Can Yaman International Presents: Dolunay Episode Guides

Episode Guide to "Dolunay" ("Full Moon"): Episode 1

First, we meet Nazli, a beautiful, energetic young woman. She lives with her younger sister Ausman and her best friend Fatos. In the very first scene, she is cooking breakfast. We see right away that she knows her way around a kitchen and a cutting board. Soon after, she is running to her culinary class where she charms the instructor as she apologizes for being late and asks what they are making. Next, we see her mixing the ingredients without using a measuring device or consulting a recipe. When the instructor challenges her methods, she explains that her Grandmother taught her to "eye" her measurements. This actually turns out well for her and she is proven to be a true talent in the kitchen.

After class, the instructor meets her outside and asks if she is still looking for a job. He tells her he knows of someone looking for a personal chef. She begs him to consider her and he agrees to send her the details.

Not much later, she arrives at a beautiful house, taking in the surroundings as the security guard directs her to a woman seated at an outside oasis. Mrs. Ikbal, Ferit Aslan's assistant, is strictly business as she tells Nazli about the rules of the house and what is expected of her as the new chef. She is not to enter any other room but the kitchen. She must strictly adhere to the menu given to her, and the groceries for the meals must be bought fresh every day. She cannot eat out of the refrigerator. She must arrive by ten and leave by five, and she cannot change the place of any of the things in the kitchen. Although she thinks all of the rules are strange, Nazli immediately falls in love with the kitchen and accepts the job.

As she prepares her first meal, she cranks up her tunes, dons her apron and begins to make not a meal but a masterpiece of stuffed artichokes. She leaves a quick note on how to add a special sauce she has prepared and leaves the kitchen. We see she is a little defiant as she stands looking into the sitting room. At first, she doesn't enter but does stick in her toe just over the threshold. But before we know it, she walks into the room taking in a vast record collection and the portrait of a stately old man on the wall. She assumes the picture is her new boss, Ferit Bey.

We are introduced to Ferit's personality before we actually see him in a scene. His associates are outside talking about how he is never late for a meeting and obviously he was held up in traffic. They are concerned their meeting will not go off as planned and are pacing nervously. Suddenly, overhead a helicopter hovers and then lands on the tarmac. Out steps an incredibly handsome young man that oozes wealth and arrogance. Meet Ferit Aslan. He looks nothing like the portrait in the sitting room that Nazli saw.

Moments later, we see him driving his red sports car up the driveway at his home. As he gets out of the car, he continues to talk to his assistant, Mrs. Ikbal, about the new cook. He enters the house, ends the phone call, then quickly notices one of the entry lights is askew. With a precise movement, he lines it up perfectly with the rest of the lights.

Upstairs in his bedroom, he glances at the dresser and finds dust on it. His look tells us he is not pleased. When he comes back downstairs after changing clothes, he notices immediately that the kitchen counter tops are now cluttered with Nazli's spices and oils. He frowns. Then he sees Nazli's note on the oven door with instructions for him to drizzle oil on the stuffed artichokes, to make them even more delicious. Irritated, he throws the note on the counter, calls Mrs. Ikbal and tells her to fire the new cook. However, as he serves himself the dinner Nazli left for him, the look of pure pleasure on his face tells us that this first bite has won him over.

The next morning, he is in the office reading a report. Mrs. Ikbal comes in and tells him there is a young lady on the phone wondering why he hasn't called her back. It seems like this has happened many times before because Mrs. Ikbal follows a routine of sending these young ladies flowers and chocolates. Before she can leave, Ferit asks if she has talked to the new chef yet. She replies that she will call Nazli in the afternoon and pay her for a day's work. Ferit tells her to leave it for now, but to tell Nazli not to leave him any notes. He adds that Mrs. Ikbal can, however, fire the cleaner.