Merlin 4x01: Revival of the Witch, aka. The Darkest Hour
Watched Merlin this morning (hooray for the internet). And I geek, therefore I ramble.
Beware strong language!
First off: How awesome is it that in the beginning, John Hurt (aka. Kilgarrah, the Great Dragon) announces that Camelot's destiny now rests on the shoulders of a young MAN? Seriously, I died. And yes, I'm easily entertained.
Furthermore, Morgana looks amazing these days. Basically a lot like I imagined your typical evil witch, but without looking too clichéd, which is pretty stunning considering this is Merlin we're talking about-- and I say this with love. :]
But honestly, if I were a mighty badass witch, I wouldn't actually be pulling that carriage or cart or whatever.
And then, we saw Leon and Elyan riding out together! (I mean yes, plus the two other knights, but they don't count, 'kay?) But they looked so cute in their little red capes, and their cartoon dragon on them... I think I will now call them CSSG (Camelot's Special Superhero Guild).
Something I noticed was that Camelot is apparently run by control freaks (not Arthur, then), because there's patrols riding around that stop and question everyone who's travelling from A to B. Not very liberal, is it? But I guess security is important when the regent's whacky half- sister is hell- bent on revenge.
In other news.... MORGANA CAN DO MAGIC NOW! Seriously, I was starting to believe she was a squib for real. But why she didn't finish off Leon & Co. then and there instead of giving them a flying lesson is beyond me. But I was nearly in tears when, after Morgana made the first 2 knights fly backwards, Leon's facial expression was a completely pissed- off "WTF". Especially because his companion (Yes, Ely) was all fighter-y and went for his sword. :]
Morgause freaked me out. That massive blister on her face is terrifying! But her relationship with Morgana was genuinely very sweet. Later on, when they go to the pier to travel to the Isle of the Blessed, and they sit in the boat, Morgause's head rested on Morgana's shoulder and I LOVED IT. Not because I ship them (incest alert!), but because I love it when they get all siblingy- dependent.
The thing is, Morgana can be described as a bit of a heartless bitch, taking into consideration what she did to all her friends and even family back in Camelot, but this scene clearly showed that she can be affectionate and genuinely caring, and I appreciated that, because I wasn't sure that she would even be able to feel that way anymore.
OH! Oh! NEW FRONT TITLES! Well, partly, at least. But honestly, I had almost given up hope. :D
The sequence after the titles was awesome. The journey through the castle was nice, as we got to see what's happening, the preparations for the feast, that Merlin apparently has issues with the cook (LOL FOREVER, btw) and that Percival and Gwaine are kindergartners. THEY WERE SO CUTE!
We meet Lance, Merlin's first magical act of this series is to clean Arthur's shirt (I laughed.) and then--
Appearance of the Prince, aka. The Once and Future King, aka. Royal Prat, aka Clotpole, etc. And, if I may say, LMAO, because our beloved princess doesn't seem to be able to dress on his own. Well, admittedly, he usually walks around topless, so I won't be too hard on him.
I am a little confused, however, as to why Merlin would write Arthur's speeches. Because there's a few things Arthur does incredibly well:
1. Fighting (and he can do this without random branches blowing up and killing bandits and stuff).
2. Being conveniently unconscious when Merlin does magic.
3. Make off- the- cuff speeches that manage to motivate everyone and give hope to the people he addresses. So I don't really get that.
However, I loved how Arthur was pretending to be all serious and expect Merlin to thank him for getting to write the speech and laugh about it when he didn't. Very sweet, and it gives a good insight into the Merlin/Arthur relationship.
Uther is, as expected, a wreck and a shadow of his former self. And, may I add, Mr. Head played the part of the fallen king BRILLIANTLY. He's so talented, it's not even fair. He had like, 4 words in the entire episode, and he delivered them so well. So, kudos, sir-- you're awesome.
And Gwen takes care of him! I loved it. I had hoped that this would happen, and now it did, and I can't even.
And the fact that she does it solely for Arthur makes me squee.
On the subject of Gwen...
Big fan of the hair-- not a fan of the dress. They seem to be cut in a way that she seems unproportional in a way and she seems kinda fat (which she is not, hands down). So, yeah. Change? Other than that, she is gorgeous, and I love her. (Sorry, haters.)
Cue: Agravaine. Okay, so I knew from the start that he was evil, so I didn't have to interpret his behaviour to find that out, but he really wasn't all that subtle. But he is an interesting character, especially if he is Igraine's brother and not Uther's. Although there is one thing that bothers me: Presumably, he is in league with Morgana because he wants revenge for his sister's death and Uther's hand in it. At the same time, he tells Arthur that he promised Igraine that he would look after her son. But how is he gonna do that when he helps getting him killed? Question marks. Maybe he's just a power- hungry bastard, but that would be stupid given his status. Please, show, make sense where there is none.
I was genuinely freaked out by the scene when Morgana and Morgause approach the Isle of the Blessed. And then, Morgana had to murder her beloved sister. WHAT? Dude! Okay, yes, so no more Morgause, but I love how the show is progressing. And maybe now Morgana can relate to how Merlin felt in 2x12...
MEANWHILE, in Camelot....
The festivities begin/commence (liking that Arthur upholds the ancient traditions), Merlin feels the veil between the worlds being torn by Morgana and he faints. Lancelot and Gay-us are immediately there.
I love the way Alice Troughton directed this, btw. The parallels between Merlin and Morgana in that scene are amazing (them hitting the ground, etc). And Gemma Jones was SCARY! And "Emrys" was mentioned, which makes me happy (To those who don't know: "Emrys" is the Welsh name for Merlin).
Merlin and Gaius have their chat, and Gaius, of course, knows what's happened and who it was that Merlin saw. And he doesn't even need his Baddie- Book this time!
And then, something happened I kinda fell in love with: Leon comes rushing into Arthur's chambers and Arthur's expression was priceless. I rewatched that moment like 50 times. XD
Then: Arthur is dressed (properly, because Merlin was there this time) and he asks the woman from the village that was attacked (Drea? Andrea?)what happened. And I loved that! He actually cared about her, was willing to listen, treated her like a friend, not a subject. Basically the exact opposite of Uther. LOVE.
The CSSG rides out to battle evil! AND: Merlin and Arthur's conversation in the forest was genuinely amazing.
A: Merlin, do you need your comfort blanket??
[...]
A: You're a clotpole.
M: That's my word.
A: Yeah, and it suits you perfectly.
ROFL!
And I find it funny that Percival's character trait seems to be his sleeveless chain mail. WOW, man.
GWAINE! And his apple! I had a heart attack XD Genius.
Dead people were not yummy. (Not that dead people usually are. Do I sound like a cannibal? Jeez.)
Merlin's magic doesn't work anymore. (Although later on, he doesn't have a problem lighting the fire....), and Lance must come and save him.
The Dorocha (??) look a lot like Voldemort did in the first Harry Potter film. I mean, after Quirrell was dead and Voldy is a shadow thing.
While the CSSG rides home, Camelot is in a frenzy. AND GWEN knows how to defend herself! BAMF. I like.
Merlin, in his talk with Gaius, confesses that he is genuinely scared. Loved that. Because to be honest, we haven't particularly heard that a whole lot.
Merlin Athur, and the candle... so cute! Merlin has a problem, Arthur first laughs at him and then helps him out. They're BFFs! And then Arthur is all open and admits to his own fear. BROMANCE!
Percy saves kids (with Elyan). *fangirl* Although it would be nice if they gave him a bit of background and character development. And maybe sleeves.
Arthur then is told by Gaius (well done, btw) that a blood sacrifice is required to repair the tear in the veil and get rid of the ghosts permanently. Nothing new here. But honestly, I was like, "Take Uther, that way he can at least be good for something."
I love Uther.
The scene between Agravaine and Morgana was pretty funny. Morgana being snarky! XD But I have big, giant issues regarding the relationship between Morgana and Arthur.
HE'S YOUR BABY BROTHER, BITCH!
I will post something another time, where I explain my views on and issues with the main characters. Explanation then.
But Morgana's little hut in the forest! Gingerbread house, Hänsel & Gretel. I laughed (again).
AND THEN Arthur and Uther had their scene! I almost cried, it was so touching. :'( I mean, ARTHUR CRIED. And not the Dean Winchester trademark single manly tear. There was a flood.
I love my little princess. :] And then Gwen comes in, and I died. First Arthur and Uther, which is like my favourite thing on Merlin because they have such a complicated father-son relationship, and then Gwen/Arthur which I adore *overload*
And Gwen looooves Arthur! FUCK LANCE. (pretty, pretty Lance.... XD)
When Arthur gave Agravaine the ring or whatever, I thought that that would have been a really beautiful and sweet scene, if only Aggi didn't have an ulterior motive.
GWEN AND LANCELOT. At first I went, "Nooooo," because I detest Lancelot/Gwen (I love their characters, but I don't want them to get together), and Lancelot was all smiley when he walked up to her, but all she was thinking about was Arthur! And I loved it. Although Lancelot was pretty sad, and I felt for him.
But who cares, because Gwen loves Arthur *chants* She didn't even tell Lancelot to take care of himself, just that he should look after Arthur. I HAVE HOPE that they won't go with the L/G affair.
The CSSG rides out (yet again).
And Morgana has a vision. MANY MANY DEAD PEOPLE! And DRAGUN ( the Great). I guess the men on the ground are Camelot knights (I think I saw red capes and a golden dragon). I don't know whose crest that is on the flags? Anyway, it looks like a pretty epic and bloody battle. And crap, was that Excalibur my eyes briefly beheld? (And is it, therefor, Arthur's last battle? Was he already dead in that vision, and was that why "Emrys" said what he said? OMG!)
And Morgana (thinks she) knows who Emrys is!
The CSSG makes it to the ruins of an old castle. Arthur and Merlin go to seek firewood( and failed). (I laughed. AGAIN.) And Arthur must save Merlin! I lol'd.
But when they sat in their little corner and talked, that was very lovely. (Although I had a very hard time understanding what they were saying, tbh.)
And you are friends, MER- lin, YOU IDIOT! XD Adorable.
And then, apparently, Merlin died. (For Arthur. BROMANCE, PART 1 Billion). WHAT?!
TRAILER- TALK:
DRAGON!!
... other than that: Someone pegs out, and considering Gwen's reaction, it might either be Lancelot (unlikely), Arthur (absolutely unlikely) or Elyan (NOOOO!!). We'll see. And Arthur and some wyven seem to have beef. And Merlin appears, undead. Thanks BBC, for the Spoilers... XD *facepalm*
Bye, Bye!
~Sophie