The Wicked Day Review
Review for Merlin 4x03: The Wicked Day. There will of course be spoilers.
Overview
The Wicked Day was an episode that wrought a lot of changes in the fabric of Merlin. From here the show is going to be very very different.
A defiant mark of how the series has grown over the last few years.
Episode Summery
The phrases “Oh Boy” and “Flipping Heck,” keep running through my mind after watching that episode. I thought killing off Lancelot was a big thing. But that. Whoa.
As mentioned above, this changes the whole fabric of the show, the whole premise. For three seasons Merlin - and we - have been preparing for the day when Arthur would take the throne of Camelot and usher in a new era of tolerance. Now we’re three episodes into series four and well.
Long Live the King
And that era of tolerance and acceptance? Yeah. Ain’t going to happen.
Making Arthur the King this early is going to change the whole show. He won’t be able to take as many risks any more. Which may explain why they bought in the Knights. They’ll now be doing what Arthur can’t
It was nice to see Uther go in defence of his son though. There hasn’t been much Arthur/Uther interaction over the years and one could be forgiven for thinking that Uther cares more about having a viable heir than he does about having a relationship with his son.
But this episode disproved that. Addled by Morgana’s betrayal he may have been, but he still knew when it was Arthur’s birthday, and he was quick to leap to his son’s defence, even though it cost him his own life.
“I have always loved you.”
With those last words, Uther confirmed that despite appearances he really did love Arthur.
I will be sad to see Anthony Head go, but I’m also excited to see where the show is going from here.
Merlin
Merlin can be forgiven for his rather reckless actions I think. Desperate to give Arthur an example of Good Magic, and secure tolerance for his people, you can understand why he had no time for caution. Would we in a similar situation?
But for me the most touching scene was the one right near the end following his night vigil. It showed that his bond with Arthur goes beyond just that of King and Servant or even that of friends. They are almost as close as brothers now even if they do not wish to admit it.
“Have you been there all night?”
“I didn’t want you to feel you were alone.”
Merlin may be in the same position he was always in. But if anyone can change Arthur’s opinion of Magic, it will be him.
Arthur (and Others)
Acting from Bradley James? Why yes. And darn impressive acting it was as well.
Arthur doesn’t get the chance to show off his emotional side very often so it was good to see it here. Good to see exactly how close to his father he actually was. Like with Merlin, Arthur can be forgiven for a momentary lapse in judgement. As I said. If we were as desperate as him would we not go to any lengths available? I know I would.
Arthur may think that all magic is evil now, and he has good reason too. But once he discovers the true reason for his Father’s death than I hope that he will change his attitude. With Arthur on the throne I hope that the status quo regarding Magic in Camelot will quickly cease to be quo.
This is a good chance for some proper character development. I hope the writers don’t waste it.
The Bad Guy
So we’ve got The Gleeman - paid off by King Odin - who was actually responsible for Uther’s death wound. But he was quickly removed to make way for the real villain of the piece.
Morgana. Yes. Again. I hope we do see some different villains this season and that Morgana won’t be behind everything that goes wrong. That will get very boring very quickly.
I must applaud her on her sense of evil style though.
Conclusion.
This show is going to go to a lot of new exciting place now. I for one can’t wait to see where it goes next.
Next Week: Dragons Egg
Overview
The Wicked Day was an episode that wrought a lot of changes in the fabric of Merlin. From here the show is going to be very very different.
A defiant mark of how the series has grown over the last few years.
Episode Summery
The phrases “Oh Boy” and “Flipping Heck,” keep running through my mind after watching that episode. I thought killing off Lancelot was a big thing. But that. Whoa.
As mentioned above, this changes the whole fabric of the show, the whole premise. For three seasons Merlin - and we - have been preparing for the day when Arthur would take the throne of Camelot and usher in a new era of tolerance. Now we’re three episodes into series four and well.
Long Live the King
And that era of tolerance and acceptance? Yeah. Ain’t going to happen.
Making Arthur the King this early is going to change the whole show. He won’t be able to take as many risks any more. Which may explain why they bought in the Knights. They’ll now be doing what Arthur can’t
It was nice to see Uther go in defence of his son though. There hasn’t been much Arthur/Uther interaction over the years and one could be forgiven for thinking that Uther cares more about having a viable heir than he does about having a relationship with his son.
But this episode disproved that. Addled by Morgana’s betrayal he may have been, but he still knew when it was Arthur’s birthday, and he was quick to leap to his son’s defence, even though it cost him his own life.
“I have always loved you.”
With those last words, Uther confirmed that despite appearances he really did love Arthur.
I will be sad to see Anthony Head go, but I’m also excited to see where the show is going from here.
Merlin
Merlin can be forgiven for his rather reckless actions I think. Desperate to give Arthur an example of Good Magic, and secure tolerance for his people, you can understand why he had no time for caution. Would we in a similar situation?
But for me the most touching scene was the one right near the end following his night vigil. It showed that his bond with Arthur goes beyond just that of King and Servant or even that of friends. They are almost as close as brothers now even if they do not wish to admit it.
“Have you been there all night?”
“I didn’t want you to feel you were alone.”
Merlin may be in the same position he was always in. But if anyone can change Arthur’s opinion of Magic, it will be him.
Arthur (and Others)
Acting from Bradley James? Why yes. And darn impressive acting it was as well.
Arthur doesn’t get the chance to show off his emotional side very often so it was good to see it here. Good to see exactly how close to his father he actually was. Like with Merlin, Arthur can be forgiven for a momentary lapse in judgement. As I said. If we were as desperate as him would we not go to any lengths available? I know I would.
Arthur may think that all magic is evil now, and he has good reason too. But once he discovers the true reason for his Father’s death than I hope that he will change his attitude. With Arthur on the throne I hope that the status quo regarding Magic in Camelot will quickly cease to be quo.
This is a good chance for some proper character development. I hope the writers don’t waste it.
The Bad Guy
So we’ve got The Gleeman - paid off by King Odin - who was actually responsible for Uther’s death wound. But he was quickly removed to make way for the real villain of the piece.
Morgana. Yes. Again. I hope we do see some different villains this season and that Morgana won’t be behind everything that goes wrong. That will get very boring very quickly.
I must applaud her on her sense of evil style though.
Conclusion.
This show is going to go to a lot of new exciting place now. I for one can’t wait to see where it goes next.
Next Week: Dragons Egg