Mordred is without a doubt one of the most mysterious characters to ever appear in Merlin. He is also the only character in the series who has been recast. Having been played by both Asa Butterfield and Alexander Vlahos, the Mordred's they both play seem to be like two entirely different people. In this post I will look at both of those Mordred's more closely to see how different and similar they really are. I would also like to thank my friends Dryuuu and Morganaforever for helping me with this blog post.
The young Mordred
Also known as: The Druid boy Asa's Mordred
The adolescent Mordred
Also known as: Sir Mordred Alexander's Mordred
Both of them have the same haircolor and the same eye color.
Both of them tend to wear mostly the colors of Earth: the young Mordred wears green and brown, and the adolescent Mordred wears brown and black (when he is not wearing his Knight of Camelot outfit).
Differences:[]
The young Mordred in his usual attire.
The young Mordred has straight hair.
The young Mordred wears lighter colors than the adolescent Mordred, them being green, white and lighter brown.
The wardrobe of the young Mordred varies a lot less: he has the same outfit pretty much all the time. He also wears a hooded cape much more than the adolescent Mordred (3 times total).
The young Mordred dresses a lot more lightly: he usually wears a simple linen shirt with a woolen cape. His clothes are also quite baggy.
The young Mordred wears light brown short boots and no accessories.
The young Mordred generally smiles more than the adolescent Morded. Yet he has never smiled as widely has he has in the Disir.
The adolescent Mordred in the attire he wore in Arthur's Bane
The adolescent Mordred has curly hair.
The adolescent Mordred wears darker colors, them being black and dark brown.
The wardrobe of the adolescent Mordred varies more. He has at least three different outfits during the series: one being his own outfit in Arthur's Bane and the other two outfits of a knight.
The adolescent Mordred wears heavier and warmer clothes: he usually wears at least two or three different layers of clothing. And whether he wears his own attire or a knight's uniform, his clothes are never baggy and suit him well.
The adolescent Mordred wears long leather boots . He can also be seen wearing such accessories as a scarf and a pair of big gloves.
The adolescent Mordred smiles less than the young Mordred. Many of his smiles are more like smirks. He has even widely smiled a couple of times, but that does not happen often.
PERSONALITY[]
Similarities:[]
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred are nice and friendly in the beginning.
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred are mostly trusting towards the people around them.
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred change from good to bad during the course of the events.
Differences:[]
I wouldn't see an innocent child executed. What harm has he ever done anyone? - Morgana in The Beginning of the End
The young Mordred is quite shy and fearful. At first he is even afraid to speak without using telepathy and uses it the most to communicate with others.
The young Mordred is not a talkative person. Even after starting to speak more he does not talk very often.
The young Mordred is much more vengeful. It takes much less for him to want to have revenge on Merlin for example: him making him trip will do.
The young Mordred is less trusting towards the people around him.
The young Mordred is less bold than the adolescent Mordred already because he never takes big risks and never acts on his own.
Have you ever seen him show anything but kindness towards Arthur? - Gaius in The Disir
The adolescent Mordred is a lot more confident. He dares to confront both his allies and his enemies and even speaks commandingly to Ragnor and his men.
The adolescent Mordred talks much more and is generally much better at being social than the young Mordred.
The adolescent Mordred is less vengeful than the young Mordred. He seems to have forgotten what Merlin did to him in The Witch's Quickening and it takes much more for him to want to have revenge on him.
The adolescent Mordred is much more trusting. He trusts even people that he should not trust.
The adolescent Mordred is a much more bolder person. He dares to take sever al risks like helping Kara escape, although he knows the consequences it will bring.
ABILITIES AND SKILLS[]
Similarities:[]
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred possess the skill of telepathy.
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred use magic without actually using any spells (non-verbal magic).
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred mostly use their magic to move either people or objects (the young Mordred uses spears and telekinetically uses them to kill the guards; the adolescent Mordred throws Morgana to the ground).
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred have used screaming in the process of using magic: the young Mordred to make the guards who attacked him fall to the ground, and the adolescent Mordred to make the prison chamber door to fall off its hinges.
Differences:[]
I heard the boy calling out. He was nowhere to be seen, but I could hear him... like he was inside my mind. - Merlin in The Beginning of the End
The young Mordred uses telepathy a lot when he communicates with people. He speaks a lot less with his mouth than with his mind.
The young Mordred relies only on his magical skills in battle. He does not have any noticeable fighting skills.
The young Mordred rarely uses magic to move objects, but mostly to blast people.
The young Mordred only participates in battle when he has no other choice. Mostly he tries to flee the battleground and only strikes when he is being attacked. He does not attack otherwise.
Mordred used a contre quarte to my high-line attack. It was skilfully done. - Arthur in The Disir
The adolescent Mordred rarely uses telepathy . So far he has done so in just one episode.
The adolescent Mordred is a skilled swordsman: even Arthur himself has admitted it. He relies only on his swordfighting skills and has yet to use any magic in combat.
The adolescent Mordred uses his magic to both blast someone and to move objects. The magic he uses to move objects in The Drawing of the Dark is much more advanced than the magic the young Mordred uses to move the spears.
The adolescent Mordred actively participates in battles and dares to even fight Arthur himself. He is also dares to attack others first, whilst the young Mordred does not do so.
RELATIONSHIPS[]
Similarities[]
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred lose a person they love very much: the young Mordred loses Cerdan, and the adolescent Mordred loses Kara.
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred have a complicated friendship with Merlin and are eventually betrayed by him.
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred ally with Morgana.
Both the young and the adolescent Mordred care for Kara.
Differences[]
The young Mordred with Morgana.
Well, then spare him for Morgana's sake. She's clearly grown attached to the boy, and if you execute him I fear she will never forgive you.
- Arthur to Uther in The Beginning of the End
The young Mordred has a close friendship with Morgana and genuinely seems to care for her as she does for him. He is always happy to see her and wishes to see her again once she leaves. He does not hurt her in any way.
The young Mordred does not have a very close friendship with Merlin. He definitely trusts him, but not as much as he trusts Morgana. He also does not seem to care for him as much as for her, as he is never as happy to see Merlin as he is to see Morgana.
The young Mordred only meets Arthur once and does not have any kind of friendship with him like he does with Morgana and Merlin.
The young Mordred already knew his loved one, Kara, as a child. According to him, she has always lived in her heart, yet it is not known how close they were back then.
The adolescent Mordred with Kara.
Since I was a child... she's always lived inside my heart. - Mordred to Arthur in The Drawing of the Dark
The adolescent Mordred has a very complicated friendship with Morgana. He seems to loathe the person she has become, and chooses to ally with Arthur instead of her. The adolescent Mordred also hurts Morgana more than once (by stabbing her and throwing her to the ground).
The adolescent Mordred trusts Merlin a lot more than the young Mordred ever did. He trusts him to keep his biggest and darkest secrets and wishes for them to be good friends. Although Merlin never really cares for him, he is still his closest friend in Camelot.
The adolescent Mordred has a close friendship with Arthur and cares for him a lot. He is very loyal to him although he ha s not been friends with Arthur for a long time.
The adolescent Mordred without a doubt loves Kara and is devastated when she is captured by Arthur. Yet he finds it difficult to believe what she is saying about Arthur not caring for their people. Eventually, her death is what causes him to turn evil.
I hope my post has helped you to see the differences between the young Mordred and the adolescent Mordred. These are wihtout a doubt not absolutely all the similarities and differences between them, but definitely the most noticeable ones. The purpose of this post was to give you an idea of how Mordred has changed over the years, and if I have managed to help you see that better, than my job here is done!
10:42, December 22, 2012 (UTC)