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Merlin brings both epic magic and teen angst to NBC
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Uther Pendragon, Arthur, Merlin, Gaius, Morgana, and Gwen.
What do Merlin and Harry Potter have in common? They’re both wizards, for one thing. But more importantly, they’re also both teenage boys, saddled with many of the typical problems of adolescence: competition with other boys, awkwardness, and, of course, girls.
So says the BBC show Merlin, which updates the classic King Arthur legend for a teenage audience. The first two episodes of the show premiered on American television on NBC tonight at eight. In the first episode, “The Dragon’s Call,” Merlin (Colin Morgan) arrives at Camelot and becomes an apprentice to Gaius (Richard Wilson), the court physician. Merlin has been able to perform magic at will since birth, which, he soon discovers, is a problem. Camelot’s king, Uther Pendragon, in classic tyrant fashion, has banned all magic in an effort to avoid chaos and anarchy.
As the episode progresses, Merlin meets many of the classic Arthurian characters: Morgana (Katie McGrath), Uther’s imperious ward, Guinevere (Angel Coulby), called Gwen, Morgana’s frank and friendly maid, and Prince Arthur (Bradley James), a blonde athlete who resembles one of those prats that you love to hate in novels about British boarding school. Arthur and Merlin get into a physical fight within the first thirty seconds of meeting, and remain enemies throughout the episode. However, when Merlin meets a dragon in the bowels of the castle, he discovers that he and Arthur are going to have to become friends. The dragon, who has been imprisoned by Uther, tells Merlin that Arthur is destined to unite Albion (an old name for England). Therefore, Merlin must keep Arthur safe by doing magic. Merlin is horrified to hear that he is destined to protect that “idiot” Arthur. However, later in the episode, he fulfills his destiny when he saves Arthur from a disguised sorceress who has snuck into the castle to avenge her warlock son, who was executed on Uther’s orders. Uther (who of course doesn't know that Merlin used magic to save Arthur) rewards Merlin for his services by making him Arthur’s personal assistant, which elicits an eye roll from both of the boys.
The next episode, “Valiant,” is more of the same. Arthur is competing in a tournament against a knight named Valiant who has bewitched the painted snakes on his shield to come to life and poison his opponents. Merlin must convince everyone that the shield is bewitched and save Arthur’s life, which he does in the nick of time.
Merlin was certainly enjoyable to watch. Like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Harry Potter, the show does a nice job balancing epic supernatural foes with cute teenage interactions. It’s fun to watch Merlin as an awkward teenage boy who trips over five things when he walks out of the room. It’s interesting to see King Arthur as a brash, cocky teenager who’s afraid of disappointing his father. However, it is worth noting that Buffy and Harry Potter both take place in the modern era, while Merlin takes place hundreds of years ago. Consequently, when Morgana turns to Guinevere and says “Could Arthur be any more annoying?” and when Arthur says to Merlin, “Can you believe Morgana?!” it feels anachronistic and as though they’re pandering to Potter fans. But no matter---it’s fun to watch the characters interact, and I’ll swallow a bit of anachronism for that any day.
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