Merlin, also known as The Adventures of Merlin, is my favorite show on television right now. It's fantastic!
This is not a genre (fantasy-adventure) that I am normally interested in, and which kept me from watching it until I discovered it by accident.
I fell asleep with the television on (SyFy channel) one day and a Merlin marathon came on. I heard the show in my dreams. I woke up, still had my eyes closed, and I could hear the show. I didn't know what the show was, or what the setting was, or what it was about. I was putting pictures in my own mind to the sound of the show.
What was fascinating to me was a metaphor about prejudice. Some people in the show, including the king of Camelot, have a "prejudice" against people who have "magic." So Merlin, the main character, has to hide the fact that he has magic in order to survive.
Sometimes the show is incredibly profound and has literally brought me to tears. One episode I was crying like a baby! I think the writing is excellent. The metaphor is quite subtle and I suspect more obvious to people who know what it is like to be a victim of prejudice. So it is not only about the ugliness of prejudice, but the effect it has on people. The fear that people live in who are victims, and what it can do to them.
The actors in this show are wonderful. Colin Morgan (Merlin) and Bradley James (Prince Arthur) are great in scenes they play together - drama as well as comedy. I also like Katie McGrath who plays Morgana and Richard Wilson who plays Gaius. All the actors are great!
The show is currently in season three on SyFy channel (Friday nights at 10 eastern, rerun at midnight) in the USA. It is also on BBC in the United Kingdom, and all over the world. A lot of people really love it. You can watch previous season's episodes (Season 1 and 2) online at Hulu.com/merlin.
The video below is a summary of plot and characters from the first two seasons of the Merlin television series. I made this video for my friend, who had never seen the series, so she could have a basic understanding before watching it. The plot progresses as the series goes along, some episodes advance the overall plot or reveal things, while others are just stand-alone stories. It helps to know what has occurred in the past if you have never seen it. I do not include any spoilers in this video in case you want to watch the first two seasons! Just basic plot and character summary.
This video includes an overview, commentary and analysis of main story lines and characters including Merlin, Prince Arthur Pendragon, King Uther Pendragon, Lady Morgana, Guinevere, Gaius and Morgause.
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Attribution, License & Fair Use Rationale
- The script for this video is based on Merlin (TV series) by Wikipedia contributors, published by Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
- Music: omaggio a Bach by Stefano Mocini used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
- This video contains Merlin images, ©BBC, whose use has not been authorized by the copyright owner. It is believed this not-for-profit educational use of substantially transformed low-resolution (72 dpi) images for identification and critical commentary on the program qualifies as fair use under United States copyright law. If you wish to use these images for purposes that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
- This video was created and distributed without profit.
- This video is released under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
