlier message, I definitely will NOT download the Telemundo App, but if Telemundo Now carries the novela, I might continue to watch. For now, all I know is that I plan to watch the 1-hour "special edition" of La Doña that Telemundo says it will show at 9 pm this coming Monday. I watched the first season of that novela, but I'm not sure I'm eager for the sequel. I haven't much liked the trailers. I suspect, though, that I'll at least give it a try. Nothing else on Telemundo tempts me at all.

Best wishes to everyone for Chanukah, Christmas, Kwanza, the Winter Solstice, etc., and a very happy New Year.
 

Sultan

dondi, thanks so much, another wonderful recap!

yep, it was a violin smashing day at the palace, except for Hurrem who is ecstatic, but hey, where is her fan club?

arranged marriages, is this for everyone, Hatice was never included in any of it, I got the impression custom would not allow her to speak up,,, cough.

the fireworks must be for the formal engagement announcement.

and I was waiting for Firial to catch Viki in her lie.

cartoons, nope, a live puppet show.


interesting how they didn't show avances this week, I'm waiting to see if they continue posting on the telemundo.com site, but it doesn't look good as you go back 5 days and the videos are locked.

merry christmas all!

 

sultan

Another wonderful recap, dondi! Thanks so very much for doing two in a row.

And thanks also to Juanita for researching the Telemundo.com app. I AM hooked on the novela and was considering downloading it to my tablet. Guess I'll just have to let it go. It's just infuriating that they continue with "El Señor de los Depends" even though Amaya is not even on the show any more. But they dump a real quality novela without mercy. Could the novela be on YouTube?

I doubt Suleiman's children will burn up. But that was a horrible thing for Viktoria to do. I was thinking she'd get a knife and go for Suleiman. She may still do that.

Poor Hatice. I suspect that her first marriage was arranged as well and then she was widowed. Mehmet probably has tuberculosis. She could also get that from him if she has to share a bed with him.

The scene with Suleiman and Mahi was well done. I did feel some sympathy for her. Apparently they were happy in that other town, before his father died. It seems he would have forgiven beating Hurrem (and he doesn't know about the stolen ring) but the fact that she'd have food poisoned that he himself might eat removed all possibility of any relationship with her.

And I enjoy Hurrem's jousts with Ibrahim. I really liked him until he started trying to spike Hurrem's relationship with Suleiman. This is just petty, IMO.
 

Sultan

Thank you everyone.

It’s a dog eat dog world at Topkapi. One false move can cost your head.

novelera, the entire show can be found on YouTube in Turkish with English subs. Do a search for Magnificent Century. The translations can be a bit spotty, but they are good for the most part. I think it’s better to have the direct Turkish to English translation. It’s nice to hear the actors’ voices, too. I’m going to watch when I have the time. I wish they would put this back on Netflix.

dondi356

 

Sultan

the next episode is here, (thanks to dondi's directions)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xi195V9LAJM

there is an interesting outcome of the fire!

(and as dondi pointed out, it adds a dimension listening to the story in turkish).

 

sultan

Thanks, deb and dondi, for the info about finding El Sultán on youtube. I used the URL that deb provided to watch about a half hour (apparently the youtube link is set to run for an hour and 41 minutes). I will probably go back to it, perhaps later today or tomorrow, but I'm not sure I will continue after that. My primary reason for watching telenovelas is to improve my weak Spanish, especially with spoken Spanish. Watching a novela in Turkish with English subtitles does nothing to help my comprehension of spoken Spanish. I guess I'll wait to see how gripped I am by the episode I'm now watching. It's possible I'll be so interested in the story that I'll continue, but I may not want to spend that much time. We'll see. I'm still hoping that Telemundo Now may have it in the dubbed version.
 

"LA Dona":

HALIMACANDY: You're ready for Season 2 ?

Juanita: I see DZ is on the cast.
 

sultan

Interesting development. My DirecTV schedule going forward into the coming week shows El Sultán at 12:00 AM Christmas Day and then at 12:30 AM the 26th and 27th. Nothing is shown before that. If true, this is exactly what I hoped for. As a devoted user of my DVR, I never watch anything at the exact hour it airs, so as to avoid commercials or enable me to watch something I'd otherwise miss.
 

sultan

novelera, your DirecTV schedule may be correct! I just checked the Telemundo website's calendar for the week, and sure enough, it now shows El Sultán playing at 3 am on Wednesday morning (Christmas day), and then at 3:30 am on the 26th, 27th, AND 28th (Saturday morning!). So if DirecTV is giving you Pacific time, and the Telemundo website is giving Eastern time, they're in agreement. I should point out, however, that the usually reliable Zap2It does NOT show El Sultán at all :-( .

I should also mention that both the Telemundo website and Zap2It show La Doña playing all week long (and on into the following week) in the 9 pm time slot. It's not clear whether this is the new season beginning earlier than announced previously or an abridged version of season 1 to bring in viewers who may not have seen (or remembered) season 1. (This was what Telemundo did before season 2 of La Reina del Sur began. However, at that time, Telemundo publicized the abridged version a lot, whereas they've so far only said that there would be a "special edition" on Monday, Dec. 23.

I'll try to get some of this confusing info up on the Telemundo y Más page that will appear Monday at 8 (as usual). If anyone learns more info about the schedule, please post it here.
 

sultan

Sigh. I just went to my DVR to ask it to record those early morning episodes of El Sultán. None of them were listed on Comcast's schedule. So now I'm more confused than ever.
 

Sultan

re: "El Señor de los Depends"

when did trump become the protagonist of the series?

andy
 

ROFLOL.