Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-24691863-20140427042038/@comment-24629321-20140427190741

Merlin After wrote:

Why are we so obsessed with Merlin?

I have no idea. Ha! I have wondered this same thing and pretty much come to the same conclusion. (Your question actually inspired me to write a very long and rambling response before I realized that I was not really answering your question but just detailing my personal experience, however I've put that up as a  blog post   instead if you're interested. I ended up editing it down quite a bit in order to stay on topic here!)

Fimber has shared a lot of great possibilities already. There are also a number of specific details that I think contribute.

Magic reveal:  The showrunners thought this was such a huge driving factor of interest that they decided to make it their endgame. Yes, they could have chosen something better, but they were right that everyone was eager to see this happen. From "The Moment of Truth" on,  I always noticed my breath catch in my throat whenever I was sure Merlin would be caught in action.

Camaraderie: In the early seasons, the friendship among the four main characters takes center stage. If you watch the behind-the-scenes videos, you very much get the sense that that extends to friendship among the cast as well. Whether you're talking cast or characters, it's a friendship that many fans admire and aspire to. It hooks into your heartstrings and you want to see more, and having that taken away when the show ends leaves you feeling like you've lost your friends as well, which may be why we are still crying out for them to return or continuing the story in our own ways.

Good writing: When the writing was good, the show could provide an excellent escape from the drudgery of daily life. In my opinion, seasons 2 and 3 boast excellent humor (trolls and goblins and Gwaine, oh my!) and overall well-written and amazingly-acted episodes like "The Fires of Idirsholas" and "The Last Dragonlord."

Bad writing: When the writing was bad, I found that it inspired me to fill in missing details or rewrite scenes in my head that I thought should have gone differently. It seems that the show inspired a similar creativity in many fans, and I know that I for one am always grateful for inspiration in whatever form it may take.

Tragic plot twists: There are many articles out there trying to answer this same question, this one in particular points to  that point to the fact that the series ending in tragedy means that we " carry all of the characters’ regrets and what ifs around with [us]." I find that so very, very true, and that's mainly why I've taken to online communities to try to work through some of the emotions the show has left me with. Or as something called tumblr (some website that I still can't quite figure out what it is, but it's one of the places that seems to still have a very active Merlin fanbase) far less eloquently puts it, "the feels."

I'm sure there are many more reasons, those are just the ones I tended to notice based on my personal experience with the show...it's fascinating that this is one of those shows where everyone seems to take away something different from it! My answers probably reveal more about myself than they do about the show!