I'm watching the Turkish historical soap opera, "The Magnificent Century," free on Youtube (with weirdly-timed advertisements). This 4-year series covers the reign of the longest-serving Ottoman Sultan, Suleiman the Magnificent, in the sixteenth century. It was apparently a smash hit in Turkey and in former Ottoman territories.
I'm quite enjoying it, although the English subtitles are atrocious (and minimal). You have to pay close attention! The episodes are immensely long - each around 1 hr, 45 minutes. But I'm kind of glad, because I have trouble finding things to watch, and this should take me until summer at least. Sometimes I walk on my treadmill while watching.
There's plenty of action - this was the expanding phase of the Ottoman empire - but the real action takes place in the sultan's harem. The machinations of the concubines, the control exercised by the eunuchs and their female lieutenants, the competition among the sultan's male children - it all makes for really grand soap opera. The historical record is followed - it's quite dramatic - but, alas, the politics and international intrigues are a bit slighted in favor of the harem dramas.
It's very chaste, though - reminds me of television from the 1960s, with everyone somewhat clothed, even in the baths, lol! And the budget for battle scenes must have been pretty low, as they are awkwardly staged.
I'm enjoying it in spite of these drawbacks. I've learned a lot - Wikipedia gets a workout after one of the episodes. Most, though not all, of the actors are quite good. You can see Halit Ergenc, who plays Suleiman, getting deeper and deeper into the role of "the sultan of the whole world." I think he quite enjoys it!
I'm surprised no network picked this up to distribute. It would really make a great series, but I don't think any western network would put the same amount of effort into these lengthy episodes, and they'd probably go overboard on the harem scenes.
If you're looking for a historical drama that will go on and on and on, give this a try!