Spoilers from Episode 12 of Masumlar Apartmani follow.
To look at the same sky with you*. That is why Naci returned. So that he could gaze at the same sky with his Safiye**. Though there were very few actual words that were spoken between them, and altogether by Naci this entire episode, the charged exchange at the start of this bolum completely transformed her. From his slow perusal of her at the doorway, to her surreptitious glances that searched for him from her window, the connection that began in their youth is clearly very much alive and well today, despite there many years apart. She tried to adhere to the cruel promise her mom forced her to make, closing the door to him and refraining from taking the white flower he gently offered to her, but when he appeared in front of her once more, at the edge of the apartment building, her carefully planned words escaped her. All she could do was stare at him, and he at her. Time stopped once more for them, but now, Naci intends to remove any obstacles between them, using tender poetry and soulful music to coax Safiye to renew the promises she had once made to him, to them. There have been many powerful performances in this dizi to date, but the scenes between Safiye and Naci were so brilliantly executed that they deserve special mention. The elegance and sophistication with which these two characters have found each other once more is truly heartwarming.
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No longer Carlos’ Maria, in this episode, Gulben’s imagination transported her to the land of fairytales, where she became Rapunzel, a damsel in distress, cast Esat as her prince, and Safiye as their obstacle. With such fantastical musings, it is no wonder Gulben did not believe Han’s words or understand his reasons for taking away her phone and grounding her inside the house. If Inci had not persuaded Han to let her take Gulben outside, it is highly likely that Gulben would have found another way to reach out to Esat. She is quite crafty when she puts her mind to something (i.e., drugging Safiye to leave the house to meet Esat for cay, etc.), so there was very little that Han could have actually done to stop her. Unfortunately though, the way that she woke up from her far-fetched dreams was heartbreaking to watch, as Gulben abandoned Inci to rush to the radio station to threaten Esra to stay away from Esat, for the third time. Having defamed Esra publicly on the radio, and having sent her a mutilated doll, she now resorted to physical violence, actively pushing Esra to move away from Esat. Of course, Gulben failed to realize how strong her anger had made her, or that Esra was standing in front of a glass door. But, when Esat held up droplets of blood from beneath Esra’s unconscious body laying atop the shattered pieces of glass, Gulben woke up. It was a cruel way to learn about reality, but her fear that she had killed Esra, shocked her out of her fantasies. The police escorting her to the station was the icing on the cake. Though, she proudly told Han that even though she was scared, she did not soil her clothes, she has a long way to go on her journey. Discerning between fact and fiction, Gulben must learn to keep more things in her heart, as Inci rightly advised. That precious space cannot be filled only by hopes and dreams of a man; there is so much more that can fit inside.
What would he do without her by his side, Han wonders out loud with amazement. For years, he was in control of his family and his sisters, but now, having tasted life once more with Inci, he is exhausted of trying to consider how to take care of everyone around him. He confesses to Inci that he is afraid he will fall, but she, truly his angel in this moment, tells him that she will be there to catch him. As it happens, when Inci loses sight of Gulben on their outing, Han is the one to reassure her and wipe away her tears, telling her that it was not her fault: Gulben would have tried to escape to Esat despite their best efforts to keep her away from him. For Han to trust Inci so completely with his family is wonderful, and adds maturity and depth to their relationship.
Esra is furious with Inci for choosing Han over her, feeling rejected and abandoned by her best friend. While she is justified in her feelings, a part of her discontent seems to be less from anger that Inci didn’t stay beside her, and more from envy over Han’s devotion to Inci, and hers to him. When Esra declared Han to be a maniac, she was hurt that Inci continued to stay beside him. This feeling of abandonment only made it more painful for Esra to absorb her relationship with Cuneyt, who seems content to keep his relationship with her in the shadows. And, despite their secret affair, she is unable to move past him. Feeling frustrated and alone, she posted a photo of Esat and her, even though she has no genuine feelings for him. She simply wanted what Inci has, and felt ashamed of her covert dealings with Cuneyt. The doll incident only magnified these feelings, and now she seems to be using Esat to confirm her feelings that Han and his family are crazy and unfit for Inci. Her trajectory these past few episodes has been very understandable, even if it is not admirable. Envy of others is preferable to anger or shame towards oneself. I’m very glad she was not killed or seriously injured by Gulben’s actions, but more than her physical wounds, her emotional hurts will take time to heal.
Neriman means bold and brave. The soft, but firm statement made by Naci to Gamze (dimples) in school was spot on.
Memduh Bey’s taxi driving days may end soon as his new schedule is not sustainable. Inci’s determination to fix their relationship is admirable. Inci is so different from her mother, and so loving towards her grandfather that with time, I think their relationship can be healed.
This episode left me pondering a few questions:
- Did Han know that the police officers were coming to take Gulben to the station, and was he the one who called them? Did Naci help him or advise him regarding Gulben’s situation?
- Did Naci intentionally seek Han out in their first meeting? Does Naci know about Han’s garbage/nighttime activities?
- Did the scene between Memduh Bey in his taxi and Han shuffling through things in the dumpster foreshadow an upcoming reveal where Memduh Bey discovered Han’s garbage/nighttime activities?
I'm not sure what will happen next, but I do believe that Naci is here to help. The depth and intensity of his character is fascinating. Looking forward to the next one!
*Goge Bakma Duragi (Sky Look Stop) by Turgut Uyar (translated from: http://www.siirpenceresi.com/poetikmetinler/bakiasilturk2.htm)
We can both rejoice, let’s look at the sky
From those stray lights, those sugar canes
From baby teeth to suns from weeds
Take those eyes that I wasted nonstop, save
Take my cowardly hands
Skip these houses, these houses and these too
Let’s look at the sky
We come to that and now, let’s look at the sky
We say there is to get off, the bus stops, we get off
This darkness is such a good forgive God
Everybody sleep well, I like it
Thieves, cops, hungry, sleepy
Everybody sleep, I don’t make you sleep and I don’t sleep
We’ll be when everybody’s gone, let’s not sleep
We are drunk anyway we kiss the streets anyway
Let me look at the sky
I don’t know what you have in these hands, let’s look at the sky
I get stronger as I hold on, I get crowded
It’s your old-time eyes like lonely trees
I’m look for my waters to get warm
I took you brought you to this lonely place
You had countless windows, I closed one after another
I closed it one by one to return to me
Now the bus comes and go
Like a place we won’t turn to another kind of difficult
One of your hands, one of my hands is enough, let’s make it clear
I took you, I took you apart, don’t stop remind yourself
Don’t stop remind yourself
Let’s look at the sky
**One Day, Early in the Morning by Turgut Uyar (translated by George Messo)
Say I knock at the door one day, early morning,
Wake you from your sleep:
And yet, fog still lingers on the Golden Horn.
There’s the echo of ferry horns.
Twilight everywhere,
The bridge is still up.
Say I knock at the door early one morning…
My journey has been long
The train passed over iron bridges at night.
Villages in the middle of nowhere with five or ten houses.
Telegraph poles all along the route
Running to keep up with us.
Suppose I sang songs from the window,
Woke up, dozed off, woke up again.
My ticket, third class
Poorer than poor.
Say I couldn’t buy that meerschaum necklace
So I bought you a basket of apples instead…
Haydarpasa open your arms we might have said
The ferry glittering at the pier
Air a little cold
Sea smelling of fish and tar
Say I crossed from the bridge to the other shore in a rowing boat,
Climbed our hill in a single breath…
Say I knock at the door early one morning,
-Who’s that? You’d ask in a sleepy voice.
Your hair ruffled, and heavy-eyed.
Who knows how beautiful you’d look my love,
If I knock at the door one morning,
Wake you from your sleep
And yet, fog still lingers on the Golden Horn.
There’s the sequel of factory whistles.
