Behzat Ç.: Bir Ankara Polisiyesi

The series is about a homicide detective, the people around him and his mental state.

This series is very well executed, all questions get answers. There are even a few plot twists that I didn't see coming. The characters are believable, and they are acted skillfully. It captures the social conflicts in Turkey well. The murder cases are usually interesting. It is one of the best shows I've ever watched, a list that includes many expensive Hollywood productions. It was actually very surprising that I'd like a show from Turkey this much.

There are a few negative points however, for which people who consider watching this should prepare themselves. First, there is a lot of swearing. This is made worse by the censorship enforced by Turkish TV. All the swearing is bleeped out, so sometimes it feels like you are listening to a voice-over by R2D2. Some visual elements are censored as well, such as alcoholic drinks later in the show. As the last point, English subtitles are not very well translated. You'll get the point, but sometimes how something is said is important to capture the depth of the scene, which is typically lost.

All in all, I'd recommend this to anyone who are interested in a police drama.

The best part of the series is that it tells the whole story with all its naturalness.The best example of how to deal with American TV series with a simple budget.

This series is interesting to view in terms of an insight into the Turkish way of life. The story lines are sometimes good and sometimes totally crazy. The characters are extremely well acted but at times annoying to watch which is what they are supposed to be and is a tribute to the professionalism of the actors. To complete the series is a marathon. Individual episodes are complete in themselves but there are several continuing story lines which attract you to the next episode to see what happens. What is fascinating is portrayal of the way policing operates in Turkish Muslem society and how citizens and police have to be wary of potentially corrupt entities within a highly authoritarian state. With potentially 150 hours of watching time I suspect not many people will make it to the end.

Although this series takes a whole chunk of your life since each of the 97 or so episodes is between 1.5 to 2 hours long, you will enjoy watching it much more than doing anything else in the same amount of time. The characters are very well rounded and the acting is brilliant. The actor who plays Behzat really lives the role. He is totally believable and although I could have lived without every second word being an F word (and very creatively used F words to boot!), the bad language did suit the characters' characters. The story line was very well crafted with unexpected twists. Two of the writers' triumphs were the characters of Bashgat Memdez (spelling undoubtedly wrong) and the psychopathic Ercüment Çözer. I just loved the humorous lines they were given as they killed right, left and centre. Another favourite of mine was Behzat's brother, Sevket. He was annoying in a very entertaining way. Harum was more difficult to handle but well you can't choose your co-workers I suppose. There was only one ridiculous episode and that was a dream sequence which really was a waste of time, but the rest of the series was absolutely first class and if they brought out another series I'd be happy to spend another 200 hours watching it!

Cinema and series from all parts of this world can entertain,enlighten,help understanding a country and its people...Behzat does that,yes a "cop show" of all things!The characters are real it seems,we get glimpses of life in Turkey/Ankara,we have a taste of levels of government,police structures,modern and more traditional aspects of a country portrayed by some media(all!?)in a over simplistic manner....amazing show,thank you to the Turkish People!