Merlin 3.01 The Tears of Uther Pendragon part 1
I can't begin to describe how much I've missed this show.
First I should note that I watched the episode half blind and in a photoshoppy, gaussian blurry haze due to having acute iritis in my right eye. I'm not sure if it was partly owing to my bad eyesight, but the cinematography in the episode looked amazing. Nay, it looked down right magical.
I tend to be all for the x-year(s)-later trope in tv shows. The New Caprica arc in Battlestar Galactica was probably my favourite storyline in the entire show. Jumps ahead in the timeline are popular since they shake things up, defamiliarize what we have come to know about the characters, relationships etc. and hopefully refreshen the entire show. Unfortunately, the time jump in Merlin mainly just seemed like lazy writing. Apparently, because a year has passed, it is completely justified to portray Morgana as unambiguously evil, her loyalties undivided and willing to commit a murder (twice) just to get her way. The fact that it would be so simple to justify Morgana thinking she was doing the right thing doesn't make it any easier to understand. She wants to destroy a king who drowns little children in order to rid his kingdom of magic. Morgana doesn't need to become the villain to want to change things! It's difficult to blame her for smilingly enjoying torturing Uther, but not trusting Arthur or Gwen, and most likely getting them killed in the process, just doesn't seem like Morgana. Claiming it's in-character because a year has passed is lazy.
What makes this even more ridiculous is that absolutely nothing seems to have evolved between Merlin and Arthur. (It's got to be true love since neither has killed the other after three years. Merlin's obvious masochistic tendencies and 'destiny' just don't cover it.)
If it sounds like I hated the episode, it couldn't be further from the truth. I loved it. ♥♥♥
Was it just me, or did anyone else half expect Aragorn or Xena to ride in and join King Cendred and Morgause in battle? Not that Cendred didn't provide enough of black-leather-wearing hotness already.
It's pretty sad that Morgana and Morgause's villainous witchcraft would have failed if only Camelot's servants cleaned under the beds.
Merlin the Dragonlord was so AWESOME.
Uther hallucinating Igraine's ghost in the well was terrifying and creepy. I felt bad for Uther.
A drunken Uther telling Morgana he loves her "more than she will ever know" didn't sound very much like foster-fatherly love. I'm just saying.
Even with the two-dimensional, powerful-women-are-evil characterization Morgana is still my favourite. I also found myself hoping for more interaction (affectionate or not) between her and Arthur. At some point Morgana has to ask Arthur to join her and Morgause. "The Sins of the Father" proved that given enough incentive Arthur will turn against Uther and Morgana must know this. I hope the writers do too.
Bradley James is still a beautiful, beautiful man.
This entry was originally posted at Dreamwidth. Comments
First I should note that I watched the episode half blind and in a photoshoppy, gaussian blurry haze due to having acute iritis in my right eye. I'm not sure if it was partly owing to my bad eyesight, but the cinematography in the episode looked amazing. Nay, it looked down right magical.
I tend to be all for the x-year(s)-later trope in tv shows. The New Caprica arc in Battlestar Galactica was probably my favourite storyline in the entire show. Jumps ahead in the timeline are popular since they shake things up, defamiliarize what we have come to know about the characters, relationships etc. and hopefully refreshen the entire show. Unfortunately, the time jump in Merlin mainly just seemed like lazy writing. Apparently, because a year has passed, it is completely justified to portray Morgana as unambiguously evil, her loyalties undivided and willing to commit a murder (twice) just to get her way. The fact that it would be so simple to justify Morgana thinking she was doing the right thing doesn't make it any easier to understand. She wants to destroy a king who drowns little children in order to rid his kingdom of magic. Morgana doesn't need to become the villain to want to change things! It's difficult to blame her for smilingly enjoying torturing Uther, but not trusting Arthur or Gwen, and most likely getting them killed in the process, just doesn't seem like Morgana. Claiming it's in-character because a year has passed is lazy.
What makes this even more ridiculous is that absolutely nothing seems to have evolved between Merlin and Arthur. (It's got to be true love since neither has killed the other after three years. Merlin's obvious masochistic tendencies and 'destiny' just don't cover it.)
If it sounds like I hated the episode, it couldn't be further from the truth. I loved it. ♥♥♥
Was it just me, or did anyone else half expect Aragorn or Xena to ride in and join King Cendred and Morgause in battle? Not that Cendred didn't provide enough of black-leather-wearing hotness already.
It's pretty sad that Morgana and Morgause's villainous witchcraft would have failed if only Camelot's servants cleaned under the beds.
Merlin the Dragonlord was so AWESOME.
Uther hallucinating Igraine's ghost in the well was terrifying and creepy. I felt bad for Uther.
A drunken Uther telling Morgana he loves her "more than she will ever know" didn't sound very much like foster-fatherly love. I'm just saying.
Even with the two-dimensional, powerful-women-are-evil characterization Morgana is still my favourite. I also found myself hoping for more interaction (affectionate or not) between her and Arthur. At some point Morgana has to ask Arthur to join her and Morgause. "The Sins of the Father" proved that given enough incentive Arthur will turn against Uther and Morgana must know this. I hope the writers do too.
Bradley James is still a beautiful, beautiful man.
This entry was originally posted at Dreamwidth. Comments