Merlin series two

[ivyfic]

Since I had to spend the weekend pretty much holed up in the one room in my apartment that had A/C, I finally finished watching series two of Merlin.

While after series one, it seemed inevitable that Arthur would accept Merlin's powers when he found out about them (maybe with some angst first), after series two, I don't see how there's any way that could happen. First, there's Merlin lying to him about what he knows happened to Ygraine. This wasn't just ommiting the truth--Merlin actively lied to Arthur about something Arthur cared a great deal about and had a right to know. Then there's everything with Morgana. Merlin knew Morgana stole the crystal, knew Morgana had warned the resistance fighters, leading to the death of many knights in the ambush, and knew Morgana was the source of the sleeping sickness. More than that, he sent Arthur on a fool's errand by telling him Gaius had a potion that saved Morgana, focusing him on something unobtainable when he had very little time.

Then there's the setting the dragon loose. I'm sorry, but I don't see how that's justified. I know Merlin promised on the life of his mother, but he still didn't say when. And if you say "promise you won't hurt anyone" and the dragon says no, then don't let him go. Jesus christ. It's kind of unforgivable, the number of people that died because of the dragon. And I know Uther is the one that set events in motion, but Merlin still took it upon himself to make a decision that put everyone in Camelot in danger.

On top of that, there are the increasing number of people Merlin could have saved with magic but didn't for fear of revealing himself. The knights killed by the immortal knights in the second to last episode, for example, or everyone but Arthur who fought the dragon in the last episode. Seriously, he waited till everyone was dead before even trying to talk to the dragon.

In light of all of this, a) I don't think Arthur would lift the ban on magic when he became king, given what he's seen of it. And b) when he found out even a fraction of what Merlin had done, I can't see him ever forgiving him. Not just for lying and making him look like a fool, but for concealing from him the truth of what was going on in his kingdom and making it impossible for Arthur to make the decisions necessary for the kingdom's survival. Merlin usurped Arthur's role by taking on the tough decisions himself, and even if Arthur ultimately agreed with everything Merlin had done, I still don't think he would forgive Merlin for making those decisions himself and not allowing Arthur to do his duty.

I haven't seen any fic that really deals with the events of season two and how this would affect the inevitable revelation of Merlin's magic. Everything seems to still be coming from a season one characterization. Has anybody written fic like this?

Also there's the part where I rather like the Gwen/Arthur and totally buy into it, which makes Merlin/Arthur impossible as anything but unrequited... So for fandom this means I can either ignore the developments of series two and stay in a happy series one bubble, or I can try to fanwank something, or I can just dive into the angst of series two. But seriously, I don't see it ending well at all for Merlin and Arthur. The best case scenario I can see is Arthur blaming Gaius for constantly advising Merlin to hide things from him. Somebody tell me I'm wrong!

Comments

[butterfly.livejournal.com]

I haven't seen any fic that really deals with the events of season two and how this would affect the inevitable revelation of Merlin's magic. Everything seems to still be coming from a season one characterization. Has anybody written fic like this?

I think S2 depressed everyone too much, characterization-wise, for many of the reasons that you talk about here. The fic does seem kinda stuck in the past.

[ivy03.livejournal.com]

This scene keeps playing out in my head of Arthur finding out and being terribly disappointed in Merlin. Not just for the usurping of power, but Arthur thought they were friends, and Merlin was going through a lot of emotional stuff that he hid from Arthur. Like, as a friend, I'm sure Arthur would have liked to know that Merlin had found and then lost his father. In the last two episodes, Arthur spends a lot of time asking what's going on with Merlin, showing genuine concern, and Merlin's just lying to him.

I mean, at this point, Merlin's secrets have so much momentum, even when Arthur becomes king, he'd have to keep hiding.

I did actually enjoy series two quite a bit, but they've made it rather hard for me to go to my happy place.

[alizarin-nyc.livejournal.com]

I agree with you. I don't think I wrote any S2 fic. I wanted to, but it's all become rather fraught. And I really don't know what they'll do with S3. They've painted themselves a pretty corner. I think they wanted to keep Merlin's magic secret so as to have more one-off eps, but they didn't write them very well, and it would have been better to dive into the revelation rather than make Merlin seem like this really irritating person who values his own life above everyone else's but Arthur's. (See also, unrequited romance)

[ivy03.livejournal.com]

It's rather like the Smallville problem. Where in order for Clark to hide his secret from Lex, after a certain point, Clark becomes a selfish jerk and does irreperable damage to Lex and their friendship by keeping the secret.

Pretty much the same dynamic here--the most charitable way I can read it is not that Merlin would think Arthur would hand him over to his father, but he doesn't want to put Arthur in the position of keeping such a secret from his father. But Arthur would want that burden. He'd see it as his right. And especially in "Sins of the Father," as you see him deciding that magic is evil, like his father, Merlin is withholding the only compelling piece of counterevidence. If Arthur does continue the war on magic and some day finds out about Merlin, he'd never forgive him for letting Arthur go down that path.

I'm also kind of appalled by Morgana. Okay, she hates Uther, and she sympathizes with magical rebels. But in both the episodes where she runs away, she gets a lot of people on both sides killed with her actions. And she doesn't seem to be thinking about what fighting Uther will do to anyone else in Camelot (like, say, Gwen). Nor does she really seem to be wanting to overthrow Uther so Arthur can be king. I mean, it makes sense as a characterization, but I do want to smack her. And I want to smack Merlin, as the only one who could confront her about her blind selfishness, for not doing so. Not even a word about the people she got killed by warning the rebels of the king's attack. Or telling her that she was the cause of the magical disease that would kill everyone. Just--argh?

And seriously, wtf with freeing the dragon? That one, I don't even.