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mc-critical · 2 years

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Say that you are a writer for MC and gulnihal was never sent away. What storyline/arc would you have for her in the rest of the seasons? Her character had so much potential, it felt like a waste when she left.

Alright, I got inspired, so I'm going to answer this both ways: what would happen with Gülnihal if her storyline in the rest of the show remained intact and what would I do with her if it didn't. (to be fair, I'm fine with her leaving, because she deserves much better than being in this toxic harem and I'm happy she got out of it and had it better than most of the main cast, hopefully living with a guy she loves, but the way it was executed indeed left a lot to be desired.)

If what happened to her before was the same, she would go back to her duties after she recovered from the events in E23. She would learn about Leo's death pretty quickly and she wouldn't want to leave Hürrem alone in such a moment of loss. She would be there for her in her trauma and both of them would often lament on the past in these early days after his death. Gülnihal would be very protective of her then and wouldn't let anyone get to her.

Gülnihal would definitely help raise Hürrem's children. She would witness their growth. She would have a very strong bond with all of them, but especially Mehmet, Mihrimah and (eventually) Cihangir. When they discover Cihangir's sickness, she would take care of him a lot. When she sees Selim and Bayezid argue, she would scold them. The children would also have a big attachment to her, similarly to Esma, and they would view her as their second mother, sharing stuff with her they would hide from Hürrem otherwise. Gülnihal would be the first one to know about Mihrimah breaking Hürrem's crown and would help find a way out of the situation. She would know about Bayezid secretly going on the campaign in S03, since she would suspect it given Bayezid's issues and Cihangir would tell her later on before they let Hürrem know, too. The children just would trust her that much. She would also support Selim very much when he is little.

I would certainly give Gülnihal a subplot with Sümbül. That little thing was heading towards something in the show and it would be a missed opportunity not to flesh it out, right? She would grow to have some appreciation of him and the way he cheers the harem up and would eventually learn how he feels about her, but they both know it wouldn't be possible in such environment. Still, they would remain good friends and she would take his side more often than not against Gül Aga. She, like Nigar and Daye, would try her best to stop the continuous banter between them, visiting them in her spare time to calm down from all the tension in the harem or when she or Hürrem want to get something from Şeker Aga.

I would give Gülnihal more relationships besides Hürrem, since she would be staying for later seasons. In contrast to Hürrem, Gülnihal would be rather well-liked by the concubines, because of the compassionate and conflict-averse personality she would retain. She would get along well with Esma, because of the care they both give to the children and their similar kind-hearted nature. I would give her a friendship with Nigar, with Nigar having a soft spot for her and Gülnihal sharing her own worries with her. She would also be on good terms with Afife and Gülfem later on. That also goes to Isabella and Firuze, despite of the way Hürrem feels for them.

Gülnihal would adapt to the intrigue of her environment, although she still wouldn't want to take part in it. I see her having more of a mentor role and being a voice of reason in all this. When more and more things start to happen in the castle, she would always be out there, visiting the old palace or the sanjacks of Hürrem's sons, usually by her own wish. She would frequently go to Sümbül's "coffee stand" in S04 and they both would drink coffee together before she comes back to the castle. She would grieve for Mehmet and would go investigate for his killer, but without results. While understanding them because of her own attachment to Mehmet and the children, she wouldn't be exactly fond of S04 Hürrem's actions and would warn her about going too far.

She would slowly detach from the system after everyone she loved would be gone one after another. I would still have her get married to someone she loves or retire to the old palace in the end, because there isn't much that could keep her in the harem. She isn't such a person and I don't see her becoming one, either.

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Admittedly, I would principally like to make some changes to her storyline that was present in the show, since it's then her potential shone the most, but got brushed off just like that soon after.

First off, I wouldn't have her forgive Hürrem that quickly after her burning her face. That whole thing set the stage for a pretty interesting conflict between two friends that previously and otherwise were there for each other and relied on each other, but all it was ultimately about was the writers showing the ways Hürrem has already internalized the toxic behaviors the system had been feeding her with. That isn't an inherently bad thing at all, on the contrary, I really liked seeing that writing-wise, because it fits very well thematically. But the focus of the conflict was clearly on Hürrem, not on Gülnihal- Gülnihal's stance and sentiments were put aside except from a few scenes and that was a bummer. Even before her face was burned, we saw her happily wear her fur, ruminate once or twice about her new position and that was it. I would leave the swifter buildup of the conflict, because it's what made the culmination more impactful, but I would give a little more time and space for Gülnihal to get used to this new position and understandably want more. I would capitalize more on Hürrem and Gülnihal drifting away from one another, with their friendship being put to the test in this way. After we reach the payoff, a reconciliation between them would happen more slowly throughout the series, it wouldn't have been put behind after two episodes and then brought back again when Hürrem was going in exile with Gülnihal having already forgiven her. I would have extended Gülnihal's dilemma on whether to continue being Hürrem's friend or not. To wonder whether she would be willing to live such cruel life, but to gradually realize that there's not truly a way for her to get out of it. (since she won't be sent away in the future.) She would become more of an impartial figure in the harem, since she wouldn't be totally okay with picking clear sides after what she has experienced. That doesn't mean she would cease supporting Hürrem completely - I see Gülnihal becoming someone who would be against injustice the moment she sees it, so she wouldn't leave Hürrem alone when there is injustice against her. But nothing between them would be the same again. Suspicion would always be on the back of her mind.

The relationships Gülnihal would have besides Hürrem would be there and fleshed out just as much. First the concubines would be good to Gülnihal more out of pity for her condition, but when problems would arise and she would help out, they would begin appreciating her for what she is. I would also give her a friendship with Ayşe Hatun and I would have them support each other and suspect Sadika together. Both of them needed more positive relationships, honestly. Ayşe and the support of the concubines would help Gülnihal to recover and begin anew. When Ayşe is killed, Gülnihal would get a more active role in discovering her killer- at first, she would believe it was Hürrem, because she knows firsthand what she could do in cases like these, but upon further investigation, would find out it was someone else and then would go visit Hürrem in the exile. After Ayşe's death, the friendships with Afife, Gülfem, Esma and Nigar would be intact, with Nigar also complimenting her how well she keeps stuff together and Gülnihal telling her of anything wrong she finds in the harem.

I would totally remove the "Gülşah stabs Gülnihal" plot. Not only does it lead to nothing much in the end, since Mahidevran and Gülşah's dynamic remained the same after two episodes of S02 (but the problems I have with that are a completely different story), but it also did nothing for Gülnihal, since it didn't have much to do with her leaving either, when she seemed to be recovering and her departure was off-screen, after a time-skip. She was only used as Plot Armor and to prop that ultimately filler plot up. That said, I would have Gülnihal be a little irritated with Gülşah overall, because of all the trouble she causes and maybe a little rivalry between them, too. (Gülşah would still screw up in the end of the season, because of "rift build-up between Mahi and Gülşah that is pretty much wasted until E58", but not in regards to Gülnihal.)

The more I think about it, the things with her that would remain the same as they are when her plot is left intact, except for the fact that she wouldn't be aware of what actually happened to Leo, she would only occasionally visit Hürrem and she would be more involved in the workings of the harem and maybe even become a kalfa for a little bit (after Daye and before Afife, of course), trying all in her power to make it a better place. She would want to show everyone her compassion and sense of justice. She would uncover Sadika's mission. She would be involved in Leo's diary drama and keep it to herself at first, but when it's found assure Daye that Hürrem has nothing to do with it.

#magnificent century #muhteşem yüzyıl #muhtesem yuzyil #gulnihal hatun #ask #builtfromabrokenheart #sorry if it got way too fanfiction-y along the way 😅

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