Board Thread:Questions and Answers/@comment-4623180-20120919141837/@comment-5621713-20121107213710

Very good discussion!There have been a handful of situations when i wondered what would have happened in the story if things played out differently. One is of course related to this discussion. Merlin felt compassion or Morgana, and I think if he had told her that he had magic too, they would have formed an alliance that would have benefitted the eventual founding of Albion. Maybe the prophecies about Morgana alligning with Mordred would not have come true, but maybe something else would have happened to drive Morgana to the dark side. As long as Morgause lived, she would have tried to turn Morgana against Uther, Arthur, and everyone else in Camelot. I guess the last episode, the Disir showed us that even when Merlin thinks he is doing something that will prevent the prophecy of Mordred killing Arthur, he might actually be putting things in place to cause that reality to come to pass. This is actually another situation in which I wonder how things would be if Merlin had advised Arthur to accept the Old Religion and the Triple Goddess. Of course this would benefit Merlin and all those with magic, but he did not do this thinking he was putting Arthur's safety first. He had tears in his eyes when he told Arthur that there was no room for magic in Camelot. It was a moment that could have changed everything, and he made a choice that he thought was selfless. Merlin, Arthur, and the audience(myself and I assume most viewers) were shocked to see a healthy Mordred greet Arthur and Merlin when they returned to Camelot. Arthur thought he had sacrificed Mordred for the good of the kingdom. Merlin thought he had secured Arthur's life, even if it meant that magic would remain criminal in Camelot, and Albion would remain far off. Now what remains to be seen is what will happen to drive Mordred from Arthur to Morgana.

Do you remember that line in The Witch's Quickening, when Mordred told Merlin that he would never forgive or forget that Merlin tripped Mordred when he was fleeing the knight's of Camelot when they raided Alvar's camp? I wonder if Mordred has forgiven Merlin, or if he is still holding that gruge? Yes, he seems to adore Arthur, and took a spear for him in the Disir...and stabbed Morgana to save Arthur, but is Mordred really the loyal, adoring young man that we see interact with Arthur? Time will tell.