Talk:The Fires of Idirsholas/@comment-82.178.147.211-20130611114522

People say Merlin was acting rashly and uncaringly in poisoning Morgana, and that her being evil was all his fault and she was innocent, but I don't agree for several reasons. 1. Morgana was already evil. At the beginning of the episode, she told Morgause she was ready to play her part in killing Uther and overthrowing Camelot. Perhaps she would not have said so had she known Morgause's plan, but then she shouldn't have gone in the first place. Morgana was asking for trouble, and she got what she deserved.

2. Merlin didn't know the true situation with Morgana. Kilgharrah made it sound as though Morgana knew exactly what she was doing and was fully committed to the plan. Had that really been the case, talking to Morgana and revealing his knowledge of her plans would have been not only useless but also dangerous. Morgana would, in such a case, have probably tried to kill him. At the very least, she would tell Morgause about Merlin's knowledge of spells, and the sisters would have realized he had magic and acted against him, leaving Camelot vulnerable to magical attacks.

3. Merlin was about to fall asleep and had to act quickly.

And Merlin wasn't being heartless or uncaring. He was doing what he believed was necessary, and he was not indifferent to Morgana's suffering- he was crying and, as we see in the finale, never really forgave himself for it.