meta: the death song of uther pendragon
Rubberglue keeps me updated on Selenak’s wonderful reviews. I always want to reply, but never get around to it. I started writing a reply tonight, and as is often the case when my fingers touch a keyboard, it turned into a massive essay. Brevity is not my strong suit.
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Selenak's reviews are so good! And it's nice to know that there are people out there watching the show without agendas.
I certainly enjoyed watching this with you! Alas, BBC couldn't transmit our witty commentary. I can't actually remember how I felt about 4x10. I do remember liking it better after reading zahrawithaz's review of it, and I thought Bradley and Adetomiwa's performances were perfect. But it was another episode that felt like it had a better episode buried in it, and the timing of the episode itself seemed oddly inappropriate. Maybe it's because Arthur looked bad enough after 4x09, and then the next episode we find out that he ordered mass murder. (This is actually something we all more or less knew about him and totally plausible since series two, but either forgot or were in denial of it?)
I often wonder how much of my Merlin opinions are shaped by what I personally want from the show and how much technically would've made the episode better. For example, Crystal Cave is a great episode, but it's not one that I return to for fun, whereas I returned to 2x02 and 2x10 all time, because of my soft spot for AG.
But you know, none of the episodes from four or five, except for 4x06 have endeared to me like many episodes in the earlier seasons. Is it that in their quest for "darker" stories, they're losing one of the best parts of the show? I love Goblin's Gold too. I would've happily taken a goblin over ghost!Uther.
I think I may have beaten you at going off point. :P
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I like the show trying to raise standards and have more linear storytelling. It certainly looks and feels more cinematic, but the execution doesn't feel as rich and warm and satisfying.
There was a different energy to the show from 1-3, the cast was adorable, it still had a considerable amount of depth. I actually think series two was a good balance of funny and "dark" episodes, and explored really new and interesting sides of both Merlin and Arthur in different ways.
The constant foreboding of doom does feel exhausting. Especially when I started watching for its escapist elements. ESPECIALLY when the tagline for last year was "It's always darkest before the dawn" and this year is "The Die is cast." WAIT. What happened to the dawn? We spent four years waiting for it. I want to see the dawn! I don't think Camlann will even be as emotionally momentous as it ought to be because of that.
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