Board Thread:Rewatching "Merlin" - Season Two/@comment-5102537-20130629093831/@comment-213.120.234.122-20161118203918

Hi everyone, this is my first post on this website. I would like to say thank you for the entertaining discussion in this thread. It's great to find a website where the discussion of Merlin is still alive. Although I am still disappointed with Series 5, Merlin retains a special place in my heart and I am glad to have found like minded people around who are still enthusiastic about the show.

Regarding this episode in particular. "The Sins of the Father" is one of my favourite stories of all the  series, although I respect the criticisms made by others here.

My impression at the end of the episode when I first saw it was that Uther's conspiring with Nimueh to use magic to conceive Arthur was an unfinished plot point. I had hoped eventually in Series 5 that Arthur would find out the truth that Uther's persecution of sorcerers was founded on his guilt of being responsible for his wife's death. My interpretation of the situation is that Uther knew from the beginning the risks involved of using magic. Nimueh essentially makes her case in Series 1 when she recalls to Uther that she had informed him at the time that a life had to be taken for one to be created. Uther made himself believe that Nimueh was responsible and that all sorcerer's are inherently evil because the truth that he was responsible for Igraine's death was too painful to bear. Uther created a lie because he didn't want to believe in the truth. Nevertheless, the background to Series 1 is unclear,and this, along with countless other examples from all five series, is symptomatic of the frustrating lack of exposition in the show's story and setting. I thought that Arthur's discovery of the true circumstances of his birth would have been an excellent way for the writers to change the character's perception towards magic. Arthur's attitude towards magic was conditioned by his father. Arthur interpreted every hostile action of a sorcerer within the paradigm of this belief. The revelation that his late father was misguided in his attitude towards magic would have resulted in Arthur challenging the basis of what he was brought up to believe. Merlin's magic reveal to a dyeing Arthur in the Diamond of the Day felt almost incidental. My only misgiving about this episode was that the writers did not decide to write a natural sequel.

This episode is very entertaining because it gives us a tantalising glimpse into the background of the story. The plot was intriguing and it was an effective way of introducing Morgause as the main villain of Series 2. The emotions run high and they are beautifully conveyed by the talented cast. The producers made a great decision to cast these relatively unknown actors (with the exception of Richard Wilson and Anthony Head, of course). They made Merlin the magical viewing experience that it was.