Now that the final reviews are in and the Christmas flu is winding down, I finally have time to watch Merlin. I've seen the first three episodes so far, and I haven't been disappointed.
First off, I'm so happy that you've succumbed to sarcasticchick's wheedling. It took long enough to drag her kicking and screaming into this fandom, but once you get started it's addictive.
There's so much good stuff here, and unfortunately I haven't got time to comment on it all ATM, but what struck me most of all is your observation of what Arthur knows and his protectiveness of Merlin. In ep3, when he says, "There's no way that Merlin is a sorcerer," Bradley's delivery is so much more of a warning than a declaration. Jo and I've obsessed over this question, and I'm looking forward to your thoughts as you progress through the series.
And as I remind her whenever she starts complaining about the plot holes, "Look, pretty! Swords and longcoats and unicorns, oh my!"
It was possible in Episode 2 that Arthur didn't know, but not in Episode 3.
1) He could only not know if he's blind or stupid, and he isn't.
2) If he didn't know he would act differently in some of those scenes than he does. Arthur is unused to deception, either experiencing it or practicing it, as becomes clear in Episode 4. It also becomes clear that keeping Merlin's secret is giving him a crash course in it.
I really, really liked your thoughts on the characters, particularly Arthur. I'm not sure that the show really will have Arthur know all along, just because the way it's gone so far I can see them wanting to do the inevitable episode of angst and betrayal, etc etc etc, but every time I watch episode three I become more and more sure that if Arthur doesn't consciously know about Merlin's magic he's certainly starting to subconsciously wonder.
An incubus is a type of Demon, yes. Specifically, a Demon that preys upon nuns and young girls, sending them wet dreams and occassionally getting them pregnant. You can see how handy they would be to have on hand to blame for the occassional "accident".
References to Christianity
anonymous
January 27 2009, 21:49:56 UTC
I enjoyed reading your crit and the work to join in some of the many strands of Arthur/Merlin legend. Looking forward to the other episodes.
The lack of Christian references ("the great bell") reminded me of a couple of moments from episode one:
When Merlin is cornered during the street fight he mutters "Oh God". Further on when Morgana enters the banquet Arthur looks round and says "God have Mercy".
Re: References to Christianitycrabby_lionessJanuary 27 2009, 22:05:27 UTC
Not necessarily. We don't know yet what God is being called on. It may be Christ, it may not.
Not that I'm in favor of having an agnostic medieval society. The Church played a big role in shaping that culture, as the Druids had done beforehand and the Roman culture of religious lisencing as well.
As the saying goes, "That's not a flaw, that's a feature."
That point for me is an apt response to a lot of criticism I have seen of the show. My daughter and I just also watched the first four episodes (she has worked in film and I am a writer) and we agreed that the fun parts were the boys as teenagers, the snarky dialogue (understanding how limited of a genre a film script really is), creative disregard of the classic storyline, and what she considered outrageously clever anachronisms (or one could say, I guess, more accurately, not sticking to one period--how about Tolkien--he surely was all over the map in that regard).
I think something you hint at, which I think is evident, is the writers have taken a great deal more time thinking about the various versions of the myth and history of the evolution of the stories than is immediately apparent to those who simply say: This is not the Camelot story we know and expect.
Every generation deserves the chance to rewrite the Great Stories. The only question that matters is, "Is the new story any good?" What is good will last, what isn't good will be forgotten.
It's funny to think that we've seen a major addition made to the Robin Hood canon within our lifetime -- and it was done entirely by accident!
I am really looking forward to you posting again after you have watched the rest of the episodes. I would love to hear your impressions of those as well. Your reflections on the myth and history are the most interesting that I have read.
Every generation deserves the chance to rewrite the Great Stories.
I'm smiling because is my basic defense for writing fanfiction.
I hope you don't mind if I recommend this post on my f-list?
Comments 38
There's so much good stuff here, and unfortunately I haven't got time to comment on it all ATM, but what struck me most of all is your observation of what Arthur knows and his protectiveness of Merlin. In ep3, when he says, "There's no way that Merlin is a sorcerer," Bradley's delivery is so much more of a warning than a declaration. Jo and I've obsessed over this question, and I'm looking forward to your thoughts as you progress through the series.
And as I remind her whenever she starts complaining about the plot holes, "Look, pretty! Swords and longcoats and unicorns, oh my!"
Reply
It was possible in Episode 2 that Arthur didn't know, but not in Episode 3.
1) He could only not know if he's blind or stupid, and he isn't.
2) If he didn't know he would act differently in some of those scenes than he does. Arthur is unused to deception, either experiencing it or practicing it, as becomes clear in Episode 4. It also becomes clear that keeping Merlin's secret is giving him a crash course in it.
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"Why didn't you say anything?"
"I was waiting for you to TRUST me. You never did. You trusted everyone else with your secret except me!"
See?
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Interesting take on the episodes (and the characters) so far. I certainly would like to know what you think about the rest of the series.
Are you including Merlin's father being an incubus in #5?
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I asked because I thought the incubus did not have a Christian origin, therefore it still may be a possibility.
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The lack of Christian references ("the great bell") reminded me of a couple of moments from episode one:
When Merlin is cornered during the street fight he mutters "Oh God". Further on when Morgana enters the banquet Arthur looks round and says "God have Mercy".
Are these 'Christian' moments?
--Tenshunts.
Reply
Not that I'm in favor of having an agnostic medieval society. The Church played a big role in shaping that culture, as the Druids had done beforehand and the Roman culture of religious lisencing as well.
Reply
As the saying goes, "That's not a flaw, that's a feature."
That point for me is an apt response to a lot of criticism I have seen of the show. My daughter and I just also watched the first four episodes (she has worked in film and I am a writer) and we agreed that the fun parts were the boys as teenagers, the snarky dialogue (understanding how limited of a genre a film script really is), creative disregard of the classic storyline, and what she considered outrageously clever anachronisms (or one could say, I guess, more accurately, not sticking to one period--how about Tolkien--he surely was all over the map in that regard).
I think something you hint at, which I think is evident, is the writers have taken a great deal more time thinking about the various versions of the myth and history of the evolution of the stories than is immediately apparent to those who simply say: This is not the Camelot story we know and expect.
Reply
It's funny to think that we've seen a major addition made to the Robin Hood canon within our lifetime -- and it was done entirely by accident!
Reply
Every generation deserves the chance to rewrite the Great Stories.
I'm smiling because is my basic defense for writing fanfiction.
I hope you don't mind if I recommend this post on my f-list?
Reply
Squeeee, new readers! You can recommend me to anyone.
Reply
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