History posts, and January Meme: Merlin's Season 4
During the original broadcast of Merlin, I loved the fourth season best. Last year, I did a rewatch and was wondering whether it would still hold up, especially since I had liked the first season more and the second less than I recalled. But no, s4 is still my favourite, though I am frustrated that several good things about it weren't followed through in s5.
My favourite episodes of my favourite season are here, for more details. As an overview, some of my favourite things:
- This was when the show was actually willing for a game changer: killing off Uther, which also meant that from now on, Arthur was fully responsible for any magic-related decisions. (I mean, I love ASH as much as the next Buffy veteran, but it was time.)
- after two seasons (2 and 3) where the balance of humor and emotion in the Merlin/Arthur relationship could too often fall prone to unfunny slapstick, s4 managed to maintain it (imo as always)
- as opposed to s3, s4 got a handle on how to write Morgana as a villain. The perpetual smirk is mostly gone, and she gets moments of ambiguity (something that had been sadly missing in s3) - her reaction when Uther finally has died, and Agrivaine shows up expecting to find her triumphant, her "I know what is to be loyal, but I have no one left to be loyal to" to Merlin in "Servant of Two Masters", her conversation with Arthur in the season finale - , while her moments of cruelty are genuinely chilling
- The Knights of the Round Table were actually presented in a way that made this viewer emotionally understand why people would want to join (this is true in all seasons where they exist, but this is the best season for them), and also that there's an actual difference to the status quo when Uther was King
- Merlin and Arthur both manage to show growth and make fatal decisions that will contribute to the later tragedy, and not in a way that makes them look stupid but are entirely routed in their characters and development up to this point (The Wicked Day is hands down one of the best episodes of the show)
- While there's never enough Gwen, we do see her further development into Queenhood, and I continue to dig that her relationship with Arthur is never "purely" romance but can't be separated from this, which is why it's also fitting that it culminates not into a depiction of their marriage ceremony, but in her coronation; s4 also has some of the last (grrr, s5) Gwen and Merlin friendship scenes to treasure
- Queen Annis (for Arthur) and Mithian (for Merlin) are both female characters whose goals in the episode they're in are directly opposed to those of our protagonist, and yet they, not he, are depicted to be in the right, which he has to acknowledge eventually
- Herald of a New Age by itself is a fantastic episode and only the fact there is zero follow up in s5 to it takes away its power. But within s4, it's exactly the kind of "Arthur is brought face to face not with his father's crimes but with his own guilt re: magic users, and not in a way that involves his feelings for Merlin and/or Morgana" story I had been hoping to see.
The Other Days
Unrelated to Merlin, or the meme: if anyone through the most recent Yuletide has been made curious about 18th century history, Prussian and Austrian section, a lot of the summaries and quotes from my discussions with
mildred_of_midgard and
cahn have now been ordered into subjects and uploaded to
rheinsberg, where you can check them out. Want to know more about the various dysfunctional Hohenzollerns and slightly more functional Habsburgs, their boyfriends, wives and bffs without having to go through long, long threads? You can do so now.
This entry was originally posted at https://selenak.dreamwidth.org/1383358.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.
My favourite episodes of my favourite season are here, for more details. As an overview, some of my favourite things:
- This was when the show was actually willing for a game changer: killing off Uther, which also meant that from now on, Arthur was fully responsible for any magic-related decisions. (I mean, I love ASH as much as the next Buffy veteran, but it was time.)
- after two seasons (2 and 3) where the balance of humor and emotion in the Merlin/Arthur relationship could too often fall prone to unfunny slapstick, s4 managed to maintain it (imo as always)
- as opposed to s3, s4 got a handle on how to write Morgana as a villain. The perpetual smirk is mostly gone, and she gets moments of ambiguity (something that had been sadly missing in s3) - her reaction when Uther finally has died, and Agrivaine shows up expecting to find her triumphant, her "I know what is to be loyal, but I have no one left to be loyal to" to Merlin in "Servant of Two Masters", her conversation with Arthur in the season finale - , while her moments of cruelty are genuinely chilling
- The Knights of the Round Table were actually presented in a way that made this viewer emotionally understand why people would want to join (this is true in all seasons where they exist, but this is the best season for them), and also that there's an actual difference to the status quo when Uther was King
- Merlin and Arthur both manage to show growth and make fatal decisions that will contribute to the later tragedy, and not in a way that makes them look stupid but are entirely routed in their characters and development up to this point (The Wicked Day is hands down one of the best episodes of the show)
- While there's never enough Gwen, we do see her further development into Queenhood, and I continue to dig that her relationship with Arthur is never "purely" romance but can't be separated from this, which is why it's also fitting that it culminates not into a depiction of their marriage ceremony, but in her coronation; s4 also has some of the last (grrr, s5) Gwen and Merlin friendship scenes to treasure
- Queen Annis (for Arthur) and Mithian (for Merlin) are both female characters whose goals in the episode they're in are directly opposed to those of our protagonist, and yet they, not he, are depicted to be in the right, which he has to acknowledge eventually
- Herald of a New Age by itself is a fantastic episode and only the fact there is zero follow up in s5 to it takes away its power. But within s4, it's exactly the kind of "Arthur is brought face to face not with his father's crimes but with his own guilt re: magic users, and not in a way that involves his feelings for Merlin and/or Morgana" story I had been hoping to see.
The Other Days
Unrelated to Merlin, or the meme: if anyone through the most recent Yuletide has been made curious about 18th century history, Prussian and Austrian section, a lot of the summaries and quotes from my discussions with
mildred_of_midgard and
cahn have now been ordered into subjects and uploaded to
rheinsberg, where you can check them out. Want to know more about the various dysfunctional Hohenzollerns and slightly more functional Habsburgs, their boyfriends, wives and bffs without having to go through long, long threads? You can do so now.
This entry was originally posted at https://selenak.dreamwidth.org/1383358.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.