vanessarama

I really enjoyed that one! Seriously, a good solid episode.

First: Merlin looked really fucking gorgeous all throughout this episode. Arthur was also rather pretty. Oh, boys!

Gilli
I liked the clear parallels between Gilli's journey and Merlin's own in the very first episode; coming to Camelot with all his earthly possesions on his back, arriving in the big city, rescuing one of the city's inhabitants from being bullied and intimidated. Gilli himself was very believable in his clenched-teeth thinly veiled anger and walled-up grief. His slow progression through accepting and revelling in his power was well done too.

Uther
The people really love Uther, don't they? I was glad to see this, because I think Uther and the nature of his rule are far more complicated than much of the fandom gives them credit for. I wish the show would go into all the backstory in a bit more detail. From the crumbs we've had here and there it's clear that Uther has brought some stability to a region which was very fractured and factionalised, and that magic played a part in that turmoil. It's tempting to believe that Uther's depotism when it comes to magic is parallelled in other areas, but honestly I think that episodes like this give the lie to that assumption. I agree with Tony Head; Uther is a good king. If Igraine had lived and not set off his fanaticism, Uther might even have ushered in the golden age which we assume Arthur is going to.

Arthur
Mind you, Uther was a total prick to poor Arthur, even if there was a Higher Purpose to it all. And bravo Bradley, because you could see the moment on the field where Arthur irrevocably made the decision to throw the tournament. I couldn't stop myself making the kind of "awwwww" noises normally reserved for Merlin. Nice bit of character development for Arthur too.

Merlin and Arthur
Lovely to see that Arthur is now openly asking Merlin for advice. That's been a development throughout the series, although a bit subtle. He was astonished in the opening two-parter when Merlin delivered words of wisdom, he progressed to asking Merlin what the "book" would advise him to do about marrying Elena, and now he's actually asking plainly for Merlin's advice and listening to him.

Merlin
Oh, that flame-in-palm scene. Wonderful that Merlin knows he's more powerful than anyone else, and wonderful to hear him admitting how much it chafes and how lonely he is. A beautiful scene, that. Merlin flinched when Gilli accused him of having hidden so long he'd forgotten who he was, and it was interesting to see him thinking about it, almost afraid to confront those words because of the inner fear they were true. I think it was very important that those issues were brought up and it shows how far Merlin's come. Of course, being a servant is one of the ways Merlin ensures he is kept humble and not tempted by his power.

Merlin shows some nice subtlety and honesty in talking to Gilli, and it almost works. That last scene between them was lovely. He really does believe in Arthur.

Also lovely to see Merlin still enjoying his dragonlord powers, with that cheeky grin :)

Morgana
Morgana didn't smirk all episode! Not once! Although as Rohan pointed out, she did at one point almost do the Pyramid Fingers of Evil. Clearly she enjoyed her Arthur-baiting. I also liked that she was so uncomfortable in the dinner scene when Uther revealed that Arthur had thrown the fight, that he knew about it, and that it showed Arthur's nobility via willingness to put another's pride before his own. Morgana is always uncomfortable now when someone displays the kind of high ideals she used to stand for herself.

Looks like the two-part finale will be EPIC. I'm excited!