History Series / Ezel

* TemporalThemeNaming: The children adopted by the House of Seasons are all given new names, all themed after the months of the year.

* DistressBall: Ordinarily one of the most sensible characters in the series, Azad takes the ball and runs with it in the season two's "Lives Unlived"[[labelnote:tr]]"Yaşanmamış Hayatlar"[[/labelnote]], where she insists on meeting Bade in person over an issue that (while concerning) doesn't require immediate action. Despite her status as a high-value target, she leaves the safehouse and is [[spoiler:subsequently captured by Kenan to be used as leverage against her father, which [[SarcasmMode absolutely nobody saw coming]]]].

* IdiotBall: Ordinarily one of the most sensible characters in the series, Azad takes the ball and runs with it in the season two's "Lives Unlived"[[labelnote:tr]]"Yaşanmamış Hayatlar"[[/labelnote]], where she insists on meeting Bade in person over an issue that (while concerning) doesn't require immediate action. Despite her status as a high-value target, she leaves the safehouse and is [[spoiler:subsequently captured by Kenan to be used as leverage against her father, which [[SarcasmMode absolutely nobody saw coming]]]].

* IdiotBall: Ordinarily one of the most sensible characters in the series, Azad takes the ball and runs with it in the season two's "Lives Unlived"[[labelnote:tr]]"Yaşanmamış Hayatlar"[[/labelnote]], wheere she insists on meeting Bade in person over an issue that (while concerning) doesn't require immediate action. Leaving the safehouse despite being a high-value target, [[spoiler:she is subsequently captured by Kenan to be used as leverage against her father, which [[SarcasmMode absolutely nobody saw coming]]]].

* DeadGuyJunior: Ali and Azad name their son [[spoiler:Tevfik, who died not only the day before, but in the ''exact spot'' his namesake was born]].

* IdiotBall: Ordinarily one of the most sensible characters in the series, Azad takes the ball and runs with it in the season two episode "Lives Unlived". [[spoiler:She insists on meeting Bade in person over an issue that (while concerning) doesn't require immediate action. Leaving the safehouse despite being a high-value target, she is subsequently captured by Kenan to be used as leverage against her father, which [[SarcasmMode absolutely nobody saw coming]]]].

* MurderByMistake: Serdar is instructed to kill the troublesome Ezel and [[MakeItLookLikeAnAccident make it look like a car accident]]. A combination of low visibility, sleep deprivation, and intoxication leads Serdar to kill the wrong target, [[spoiler:Ezel's brother Mert]].

* PetTheDog: In a rare moment of complete selflessness, Kenan decides to [[spoiler:leave his daughter Damla in peace after meeting her for the first time. Seeing that she is happy, successful, and loved, he ultimately chooses ''not'' to reveal his identity, which would doubtlessly bring her grief]].

** Serdar kills [[spoiler:Eyşan's cancer-ridden aunt by administering an overdose, fearing what she might tell Meliha]].
** Cengiz tries using a VorpalPillow [[spoiler:to finish Eyşan for good while she lies unconscious in the hospital. However, he hesitates too long and is forced to leave before Ezel arrives]].

** In a flashback, an infuriated Ramiz interrupts Kenan and Selma's wedding after learning [[spoiler:Kenan raped Selma, essentially forcing her to marry him]]. The confrontation results in a gunfight that seriously wounds Ramiz, and ends in a SadisticChoice that [[spoiler:leaves Kenan's brother dead; Kenan himself is grievously wounded by Selma, who stabs him in the abdomen with a shard of glass during the encounter]]. The incident and its pretext sets their decades-long CycleOfRevenge into motion.
** Gunmen led by Temmuz storm the wedding of [[spoiler:Azad and Ali and kill several guests, including Azad's mother Selma]].
** Downplayed in the episode "A Perfect Murder": [[spoiler:Ezel, Ali, and Cengiz sabotage Eyşan and Kenan's wedding, with the bride playing a key role in her new husband's downfall. While a disastrously shocking occasion, only Kenan is left dead at the end of the evening]].

* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: [[spoiler: Temmuz calmly instructs a unnamed henchwoman to kill Chucky after he kills Tevfik, as he has "served his purpose". The order is particularly shocking as Chucky was [[SubvertedTrope set up]] as an expected MoralityPet -- not to mention he's no older than ''twelve'' at the very most.]].

* UnusualEuphemism: When seeking to recruit Eren as a protégé, Ali describes himself a "surgeon"... specifically, the kind whose [[TortureTechnician patients have a low survival rate]].

* GiveTheBabyAFather: One of the reasons Eyşan marries Cengiz to give her unborn child -- actually Ömer's son -- a father. As it's early on in her pregnancy, she is able to keep his true parentage a secret for many years.

* MorningSickness: The first sign Azad is pregnant is when she runs upstairs to vomit during breakfast with Ali, who oblviously assumes [[LethalChef she thinks he's a awful cook]].

---> '''Azad:''' Who is alone? Do you think my child won't be alone if I give birth? ...I know very well what it means to be the child of that kind of mother and father. Do you think I'd want my child to go through that, too?
** While she eventually chooses to keep her baby, Azad ultimately subverts the trope. She has no moral qualms regarding abortion; instead, her inner conflict comes from the tension between what she wants (having a baby) and reality (whether she is able to give her child the life he or she deserves). It is only when she has promise of support and stability that she finally shelves the abortion option.

Premiering in 2009, the series is SettingUpdate of [[Creator/AlexandreDumas Alexandre Dumas']] ''Literature/TheCountOfMonteCristo'', swapping out nineteenth-century France for modern-day Turkey.

* InspirationNod: The name of Cengiz's company that wins the hotel bid? ''Dantès'' Holding.

* RemovingTheRival: Cengiz's motive for betraying Ömer, whom he views as an obstacle to Eyşan's affections.

* BatmanGambit: Several of Ezel's ploys are based upon exploiting the desires, weaknessess, secrets and insecurities of his targets and counting on them to do ''exactly'' what he expects them to do.