Board Thread:Rewatching "Merlin" - Season Five/@comment-5102537-20140308144416/@comment-5102537-20140311110827

203.206.105.250 wrote:

From this point forward I got the feeling the writers had given up trying to tell some sort of story - arc or otherwise and were simply giving the fans what they thought they wanted - banter and erm, "those moments", because who needs story when you can have 40 odd minutes per week of  banter? I'm not saying fan-service is a bad thing, shows do it all the time, but when you offer fan service in liu of everything else? not such a good thing (and yes, some fans were happy with this, because that's what they watched for, and didn't expect much else)

By the end, I don't understand why Merlin and others thought Arthur was a much better King than Uther, because exactly as you said - he carried on Uther's legacy in the same way. Nor why Arthur would change things,  nor unite the lands, Given that he had 3 years in which there was relative peace, what with Morgana being chained up, tipping her over the edge to outright craziness, and he made no attempt to do a thing. Oh, and it was generally when an opponent or critic (such as Tristan) met him, were they won over, not by his reputation, but - it must be his boyish charm, or something.

I think it was disappointing that the focus was on the bromance only. There was indeed great potential in some stories and most episodes had some or at least one great scene that made me curious. Sadly, all the interesting storylines and scenes were only approached and then ignored again. Like in "The Disir" when the Old Religion was a subject again and when the story about it all could have been pushed forward. Unfortunately, it was all over and done once Mordred was healed, and no deeper thought/plot/story about the entire magic thing followed.

I definitely understand why most people liked Arthur more than Uther (fictional characters and fans alike). H e wasn't as stubborn as Uther, it was much easier to talk to him. Arthur was kinder and everyone could imagine him as a friend, aside from magic users, of course. It's clear that it would have been easier to change Arthur's opinion about magic and other things than it would have been with Uther. All in all, when it came to such things, Arthur was more reasonable whereas Uther was too impulsive, stubborn and narrow-minded.

But when it came to being a king and doing the politically right things, Arthur was still too naive and soft, which makes Uther actually a better King. He was wiser and more experienced. In our time era, Arthur would be the better choice, I think. Back then in those times, it was Uther who had what it takes to lead such a kingdom as Camelot. So I get why people liked Arthur but I think it was ridiculous to belittle and deny Uther's achievements by turning it into the opposite. Where he kept peace for decades, seasons four and five suddenly wanted to make us believe that he was a king of war. Where he united the Five Kingdoms, the last two seasons wanted to make us believe that Arthur now had to unite them instead of making clear that the peace treaties with the Five Kingdoms fell apart due to whatever things, maybe due to Uther's death or something. Instead we suddenly were presented new Five Kingdoms and nobody knows where they suddenly came from.

In the end, Arthur simply inherited the kingdom and was lucky that Morgana was imprisoned for two years. Otherwise he would have had to deal with war again right after Morgana was healed by Aithusa. I have no idea why Arthur was described as a naive boy who even needed help dressing and who didn't know what to do. Sure thing Merlin liked Arthur much more than Uther. In regard to personal sympathy, Merlin had every right to dislike Uther and to like Arthur. That doesn't necessarily make him a better king but only a better bro.

I don't expect a grown up man who was through tough times and who saw all sides of the situations, to be so disrespectful towards a thirty years older man who had built the kingdom and managed to keep peace despite the trauma he went through and the agony he experienced in the year before he died. Merlin knew Uther better and he knew about his suffering. Uther had proven his dignity towards Merlin on rare occasions when he talked to him about Arthur and Morgana. He also knew that Uther had very good reasons to believe that magic was evil and would corrupt everyone. So Merlin's reaction was downright childish and mean and most of all a wasted chance.

In spite of Merlin's desire to finally verbally punch Uther in the face for everything he had done, which I would understand if Merlin hadn't witnessed Uther's misery and suffering, Uther on the other hand, from his point of view, saw a young man who could be his son, a "clumsy" servant who had pretended to be harmless for years right at the heart of Camelot. He saw a powerful wizard who had lied for years, who had fooled everyone, who was closer to Arthur than anyone else, who belonged to those who killed his wife and constantly attacked Camelot and who corrupted his own daughter and turned her evil, who knows nothing about building and ruling a kingdom, who was a guest in the royal household, the household that Uther had built and who now dared to belittle him and to call him a bad king. Merlin wasn't only insulting Uther in every possible way but he was also initiating an unhealthy competition between Uther and his own son by comparing both to each other - and most of all, Merlin was a potential threat.

That's what Merlin managed to do in just one single sentence when he told Uther that he was so wrong and that Arthur was so much better. Kindergarten.

Merlin could have told Uther what he had done to him, his father and his fellow sorcerers in order to show him his own point of view and to make Uther see the other side. Had he known that Merlin was still on Camelot's side and protecting Arthur with his life, a basis for a sensible conversation could have been established. At least, Merlin could have tried, because for once, Uther would have realised that Merlin was trustworthy (whether he really was or not. I have my doubts since Merlin had changed a lot ever since "The Wicked Day")