Resurrection Ertugrul: An epic with heart and values

I have to say that I'm impressed by how the crew making the series have managed to complete so many episode in such a relatively short time. I don't know how they've done that. They must have had people working day and night writing dialogue, filming, acting etc. I'm not familiar enough with the process of shooting scenes for films or series to say for sure, but making all those 'Western' films and series seem to take much longer, at least from what you read sometimes.

I guess it just goes to show that when 'you're coming from the right place', with pure and more honest intentions, the story kind'a writes itself and those working are more motivated to do long hours. Or, a more mundane explanation is that the Turkish state has thrown a huge amount of money at them. Hopefully the reasons is the former.

And, apparently, the off-spin and continuation of the saga is now in full swing with 'Kurulus: Osman'.
 
I watched up to Ep 5 from the first season and so far I am captivated by the detail of the script or the production rather. The type? of the production being epic hystoric is using heavy research into the proto otoman tribe life in the XII th century. See the scene with the cow dung being used to whiten the linnen. That reminds me of a history museum I visited in Turkey (pity, the only one), where beside the dioramas, elaborate explanatory notes were attempting to reconstruct the everyday life of the peoples. No wonder in the credits at least three top entries are university professors.
Another captivating aspect is the richness of verbal communication and in the same time the scarcity of dialogue. The entire language is based on hyperbolae, metaphors, comparisons and indirect tone. Second person in direct tone is rarely used and it is to accentuate or emphasize conflictual depictions. I suppose one would need those moments as engaging mechanism otherwise the viewer would fall asleep, fact that happened in my case.
Last captivating aspect is the music and videography, at least for me.
 
The conclusion I have come to regarding the show is that except for some details and rituals, it doesn't matter at all whether Ertugrul and his people are Muslims or Christians or whatever. Islam here is represented as the One True Religion, and the way they do it, they have understood quite a bit. You could just as easily use Christianity as your starting point to depict and dramatize the One True Religion. In fact, it speaks volumes about Western culture that we need a somewhat cheesy Turkish-Muslim TV show to get that level of spiritual depth. What a shame! It is utterly unthinkable that Hollywood or Western Netflix would produce anything even remotely like this but coming from a Western spiritual background. It's all cynicism in Western culture when it comes to religion or spirituality.

It is a shame, and no doubt part of the reason we find ourselves in the present mess. We've thrown out any sort of religious sentiment out of our lives as we have been made to falsely believe that science has proven that religion is a bunch of fairy tales. It's all well to criticize religion where such criticism fits, but to throw away the whole thing, and replace it with a cult of narcissism or Wokeness, is frankly idiotic and dangerous.
 
I'm on episode 20 of Ertugrul (where episodes are broken into 45 min blocks). I too really enjoy the wisdom and positive role-models in it, and the positive social values shown.

In fact, it speaks volumes about Western culture that we need a somewhat cheesy Turkish-Muslim TV show to get that level of spiritual depth. What a shame! It is utterly unthinkable that Hollywood or Western Netflix would produce anything even remotely like this but coming from a Western spiritual background. It's all cynicism in Western culture when it comes to religion or spirituality.

It also is a real testament to the important of us building a multi-polar world where there's lots of cross-fertilization of cultures and ideas. Each country and region seems to be at a different stage in the hysteroidal cycle, and nations which retain greater psychological knowledge at certain points in time can produce culture and knowledge asserts that more aware people can use inside deteriorating countries to help identify and exclude pathology and hopefully slow down the rot.

From Ponerology:
One accomplishment of modern science, contributing to the destruction of these eternal (ponerogenic) cycles, is the development of communication systems which have linked our globe into one huge “village”. The time cycles sketched herein used to run their course almost independently in various civilizations at different geographical locations. Their phases neither were, nor are, synchronized. We can assume that the American phase lags 80 years behind the European. When the world becomes an inter-related structure from the viewpoint of communicating both information and news, different social contents and opinions caused by unlike phases of said cycles, inter alia, will overflow all boundaries and information security systems. This will give rise to pressures which can change the causative dependencies herein. A more plastic psychological situation thus emerges, which increases the possibilities for pinpointed action based on an understanding of the phenomena.
 
This is a really great show. I wanted to share some observations I have been contemplating in regards to my thoughts on culture and tradition. Whats really struck me in the show is the relationship they have with tradition within their customs and thinking. So essentially culture vs tradition. I was beginning to see, or from what i'm currently thinking is that the culture of the nomad groups was potentially being changed or "infected" by the culture of the templars/ by attitudes of ambition and power. (ponerization)

In the thread on Paul's Necessary Sin, Genius was described as the metric of spirit progression vs academic/culture metrics, as they are changing metrics throughout history. So they aren't at all objective in any sense. From this idea, it struck me why the importance on tradition was so prevalent, that it super-ceded this idea of fitting in with other places. like the palace in Allepo, because it kept them grounded in their faith.

This idea of culture vs tradition. Tradition depicted in the show is a relationship and/or the imbued sense of the divine in the nomad group. It is apart of their identity/ it keeps them on the right path, it keeps them in touch with the divine. In this case their chosen religion. With this contrast, seeing the change in culture that was happening due to the manipulations/ lying that seemed to arise from the bad eggs in the group/ outside influences on the group or trying to move with the times. It really struck me, the importance of the relationship with the divine in the group as their rudder so to speak.

Why it was so important to keep tradition, as the old ways always seemed to carry this spiritual perspective, as in life is religion it should be treated as such.. Vs the seemingly "new" culture of power, ambition that always seemed to be creeping forwards onto the group and change the path of fighting tyrants.

So just really thinking about this show, its thought provoking. Wanted to throw my thoughts in the arena.
 
I’m enjoying this show too. I love the Kayi tribe’s unshakeable faith in family & community, religion, customs, tradition, hospitality (to guests/strangers) & love. As others have noted, I too see similarities in The Odyssey. There is no sex (a nice change), just a chaste kiss on the forehead & deep loving stares across the tent. The violence is bearable- the combat scenes are stylised & any blood is blurred out. If one can look past the Islamic gloss, there are some deep core values of love, faith, family, a pursuit of truth & a connection with the Divine. The scenes with Ibn Arabi and his words of wisdom add to the allure of the show.

Tradition depicted in the show is a relationship and/or the imbued sense of the divine in the nomad group. It is apart of their identity/ it keeps them on the right path, it keeps them in touch with the divine.
I agree. In some of JBP’s talks he mentions that when Neitzsche proclaimed that ‘God was dead’ it was catastrophic for the West- it signalled the loss of faith in the Divine and the heralded the descent into scientific materialism. We are witnessing the results of this pervasive ideology (materialism/post-modernism). As luc said above, ‘it speaks volumes about Western culture that we need a somewhat cheesy Turkish-Muslim TV show to get that level of spiritual depth.’
 
I only watched first 15 episodes of Ertugrul series, though I started the series. I enjoy it if I watch moderately. Living in a Tribal world of interdependency with group thinking in a world of scarcity is very different from our modern life. It was depicted very well. The time setting is interesting. No one empire is strong, the previous empire is weak and fragmented making every thing is for grabs for 3 different directions and the this tribe has to survive in this situation.

I enjoyed the episodes if I watch 1 or 2. But, watching more than a few in a day is somewhat depressing. The same negative characters get away plotting different things day after day, while the sufferers only can watch it, because they have to listen to the head of the tribe. I enjoyed the dialogs, action, Love and mystic touch etc. Like in South Asia, family setting (psychologically) is very realistic. All sort of people with different characteristics has to live together for the family dynamics to playout.
I have to say that I'm impressed by how the crew making the series have managed to complete so many episode in such a relatively short time. I don't know how they've done that. They must have had people working day and night writing dialogue, filming, acting etc. I'm not familiar enough with the process of shooting scenes for films or series to say for sure, but making all those 'Western' films and series seem to take much longer, at least from what you read sometimes.
Interestingly, the number of episodes in Netflix are 3 times more than what is made in Turkish. I am not sure about the length of Turkish show.
First airedLast airedNetwork
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
126[a]December 10, 2014June 17, 2015TRT 1
235https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diriliş:_Ertuğrul#cite_note-9

[TD]September 30, 2015[/TD]
[TD]June 8, 2016[/TD]
[TD][/TD]

[TR]
[TD][/TD]

[TH]3[/TH]
[TD]30[c][/TD]
[TD]October 26, 2016[/TD]
[TD]June 14, 2017[/TD]
[TD][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]

[TH]4[/TH]
[TD]30[d][/TD]
[TD]October 25, 2017[/TD]
[TD]June 6, 2018[/TD]
[TD][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]

[TH]5[/TH]
[TD]29[e][/TD]
[TD]November 7, 2018[/TD]
[TD]May 29, 2019[8][/TD]
[TD][/TD]
[/TR]

Notes
  1. ^ 76 on Netflix & PTV
  2. ^ 103 on Netflix, 104 on PTV
  3. ^ 91 on Netflix
  4. ^ 90 on Netflix
  5. ^ 88 on Netflix
 
@Ina

Season 1 & 2 are on this youtube channel.
Ty! I am currently at Season 2 Ep. 27 on Netflix. I’ll start watching again from Season 1 Ep 1 on the LP version. It will be great to see if and how the bite size on Netflix affects the narrative.
 
About 2 hours long for each episode, and season 1 (where I am up to) has 26 episodes :-D
That makes sense. Turkish people must have lot of patience to sit for 2 hrs ( add another 20 or 30 minutes for advertisements and others in between) to watch each episode. It may be longer than a soccer match. I am assuming that "episode" means a single stretch of time.
 
I guess it just goes to show that when 'you're coming from the right place', with pure and more honest intentions, the story kind'a writes itself and those working are more motivated to do long hours. Or, a more mundane explanation is that the Turkish state has thrown a huge amount of money at them. Hopefully the reasons is the former.

I think that it is probably the latter. Even if the end result does contain a lot of positive messages. And it is probably due to what was said earlier:

We are witnessing the results of this pervasive ideology (materialism/post-modernism). As luc said above, ‘it speaks volumes about Western culture that we need a somewhat cheesy Turkish-Muslim TV show to get that level of spiritual depth.’

I already shared my impressions of Ertugrul, so this time will share something else. Recently I talked to a friend who practically binged on the show. She is a mature and very reasonable Western woman, and she never binged on any show before. According to her this show is absolutely unique and impressive, and she just couldn't stop watching it. It's like she longed for something that was missing in any other Western entertainment.

She also mentioned the fact that all the characters were clothed, and the most "revealing" or "intimate" element was a kiss on a forehead. And yet the actors still managed to express incredible depth of emotion and affection. She said that she had "nudity fatigue" from all the Western shows, even if they were interesting, like "Outlander".

So it seems that this is the reason behind success of such shows. While Western shows rely more and more on shock factors, like unnecessary nudity, gore and "brutal realism", Turkish shows offer historic myths, celebration of traditional values, and higher meaning or goals.

But there is no doubt that Turkey (or specifically Erdogan) has a specific geopolitical reason for creating and distributing such shows.

Here's a video by Al Jazeera's channel, where they discuss the success of Ertugrul in other countries. It appears to be a "soft critique" of Turkey's "soft power", but still provides a good explanation why such shows probably get a lot of funding.

My personal opinion that all of this doesn't take away from the quality of the show. I actually find it amusing that despite Ertugrul's success, it didn't affect or improved Erdogan's image or his megalomaniac idea of "recreating the Ottoman Empire with him as a sultan". But I bet that he probably thinks differently. Just proves that "wishful thinking will get you every time". ;-)


And just to add a bit about many traitors in the show. Apparently Ramzan Kadyrov, Chechnya's leader, is a fan of the show. But he wasn't when he only begun watching it. He then remarked that he didn't understand why many of his friends loved the show. He said that it was strange to him that there were so many traitors, because according to him an emphasis should be put on making sure that there are no traitors in the close circle. ;-)

But then he continued watching and his opinion changed. He also visited the shooting location, and particularly loved the well-trained horses. Some of the actors (Ertugrul's alps) also visited Chechnya and were treated like royalty. His third son Adam also played a small role in the series.


 
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Here's a video by Al Jazeera's channel, where they discuss the success of Ertugrul in other countries. It appears to be a "soft critique" of Turkey's "soft power", but still provides a good explanation why such shows probably get a lot of funding.

I must say I don't really buy that "soft power" argument that much. I'm sure Erdogan does milk the show's success as much as he can, but you can't just create a great show that touches people's hearts worldwide by throwing money at it and for propaganda purposes. More likely, it seems to me, is that the show got good funding (the theme and general idea is certainly nothing Erdogan and gang would oppose), and it resonated so much with people that it became a cultural phenomenon. And then of course, it's only natural for Turkish institutions, embassies and the government to use that success for their own purposes. Just speculation of course, maybe there is more concrete info out there?

And could it be that those states who cry "soft power" (gulf states, katar, ...) are projecting a bit here? And that they feel offended by the overall positive message about good and benevolent leadership?

But then he continued watching and his opinion changed. He also visited the shooting location, and particularly loved the well-trained horses.

I noticed that the horses are just gorgeous in the show. And these actors can ride!!
 
My personal opinion that all of this doesn't take away from the quality of the show. I actually find it amusing that despite Ertugrul's success, it didn't affect or improved Erdogan's image or his megalomaniac idea of "recreating the Ottoman Empire with him as a sultan".
Same here.
And could it be that those states who cry "soft power" (gulf states, katar, ...) are projecting a bit here? And that they feel offended by the overall positive message about good and benevolent leadership?
Yep. And that's why I think it ultimately fails as propaganda. Critics of the Ottoman Empire, or Erdogan, can simply use it to say: "Look how far the mighty have fallen; they're obviously not living up to Etugrul's ideals." I saw a YouTube comment recently to this effect. The guy said something like, "Turkish leaders like Ertugrul don't exist anymore."
 
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