Masumlar Apartmani: Season 1, Episode 25

by
HanInci_25

Spoilers from Episode 25 are included in the following discussion. 

 

Inci & Han:

Hasibe made him feel so worthless that he felt his place, his home, were really among the city’s trash. After initially running from the horror of his secret, Inci returns, wanting to learn more about this side of him, and then needing a night away from him at Esra’s to process all that she had learned. The next day she issues an ultimatum, demanding that he get psychological treatment or live without her, explaining to him that she no longer wanted him to feel worthless, urging him to heal the hurt child within. Bravely, she tells him that she fears that his traumas of childhood will affect how he may parent their child. 

Understandably, he was furious at her for forcing the truth from him, blaming her for not being content with his sunny and charismatic side. In his musings, he even wondered whether he should bring her along with him, and keep her in the garbage dump forever. With this question in his mind, and a brief image of Ceylan among the trash, I suspect that though his initial explanation for the reason for his dumpster dives were his feelings of worthlessness as a child, now as an adult, his night escapades empower him by making him feel that there is no one who is more dangerous than him because there is no one who has been more unloved than him. Trauma, just like a physical wound, if left untreated can fester, become infected and unsightly, such that even a practiced health professional may not be able to deduce the cause of the initial incision. Han’s mental state is similarly just as complex: though he was unloved by his mother as a child, he weaponized that pain as an adult by allowing any admiration or affection he feels for another to give him a carte blanche to “protect” those he loves by destroying anyone who threatens that love. Perhaps, his devious acts are justifiable to him because he believes that love means more to him than to others, so he is allowed to “protect” his loved ones in a more aggressive way. His encounters with Uygar, Haluk Bey, Ege, Naci, and now Esra all confirm this outlook. And, in regards to Esra: not only was she treated horribly by both Inci and Esat in the last episode, but in this episode, Han actively terrorized her. The shower scene was alarming! To add insult to injury, he came back to Inci and was positively gloating about his ability to noiselessly return without bothering her, subtly implying that he was able to successfully frighten Esra without her being aware of his actions. It is possible that Inci will only see how unbalanced Han’s mental state is when Esra is actively harmed, as Inci may need to see actual proof of how damaging Han’s behavior can be to others before she realizes that he may not be suitable or safe for her to be around, until he gets help.

Inci took a step backwards after she issued her ultimatum, returning to their bedroom and attending Safiye’s birthday party as though she had not threatened to leave him only a few hours earlier. She heard her mother’s voice in her mind when she returned to him at the garbage dump after initially learning of his activities, remembering her mother telling her of the unconditional quality of love. Perhaps that is influencing her to stay with him now, though this explanation is a bit spotty as she actively hated the way her mother loved Haluk Bey and likened her mother’s love for him to a disease. I wonder if she will begin to view her feelings for Han in the same way. 

 

Gamze, Neriman & Ege:

Ege’s father tells Neriman that Ege actually loves her, just as Ege and Gamze silently returned from the kitchen with tea. Although Neriman looked pleased by Haluk Bey’s words, Gamze looked to Ege in horror, desperately wanting him to deny what had just been said. But, Ege didn’t say a word, letting Gamze flee the room, as Neriman ran behind her. In spite of all the ways Gamze has tried to insert herself in Ege’s life, he and Neriman have a connection that does not include her. Gamze has liked him since she first saw him, and when he asked her out, she believed that he cared for her too. After their initial ‘date’, he was objectively less and less interested in her, even going so far as to tell Neriman not to leave her hair down because then she would look like Gamze. Despite being characterized as shallow, and being rude to Neriman, Gamze has not done anything so malicious to deserve such callous treatment. I wish that she could find the strength to accept his rejection and move on. 

 

Gulben & Esat:

Initially refusing to meet him for tea because it was Safiye’s birthday, Gulben changes her mind and agrees. But this time, unlike at their first outing, she is honest with him about herself. She tells him that she won’t drink the cafe’s cay because she has brought her own, along with spotless bleached glasses. As they converse, he studies her, confounded by how much she knows about him and how much she remembers of their youth; she tells him not to fight with Esra because of her, surprising him with her kindness once more; and telling him that she would always want him to be content because if he was happy, then she would be too.

The best part about these developments is that Gulben has put her dreams to rest. Whereas her siblings are in as much the same place as they were at the start of the series in regards to their reactions to the traumas of childhood, she has experienced true character growth. We no longer see her imagining a fiction or fantasy that does not exist. Instead, she firmly tells Esat that if he wants to socialize with her, he may call her as she won’t call him. Applause for her and for them: watching their friendship blossom is heartwarming.  

 

Neriman, Naci & Safiye:

Neriman asks him, after rubbing her eyes furiously with a wipe to remove the mascara, how he could love Safiye. He doesn't answer her, but gently tells her that she should not hurt herself. When he speaks to Safiye later, he tries to help her understand that she was hurting Neriman the same way that Hasibe tormented her when she was young. These words, which had partly already been told to her by Inci only a few hours earlier, caused her to lash out at him for abandoning his daughter. He was shocked that she could be so cruel to him, and rightly walked away. Although he has seen Safiye’s ‘other’ side before, he may have expected that their conversations and outings had begun to soften her. Unfortunately, she still exhibits the same traits that she did before. Perhaps, a change of scene would hasten a transformation within her; it seems that whenever she returns to their house, she adopts all of Hasibe’s worst behaviors. When she was out of the house, at her birthday party, she sagely advised Neriman to not grow up so quickly, as childhood was precious. That Safiye is a much kinder person. 

 

Safiye & Naci: 

Trying to find an appropriate place for her birthday gift from Naci, Safiye examined the terrarium more closely, admiring the plants and the cabin that he had so carefully arranged in the small glass container. Unfortunately, her close inspection revealed a serpent slithering between the greenery, causing her to shriek and drop the glass bowl with such force that it shattered. Whether the serpent represents Hasibe poisoning Safiye or Naci’s illness, or both, this scene seemed to foreshadow that ominous events may be upcoming. The poetry that he has recited to her and shared with her have all been expressions of his love and their love, intended to deepen and affirm the connection between them. The terrarium he gifted her with somehow seemed bereft to her, as he had not included a male figurine to stand beside her; perhaps, he was trying to convey to her, as eloquently as he could, that he could not be there for her much longer. 

When her mother was confined to the house following her stroke, she demanded that Safiye promise to never leave the house again. When Safiye learns of Naci’s illness, I wonder if he will ask her to promise him that she will pursue her dreams once more, and fulfill the goals that she had outlined for her young self. Maybe she could utilize the gift that her father gave to her to try at school again?

 

Haluk Bey: Despicable: 

Despite being too drunk to entertain, he tries to ready himself to meet Ege’s friends. Of course, with his faculties impaired, he fails miserably, humiliating Ege. While I was watching him imbibe the alcohol that is now toxic to him, I wondered why Haluk Bey couldn’t have been married to someone as evil as Hasibe; would the next generation be better off if the disreputable among us were attracted to evil, and the gentle souls, such as Hikmet Bey, were paired with the devoted? 

 

The Penultimate Scene: The Slap: 

Well, Safiye slapped Inci. Upon hearing that Inci was encouraging Han to see a psychologist, and Han was agreeing to seek treatment, Safiye lashed out at Inci, literally, slapping her with her bare hand across her face. Safiye’s words tend to have enough bite to them; she does not need to resort to physical violence. Moreover, since she has experienced abuse at her mother’s hand, I was disappointed that she took this step. How will she clean her hands now that she has touched Inci? 

 

The Final Scene: News of Haluk Bey’s Death

As Inci is leaving the suite, reeling from Safiye’s violence, she sees Ege at the door, announcing that their father had passed away. This news makes an already distraught Inci seek to channel her grief towards someone. As her anger for Safiye was still raging, she put her outside shoes on, walked inside and kneeled down in Safiye's salon, sobbing in pain*.

 

*“The meanest thing to which we bid adieu, loses its meanness in the parting hour.” Elliott 

Last Updated: Mar 17, 2021 03:37 am (UTC) Filed Under:
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