Merlin: episode the sixth
Oct. 27th, 2008 12:45 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lonelybritHmm. An odd mix. Parts of it I really liked. The storyline was darker than normal, though this was also down to the weekly villain being excellent, for the first time this series I was genuinely unnerved by the guesting dose of evilness.
It definitely felt like the writers were trying to throw the younger viewers a bit of a moral lifeline, by making it very clear that not only was Edwin evil but so were his parents (or at least they practised 'dark' magic). Even so, I found the idea of The Great Purge rather unnerving, a good reminder (if we needed one) of just how brutal Uther can be, that actually what we see now is the mellowed lite version. I had this nasty vision of lots of fires being lit, and the idea of this young boy trying to rescue his screaming parents from the flames is a chilling one for anyone with an imagination.
Equally though, whilst I can see Uther as brutal, I do think he became so partly in response to what was going around him. As he said to Morgana in the first ep, she doesn't remember what it was like when the dark magic was out of control. It really must have been pretty bloody bad for a solution to be so extreme. (Or I really hope it was, rather than just a one-off personal incident that Uther used to write-off and condemn all witches and warlocks). It was interesting at the end to see that Uther himself looked back on his actions and maybe thought about them a bit more. "Do you remember his parents?" Oh Uther.
ASH and the guest actor (dude from The Green Wing) did a sterling job in their scenes. But...
Well, even so, this was also one of my least favourite episodes. The idea was good. The acting was brilliant. But somehow the execution of the actual episode was off. It still felt slow and overly serious at times, even the final showdown between Merlin and Edwin was disappointing, particularly after the killer confrontation between Edwin and Uther.
But moving on! Keeping with the positive. Arthur's concern for his father. ♥ Yes, Uther may be a bit of bastard at times, but there's no doubt that Arthur loves his dad and the way heflew into Merlin's arms demanded Merlin quickly find Edwin because Uther was sick spoke volumes. Oh, and the scene with Merlin driving Arthur to pacing was also ridiculously sweet and domestic.
The trailer for next week is looking very hopeful however.
Firstly, and most importantly, it looks like the focus is back on the two boys again - hurrah! Nothing like life and death situations for either or both of our heroes to pep my spirits up. My money is on Arthur getting possessed or otherwise controlled; eyes flashing red like that is never a good thing, plus Arthur looked remarkably unconcerned when Merlin was blasted back against the wall and knocked unconscious. I am also full of hope that, since there is mention of water and Arthur potentially being in it, we will get that scene of Merlin having to run full pelt into the lake to save Arthur. In the rain. My heart...
Digital Spy has also put out 9 Teasers for the next Merlin ep, which includes one red herring. So far the list is:
Morgana has a nasty dream about a drowning man.
Merlin prevents Arthur from killing a deer.
Merlin uses some wood to save a friend from death.
Gaius kisses Morgana.
Bryan Ferry's song 'Avalon' plays over the end credits.
A gorgeous young lady called Sophia causes Morgana problems.
Uther ensures that Merlin is pelted with potatoes.
Something bad happens to Arthur's eyes.
My money is on the hoax being Bryan Ferry's song - in which case EWWW over the Gaius kissing Morgana. Unless, please god, it's in the same way he kissed Gwen, i.e. on the top of the head as a comforting parent-esque gesture.
And in which case - poor Merlin! I guess Colin really wasn't joking when he said Merlin winds up in the stocks again. But potatoes! WHY?!
And finally, just to properly glut out on my Merlin-centric thought processes at the moment, I found this vid of Merlin filming with Morgan and James on YouTube. Obviously there are SPOILERS like crazy it, though I've no idea what ep the scene is from or what the actual plot it. But I am very intrigued and anxious to find out the full tale, oh yes... :)
It definitely felt like the writers were trying to throw the younger viewers a bit of a moral lifeline, by making it very clear that not only was Edwin evil but so were his parents (or at least they practised 'dark' magic). Even so, I found the idea of The Great Purge rather unnerving, a good reminder (if we needed one) of just how brutal Uther can be, that actually what we see now is the mellowed lite version. I had this nasty vision of lots of fires being lit, and the idea of this young boy trying to rescue his screaming parents from the flames is a chilling one for anyone with an imagination.
Equally though, whilst I can see Uther as brutal, I do think he became so partly in response to what was going around him. As he said to Morgana in the first ep, she doesn't remember what it was like when the dark magic was out of control. It really must have been pretty bloody bad for a solution to be so extreme. (Or I really hope it was, rather than just a one-off personal incident that Uther used to write-off and condemn all witches and warlocks). It was interesting at the end to see that Uther himself looked back on his actions and maybe thought about them a bit more. "Do you remember his parents?" Oh Uther.
ASH and the guest actor (dude from The Green Wing) did a sterling job in their scenes. But...
Well, even so, this was also one of my least favourite episodes. The idea was good. The acting was brilliant. But somehow the execution of the actual episode was off. It still felt slow and overly serious at times, even the final showdown between Merlin and Edwin was disappointing, particularly after the killer confrontation between Edwin and Uther.
But moving on! Keeping with the positive. Arthur's concern for his father. ♥ Yes, Uther may be a bit of bastard at times, but there's no doubt that Arthur loves his dad and the way he
The trailer for next week is looking very hopeful however.
Firstly, and most importantly, it looks like the focus is back on the two boys again - hurrah! Nothing like life and death situations for either or both of our heroes to pep my spirits up. My money is on Arthur getting possessed or otherwise controlled; eyes flashing red like that is never a good thing, plus Arthur looked remarkably unconcerned when Merlin was blasted back against the wall and knocked unconscious. I am also full of hope that, since there is mention of water and Arthur potentially being in it, we will get that scene of Merlin having to run full pelt into the lake to save Arthur. In the rain. My heart...
Digital Spy has also put out 9 Teasers for the next Merlin ep, which includes one red herring. So far the list is:
Morgana has a nasty dream about a drowning man.
Merlin prevents Arthur from killing a deer.
Merlin uses some wood to save a friend from death.
Gaius kisses Morgana.
Bryan Ferry's song 'Avalon' plays over the end credits.
A gorgeous young lady called Sophia causes Morgana problems.
Uther ensures that Merlin is pelted with potatoes.
Something bad happens to Arthur's eyes.
My money is on the hoax being Bryan Ferry's song - in which case EWWW over the Gaius kissing Morgana. Unless, please god, it's in the same way he kissed Gwen, i.e. on the top of the head as a comforting parent-esque gesture.
And in which case - poor Merlin! I guess Colin really wasn't joking when he said Merlin winds up in the stocks again. But potatoes! WHY?!
And finally, just to properly glut out on my Merlin-centric thought processes at the moment, I found this vid of Merlin filming with Morgan and James on YouTube. Obviously there are SPOILERS like crazy it, though I've no idea what ep the scene is from or what the actual plot it. But I am very intrigued and anxious to find out the full tale, oh yes... :)
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no subject
Date: 2008-10-27 01:47 am (UTC)Ahem. I'm not sure I can wait a whole week for more of this. Maybe the potatoes are pre-cooked, so as not to hurt too much.
Fic is finished, at last. I'm slightly terrified about posting, as it's such a different style from what I've been writing. Uther POV, for starters. I may post tomorrow, if I get up the nerve.
no subject
Date: 2008-10-27 02:30 am (UTC)And yes, I too did wonder just exactly why Uther's predicament was discovered so quickly rather than not until the morning.
Then again, I was also impressed with whoever decided that this was the week all Pendragon men must wear rather fitting dark leather-esque trousers. To every cloud there is a silver lining...
Yay for fic! If you want me to have a look at it feel free to waft it my way (yes I am shamelessly asking for a preview ;) ) In any case, I look forward to seeing it!
no subject
Date: 2008-10-27 04:00 am (UTC)Oooooh... While part of me is sort of scoffing 'oh dear, one of them is dying again' I can't help but be excited for it :D This show sucked me in REALLY quick~ I can't wait for next weeks especially after this week, which I agree had a great villain but fell through overall. I think it was Uther's shunning of Gaius so quickly after 25 years of employment that had me raising a few brows.
Though tempting Merlin dark!side will never not be a good plot :D
The Eve Myles episode and the Nimueh arc are my favs so far~ I'm really impressed at the decently written female characters, usually that never works for me but this show never ceases to surprise me!
no subject
Date: 2008-10-27 08:09 pm (UTC)Yes, considering the emphasis Uther put on loyalty in previous eps, having people he knows he can trust round him, it was odd he so quickly lost faith in Gaius. Though I can get that (1) he does lose reason when magic is involved, especially when it involves his loved ones to boot, and (2) this is a light show and I think any real gravitas/meta is probably a bit of a coincidence and more to do with good direction and the actors putting far more depth into the scenes than was maybe intended.
I am also liking the female cast a lot. It's rare that so quickly in a series I can genuinely say I like all the regulars, normally it takes a while for me to warm to or see the point of some at least. Morgana and Gwen are great, and whilst at first glance their love interests may be the usual teen fodder, they really aren't given we the audience know how it will actually turn out in the end.
I do like my new fluffy slashy show :)
no subject
Date: 2008-10-27 10:58 pm (UTC)Oh no complaints from me either! Let alone John Hurt's dragon of SUPER SLASH who just giggles off in his cave while convincing Merlin that Arthur is his eternal OTP XD
And yes, you do have a point that it's no good to meta too much as the show isn't the most top caliber sort BUT yes, I suppose I can attempt to forgive Uther for being a paranoid fool when it comes to magic :D