Turkish TV series has me Googling like crazy
I don’t know how I happened upon Resurrection: Ertugrul on Netflix, call it luck or grace, but it really captured my attention – 170 episodes viewed in a couple of months – maybe even 6 weeks. I’m sure it’s not for everyone and fewer still will watch 170 subtitled episodes!
The story takes place in 13th-century of what today is Turkey. This is the time when Rumi, ibn Arabi, Yunus Emre and many other notable poets, mystics and Sufis were bringing their treasures into this world. Ibn Arabi is even a character in the series.
This series got me so interested in the history of it all that I’ve almost gone blind Googling people, places, and events mentioned in Dirilis Ertugrul. The produces tell us up front that the series is based on stories from their culture and that written records are very scarce.
I found the cast to be superb. After 170 episodes of Resurrection: Ertugrul, I felt like I knew each one of these people intimately. Even though the story puts the “shine on the apple,” I appreciated the sense of the culture and history it points to.
There’s and interesting article over at the New York Times about how Turkish TV is reviving interest in Turkey and it’s also becoming embroiled in politics.
Like all good soap operas, series and movies there are characters you love and others that test one’s patience!
Given the state of the world today and the overwhelming amount of news referring to Muslims and Islam, I found myself curious and wanting to know more about the religion and culture.
This series led me to watching a series about Yunus Emre – a book of his poems has been on my shelf for 30 years or so. I’ll tell you a bit about that series in the near future.