Merlin: 5:07 A Lesson In Vengeance
So, another episode down and six to go till the (bitter?) end of S5 and possibly, if rumours are to be believed, the entire show. And …where are we now?
Well, actually, we’re back in S4. Or is it S3? Deep anyway in the Merlin producers thumb-sucking comfort zone of ‘Merlin trying singlehandedly (save Gaius - the device to enable us to know his ( Read more... )
Which I then do by summarizing episodes, when I'm not too busy screaming in frustration to do it, I mean. (Yeah, that was me, which was how I found about this lj btw.)
I can't even talk about everything that annoys me this season, because it'd take days, and everybody has pretty much covered it all. But I definitely think this season they're just fucking with us, especially on the 'HEY WE WANT YOU TO CARE ABOUT THIS' department. Well, now are we supposed to care Gwen is bad, are we supposed to care what Mordred does? I cared more for Tyr in his 10 minutes screentime than I do for anything that might happen from now on.
Meanwhile the things we could have serious concern about like, oh well Albion, maybe? Are we getting that? Because they've been telling us to hold on for that since season one, yet we don't seem any closer. If anything at this point I think no one other than Merlin would actually care if Arthur died. The way they play their cards it's like they want us to go 'FINALLY, YOU'RE SUCH A DUMBASS YOU DON'T DESERVE THAT THRONE, WHY WOULD WE EVER ROOT FOR YOU'.
I love Arthur with all my heart, but lately it's all coming from my own headcanons and past seasons characterization tbh.
Same thing for Morgana, does she ever plan anything? She lost that stupid throne two times, she's so utterly incompetent it borders on hysterical, why should anybody in Camelot ever worry? it baffles me.
Ugh and the knights just break my heart, so much potential there, so many story arcs that could involve at least two episodes focusing on them. Especially Gwaine. I mean when you go back to season 3, he was FABULOUS. We could literally have it all, he's in Camelot full time, come on. And now we're lucky if any of them have a line.
Also this season has provided what I think were the biggest Fuck Yous to some characters I've seen in a while. Obviously all for plot device, as usual. It's just painful to watch all the character butchering, but you can deal with most of it, even if screaming internally and wondering whether the writers keep any sort of character development sheet (PFFT) with what they've done with them so far or not. But I've never been as perplexed by what a writer is trying to achieve as when Merlin yet again sacrificed himself for Arthur's sake just to have it not matter at all anyway. Why are all magical beings double crossing each other when they all want the same thing, and it would be mutually beneficial to work together? WHY CAN'T ANYTHING IN THIS SHOW MAKE SENSE?
Anyway, let me stop now or I'm not going to.
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I agree with every word you've written and please DO go on. Im sadly with you on everything incuduing the realisation that my love for Arthur IS coming from my own head canon now because of the way the stagnation of the characters has affected him. Merlin too some weeks. Thyere both sacrifices to the refusal to develop the show. The knights did have huge potential; Mordred if they were going to create a good guy gone bad had some potential too- but its all squandered. Its pretty infuriating really - a whole season and the legends to plunder and somehow they manage to repeat previous seasons. Its as if they genuinely cant come up with new ideas. Or they just don't care any more?
The magical beings all double crossing each other too - its because I think they've never really worked out the universe in any depth. Uther the tyrant was an easy answer to everything but once he'd gone, and they decided to just keep the same story exactly with a Arthur on the throne the massive holes in the idea started to show. The way they have Arthur repeating 'the law is the law' over and over is just insulting. Thats supposed to answer any questions of -' why is Arthur being a tyrant himself?' Has Arthur noticed Uther is dead? What about all these changes he's supposed to have made. Have we seen any? In truth we're told this is a great time and Camelots entered its golden age under Arthur abut the atmosphere they're giving is pure police state, just as much as under Uther. the knights seem to be the thuggish enforcers. Do they have any idea what they're doing?
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Their treatment of all the characters in frankly so fucking disrespectful I don't even have the words anymore. You watch every week hoping for nothing and you still get a lot of shit being shoveled at your face for your troubles. I'm actually surprised they've been actually consistent at something though, which is completely disregarding anything they've written the week previous. I mean it used to be like that before, but this season it's reaching whole distressful levels, because they keep trying to sell us the notion that they take this show seriously. But in reality, it's like they put all the episode premises in a bag and someone went around the table having each writer get one or two, then they were all like OKAY, WE ALL HAVE THE EPISODES WE'RE WRITING THIS SEASON. YOU'RE TO MAKE IT DARKER AND BIGGER, BIT LIKE GAME OF THRONES, CAUSE WE'RE AT PRIME TIME AND PEOPLE EAT THAT SHIT UP, NOW SASHAY AWAY. And then they never exchanged another word between each other ever again.
And oh god, I know, after 4.03, I thought things could be looking up, I knew we were once again robbed of the reveal back then, because Merlin and Gaius obviously had to treat Arthur like a child (which is just a trend between those people, it seems) when it would MAKE SENSE reveal that Morgana was the cause of Uther's death, and Merlin simply wouldn't be able to tell Arthur without losing him in the process. That scene where he's sitting on a bench and he doesn't even need to say a word for you to see how something is broken inside him is probably one of my favorites. It's sad how I kind of lost half of my sympathy for him now, but I digress. Anyway, I thought, great we will have some episodes of Arthur settling as a king and struggling with keeping his dad's legacy, but clearly wanting to do what is right by ALL of his people, and then having Merlin being a constant and central part of his character arc to become The Once and Future King, that makes sense. And in a way, we had it. Except in the only episode we had Arthur developing into it, and openly addressing the fact he feels so guilty he murdered a lot of innocent druids, that he's so /ashamed/ he can't even look people in the eye for days, that he actually SAYS that he knows he was wrong and he wants to do what's right by them. WHAT DO WE GET AFTER? Merlin making fun of him for crying.
And that was the end of it.
But since then, they keep TELLING us Arthur is not his father, they have whole episodes to shove at our faces that HEY ARTHUR IS NOT HIS FATHER. BUT WE NEVER SEE IT. ARTHUR CONTINUES TO DO FUCKING DUMB SHIT, AND KEEPS SECOND GUESSING HIMSELF, HE KEEPS ASKING MERLIN FOR FUCKING ADVICE, AND YET HE DOESN'T EVEN GIVE HIM A PLACE ON HIS FUCKING STUPID LOOKING ROUND TABLE.
He's effectively doing nothing to build a fair and just land for all and neither is Merlin, what the fuck was the point of all those seasons if the writers fail to deliver the main promise that they set themselves to make happen since the first episode?
Lately I'm just torn, I love watching Colin and Bradley, they bring life to such shitty writing it's like watching a miracle, they are so fucking GOOD, they could be the living legengs that will go down in history, you know they could. And I want it, I really, really wanted to watch destiny FINALLY come by and see them being great together. But we all know they can't do it in 3 episodes, and even if this isn't the last season it won't be the same, because the writers basically just set it all up to leave a bitter taste in everyone's mouths if it happens. Every character already lost so much that they're basically a shadow of themselves. They're just making us hate everything that was great about it at this point. And help me god, I can't forgive them for that.
So mostly I just want them to move on to greater things. But ugh, I'll miss it.
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I just wanted to say I also adore your captioned recaps too, they never fail to make me chortle, and I LOVE your comments above. Truer words were never spoken.
So mostly I just want them to move on to greater things. But ugh, I'll miss it.
Yes...I have been talking with a friend lately about how nostalgic I feel for earlier seasons, (and for earlier versions of the bromance, both Merthur and Brolin) when we all had such high hopes...hell, as recently as the first part of season 4. The actors themselves (especially Bradley) seemed to absolutely embrace and were proud of what they were doing and exuded such enthusiasm and pride. Now they seem disillusioned and fed up...much like us. *cries*
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And, yeah, basically everything you say here is spot on.
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Oh, the lost potential! *pulls hair out*
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I agree with every single thing you say and share every frustration. I expect when Arthur hangs more people he'll also say the law is the law or something. i would love to know, if they actually do propose to do Camlann how Arthurs reign was actually any different from Uther's. Like you Im watching for Colin and Bradley because - yes they can turn dross to something resembling gold, but how do they get a handle on their characters? How does Bradley/Arthur go from Noblest King Ever to Gullible Idiot and back again in the space of a few scenes?
Whatever happened half way through S4 - that was their finest hour and we're obviously not going to see its like again in this show. 4.08 was the juddering halt and after that- a rapid plummet downhill. I wonder if they'll even remember that Arthur made that promise to the druids? I mean he seems to have forgotten Mordred is one and Merlin made it clear Arthur doesnt know about Mordred's magic - not that we're seen any evidence of it either. I saw a spoiler for a druid girl being hanged by Arthur and Gwen so... yeah ...lots of jolly times ahead. You can always rant here though. :-D
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And yeah I think we're all feeling just nostalgic for what it was and could have been at this point. You can see that the show has lost its heart, and now we're all just waiting for the worst.
Oh god, wouldn't it be the biggest fucking joke to have Arthur's reign turn out not meaning anything? I think it would be the most cheated I would feel by a show in all my life. And this is coming from someone who used to follow Supernatural religiously.
I mean, as I said, it's not like it would be any better if they suddenly decided to develop Arthur and Merlin into equals now, they don't have the time to do it properly. Their relationship is already so damaged by the show's poor treatment of the best thing they had, it just won't really work. Bradley and Colin could do it brilliantly, obviously. But it would feel cheap and nonsensical.
I'm so glad I have a space where people just get it, though. I have to say I'm loving it here, you guys are all amazing and respectful, it's a change.
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Having said that I was looking at one of those 'preview quote' sites and intrigued by the massages below talking about how every episode is getting better and better and wow what a shock that Gwen was turned evil and oh isnt it scary. These weren't I dont think the usual Gwen stans remarks ('OK Arthur and Merlin die a horrible death and Camelot falls but - are there any Arwen moments? I need to see tender kisses and Arthur repeatedly declaring his devotion?') or Merlin fans outraged by the way the show is going ('This show is CALLED Merlin!!!')- these seemed fans who care enough about the show to post about it but don't really care what happens to the characters. Colour me confused. But these are the fans Shine seems to be holding on to effortlessly - whatever they put out there is good enough. I rather envy those fans TBH :P
This is definitely a space where anyone can discuss their feelings about the show without being told what they *should* think (see discussion above :P) or say. Frankly, the more the merrier - I love reading peoples genuine opinions. :-D
ETA: actually when you think of it, how ridiculous is it that we have to behave like a revolutionary cell meeting in a secluded cellar to discuss our opinions in case Our Queens Religious Police finger our collars and dole out unimaginable punishment for our blasphemy. :P I kind of fancy that whole revolutionary idea... I could manage a black beret, but maybe not a straggly moustache...
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