Merlin 3.11: The Sorcerer's Shadow
How can it be Saturday? Who stole the week? Quickly then.
This has a ‘blah’ reception from the professional reviewers but I loved it. Sure, in many ways TSS is a filler episode in that the story is self-contained, but it’s still my favourite of the season in terms of characterisation and showing how far Merlin and Arthur have come in becoming the ( Read more... )
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Five popular entertainments in Camelot that are not tournaments:
1. Magic -- as we know from s2. Though supposedly of the fake variety only.
2. Mythical creature spotting. Mostly popular amongst children. Merlinworld equivalent of staring out the front window and counting different colours of cars.
3. Fashion show. Since there seem to be very few well-off females in Camelot, this mainly features men in capes. Many of the capes are red. Arthur insists there is a vast difference in cut and tailoring.
Last year Leon modelled a cape with a print of a bust of Julius Caesar on it. It was very avant garde.
4. Pegasus racing. Will become extremely illegal the moment Uther realises that the Pegasus is a magical creature. Frequently gambled upon: high tax revenues from said gambling make Uther's neatly delimited ignorance somewhat useful to the royal coffers.
5. Biannual Tintagel sandcastle competition. Seriously hardcore. Numerous fingers lost to frostbite at most recent winter meet.
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HAHA! These are brilliant.
There are also a number of water-based pursuits in the large lake that is located near the castle from traditional swimming and boating to the annual sword-seeking competition.
There are a number of therapies that involve suspension beneath the waves and near drowning.
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*chokes*
I can see that's going to come back to me and make me That Crazy Woman Laughing To Herself On The Street later today.
The Sidhe have learnt to play mood music.
Many Camelotians have caught severe chills whilst practising striding out of the waters in an aesthetically pleasing way.
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Once again, Colin really impressed me with his acting in this scene. Particularly when Merlin talks about how lonely it can be for him.
Arthur/Merlin: Ngtl, I would have liked a few more soulful looks but basically this was the kind of interaction I’ve been wanting between these two. Arthur does not throw things at his servant and listens to his advice. Merlin does not mock everything Arthur holds dear and understands that the tournament and what it stands for are important. M & A parallel each other nicely in this episode in choosing to do what is right rather than what is glorious.
Agree with everything here. This episode really showed them more on the friends side than the Master/Servant one. I ended this episode adoring this Arthur so much and fervently wishing that we could have this version of his character much more often.
but this week's was genuinely funny for show fans as the plate Gaius handed over was stuffed with things CM ( ... )
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I only noticed the contents of the plate in a second viewing - at first I just vaguely registered 'chicken'... It is very funny.
Fingers crossed that we get good character dynamics for the finale!
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He was really good, I hope he comes back though I suspect not.
I really liked that Gilli called Merlin out on betraying his own kind.
It would have made more impact if he hadn't killed a man in cold blood. As you say, that was pretty much swept under the carpet, though they did spare one moment, which is more than other episodes would have done.
Finally a good Arthur episode.YES! OMG FINALLY! From his controlled irritation at dinner to his frustration at Morgana goading Uther into joining the tournament, this episode was Arthur's finest in the series (so far). He actually talked to Merlin about it, Merlin actually listened and then responded with a sensitive answer ( ... )
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Yes, yes, yes. I've mentally skated over all the plot-recycling and lame in this episode simply because I liked Gilli (I can see him coming back as a one off) and there were finally versions of Merlin and Arthur I could get behind. (or in front of!) The inter-personal dynamics between everyone - Pendragons FTW! - were just lovely.
It's made me realise I totally watch the show from a fannish perspective. Who cares about the story I want to know about their feelings . As a random watcher I know my reaction would be totally different.
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I can see why you might feel that. Objectively it is total plotting by numbers but it's the first episode that hasn't left me head-desking on behalf of one or other of the characters.
There's one truly magical moment from Merlin but you're not going lose out by giving up and moving on.
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My only complaint was that it makes the characters feel really inconsistent. Particularly Merlin (revealing his magic), Arthur and Uther. I don't like that their personalities are moulded to fit a particular story.
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