Merlin 4x03

[castalia]

Wow. Is this still the same show that gave us season three? They've stopped pulling the punches and I like it. Two major character deaths in as many episodes! And an evil plot that truly works (even if Morgana had to get Evil Uncle to do the legwork).

Major props to Alice Troughton for directing such a blend of hilarious comedy and stark angst. It could've been a disastrous blend, but it so, so worked for me. Colin obviously has such fun playing his older self, and it amuses me how Merlin just can't help himself when it comes to getting in a few digs at Arthur. However, that sort of boyish pettiness is definitely compensated by Merlin's devotion. Seeing him wait for Arthur all night, giving him his time to mourn but not letting be alone and then TELLING Arthur that he's not alone...guh. Perfect. Arthur acknowledging Merlin's loyalty and calling him friend and needing Merlin's advice over all others? Also perfect.

As much as I wish Arthur would find out about Merlin's magic already, I have to admit I like this where this angst is taking us. Merlin will have a lot of work changing Arthur's opinion of magic now (hopefully by now he'll realize it's not going to be as easy as one big life-saving gesture, but a steady progression) and we finally have a good reason why Merlin is hesitant to tell him, on a personal level and not just an "Uther will kill me" level.

Tony Head did a great job letting us see one last bit of humanity from Uther before his death, and although I'm not sorry to see the character go and will never truly like him after all he's done, I was sorry for Arthur's sake. Uther said just the right things to Arthur, exactly what he needed to hear as a son and not just as a prince. Arthur's grief was painful to watch and Bradley did an excellent, excellent job. So much happened and yet so much was just Arthur and Merlin, so the burden on those two was pretty high. While I missed the knights and Gwen, this was Arthur and Merlin's story.

Loved the shot of Arthur opening the door with the sunlight in the background. Loved the coronation. Such pretty cinematography this season!

Definitely looking forward to seeing more of how King Arthur manages his new position now. He can't go off on too many long adventures now, though I'm not sure that will stop him. Perhaps Sir Leon will step up and take charge of the knights in Arthur's place.

Tbh, after all this I thoroughly expect Arthur's reaction to all the times Merlin runs off and secretly saves the day to be "Off peeing all this time, were you? Weirdo."

Comments

[seachanges.livejournal.com]

Honestly, I think it was mostly because they wanted to stretch out the angst and conflict about magic a bit longer. It was also the only false note in the whole episode for me because it felt like one of those manufactured angst moments. The rest was spot on, especially Merlin sitting outside the door all night while Arthur kept vigil over Uther. That was wonderful, as were Uther's final moments with Arthur. Like you said, it wasn't enough to erase all the terrible things Uther has done over the course of the series, but at least it let Arthur see how much Uther really loved him.