MERLIN 2.4 - "Lancelot And Guinevere"

[SPOILERS] That's a triple hit for Merlin, which seems to have learned from some mistakes last year and is rapidly becoming appointment TV as a result. By far the most noticeable change is how Morgana (Katie McGrath) and particularly Gwen (Angel Coulby) are being given more to do, with both their characters in the thick of things. The only worry now is how the friendship between Merlin (Colin Morgan) and Arthur (Bradley James), while still good fun, feels less compelling in light of the ladies' more interesting narrative paths...

In "Lancelot And Guinevere", Morgana and Gwen are kidnapped by bandits sent by infamous outlaw Hengist (James Cosmo), who intends to hold Lady Morgana to ransom, knowing King Uther's (Anthony Head) feelings for his beautiful ward. However, after Morgana escapes capture with the help of Gwen (by distracting two guards with the prospect of seeing her bathe nude as Gwen grabs one's sword), the kidnappers rethink their strategy and decided to deliver Gwen to Hengist, forcing her to impersonate Morgana.

Back at Camelot, Uther's relieved Morgana has escaped and returned home unharmed, but not willing to risk lives to sanction the rescue of Gwen -- so Arthur and Merlin leave the kingdom on an unauthorized rescue mission before Hengist discovers Gwen's true identity and has her killed. Meanwhile, Gwen finds an ally to help her escape from jail -- dashing knight Lancelot (Santiago Cabrera), whose unexpected return rekindles feelings she has for him.

A simple story, fairly predictable for the most part, but well told by writer Howard Overman and loose enough to press on with the Arthurian mythology. In particular, the love-triangle between Gwen, Lancelot and Arthur began in earnest, even if Lancelot's nobility later has him agree to keep out of Arthur's way if he pursues Gwen. For Gwen, her choice of dishy men is rather juicy: Arthur's the better catch, but his heart is complicated by royal politics and their relationship would have to wait for his coronation; while Lancelot is the easier proposal class-wise, but he's possibly an attraction based more on lust. I can already smell internet forums dividing into "Gwarthur" and "Gwancelot" factions...

What's interesting right now is how Merlin's finding tangible human drama by attaching itself to established myth more tightly. The Gwen/Arthur/Lancelot love-triangle and the fledgling signs of Morgana's descent into evil are wisely being tackled this year, but neither are of Merlin's own invention. Indeed, the elements of this series that have been developed from scratch (like the talking dragon) are its weaker areas. The show only really sparks to life when cornerstones of Arthurian legend appear, or classic relationships are being written about.

Still, this was a fun episode that benefitted from Coulby and Cabrera's chemistry together, with an imposing guest role for renowned character actor James Cosmo (Highlander, Braveheart) as Hingis. This series is also balancing its light and dark moments much better, with the knockabout comedy still there to ease the slightly more grownup atmosphere, but never overwhelming things and turning Merlin into the frivolous kid's show is often resembled last year. Here, a few violent moments might only occur off-screen (Gwen's sword slash on a bandit, a man being eaten by a giant rat inside a cage), but they still land their blows in the audience's imagination.

Overall, I'm really enjoying this series so far, even if there doesn't seem to be much of an obvious through line and story arc. Series 1 had the meddlesome sorceress Nimueh for everyone to contend with occasionally, but there's nothing stitching these four episodes together in the same way. I'd also like to see the same attention being paid to Arthur, Gwen and Morgana take a shine on Merlin himself, as the title character hasn't progressed very much at all since series 1 –- beyond get antsy about doing so many chores...

Maybe it's time Gwen or Morgana were told of Merlin's magical abilities, as he's in danger of becoming the least interesting character; forever lurking in the background and saving Arthur's neck with object levitation. Morgan ensures he's an affable hero and Merlin's banter with Arthur can still be good fun, but the arc for his character is unclear -- possibly because the show doesn't quite know what to do with an adolescent Merlin, so it feels like we're treading water until he becomes the bearded wizard of myth.


10 October 2009
BBC1, 6.15pm

written by: Howard Overman directed by: David Moore starring: Colin Morgan (Merlin), Anthony Head (King Uther), Richard Wilson (Gaius), Bradley James (Arthur), Angel Coulby (Gwen), Katie McGrath (Morgana), James Cosmo (Hengist), Santiago Cabrera (Lancelot), Michael Nardone (Kendrick), Justin Avoth (Sir Robert) & Michael Ballard (Bandit)