by Paola Cesarini
"Çatı Katı Aşk" or "Romance Next Door" is perhaps the most Turkish show of this summer's rom-com season. According to this non-Turkish reviewer, it is also the most original, in the sense that the series offers a fresh narrative that is neither a facsimile nor a remake of an existing dizi.
In a nutshell, "Çatı Katı Aşk" focuses on the extremely loving but chaotic extended Yılmaz family. Owners of a restaurant in a colorful popular Istanbul mahalle, they are experiencing a financial crisis. To make ends meet, the patriarch seeks to rent their home's attic apartment to a married couple. Ateş Avcı, a handsome young man who rebels against his rich but loveless family, and Yasemin Çetin, an aspirant chef whose father is gravely ill, fake their marriage to lease the Yılmaz's conveniently priced attic. It turns out, however, that the newcomers have already had tempestuous first encounters with two of the family's young members: Ayşen and Demir. The series thus offers fertile ground for interesting personal and group dynamics, where sparks have already begun to fly.
A clever ensemble comedy, "Çatı Katı Aşk" contains several traits that, in the past, have ensured the long-term survival of successful rom-coms in the tough Turkish TV market. First, the series offers a complex intertwined narrative of several parallel stories that challenge the genre's typical simplistic premises, and promise interesting twists and turns along the way. The show also appears to take romance and comedy equally seriously, in what already feels like a clever balance between humor and drama.
Second, "Çatı Katı Aşk" provides good-looking and multi-layered leads with interesting and challenging background stories, which viewers can empathize with, notwithstanding the general humorous quality of the series. For example, in a welcome change from other rom-coms, it is the wealthy male lead, who has to work hard to become accepted into a community of lower social status.
Cleverly interpreted by Furkan Andıç, Ateş is thus far the most interesting lead character. A handsome heir to a wealthy family with an apparent sense of entitlement, Ateş is also extremely smart, brave, talented, sensitive, and gifted with a good sense of humor. Beneath the overconfident young man, however, lies a vulnerable boy who lost his mother at an early age, grew up with a rigid and tyrannical father, excelled in his studies well enough to become a Medical Doctor, but chose to follow his passion and became a champion race driver. Ateş is proud enough to renounce his father's wealth, but not too arrogant to ignore how his initial foolish deception deeply hurt Ayşen (interpreted by Ezgi Şenler). Also thanks to Furkan Andıç's brilliant impersonation, Ateş experiences significant character development already during the first episode. It will be interesting to witness where this character goes next.
Ayşen is the beloved adoptive daughter of the Yılmaz family. She is beautiful, bright, disciplined, and talented, and dreams to become a fashion designer. While young and inexperienced, Ayşen is all but naive. She is also feisty and proud. Her vehement reaction to Ateş' ruse, which she uncovers in no time, further indicates that the young woman is steadfast in her principles and does not suffer fools easily. It is a delight to see the diminutive Ayşen teach a very powerful life lesson to the towering and smug Ateş in a very practical demonstration that size need not always matter.
Third, there is good potential chemistry between Ateş and Ayşen, which is at traits reminiscent of Defne and Ömer's initial interaction in "Kıralık Aşk" -- i.e. the gold standard of Turkish rom-coms. And while "Çatı Katı Aşk's" first episode lacks perhaps a prolonged focus on romance, the scenes between Ateş and Ayşen have an undeniable magical quality.
The above clip from episode one narrates Ateş and Ayşen's first sizzling encounter (starting at 2:17). Viewers have not witnessed the emergence of such a magnificent male specimen from beneath a vehicle at least since Çağatay Ulusoy slipped out from under his red Mustang in "Içerde" four years ago. The scene's full sensual impact on Ayşen is cleverly underscored by a black/white pause in the action. However, it is the ensuing fiery conversation, during which the girl powerfully chastises an initially tone-deaf Ateş for lying about his identity, which sets a promising tone for the future of this relationship.
There are, however, two other relationships in "Çatı Katı Aşk" that hold promise: that between Demir and Yasemin, and the developing comradeship between Ateş and Yasemin.
Fourth, there are many familiar faces in "Çatı Katı Aşk," whose acting talent is impressive. Indeed, the ensemble cast of this series is potentially among the strongest we have seen in recent years. With the exception of Ateş's horrible father, most of the series' secondary characters are thus far both quirky and endearing, rather than supremely annoying. Hopefully, viewers will be spared the irritating individuals that unfortunately too often populate Turkish rom-coms.
Fifth, "Çatı Katı Aşk" paints a visually rich tableau in support of the series' narrative. Colors abound, especially in the mahalle, and the costumes/accessories are clearly selected with great care to underscore the idiosyncratic stylistic and personality traits of each character. At the same time, the backgrounds and protagonists of the series feel real, rather than artificially concocted.
Whether "Çatı Katı Aşk" will be able to involve TV audiences long-term as much as the successful rom-coms of the past -- e.g. "Kıralık Aşk" or "Erkenci Kuş" -- remains to be seen. The sustained romance between Ateş and Ayşen, the yet to be determined involvement between Demir and Yasemin, as well as the time and effort dedicated to expanding these relationships will be critical in this regard. In particular, it would be wise for the screenwriters quickly to move these couples' dynamics beyond the initial confrontational stance and into a varied typology of interactions that, while not necessary romantic bliss, may at least bring the lead characters together in a meaningful fashion.
"Çatı Katı Aşk" airs on Thursdays on Kanal D.
@ Article Copyright by Dizilah and Paola Cesarini
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