Merlin - A Servant of Two Masters
Nov. 15th, 2011 12:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
daibhidcWow, it's all happening now!
The idea of Merlin getting brainwashed into killing Arthur is a good one. I was disappointed that his conversation with Morgana, where she asks why he's loyal to Arthur, didn't do more with the fact she wasn't always Eeevil; instead of "You wouldn't understand", it could have been "You'd understand if you remembered what things were like when you were part of the gang."
Also disappointed that it takes so long for anyone to catch on ... Evil!Merlin is funny, but he's so out of character, you'd think Gaius would think "Magic mind control! Again!" a bit sooner. Although it was totally believable when Merlin cheerfully told Gwaine he was going to kill Arthur, and Gwaine simply assumed it was more of the constant Merlin/Arthur snark.
There was a Not So Fast, Bucko moment where Gaius cures Merlin with 25 minutes left to go. Of course, it doesn't stick...
For once, I accept the "Don't tell Arthur what's going on, even when it's nothing to do with Merlin's secret" policy; when he's worried about traitors, it's not the time to say "Oh, and Merlin is magically mind-controlled and is trying to kill you." He might get the wrong idea.
Oh, yeah, Arthur knows there's a traitor. Unfortunately Agrivaine, at his most obsequious, manages to implicate Gaius. To me this seems as unlikely as implicating Merlin, but the Next Time... preview suggests it's going to work.
Another continuation of the arc plot; Morgana has her first encounter with Emrys. (Oh, and Merlin learns that Morgana thinks the old man is Emrys; AFAICR he's not associated his elderly enchanter disguise with his Druid name before.) It's inconclusive, which Morgana probably thinks is indicative that Emrys isn't as powerful as she thought, but which is actually indicative of Merlin's disinclination to kill anyone. (One last nitpick; didn't the Fomorrah take a conveniently long time to grow back the second time? I was half-expecting a scene where Emrys does try to kill the king, thereby confirming Arthur's opinion of him.)
And a funny Brick Joke at the end with the return of George the perfect manservant.
Mythwatch: The Fomorrah's name seems to be vaguely inspired by the Fomorians, a semi-divine/High Elven race in Irish mythology. The seven headed-snake whose heads grow back is obviously a nod to the Lernaean Hydra in Greek myth, and its actual behaviour is reminiscent of the Parasites in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Conspiracy".
The idea of Merlin getting brainwashed into killing Arthur is a good one. I was disappointed that his conversation with Morgana, where she asks why he's loyal to Arthur, didn't do more with the fact she wasn't always Eeevil; instead of "You wouldn't understand", it could have been "You'd understand if you remembered what things were like when you were part of the gang."
Also disappointed that it takes so long for anyone to catch on ... Evil!Merlin is funny, but he's so out of character, you'd think Gaius would think "Magic mind control! Again!" a bit sooner. Although it was totally believable when Merlin cheerfully told Gwaine he was going to kill Arthur, and Gwaine simply assumed it was more of the constant Merlin/Arthur snark.
There was a Not So Fast, Bucko moment where Gaius cures Merlin with 25 minutes left to go. Of course, it doesn't stick...
For once, I accept the "Don't tell Arthur what's going on, even when it's nothing to do with Merlin's secret" policy; when he's worried about traitors, it's not the time to say "Oh, and Merlin is magically mind-controlled and is trying to kill you." He might get the wrong idea.
Oh, yeah, Arthur knows there's a traitor. Unfortunately Agrivaine, at his most obsequious, manages to implicate Gaius. To me this seems as unlikely as implicating Merlin, but the Next Time... preview suggests it's going to work.
Another continuation of the arc plot; Morgana has her first encounter with Emrys. (Oh, and Merlin learns that Morgana thinks the old man is Emrys; AFAICR he's not associated his elderly enchanter disguise with his Druid name before.) It's inconclusive, which Morgana probably thinks is indicative that Emrys isn't as powerful as she thought, but which is actually indicative of Merlin's disinclination to kill anyone. (One last nitpick; didn't the Fomorrah take a conveniently long time to grow back the second time? I was half-expecting a scene where Emrys does try to kill the king, thereby confirming Arthur's opinion of him.)
And a funny Brick Joke at the end with the return of George the perfect manservant.
Mythwatch: The Fomorrah's name seems to be vaguely inspired by the Fomorians, a semi-divine/High Elven race in Irish mythology. The seven headed-snake whose heads grow back is obviously a nod to the Lernaean Hydra in Greek myth, and its actual behaviour is reminiscent of the Parasites in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Conspiracy".
