Thoughts
I'm pretty sure I'll be back among the living soon and will hopefully suck less at answering comments. *fingers crossed*
I've been thinking. Or, more likely it just occurred to me when I was reading some Suits fics and noticed a lot of familiar pennames among the commenters. Nothing unusual about that, but it made me wonder at the sheer amount of Merlin fans pouring into Suits fandom. No question, Suits are attractive in their own rights, but there are also parallels, only in Suits they make more sense. Here, too, there's a big, damning secret that must be protected at all costs or else. The difference is, Harvey knows. Right from the start he knows everything and has Mike's back, despite the fact that should the truth come out, it'll hit Harvey harder -- he has much more to lose. (As would Arthur, assuming he'd known about Merlin's magic and decided to cover for him while Uther was still king.)
Basically, the Harvey/Mike dynamic is what Arthur/Merlin should have been, if not from the start then at least for a long while now. It's also proof that you can effectively build a plot around a secret without taking it to the heights of absurdity, exasperating everyone with the sheer amount of disbelief they have to suspend, or -- the most damning -- losing people's interest or any of the tension. Like, seriously, Clark Kent had friends. *le sigh*
Suits vs. Merlin is also a good example of why you shouldn't continue exploiting the same plot device forever. The first episode of series 2 Merlin was basically a reboot of everything they did in series 1, and we were back where we started. The first episode of season 2 Suits is 'She Knows.' And the setup for season 2 clearly has a different intrigue in mind for the main storyline. Mike's secret is still there, but the focus has shifted. They're moving on without losing anything.
I love Merlin dearly, but, whatever their reasoning, where storylines development is concerned, they're doing it wrong. Just my personal opinion.
I've been thinking. Or, more likely it just occurred to me when I was reading some Suits fics and noticed a lot of familiar pennames among the commenters. Nothing unusual about that, but it made me wonder at the sheer amount of Merlin fans pouring into Suits fandom. No question, Suits are attractive in their own rights, but there are also parallels, only in Suits they make more sense. Here, too, there's a big, damning secret that must be protected at all costs or else. The difference is, Harvey knows. Right from the start he knows everything and has Mike's back, despite the fact that should the truth come out, it'll hit Harvey harder -- he has much more to lose. (As would Arthur, assuming he'd known about Merlin's magic and decided to cover for him while Uther was still king.)
Basically, the Harvey/Mike dynamic is what Arthur/Merlin should have been, if not from the start then at least for a long while now. It's also proof that you can effectively build a plot around a secret without taking it to the heights of absurdity, exasperating everyone with the sheer amount of disbelief they have to suspend, or -- the most damning -- losing people's interest or any of the tension. Like, seriously, Clark Kent had friends. *le sigh*
Suits vs. Merlin is also a good example of why you shouldn't continue exploiting the same plot device forever. The first episode of series 2 Merlin was basically a reboot of everything they did in series 1, and we were back where we started. The first episode of season 2 Suits is 'She Knows.' And the setup for season 2 clearly has a different intrigue in mind for the main storyline. Mike's secret is still there, but the focus has shifted. They're moving on without losing anything.
I love Merlin dearly, but, whatever their reasoning, where storylines development is concerned, they're doing it wrong. Just my personal opinion.