plamena-86164 *just saying that I won't look at the series from a historical perspective. I want to look at the series as A SERIES because that's what it is first and foremost. Since I made myself clear, let's begin. At the basics "Magnificent Century" tells the story of Suleiman the Magnificent as a Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and how a russian concubine Alexandra Lisowska (who becomes Hurrem Sultan) slowly and gradually makes him fall in love with her and forget about all else. However, if you think that's yet another soap opera where two people falling in love with each other struggle to overcome all odds together and later succeed in doing so, you're wrong. If you think this is your documentary history show, you're all wrong. (hence why: *) And if you think this show is perfect, you're also wrong. However, I fell in love with MC.First off, -the scenery and atmosphere. Stunningly planted throughout. Not only does it make you feel like you belong in the 16th century but you can also see the change of the times. Like literally, you can FEEL the atmosphere changing throughout the seasons with every death and "wrongful" event passing by- from the light and vibrant colors in the first 2 seasons to the progressively darker and hopeless feel in the last 2. The first season was calm, the second more dynamic, the third filled with adrenaline, while the fourth with sadness and hopelessness everywhere around. Also I'm not forgetting the wonderful costumes that are perfectly reflecting the spirits of each and every character (shout out to the designer there!) and the magnificent attention to detail and symbolism. However, there have been times when the directing has been a little abrupt and the wanted effect may not have been earned- the example that comes to mind for me is from episode 6 where a concubine was killed and the candles blew out symbolizing her death instead of making an effort to focus on the symbolism, the camera was constantly moving and it simply irritated me. They did get better with the later seasons (especially 2!) though despite that we can find some nitpicks here and there.-the cast. Top-notch, dare I say and Oscar-worthy. (this may be an exegration but I don't care TBH) Every single actor in this show portrayed his role more than amazingly- from the main characters to the one-note ones- EVERYONE did a truly spectacular job whether I liked their character or not.-the soundtrack. - TRULY MAGNIFICENT!! Literally... no complaint there. Crew did a magnificent job with the soundtrack of the show. Every single peace is extremely beautiful, thoughtful and heartfelt that there isn't even a single one I don't like. The powerful yet calming lullaby "Luli", the magnificent heartfelt and truly unbeatable "Mourning", "Mahidevran"- telling the story of an oppressed woman, "Ibrahim's Violin" and even the depressing melancholy lullaby of Hatice.... Out of all aspects of this show- I truly think they made the most effort with the soundtrack.. which is especially notable in Season 4- you can TELL this was the last season. And so forth... Now to the things that impressed me most..the monologues.To empower their character arcs, each of the main characters has a monologue or two. W But what is so impressive with these monologues?? They not only "empower" said character and the arc they undergo but and actually make us think. If you don't like said character, those monologues can actually turn things around for you. And not only this, there are also endless references to classic authors and their peaces of work and the poetry and effort put into these monologues is just incredible. (this is especially evident in the second and the fourth seasons where some turning events (including character deaths) happen) And now to the most impressive point: THE CHARACTERS.Yeah, I think the most impressive and interesting thing about this show , are the characters. Every single one of them is created and developed with a lot of heart and dedication of the writers. None of the characters is only good or only bad, we have just right actions and wrong actions, strengths and weaknesses and choices, we don't even know how right or wrong these are because a choice can be right for one character but wrong for another because said choices don't impact just said character, they impact EVERYONE. And aside from the writer's hand, a character is actually developing by the choices they make, am I right?? And so forth.. EVERY SINGLE character in this show is morally gray. Aside from the complexity and depth each character has, the gray morality is the thing that truly stands out in this show, in this period, in this epoque. And how this gray morality plays out truly is a sight to see. How these events constantly circle around between "black" and "white", how does all this affect the characters... you know, in most TV shows, the impressive thing is how your characters develop, change for the better and achieve their goals. Well here, these characters constantly downgrade, changing for the worse (sometimes even resulting in tropes such as flanderisation, character derailment and straight antagonism) which deepens their main characteristic and makes the situation even "grayer" as a result and shakes the supposed good or evil stereotype which makes the grayness hard to see. Yes, Hurrem is the main protagonist and we should be ,you know, rooting for her and her love and that she's supposed to be flawless and the target that does everything for self- defense, except that she isn't. She changes drastically as the series progresses and this isn't a positive change- she becomes way more ruthless, calculating, manipulative, vengeful and whatnot despite the positive light most people paint her on. I don't even want to talk about Ibrahim Pasha. Most complex and colorful character in the entire series. Mahidevran on the other hand is supposed to be viewed as the negative character we're supposed to hate because of the drastic things she does (the beating, the poisoning, episode 55, I'm looking at you etc.). But over the course of the series, we actually see a classical tragic character- a noble and oppressed woman that unfortunately outlives her son. Hatice is supposed to be a positive character at first glance in season 1, in season 2 she undergoes character deconstrustion and season 3 totally turns things around for her. And we can go on....But despite of all this perfection, I still have my gripes with this show. And my main one is in.... the script.For the first 2 seasons, Meral Okay ( may her soul rest in peace..) made sure we all enjoyed the show and wanted to know what will happen next. The harem intrigues may get on your nerves (especially later on) but the storyline itself is extremely unpredictable and up-wringing with endless twists and turns around the corner. You just want to spend time with this upbeat setting and the dynamic plot development is quite entertaining in its own right. I have to put and -the comedy out there which was also a secondary part of the show's charm. MC knows when to slow down and to kick back into the action. It knows when to insert its best and worst aspects on a satisfying and don't mind level. And it knows when which aspects to put in which is a quite important thing for a TV show, especially a show like this one. However, after Meral Okay's death (R.I.P again..) something changed. The tone, the atmosphere changed. But unlike others, I don't think it changed exactly for the worse. The series itself became more dramatic, darker and even dare I say deeper but with its soapy elements showing more and more, plot holes lurking through the corner, the series being more stretched than usual, the intrigues truly getting on your nerves and of course, Hurrem's change (which I actually don't mind- Vahide did a terrific job!) all of which turned some people off the show. That's actually why (Vahide aside) I'm rating this an 8.5/10 not a 10/10. Season 3 offered some interesting storylines but the unnecessary stretching ruined most of the things and Season 4, while it had an interesting look on character psychology, was even more stretched than usual and was actually the weakest in terms of plot despite that it was the deepest.All in all, this is an awesome show with lots of impressive qualities but of course, not without its flaws and yes, I DO reccomend it both to the people that want to learn something about the 16th century and the ones that want to watch something deep, dark, funny, thought-provoking and especially, entertaining.

larcam1 At first glance it appeared this would be a good series to watch. However, after 5 episodes it has become very boring. How many times are we going to see the same situations played out between the Sultan and his favorite concubine, Alexandra.The long close ups of every ones sad faces is too much to endure. The part I find most interesting is the costumes .... especially the hats. They are great.I will watch one or two more episodes and if the story line does not improve .... I am done with this series.

dertsizis This is too fictional or incorrect. In 1520, Harem wasn't founded. Hurrem who found harem is forcibly in harem. Actually Hurrem lived old palace. In 1541 Old palace burned and move topkapı palace. Series don't tell for making poor Hurrem. So we never see Hurrem's power which founded harem or first women sultanate. If you want series about harem. You made an incorrect choice for Suleyman. He maybe only and one sultan with one partner in other sultans. Also he was always in war. He didn't live too in Istanbul. They wrote too fictional character. Actually Mahidevran, Gulfem aren't in palace. His first wife Mahidevran, then Hurrem. After Hurrem death, Gulfem. Series changes chronology. If you want series about harem. You should choose 3.murad. He has got 130 children. Safiye & her son 3.mehmet killed all boy.

julia2702 It had been a while since I watched a long TV series, when my friend recommended "Magnificent Century" to me. She was insistent, and I just thought it so odd – I believed myself to be a long time over such silly soap operas, ever since I was a kid and Russian screens were inundated by various Mexican and Brazilian productions of this "controversial" genre. But after the 1st episode I found myself completely hooked! It was exactly that feeling when you fall in love with a work of art, sometimes for unknown reasons, but you really feel like in love – some changes are taking place in your consciousness, you are uplifted beyond words, almost walking on air : ) Yes, sometimes movie industry can do that. Last time I had this kind of emotional upheaval with BBC "Pride & Prejudice" about 20 years ago. And I thought – how interesting, this "MC" series will not offer you deep conversation, complex conflicts and special food for intellect, but it still captivates immensely.So, yeah, even a soap opera can be addictive. When it has quality, interesting script, visual attractiveness and obviously a heartfelt involvement from the cast & crew. Sadly, this magnificent production suffered from 2 serious blows – first, the death of genius scriptwriter Meral Okay (which is truly so sad and unfair, the series never was the same after that), and second - decision of Meryem Uzerli to leave the project. She was one of the main reasons I adored "MC". Sometimes casting is just so right, that the characters stay etched on your mind forever, almost as if they are real people. She gave us a fantastic Hurrem – beautiful, strong, powerful, magnetic, amusing, intelligent. I almost forgot that she was really a nasty, unscrupulous schemer when I looked at Meryem's portrayal. Somehow, she managed to make "nasty" deeply sympathetic, that you find yourself still rooting for her – no matter what mean intrigues Suleiman's beloved might be weaving.Apart from my fascination with red-haired Hurrem – the movie is soo eye- candy. Beautiful actors, splendid costumes and hairdos, nice music. I especially enjoyed the characters of Moustapha, Machidevran, Mihrimach, Suleiman's royally dignified mother, the handsome hero Bali-Bey. Suleiman himself - I found good, but not with any special emotion.A lot of unexpected turns of the plot. Competition between the soultan's women is not a deeply intellectual subject for sure, but so what – it is still compelling to observe. The way Hurrem climbed the social harem ladder, eventually rising to fame – not just as a ruler's wife, but also as a political figure in a sense – is worth applause.A lot of people blame this show for historical inaccuracies, and this is something I would neither deny, nor support. The primary purpose of such shows is entertainment, not a detailed account on history events. A thinking person will always at least google some information, to compare official biographies with the scriptwriter's fantasy. On the contrary, by giving us a bright fairy tale, film-makers excite our interest to at least start reading something on the period. A general outline and chronology of the events helps, too. I did not know much about Turkey before watching "MC", did not realize what glorious pages of history this country had seen. So should one really make such evil of an "inaccurate soap"? : ) And of course, each nation will portray themselves as heroes and their rivals as less worthy. This has been a paradox of all politics, since the beginning of times, and a human with raised awareness would only smile at it, in a good- humoured understanding way. More than just Ottoman Empire, the series caused me to start investigating history of other countries – first the same period, then expanding my field of interest. History deserves to be presented in a fun way – scientifically savvy people may grind their teeth, but for the general public it could still be a nice opportunity to immerse themselves in a period and get some educational material, even though simplified.So, I highly recommend it. "Magnificent Century" is a good entertainment, a quality work and an addictive "episode-turner". Perhaps it was a little too lengthy, but given other reasons for enjoyment this series produced, that's something I could easily overlook. 9/10.