Merlin, and why you should be watching it
I read a post on a download community that made me irritated, so I decided to write a post of glee to make me happy. And to try and give myself a fix as I'm waiting for the next episode. Man, I can't remember how long its been since I was so into a show that the week between episodes felt REALLY LONG. Season three of SGA, maybe?
Anyway, Merlin. The premise is very similar to Smallville, except its set in Camelot. There's the boy with the magic (alien with superpowers), the bratty prince (the rich bald guy) and the evil king (Lionel, except he's played by *Giles* <3). The creators even admit to ripping off being inspired by Smallville:
Merlin was also influenced by US show Smallville, about the early years of Superman.
Smallville helped provide the idea that Merlin would see a "Camelot that existed before its golden age".
"Just as in Smallville we wanted to subvert expectations," said Capps. "Camelot is a land where magic is banned [and] Merlin ... is a young boy who works as Arthur's manservant and has to hide his abilities."
So, there we go. The premise. Merlin shows up in Camelot, needs to hide his abilities since the king has forbidden all use of magic and ends up being Arthur's manservant. Oh, and did I forget to mention? Arthur and Merlin have a destiny together.
This is Arthur (note: gratuitous chest shot).
Arthur is kind of a dick.
But not really!
Just a little in the pilot, after that he's just...Arthur.
He has a lot of pressure on him, being a prince, living up to his father's expectations.
And he does cool stuff, like risking his life to save Merlin, even though Merlin is a servant and technically not worth saving if you're a prince.
This is Merlin.
Merlin is adorable.
No, really.
He has cool magic powers that make his eyes glow.
He does have heroic tendencies not unlike those of a bug on a windshield, but it usually works out for him.
This is Morgana.
She wears massively inappropriate dresses and looks good while doing it.
She loves Gwen, fighting with Uther, and flirting with Arthur.
This is Gwen.
Gwen is adorable.
This is probably why they're not-so-subtly pairing up her with Merlin. Merlin + Gwen = puppy adorableness.
This is Gaius. He's the court physician and the one who's taken Merlin in to live with him.
He knows magic, though he doesn't use it, and knows about Merlin's abilities.
This is Uther.
Uther is kind of a bastard. But we love him. (I love you, Giles!)
Despite his bastard ways, you can tell that he loves Arthur. Well, occasionally, anyway.
This the Dragon. He's the last of the dragons as Uther killed all the others.
He mainly just hangs out in a cave under the city, waiting for Merlin to show up so that he can say cryptic things about why Merlin and Arthur belong together. No, really.
Slash and ship
Well, obviously, not being biased at all, it's pretty slashy. ;) No, but really. There's the whole love/hate relationship going on that's a lot of fun, risking their lives for each other, Merlin calling Arthur by name even though he's the prince, the fact that Merlin is a bit of a crappy manservant and the fact that Arthur doesn't seem to care...I don't want to spoil too much by giving specific examples, but my GOD, it's gay.
There's of course the fact that Merlin has to keep the magic secret (he's not very good at it, but whatev), but I like that Merlin and Arthur have an interesting relationship without it. I mean, I'm itching for the Revelation the way I itch for it in every single superhero movie/series, but with those two, the stuff leading up to it is just as good.
Then there's Gwen/Morgana who are setting up house together, Gwen bringing Morgana flowers to make her happy, and Morgana telling her that Gwen makes her happy. Awww!
And the ship! Morgana has dreams about Arthur (though, sadly, not the good kind) and Gwen thinks that Merlin is the best thing since sliced bread. Err. If they actually have sliced bread at that point.
The effects are...pretty bad, but the sets and costumes are fantastic. If SGA and Merlin were to join forces, they would rule the world! SGA has fantastic effects, but man, the costumes at times...........and that poor village, it never gets any peace.
Sigh. Really, once he stops being a dick, he's very pretty.
I know they're low-quality, but it goes without saying that you can snag any caps if you want to, be it for iconing or personal ogling pleasure.
Communities of interest
bbc_merlin_news
Newsletter
morganafay
Community dedicated to Morgana
merlingwen
Community dedicated to Merlin/Gwen
merlinxarthur
Community dedicated to Merlin/Arthur
merlinslash
Community dedicated to slash pairings in general
merlin_icons
Icon community
arthurs_chamber
Community for Arthur in any pairing
herchampion
Arthur/Morgana community
infide_manentia
Merlin/Morgana community
Anyway, Merlin. The premise is very similar to Smallville, except its set in Camelot. There's the boy with the magic (alien with superpowers), the bratty prince (the rich bald guy) and the evil king (Lionel, except he's played by *Giles* <3). The creators even admit to ripping off being inspired by Smallville:
Merlin was also influenced by US show Smallville, about the early years of Superman.
Smallville helped provide the idea that Merlin would see a "Camelot that existed before its golden age".
"Just as in Smallville we wanted to subvert expectations," said Capps. "Camelot is a land where magic is banned [and] Merlin ... is a young boy who works as Arthur's manservant and has to hide his abilities."
So, there we go. The premise. Merlin shows up in Camelot, needs to hide his abilities since the king has forbidden all use of magic and ends up being Arthur's manservant. Oh, and did I forget to mention? Arthur and Merlin have a destiny together.
This is Arthur (note: gratuitous chest shot).
Arthur is kind of a dick.
But not really!
Just a little in the pilot, after that he's just...Arthur.
He has a lot of pressure on him, being a prince, living up to his father's expectations.
And he does cool stuff, like risking his life to save Merlin, even though Merlin is a servant and technically not worth saving if you're a prince.
This is Merlin.
Merlin is adorable.
No, really.
He has cool magic powers that make his eyes glow.
He does have heroic tendencies not unlike those of a bug on a windshield, but it usually works out for him.
This is Morgana.
She wears massively inappropriate dresses and looks good while doing it.
She loves Gwen, fighting with Uther, and flirting with Arthur.
This is Gwen.
Gwen is adorable.
This is probably why they're not-so-subtly pairing up her with Merlin. Merlin + Gwen = puppy adorableness.
This is Gaius. He's the court physician and the one who's taken Merlin in to live with him.
He knows magic, though he doesn't use it, and knows about Merlin's abilities.
This is Uther.
Uther is kind of a bastard. But we love him. (I love you, Giles!)
Despite his bastard ways, you can tell that he loves Arthur. Well, occasionally, anyway.
This the Dragon. He's the last of the dragons as Uther killed all the others.
He mainly just hangs out in a cave under the city, waiting for Merlin to show up so that he can say cryptic things about why Merlin and Arthur belong together. No, really.
Slash and ship
Well, obviously, not being biased at all, it's pretty slashy. ;) No, but really. There's the whole love/hate relationship going on that's a lot of fun, risking their lives for each other, Merlin calling Arthur by name even though he's the prince, the fact that Merlin is a bit of a crappy manservant and the fact that Arthur doesn't seem to care...I don't want to spoil too much by giving specific examples, but my GOD, it's gay.
There's of course the fact that Merlin has to keep the magic secret (he's not very good at it, but whatev), but I like that Merlin and Arthur have an interesting relationship without it. I mean, I'm itching for the Revelation the way I itch for it in every single superhero movie/series, but with those two, the stuff leading up to it is just as good.
Then there's Gwen/Morgana who are setting up house together, Gwen bringing Morgana flowers to make her happy, and Morgana telling her that Gwen makes her happy. Awww!
And the ship! Morgana has dreams about Arthur (though, sadly, not the good kind) and Gwen thinks that Merlin is the best thing since sliced bread. Err. If they actually have sliced bread at that point.
The effects are...pretty bad, but the sets and costumes are fantastic. If SGA and Merlin were to join forces, they would rule the world! SGA has fantastic effects, but man, the costumes at times...........and that poor village, it never gets any peace.
Sigh. Really, once he stops being a dick, he's very pretty.
I know they're low-quality, but it goes without saying that you can snag any caps if you want to, be it for iconing or personal ogling pleasure.
Communities of interest
bbc_merlin_news
Newsletter
morganafay
Community dedicated to Morgana
merlingwen
Community dedicated to Merlin/Gwen
merlinxarthur
Community dedicated to Merlin/Arthur
merlinslash
Community dedicated to slash pairings in general
merlin_icons
Icon community
arthurs_chamber
Community for Arthur in any pairing
herchampion
Arthur/Morgana community
infide_manentia
Merlin/Morgana community