Welcome back to the Merlin dialogues. This week, my fellow Clacker Julia and I are discussing a Morgana-centric episode, “The Nightmare Begins.”
Julia: I can’t help but feel that this entire episode wouldn’t happen and everything would be better if only they let Morgana into Hogwarts.
Ruby: Uther probably “misplaced” her application, if you know what I mean.
Julia: We’ve been really digging on the dudes in this series, so can we have a moment of appreciation for how ridiculously, heinously, almost painfully good-looking Morgana (Katie McGrath) is?
Ruby: She (and Angel) are what I call “sickeningly pretty.” You know what I really love about Katie is her accent. It’s a little bit different from everyone else’s. Most of the time, she speaks with this very elegant English accent, and then out of nowhere she’ll pronounce an “r” with the authority of a Chicagoan. I look forward to that. (Yes, simple things amuse me.) So this season, Morgana becomes a much more interesting character because her magic — and some of her family history — starts to emerge. And it creates such amazing tension because Uther, her father-figure and king, is now her biggest threat — and he doesn’t even know it. And I’m always wondering what he would do if he found out. Would he love her enough to bend the rules for her?
Julia: I love Merlin’s genius plan to help her in this episode. “You know what can’t possibly go wrong? The king’s beloved ward goes missing after a magical attack — and as a bonus, she goes to his mortal enemies! Clearly, nothing can go wrong here! Hah hah hah! Oh wait, something is going wrong. I think I’ll go find Morgana while leaving a trail a mile wide! It’s not like Arthur’s an accomplished hunter who could follow me – wait.” Merlin, go back to being adorable. It’s what you’re best at.
Ruby: He tends to do crazy things after talking to the dragon. That lizard loves to mess with his head.
Julia: We’ve already established that the dragon is kind of a douchebag and a flawed helper. So why the hell does Merlin keep going to him?
Ruby: Well, everybody has someone they ask for advice in order to do the exact opposite. For me, it was my faculty advisor in college. I asked her whether I should major in English or in communication. She said communication, so I majored in English. I asked her whether I should take the editor job or the marketing job. She said the editor job, so I took the marketing job. With Merlin, it’s like every time he runs down to ask the dragon for help, the dragon tells him “Don’t do X because it will be a disaster,” and Merlin insists on doing X. He’s just a protector at heart. He doesn’t think, he just protects. He cares way too much about — well, everyone. Even that child from hell.
Julia: Seriously, how has Merlin not noticed that Mordred is the creepiest child alive? Has no one noticed this? Seriously! So creepy! I mean, adorable, but creepy.
Ruby: No adorable. Just creepy. But you get what I’m saying. Because he truly is so powerful, Merlin finds himself in the position of protecting everyone — from Arthur and Gaius and Uther to Morgana and Gwen.
Julia: Speaking of which, it was nice to see echoes of the Gwen and Merlin friendship. Where did that go, anyway? It was so adorable.
Ruby: Yeah, they were really cute! I loved that episode where Gwen was accused of sorcery, and Merlin tried to admit that he was the guilty one — and then to his great embarrassment, Arthur announces that Merlin is in love with Gwen, and Uther finds it hysterical. Haha! Oh, and a similar thing happened in this episode, right?
Julia: Yeah. I like how Arthur is so socially and emotionally constipated that he believes that any token of kindness, like getting your friend flowers when they’re distraught, is a sign of your everlasting love and devotion. It explains so much about him, really. Clearly, Uther didn’t hug him enough as a child. You know, I continue to voice my vote for the “Colin Morgan and Bradley James are Forced into Ridiculous, Comic Situations” hour. I would be a faithful subscriber.
Ruby: Abbott and Costello. Laurel and Hardy. Cheech and Chong. Merlin and Arthur. Wow, their names fit in so naturally with all the other great comedic duos.
Julia: “Oh, I couldn’t do it yesterday, I was mucking out the stables.” “That’s strange, a little bird told me you were somewhere else.” “Mucking out the stable is strange and a talking bird isn’t?” “Merlin, what have I told you about trying to be funny?” “Don’t do it. Right.” Seriously. That comedy hour? I WANT IT.
Ruby: Before we wrap up — any royal six-pack sightings to report?
Julia: Arthur wasn’t shirtless in this episode. He just walks around the castle with a shirt cut down to his navel. Excellent solution! That Arthur Pendragon. Always thinking on his feet.
Hey, Merlin fans, it’s your turn — jump in with a comment and join the discussion.
Clacked by Ruby T.
on Apr 16, 2010 @ 23:00 EST5EDT
Julia, I am 100% with you in your request for a Merlin/Arthur (or Bradley/Colin, if they like) comedy hour. And I laughed a lot at Arthur’s solution to the lack of shirtlessness, haha.
Also, Katie is Irish, which is why her accent is different to the others — she always uses it for the show, no English anywhere. :)
I couldn’t tell if she was trying to speak with an English accent and just slipping into her own Irish accent now and again. :-D Whatever the case may be, I like it because it sets her apart from Uther and Arthur and reminds us that she’s a little bit different from them.
I want a Merlin/Arthur comedy hour. I think it would be epic and lots of fun. I’d certainly watch it!
I want Merlin shirtless! And Colin is Irish too, but I would never have guessed until I saw ‘Merlin Secrets And Magic’ once. It was about the one where Gauis is about to burned at the stake for sorcery. They named the wig, but I can’t remember what.
Yes, Merlin/Arthur comedy would be great, and so would Colin/Bradley. Since I fancy Colin like mad, that would be amazing!
Seriously, how has Merlin not noticed that Mordred is the creepiest child alive?
Oh, I think after this episode, Merlin definitely noticed the creepiness of Mordred. Back during the first series, Mordred was just a scared little kid being hunted by an insane Uther, no matter what the Great Slash Dragon told him about Mordred being the one who would bring about Arthur’s death. But now Merlin’s actually seen Mordred’s powers in action — that whole screaming thing and killing three knights was scary as all hell. I think it’s now hit home just how dangerous this kid really is. Freaky.
I also vote for Bradley and Colin’s comedy hour or Merlin and Arthur, either way would be gold.
As for Katie, she’s even more gorgeous in person – if that’s possible and genuinely a sweet woman.
Loving your comments on each episode. So funny.