Kizil Goncalar

I got hooked to this series very early on and did not get bored for a second during the philosophical exchanges for instance between Cuneyd (Mert Yazicioglu) and his psychiatrist, Levent (Ozcan Deniz) or the religious exchanges between Cuneyd and his uncle Sadi Hudayi (Erkan Avci). I appreciated the wonderful mother-daughter relationship between Meriem (Ozgu Namal) and Zeynep (Mina Demirtas), and also the touching relationship between Zeynep and Mira Alkanli (Esma Yilmaz), who is the same age, and whose goofiness added a light touch to the generally heavy atmosphere. I did not expect to root for Zeynep and Cuneyd but they turned out to be real soulmates who understood each other so well. A compelling element was also the relationship between the physics professor, Suave Alkanli (Serif Erol) and Zeynep. Secondary characters such as Birgul and Arif were charming too. I thought some of the women were a bit caricatural (especially Sadi's wife and daughter), and Hande Elkanli as a journalist was not very convincing but on the whole, the series was quite riveting and hope the second season will be as compelling.

This series tells the story of Turkish society in its extremes: on one side we have an ultra-Islamic religious group, on the other an ultra-secular family. The story begins where their roads intersect.

The truth is, I think most of Turkish society swims somewhere in between these two groups, but this series decides to focus on the extremes- that is, on the pure black and pure white, and shows how they mix to become grey. I saw somewhere a quote saying "like front and back side of the same paper, we go through life together, but never see eachother". This series is kind of bringing the front and backside together, forcing them to look at eachother and accept eachother.

The characters are extremely interesting, as well as the dynamic between them. The conversations between psychiatrist Levant and Cuneyd are a thrill of every episode, with how profound and philosophical they can get.

To me the most interesting is the dynamic between Zeynep and Cuneyd. You find yourself in a strange position observing two individuals who understand eachother as if they're soulmates, so much so that you tend to forget how inappropriate the situation is.

So far, I have only watched the first season and I am positively surprised at how thought-through the scenario is. It's promising so far. There are, obviously, inconsistencies tied to the plot, and also the super annoying advertising within the series, but what can you do. As far as Turkish series go, this is just about the most thought-provoking one I have ever seen.

Warning for the future watchers: The series includes heavy themes of trauma, mental health, religious sects and secularism, feminism and anti-feminism, domestic abuse, as well as child marriage and child abuse. While there are no extreme scenes, these topics are around the centre of the story and it can get disheartening and disturbing at times. The topics are there to serve the message however, and in contrast to the the other series, there are no blatant displays of heavy topics such as showing abuse just for the sake of it.

Teaching girls is and was never forbidden in Islam , women were doctors and teachers in Islam at the time women of other cultures and religions were deprived from their basic rights.

I am a Muslim Female Doctor ,and i am proud of my religion that has always given me my rights.

There were some other mistakes like Vahid who attempted to marry Zeynep who is his daughter in low !!!!!! This is totally prohibited in Islam this is Haram .

In season one Birgul kissed Sadi Hudai's hand , we dont touch males in Islam unless it's for medical purposes.

Cuneyd kneeled for Can !!!! This is also Haram !

Islam is kind , fair and respectful.

First of all, the Kizil Goncalar series is the most beautiful series I have ever seen and the plot is the most interesting. The actors have great acting skills and you can tell that they have been carefully selected. Especially Mert Yazicioglu portrayed the character of "Cüneyd Efendi" so beautifully that it touches one's heart. I love this character and even memorize most of his lines.

Let me tell you a little bit about Cüneyd Efendi, when Cüneyd Efendi was young he lost his mother and suffered a great trauma. For this reason he was diagnosed with Obsessive compulsive disorder, the inability to touch. Also, Mr. Cüneyd is a very knowledgeable and gentlemanly man. He has a mesmerizing good looks and aura. Extremely handsome!! He is always very thoughtful and knows where to say what to say. He is Gülayse's son and he is listened to in the Faniler Dergah because he is seen as an exalted person.

Let me also talk about Cüneyd's wife Zeynep. Zeynep is a very smart girl. She is almost the same age as me. She has a great interest in mathematics and loves to do operations. She is an expert in solving problems and riddles. She has a pure beauty. She wants to read and learn a lot, but her father does not allow her to study. Zeynep comes to the sect from her hometown to marry Cüneyd Efendi.

First they meet in the library.

Then in many other places. Finally they have a religious marriage.

Zeynep makes Cüneyd fall in love with her intelligence and beauty. Cüneyd also falls in love with Zeynep. Later on, some people break up between them and the series becomes even more gripping. Although dozens of events happen to them, Zeynep and Cüneyd love each other very much. In addition, there are many more events in the series, not only the love of these two. Meryem and Levent's love is also mentioned a lot because they are also the main actors.

I highly recommend you to watch the series, have a good time!!!

In the world of cliche and repetitive Turkish dizis,this series is an exception. The way that the storyline is woven and the events are designed makes you hooked all the time.

What I liked most is the dialogue and the magnificent way the senarist is trying to deliver the ideas without making the viewer feel like they are taking a lesson.

The focus onto details and the acting is something else! Every single person from the cast lives their role in a way that you forget that you are watching a series and feel like it's a real life experience. Congrats to both Mina and Mert on the huge success!