Merlin: The Sorcerer's Shadow [SPOILERS]
OMG HEY DUDDERS! Welcome to Camelot! I know you've borrowed Cousin Harry's powers, but be careful. Around here, using them will result in a fate almost as bad as nearly getting your soul sucked out of your body -- the king here is batshit crazy with neck-severing and pyre fixations.
Ah, another round with Dirty Men making trouble for unsuspecting princes and cousins of heroes alike. Big D -- who is smart enough to take on a fake name, Gilli -- is not reacting well to being robbed by Dirty Men who are probably related to the Dirty Men who got their asses kicked by Mary and her Barmaids of DOOM back in Gwaine. Speaking of Mary and the BoDs, BBC, when do we get to see those awesome ladies again?
Oh dear, Gilli, didn't Harry ever tell you about how magical rings can sometimes have the ability to make your arms wither and suck the life right out of you? Clearly Harry has been remiss, so I shall direct you to the last two books about your cousin's years as a Hogwarts student. *points to books on shelves*
*giggles* Oh Merlin, your fretting about the tournament and the sorts of people who are "going to turn up" is not hiding your oh so obvious concern for your OTL. And Arthur, your blase, hand-waving attitude is not covering up for the fact that you're touched by Merlin's concern. Can't you two just skip all this and go find a closet to make out in and be done with it? I promise to bring Gwen 'round to join you as soon as I can get her away from Morgana's evil clutches.
Merlin: I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I think all you nobles are crazy.
Arthur: Stop fretting, Merlin. It makes you sound like an old grandmother.
AQ: Translation, Merlin: He's happy that you're worried about him.
Arthur: Will there ever be a time when you won't show up?
AQ: Probably not. *smirks*
Welcome to Camelot, Big D Gilli! Bet you're thinking that magic isn't as bad as your parents made it out to be, aren't you? The magic may not be as obvious as a pig's tail growing out your ass or a magic, glowing ring, but it is very much a part of this place, whatever Uther thinks. In other words, OMG ISN'T THIS PLACE AWESOME?!
Well, I'll give the tournament one thing: it's good for business at all the local inn-and-pubs. I'm sure all of the merchants and business owners are licking their chomps right now and thanking Uther a million times over for having these contests.
Jeez, what is it with everyone wanting Merlin to do their work for them once they find out he's Arthur's servant? Seriously, Arthur needs to send out a memo that Merlin works for him and not to bother him with childish demands that would interfere with his primary duties. That, or pitch a fit because OMG Merlin his his and he doesn't share. With anyone. Except Gwen.
Wow. Gilli. That ring makes you fucking badass. SWEET! Too bad you didn't have that ring in normal times. Harry might have asked you to come along for his camping trip from hell to defeat the magical bad guys. The two of you could have kicked serious ass.
AQ: <3 <3
Merlin: ...
Arthur: *would be jealous if he was here*
MERLIN! *snorts* Seriously, Arthur sounds like one of Cinderella's step-sisters, screeching for her to come downstairs to help them prepare for the ball.
Oh boy. Are Arthur and Morgana doing this on purpose, needling Uther until he decides to go relive the glory days and enter the tournament? Well, I imagine Arthur isn't doing it on purpose, but I'll bet Morgana certainly is. After all, what better way to get rid of him and have it be thought of as merely a result of a dangerous tournament?
Also, Morgana seems to be accepting drinks from Merlin now. At least in public, where he wouldn't dare try to poison her.
God, Uther, you're such a moron. I totally see you falling for this. *headdesks*
*giggles* Oh Merlin, your continued fretting is utterly adorable.
Arthur: Merlin?
Merlin: Hm?
Arthur: Shut up.
Merlin: :p
AQ: *promptly locks them in Arthur's chambers so they can make out in privacy, and then skips off to find Gwen*
Er, Gilli? Wow. You really stand out in that crowd. They're all armed and armored to the teeth and you're... not. Eep. Also, where is Sir Leon? Shouldn't he -- or even some of the other knights of Camelot -- be taking part? Or maybe even Lancelot? He's not banished from the kingdom or anything, and this is the perfect opportunity to show off his mad skillz, since rank nor birth matter in this particular tournament.
Oh, hey Gaius! Love you looking on at the tournament with Frown #312 -- the 'I Totally Disapprove of These Shananigans' Frown. Merlin, love that you're still worried. ;)
Okay, now Arthur looks worried. Poor thing, worried that Daddy might get skewered. Morgana's obviously barely restraining her glee. *sigh*
Where the eff is Gwen? She should be here standing with Merlin and fretting over Arthur. Of course, both her and Merlin wouldn't care less if Uther gets his ass kicked. Heck, they'd probably have a secret celebratory drink over it at the end of the day.
Round One: Uther vs. Morning Star Guy. Arthur sweats bullets from the sidelines. Morgana watches eagerly while pointedly sitting in Uther's throne, praying that Morning Star Guy will land a lucky blow and end one of her biggest problems for her.
Hah, love that oh-so-silent God-Damnit Look on Morgana's face before she pastes a smile on her lips. Sorry Morgana, I don't think it's going to happen.
Round Two: Arthur vs. Double-Sword Guy. Double-Sword Guy does a whole flashy, sword-swingy thing that looks so very impressive. Until Arthur ends the match with a single punch to the face. *cracks up*
Rount Three: Dirty Guy vs. Joe Knight #1. Joe Knight #1 kicks Dirty Guy's ass and knocks him down, but instead of giving away gracefully, like most chivalric fighters do, he yanks out a tiny little dagger and knifes Joe Knight #1, knocking him to his knees. Joe Knight #1 is then promptly beheaded. Dirty Guy raises his arms in victory, but unlike Uther and Arthur, receives only booing and hissiing from the stands. Clearly this guy will not be winning any popularity contests among the spectators.
AQ: *joins in with the booing and hissing*
Merlin: Wow, I had no idea you were into tournaments so much.
AQ: As long as Arthur eventually kicks his ass, I'm good. Or Gilli. Gilli can kick his ass too.
Round Four: Gilli vs. Viking-Looking Guy. Gilli's kind of dancing around Viking-Looking Guy, letting him get his whacks in almost to the point of getting himself killed. Then Gilli uses magic to get the other guy's sword stuck in one of the walls of the arena, and then knocks him out. The crowd goes wild, because everyone loves an underdog.
Gaius: Who would have thought? *makes notes in his bookie ledgers*
Merlin: *bullshit/magic-detecting meter skyrockets*
Ah, so Gaius' bullshit/magic-detecting meter is also working too. Good to know.
Wow. Gilli's been in Camelot barely a day and he's already been spotted using magic. This can't end well. And he dropped the fricking RING. Crap.
Oh, well, one upside: the guards didn't recognize Gilli.
Uther: SAUCERY, oh wait that's not my line SORCERY OMG!
Gaius: Chill, honey-buns.
Uther: BUT SORCERY!
Gaius: Dude. Chill. The Fuck. Out. And go stick your nose down the sewer pipe. And go have a drink.
AQ: Wow. Gaius' got balls. And he found the ring.
Ah, I thought Gilli was taking a room at The Rising Sun. I still think Mary and her BoDs need to buy that place so they can be frequent reoccurring characters. Mary can make eyes at Merlin, Arthur can be the girls' darling who looks out for them when they need it, and everyone's happy!
Ooh! Backstory! And very well-thought-out backstory. Good on you for doing your homework, Dudders.
Gilli: Without magic, I'm a nobody.
Merlin: *chokes*
AQ: Wow. That sounds familiar. Clearly someone went back to reread the early scripts.
Round Five: Uther vs. Joe Knight #2. Uther kicks his ass. What more do you need to know? Oh, and we didn't see Morgana gritting her teeth in frustration this time around.
Round Six: Arthur vs. Guy with a Chinese-Looking Helmet and Armor. Arthur finds this guy a bit more of a challenge and Merlin cringes worriedly on the sidelines. He yanks his helmet off and tosses it to someone in the crowd -- who promptly hugs it and faints like a good little fangirl -- and continues the fight. His opponent even gets a whack or two in before Arthur takes him down.
Ah, Uther. Your cockiness is going to get you killed one of these days. Probably sooner rather than later, if your daughter has anything to say about it. Poor Arthur, though. He looks worried.
Ick. Dirty Guys picking on Gilli again. They'd better watch it, or they're going to get themselves killed by an irate sorcerer.
Poor Merlin, he looks so disappointed that Gilli showed up.
Round Seven: Gilli vs. Dirty Guy.
Um, didn't anyone notice that Gilli didn't lay a finger on Dirty Guy when he was suddenly thrown back five feet? WTF?
Holy shit. BIG D Gilli! I'd cheer that one of the Dirty Men is dead, but the horrified look on Gilli's face takes all the yayness out of it. *cringes*
*wibbles and cuddles Gilli* Poor thing.
Wow. Everybody really does love an underdog.
Omg, that is such a cute shot of Arthur! Slumped over on the table watching Merlin sharpen his sword (can't wait until that sword is retired and Excalibur takes its place, though). HEE! Adorable! *pinches his cheek*
Arthur: Do you have any idea what it's like to live with someone who constantly thinks he's the best?!
Merlin: *eyeroll* Hm. Must be irritating.
AQ: *stands in the corner and quietly dies laughing*
Arthur: What?
Seriously, loved that look Arthur shot at Merlin just before the scene change. HEE!
Round Eight: Arthur vs. Uther Throwdown (Take Two).
Wow, on days like this Uther certainly is popular, isn't he? And Morgana's wearing Smirk #41 - The 'Yay Hopefully Arthur Will Do my Homework Work for Me' smirk. Try not to be so obvious, dear. It gives everything away.
Um, is this fucking foreshadowing?! *is unsure whether to freak the fuck out or not*
You know, the differences in Uther and Arthur's helmets are interesting. With Uther, you can't see anything of his face, though with Arthur's you can see his eyes. On one level, that might be a disadvantage, because Uther might be able to anticipate Arthur's next move by seeing his expression. On the other hand, Arthur's helmet probably gives him a better range of vision than Uther's.
OMG, Uther's faking being wounded isn't he? That's how he's going to take Arthur down.
Or, you know, not. But the look on Arthur's face as he stares first at his father -- an old man trying desperately to cling to his glory days -- and the people -- who love their king, for all that he can be cruel and harsh at times. I guess he's deciding that his own pride isn't as important as preserving theirs. *hugs Arthur* You're a darling, has Merlin or Gwen told you that lately?
Try not to look so disappointed, Morgana! How many times do I have to tell you?!
Arthur: If he wasn't my father...
Merlin: You would have gutted him, rubbed his face in the dirt, and then bragged about it for months. Yes, I know.
Round Nine: Gilli vs. Joe Knight #3. Gilli blatantly uses magic to win (again). No one catches it (again). Except Merlin (again). Anyone sensing a pattern here?
Gaius: ...or worse, the king will die.
AQ: And this would be bad... how?
Gaius: Don't be obtuse.
AQ: *sigh*
Omg, Merlin, you didn't. Gaius is going to kill you, unless I beat him to it. ARE YOU FUCKING CRAZY?!
*lip trembles* Merlin, I hate it when you get like this, all gentle and understanding and the piano playing in the background, but I'm still mad at you!
Gilli: You've been pretending for so long, you've forgotten who you are!
Merlin: ...
AQ: *sob*
And of course, when Merlin is deeply troubled and needs someone other than Gaius to go to, who's he gonna call? SLASH DRAGON BUSTERS! Though, I can guess what Slash Dragon is going to say: "Boy with magic wants to kill Uther in the tournament? OMG I WISH I KNEW A SPELL THAT COULD MAKE ME HUMAN FOR A DAY SO I COULD WATCH! I'd totally buy a ballcap and a burrito and sit in the stands to watch!"
Omg. I -- and so many others -- was saying that years ago! YES! FANDOM TOTALLY CALLED IT! We knew years ago that if Arthur saw his father killed by magic, he would never agree to see it return to the land! FANDOM RULES OMG! WE ARE AWESOME!
Merlin: Some choices are easy... some stay with you forever.
AQ: Indeed. Like when you chose to poison Morgana and save Camelot but forever losing her friendship in the process. This job really sucks sometimes, doesn't it dearest?
Merlin: You can say that again.
AQ: Indeed. Like when you chose --
Merlin: I didn't mean literally.
*eyeroll* Uther, you're an idiot. Some people are too stupid to live, and I really think your time is coming, even if it isn't this time.
Ah, love that Arthur is sitting in the throne now. Hah, bet Morgana didn't like having to move aside for him.
Urgh, I hate it when I have to worry about Uther. But honestly? I think Gilli's going against Uther right now more to spite Merlin than anything, for all his talk about striking a blow for the magic users.
Um, how is it that Uther is not noticing the glowing ring on Gilli's finger? WTF?
Huh, so Merlin's really just making it a fair fight. Gilli makes Uther lose his sword, Merlin makes Gilli lose his shield. Huh. Interesting.
Poor Gilli. He looks devastated. Though, seriously Uther, if it were your son, Arthur would have congratulated Gilli for fighting so well in the tournament. After all, as far as Arthur knows, it was Gilli's sword skills alone that got him there, not magic. Arthur would have totally held out a hand to Gilli and helped him up. Your people may scream and cheer for you now, Uther, but they would have loved Arthur a million times more if he had been there in your place. You're just lucky Arthur loves you as much as he does.
Merlin: ... perhaps our paths will cross again.
AQ: Hrm, maybe, but I doubt it. Gilli has to be getting back to the future now. Cousin Harry's waiting for him.
Merlin: Who?
*chokes* Wow, Uther's not as oblivious as one usually thinks. He totally knew Arthur threw the fight! Morgana wasn't able to see that, though. Hmm...
Uther: Arthur's actions have shown me that he is truly ready to be king.
Arthur: *pales* Omgomgomg...
Morgana: *fumes and glares*
AQ: *shakes head at these silly and strange Pendragons*
Merlin: *squees in the background*
Wow, the difference between the two meals -- Uther, Arthur, and Morgana's and Merlin and Gaius' -- is very striking.
*giggles* Gaius, you teasing old fart.
Next Week: The Holy Grail makes an appearance. Cenred and Uther both demand to have it. OMG SIR LEON! ELYAN! *squeals* OMG ARTHUR NOOOOOOOOOO! *flails* He's shot in the back again?! And Merlin is pissed enough that he pulls the same trick he used on Odin's men when they killed Balinor. Eep!
Wow, that was fun! Who doesn't love a good tournament where anyone can enter, regardless of their station in life? Of course, usually only knights or expert swordsmen are brave enough to enter it, but still, very nice show of promoting diversity on Uther's part. And by only holding it every ten years, he prevents people from getting any ideas. *snorts* Good show, Uther.
Harry Melling of Dudley Dursley fame was an outstanding addition to the cast this week. Gilli is in many ways just how Merlin used to be before the decisions he's made over the years began to weigh him down. Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, I really get why Merlin was so keen to protect him and help him see the light. I bet Merlin really did see something of what he used to be, and also indeed something of what he could have been if he hadn't had Gaius to help ground him. Gilli's use of the magic was corrupting him, just as Merlin said, and then that talk they had after the fight was illuminating. Merlin firmly believes that magic should be used for good purposes only, not for personal gain (sounds kind of like the rhetoric from Charmed, really), and I like that Merlin and Gilli were finally able to come to an agreement on that.
Merlin's conflict was really telling this week. He's been down this road before, having to protect the man who is responsible for killing so many of his kind and who would not hesitate to chop him into tiny little pieces if he knew the truth. It's something that goes back as far as the first series, when Morgana made her very first attempt to kill Uther. Gwen was able to show him the light then, and Merlin's been doing it on his own ever since. I think seeing the bloodlust in Gilli's eyes worked almost as well as Gwen's belief that killing Uther in revenge would serve no purpose.
Slash Dragon's appearance was lovely. And his words about Uther -- interesting. He's told Merlin more than once in the past to let Uther die, like in Excalibur or in To Kill the King. Both instances involved magic -- the reanimated corpse of Tristan de Blois and the sorcerer Tauren. Now, though, he tells Merlin that if Uther dies by magic's hand, it would harden Arthur's heart against the magic users forever. Fandom's been saying that practically since the first series, which means the writers are totally listening to what we say. This means that FANDOM RULES! Everyone pat themselves on the back for being awesome. ;)
And the B-plot: The Shenannigans of the Pendragon Clan. Morgana goading Uther into reliving the glory days by saying that he's getting on in years worked like a charm, which kind of makes me *facepalm*. The man is so easily manipulated by her it isn't even funny. It's true that at this point Merlin is the only thing keeping him alive. Arthur, when he wasn't making us laugh about his complaints about living with someone who thinks he's perfect all the time, was amazing and actually sensitive for once. He dearly wanted to win the tournament, but he also saw what it meant to his father, and ultimately sacrificed his pride for his father's. Aw, Arthur, who knew you could be so sweet? And then finding out that Uther knew all along and took it as a sign that Arthur was ready to be king? Oh yeah, I was squealing. All this foreshadowing!
Morgana was sitting on Uther's throne during the tournament, which was also awesome. She probably enjoyed that more than watching all the men beat each other senseless. Her smirking was rather obvious, as it always is. Doesn't anyone notice her evil smirking? Honestly.
Alas, Gwen did not make an appearance, which could mean that she's taken a few days off to help Elyan at the forge or just to settle in at her place, finally. Hopefully we'll catch a glimpse of her next week. *crosses fingers*
Next Week: Elyan and Sir Leon finally return -- perhaps they went off on a mission to spy on Cenred? Perhaps that's how Uther finds out about the Cup of Life and that Cenred wants it? They come running back to Camelot to tell him? Arthur gets shot in the back again. Merlin freaks out again. Good times as we begin to move to the series' conclusion!