Spoiler warning: This recap contains spoilers for Episode 2 of Kızım (My Little Girl).

海外向けeSIMスマホ一つで旅行がもっと快適【TORA eSIM】

Episode 1 ended with Öykü discovering that her father Demir and his partner Uğur were trying to scam Candan. Now she has a difficult choice to make. Should she tell Candan the truth? Or should she protect the father she has only just found? And while Öykü is struggling with that decision, Demir has already made his own. He is determined to finish the job.

Episode 2 at a Glance

• Drama: Kızım (My Little Girl)
• Episode: 2
• Original air date: September 28, 2018
• Main characters: Öykü, Demir, Candan, Uğur
• Genre: Drama, comedy, family

Öykü Knows the Truth

At the end of Episode 1, Öykü realizes that Demir and Uğur are planning to deceive Candan. Now she has to decide what to do. She knows that what her father is doing is wrong. But this is not just any criminal. This is her father. The father she has just found after believing for years that he was dead.

And suddenly, Öykü is caught between doing what is right and protecting the person she desperately wants to call “Dad.” That is a surprisingly complicated situation for an eight-year-old.

Demir Has No Intention of Giving Up

You might expect Demir to stop once he realizes that Öykü knows what he is doing. He doesn’t. In fact, he is determined to complete the scam whether Öykü tells Candan the truth or not.

This tells us something important about Demir. At this point in the story, his priorities are still very different from Öykü’s. Öykü is thinking about people. Demir is thinking about survival. And money. And getting himself out of trouble. Being responsible for a child is still very far down his list.

Candan Wants to Take Care of Öykü

While Demir is trying to get rid of his problems, Candan begins becoming increasingly attached to Öykü. There is also something deeper motivating her. Candan carries guilt about a terrible mistake from her past, and she sees taking care of Öykü as a way of making up for what she did.

The relationship between Candan and Öykü starts developing quickly. And this is important because Candan offers Öykü something Demir doesn’t seem ready to give her yet: a feeling of safety. Öykü, who has suddenly lost the woman who raised her, begins to feel close to Candan. The two of them become increasingly connected.

A New Threat Appears: Cemal

Just when Demir already has enough problems, another one appears. Cemal has just been released from prison. And he hasn’t forgotten his past with Demir. He comes looking for him to settle an old score. Meanwhile, another man, Jilet, is also putting pressure on Demir and demanding his money.

Suddenly Demir is trapped from several directions. He has legal problems. He has money problems. He has people from his past coming after him. And now he has an eight-year-old daughter living in his life. For Demir, things are getting complicated very quickly.

Demir Makes a Decision

With everything closing in around him, Demir decides that he has to finish the job. His plan? Steal the paintings. And then there is the other problem he needs to deal with. Öykü. Demir decides that sending her to a children’s home is the easiest way to get her out of the way.

This is probably one of the moments when viewers will want to scream at the television: “She’s your daughter!” But there is something interesting about Demir’s character here. He isn’t simply making a decision about a child he doesn’t care about. He is trying to return to the life he had before Öykü appeared. A life where he had nobody depending on him. A life where he only had to worry about himself. And Öykü has completely destroyed that life.

My Reaction to Demir

This is where I found myself having very mixed feelings about Demir. On one hand, I kept thinking: “She is a little girl! And she is your daughter. Why can’t you just be kinder to her?” In my experience, Turkish people are generally very warm and affectionate toward children. Children are often treated with remarkable tolerance and tenderness, especially within families. So Demir’s attitude toward Öykü can feel particularly harsh.

But then I tried to look at the situation from his perspective. Imagine being a young, single man who has been living freely and has never planned to become a father. Then, completely out of nowhere, an eight-year-old girl you’ve never met appears and says: “I’m your daughter.” That’s a huge shock. You suddenly have a child. You don’t know her. You don’t know how to take care of her. You don’t know how to be a father. And you certainly haven’t had any time to prepare yourself emotionally.

So while part of me wanted to tell Demir, “Be nicer to her!” another part of me could understand why he panicked. And perhaps that is exactly why his character is interesting.

My Turkish Husband’s Take

This is exactly the kind of situation where I turn to my Turkish husband and ask: “What do you think? Would a Turkish man really react like this?” Because watching Turkish dramas from Japan, it can be very easy to assume that every family interaction is a reflection of real Turkish culture. But drama is drama.

Demir is also an extreme character. He has grown up without a stable family, has spent much of his life surviving on his own, and has learned to look after himself rather than anyone else. So perhaps the more interesting question isn’t: “Why isn’t Demir acting like a typical Turkish father?” It’s: “Can someone who has never experienced a healthy family learn how to create one?” And I think that question is going to become increasingly important as the series continues.

Öykü and Candan Grow Closer

While Demir is trying to push Öykü away, Candan is moving in the opposite direction. She begins to care about Öykü more and more. For Öykü, this must be incredibly confusing. She has just found the father she has spent years believing was dead. But the father doesn’t seem to want her. Meanwhile, a woman she barely knows is showing her kindness.

This creates an interesting emotional contrast. The person Öykü desperately wants doesn’t seem to want her back. And the person she never expected to become important is slowly becoming someone she can trust.

Why Episode 2 Is Important

Episode 1 introduces the characters. Episode 2 starts showing us who they really are. Öykü is not just a sweet little girl. She has a strong moral compass. She understands that Demir is doing something wrong, but she still wants to protect him.

Candan is not simply a beautiful veterinarian with a mysterious past. She is carrying guilt and looking for a way to make things right. And Demir isn’t simply a bad father. He’s a man who has never learned how to be responsible for another human being. That makes the family at the center of Kızım much more complicated than it first appears.

The Humor Is Still There

Despite all the emotional drama, Kızım doesn’t become unbearably heavy. Demir and Uğur continue to provide plenty of comic moments, especially because their plans rarely go as smoothly as they expect.

And that’s one of the things I enjoy about this drama. One minute you’re feeling sorry for Öykü. The next minute you’re laughing at Demir and Uğur’s latest disaster. Then suddenly the story hits you with another emotional moment. It’s a roller coaster. And somehow, you want to get back on.

What Happens Next?

By the end of Episode 2, Demir is determined to steal the paintings and send Öykü away. Candan is becoming increasingly attached to Öykü. Öykü is caught between protecting her father and doing what she knows is right. And Demir’s enemies are closing in. His carefully controlled life is beginning to fall apart.

But there is something Demir still doesn’t know. Öykü is hiding a secret of her own. And that secret is going to change everything.

My Rating for Episode 2

• ❤️ Story: 9/10
• 😂 Humor: 8/10
• 😭 Emotional impact: 9/10
• 👨‍👧 Demir’s parenting skills: Let’s not talk about it yet…

Would I keep watching? Absolutely. If you’re new to Turkish dramas, Episode 2 is where Kızım starts showing you that this isn’t simply a story about a little girl finding her father. It’s a story about whether people who have never known how to love properly can learn to become a family.

Continue the Kızım Series

• ← Kızım Episode 1 Recap
• Kızım Episode 3 Recap: A Secret Öykü Can’t Tell Anyone
• Kızım Characters Guide
• Kızım Episode 4 Recap
• Is Demir a Good Father? — My Turkish Husband Says… (coming soon)
• What Kızım Teaches Us About Turkish Family Culture (coming soon)
• Kızım Ending Explained (coming soon)
• ← Back to the Kızım (My Little Girl): The Complete Series Guide