User blog comment:Broman178/Should the filler episodes be stopped?/@comment-5036924-20120116184036

You get filler episodes in all shows like Merlin. They're necessary, as you say, to entertain the family audience, but also perhaps to appeal to casual viewers who just want a contained story rather than always a segment of a complex, continuous story. There's USUALLY (and there are exceptions to this) at least some kind of character/relationship development even in the fillers, but at times they are pretty much just nothing-episodes to take up one of the thirteen.

However, I don't think it can be said that filler episodes should be removed due to "the legend". Merlin's not supposed to be just a faithful step-by-step trawl through traditional Arthurian legend. There's too many versions of legend for that anyway. I think the fillers perhaps are the writers putting their own spin on the show, and getting a chance to explore more magic and creatures, I guess. Fillers are fine, provided they're well-written, funny, clever, original... etc...

I don't want to see it getting any more concentrated on following the step-by-step legend. I preferred it when they were taking it in an original, new direction, maybe shaking up traditional pairings a bit along the way. As it happens, though, they actually are already going very conventionally with it and putting in very obvious milestones to keep in with the legend.

But I don't think the filler-continuity balance is too bad.