Alyoshka in the Sultan’s Captivity: Our Answer to the “Magnificent Age” Lasted Only a Season on the Air (and Thank God)

‘The Janissaries’ could (probably) have been a huge success among viewers, if it hadn’t been for the historic moment. The premiere was announced, the fans were prepared, but Channel One switched to information broadcast mode. Only two weeks later, the show finally appeared on the air.

“Janissaries” was made as “our answer” to filmmakers from Turkey. True, a season of twelve episodes is of course not enough to wipe the nose of, for example, “The Magnificent Century.” But how they filmed it. By the way, all the scenes from the Ottoman Empire were filmed in Istanbul, which gave the series even some historical accuracy.

They didn’t build their own sets – it was expensive. Although it could have been done in Crimea, where some scenes were filmed. We used ready-made Turkish ones. Therefore, what was shown in the frame looked quite realistic.

It is true that if “The Magnificent Century” is a historical drama, then “The Janissaries” is an adventure drama, a film about love, about friendship, about honor. How else is “The Janissaries” similar to “The Magnificent Century”? An ingenious plot, simple twists, rather trivial dialogues. But normally no one expects Turkish TV series to be a source of inspiration for “great cinema”, so the critics’ demands for “Janissary” could also be lowered. And then the project might have been more successful than it eventually was.

Frame of the m/s “Janichar”

The producer’s expectation of ingenuity and simplicity was thus partly unjustified. That is why the story about the Cossack Alekha Krechet lasted only one season at the box office.