After watching seasons 1 and 2 of Maestro in Blue, I can definitely say that Fanis, the mayor of Paxos, is one of the shadiest and most vicious characters I’ve ever seen. He pretends to be a well-wisher and an ideal human being, but deep down, he’s incredibly selfish, arrogant, and manipulative. Who suffers because of these traits? Obviously, his close family members: his daughter Klelia, his son Antonis, and his wife Sofia. He tries to brainwash them, saying everything he does is for their well-being. You can imagine the rest. But, of course, his cruel actions have consequences. So, what happens to this shady mayor in the end? Let’s dive into that in this article.
Spoilers Ahead
What kind of father was Fanis?
There’s a saying that parents can do anything and everything for their children. Well, that wasn’t the case with Fanis, at least not in the first half of Maestro in Blue. As I mentioned earlier, this man was incredibly difficult to understand. He pretended to be a well-wisher for his children and claimed that everything he told them to do was because he knew the community best and could tell what was best for the family. But at first glance, it was clear that everything he did was for his own power and reputation, especially to win the upcoming election and retain his position as mayor of the town. Fanis even organized a music festival and invited Orestis, a music teacher from Athens, to boost tourism and showcase Paxos as a beautiful, quaint little town. But when Orestis and Fanis’ daughter Klelia grew closer to the man, it didn’t sit right with him. After all, they had a 30-year age gap! What would people say? He believed this would jeopardize his reputation. In his mind, the perfect son-in-law would be Thanos, who was around Klelia’s age and studying to be a doctor.
Fanis wanted someone he could show off—a sort of trophy. When Fanis found out about Orestis and Klelia’s relationship, he threatened Orestis to get out of his daughter’s life and leave town after the festival. When he learned that Orestis was married and expecting a child, Fanis was happy, thinking his daughter would leave Orestis without him having to put pressure on them. Clearly, he didn’t care about his daughter’s feelings at all. The same went for his son, Antonis. Fanis was deeply homophobic, so the fact that Antonis was gay bothered him deeply. In a small town filled with narrow-minded people, Fanis knew that even if he could deal with it, the townspeople would point fingers at him, and he couldn’t allow that. When he found out that Antonis was in a relationship with Spyros, Charalambos’ son, he threatened Charalambos too, saying he would ruin him and his son’s lives if they came near them again. Charalambos was assisting Fanis in his money laundering business, so he had a lot to lose. Fanis even told his son that being gay was just a phase and forced him to date girls. Yet he hypocritically preached about being the best father and the biggest supporter of his children. What a shame!
Why did he want to cover up the crime?
As there was so much hatred for Spyros and Antonis’ love story because both of their fathers disapproved of their relationship, it became really difficult for them to be together. So one day they tried to find some peace by secretly meeting in the forest because they knew they couldn’t be together in front of everyone. However, Charalambos followed them to catch them red-handed and torment them. Being extremely homophobic, Charalambos was about to kill his own son, Spyros. In a moment of desperation, Antonis, with trembling hands, shot Charalambos to save his love. But it didn’t end well. Charalambos died, and the aftermath of this crime was horrific. The boys could have easily gone to the police and surrendered, explaining that it was an act of self-defense, but Fanis would not allow that to happen. After all, the town mayor’s election was coming up, and news of a townsperson being murdered by the mayor’s son would jeopardize his career. So what did Fanis do?
With the help of Orestis and Spyros, he took Charalambos’ body and dumped it in the river, making it seem like Charalambos had committed suicide from his boat. Fanis even made up stories about how he was with his son and family at the time and didn’t know anything about the incident. It’s baffling how someone could do this with such a calm mind. On top of that, he pretended to be a lifesaver for his son. He acted as if he were thinking about Antonis’ safety and didn’t want him to be in police custody, claiming that everything he did was to save him. But they all knew that for an incredibly selfish man like him, he only thought of himself and his own safety.
What kind of husband was Fanis?
If we talked about Fanis’ relationship with his wife Sofia, it was clear how strained it was. They had been together for many years, but their love had faded because Sofia had realized what a manipulative schemer her husband was. She had been everything to him, being the trophy wife and the perfect mother, but nothing seemed to be enough. She even helped him clear up his dirty money-laundering business. But when she found out how Antonis was connected to Charalambos’ murder and how Fanis tried to hide it for his mayoral campaign, she had had enough. She moved out of the house and started living with Michalis, the town doctor. This didn’t seem to bother Fanis at all. He didn’t care about losing her because the only person he truly loved was himself. When he finally won the mayoral election, he went to Michalis and Sofia, asking them not to disclose anything about the murder. He even shamelessly asked Sofia to come to his house and give an interview to the press about their “ideal” marriage to pretend he was not only the perfect candidate for mayor but also the perfect partner. After all, here everything was about him. Later, when the investigation into the murder started, he acted as if nothing had happened, requesting that everyone have family dinners like before. When everyone started pointing fingers at him for ruining others’ lives for his own selfishness, he pretended to be the victim, claiming he had the best intentions and that it ruined his mental peace to think about others. His cunning games and tactics made him seem like a true politician, where he pretended to be the victim. No wonder he became the mayor of the town.
But obviously, the truth was bound to come out sooner or later, and it did for Fanis as well. When Detective Demosthenes came from Corfu for the investigation, he quickly realized that Fanis was connected to the murder because he could see through his two-faced nature. Fanis thought he had covered his tracks perfectly, believing no one would find Charalambos’ body that he dumped in the water, but eventually all was out in the open except for the murderer’s name. But at the end of season 2, we see Fanis getting shot and then being dumped in the water himself. We still don’t know who the murderer is, but my guess is that it might be Giovanni’s people. Giovanni was the money-laundering lord with whom Fanis was in business, and once Fanis became mayor, he couldn’t properly manage the shady business because he had too much to lose. So, being a manipulative schemer didn’t really pay off for Fanis in the end.
