Merlin - Eye of the Phoenix

In this week's episode of Merlin, “The Eye of the Phoenix,” Arthur is off on another dangerous quest, that his enemies have decided would be the perfect cover to assassinate him, and once again it's Merlin to the rescue.

Despite slaying dragons, beating back the undead, and generally acting like Uther's kick ass hammer all his life,  Arthur must prove that he is worthy of being King by going on a dangerous quest that could very well get him killed.  That this would leave Camelot without an heir doesn't seem to matter.  What matters is that the princes of Camelot have been doing this for eons and Uther, ever the traditionalist, will not break the rules for the son he killed his wife to have!

Arthur, after much meditation with the The Force, realizes that he has to travel to Dagobah, I mean the Perilous Lands, to retrieve the trident of the famed Fisher King. Merlin wants to go with Arthur, but Arthur says this is a solo project and he must stay behind. While Merlin is dismayed by the idea of the journey, Morgana couldn't be more thrilled. After her failed attempt at killing Arthur last week, Morgana decides to keep it simple this week and give Arthur an EVIL life sucking bracelet that she got from Morgause, who hobbles into Camelot looking like Snow White's Stepmother when she's got her Crone on. Merlin is suspicious when Arthur shows him Morgana's "good luck" trinket and Detective Merlin figures out that it's a tool of the Dark side and he has to find Arthur before it destroys him.

Realizing that he has to get to Arthur without Morgana or Uther knowing, Merlin tracks down Gawain, who is bored and down for an adventure. Merlin and Gawain arrive to The Perilous Lands and runs in to Yoda, Willow, Grettir, the keeper of the bridge, who tells them that he has been waiting for them and that they, along with Arthur, have a great destiny ahead of them.

Back in Camelot, Morgana is getting impatient with Arthur's unwillingness to just die already and gets all snappy when Gwen interrupts her Death to Arthur Voodoo Chant. She later apologizes, but Gwen is on to her and you can tell that things between them will never be the same.

Meanwhile, Merlin and Gawain track down Arthur, but will rescuing him really be that easy? And what will happen once they find The Fisher King?

“The Eye of the Phoenix”  is a good old fashion adventure and I loved it. It was great seeing Warwick Davis, WILLOW!,  being all snarky with Arthur and Co. and of course anytime Merlin and Gawain get together we are instantly in a buddy movie. It was also great that the girls got their own subplot as Morgana's EVIL became apparently to Gwen, no doubt setting up a showdown between the two former friends.


Questions/Comments

I know that that this show is about Merlin, it's called Merlin after all, but would it be too much trouble to let us see an adventure with Arthur where he saves himself ,giving that he is The Once and Future King of legend and all?  Arthur gets props for making it as far as he does alive with Morgana's Magic Bracelet of Evil on his wrists, but once Merlin arrives he is made to look like a clueless ingrate. His total obliviousness to Morgana's EVIL is also painful to watch. I know he loves and trusts her, but if Gwen can see that something is up, Arthur should have at least a small inkling that Morgana is acting different.

The Fisher King mentions that his kingdoms will be restored to greatness, it's implied by Arthur, yet His Cobwebbed Majesty is going on and on about Merlin's destiny, again, and how this was really Merlin's quest, and how it is up to Merlin to unite Albion. Huh? If the world of magic played a bigger part in the politics of the land I could buy this, by right now it's hard to swallow. It's more believable that Arthur's will and vision is why Albion will be united one day, not because of a Warlock, who may be the greatest bodyguard ever, but whose larger role, even now, seems small compared to Arthur's destiny.

Anybody else disappointed that that beautiful scene of Arthur on his knees crying  that we saw in the season teaser trailer was about a vision of tracking down the Fisher King? But it was funny watching Gwen and Merlin make fun of him.

So let me get this straight, in order to prove that you are worthy to assume the throne you have to take on a dangerous mission of the Fate's choosing in which death is very much likely? And if you die, then? Sounds like a great custom.

I like Gawain, really I do, but I can't help but thinking that it should be Lancelot in this episode not him.

Why is Morgan so cold towards Gwen? I understand that she was in the middle of some supernatural scheming and all and Gwen was getting in the way, but up until this point Gwen has been nothing but loyal to her.

Loved the quick kiss between Arthur and Gwen, it shows how comfortable they are now with each other.

It's great to see Gwen doing her own detective work and getting the goods on a scheming Morgana.
She's not the Once and Future Queen of Legend for Nothing.

Merlin --- The Castle of Fryrien

This week on Merlin Gwen takes center stage which is never a good thing for her --- it means she is either going to be arrested, have to watch the man she loves slip away from her, get kidnapped, get threatened with death, or have to watch a family member die. It's two out of three this week for our girl, as she and her long lost brother Elyan are kidnapped by Sisters Morgana and Morgause and their smoldering puppet Cendred as part of a plan to kill Arthur.

Last week, Morgana's EVIL powers of perception honed in on the fact that Arthur loves Gwen and like any good villain worth their salt she quickly deduces that she can use this bit of info to her advantage. Instead of letting it slip to Uther and instigating a showdown, that if she played her cards right could rid her of  both Uther and Arthur (That is Plan B apparently, see Queen of Hearts), Morgana comes with an extremely convoluted plan to have Cendred and Morgause kidnap Gwen and Elyan and force Gwen to lure Arthur to where her Partners in Evil are so that they can kill him.

Gwen doesn't take the bait however, and even though Cendred has threatened to kill her brother if she doesn't bring Arthur back after they release her, Gwen keeps mum. Luckily for Elyan, Detective Merlin is on the case and takes one look at a distraught Gwen, and her newly acquired bruises, and not only gets the whole story about the kidnapping, but convinces her to tell Arthur.

Arthur decided that he is going to ride to Elyan's rescue, much to the pleasure of the eavesdropping Morgana. The next morning Merlin is happy to be accompanying Arthur and Gwen, but worried and upset when Morgana announces that she is tagging along too. Now Merlin must find a way to help Gwen and Arthur rescue Elyan and keep Arthur alive without Morgana sabotaging their every move.

I really liked this episode, not only was it action packed, but it was great seeing Gwen get to interact with someone who she could really feel close too. Gwen's brother came out the blue, but Angel Coulby and Adetomiwa Edun have a nice chemistry and you believe that they are siblings who love each other.Guinevere has always been the damsel in distress in most of Arthurian Lore and I don't expect that to change. I don't necessarily think that is a bad thing because Gwen is not a silly girl. She has a quiet strength that makes Arthur a better man and gives Merlin someone to rely on and she goes out on a limb for the people that she cares about. She was willing to live with her brother's death on her conscience without ever telling Arthur. That takes a lot of inner fortitude.

Questions/Comments

So, you are an EVIL princess who needs to kill her beloved brother to upsurp his rights to the throne. You have access to said brother all the time but instead of poisoning him, assassinating him, or just running your sword threw both him and your much hated Daddy, you come up with this elaborate plan to kidnap your servant's long lost brother so that your Partners in EVIL can use him as bait when they kidnap your said servant and demand that she bring your brother to them or they'll kill hers knowing that your servant will run back to your brother and he will ride to the rescue of your servant's brother and be killed by your Partners in EVIL so that you now become the sole heir of the kingdom? Okay. 

Morgana's faux concern for Gwen only makes her plan seem more convoluted. If the plan was always to let Gwen go so that she could lure Arthur to them, why alert Arthur to the fact that she is missing in the first place?  Did she want to get Arthur so riled up that when Gwen did return he would demand to know what happened, forcing her hand?

LOVED The scene when Merlin tried to pour Morgana a drink and she put her hand over the glass like one poisoning is enough in one life time thank you very much!

Gwen seems to walk home at an ungodly hour ALONE and walks into an open house. Surely, the object of the prince's affections, the servant of the king's ward, and the daughter of a blacksmith can get a lock. 

Uther's continuous sloberfest over Morgana is really just icky at this point.

Does the fact that Uther agreed to send a mini search party after Gwen mean he like her in some itty bitty tiny weenie way, or does he have some sense of fairness somewhere in that cold, black soul?

I really enjoyed the Gwen/Arthur scenes. These two really have great chemistry and the almost kiss was perfect.

Morgana and Merlin have a fascinating dynamic. I actually understand why she hates Merlin and vice versa, go figure lol. They both have dirt on each other and can't tell on each other without telling on themselves. It was great watching Merlin try to foil Morgana's plans while Arthur and Gwen remained oblivious to her true intentions.  

I had a hard time at first believing that Arthur would agree to bring Morgana along on such a dangerous mission but later I rationalized it as him feeling that this had to be top secret and Morgana and Merlin were the only two people he could trust.

I love Cendred and Morgause but I think their characters are pretty much wasted. All they do is smirk and flirt and execute one ill-fated plan after another. Frankly, they hardly seem like a threat to our heroes. What kind of a king is Cendred really? This is an opportunity to show how other kingdoms are run and why Arthur will be such a great High King. Also, Morgause gives the show a chance to really delve into the world of magic in the Merlinverse and the politics of that world so why not go there.

I thought that Gwen trying to handle all this alone was so Gwen, but does the fact that she said nothing to Arthur mean that she was going to let Elyan die? I think so and not because she loves Art more, but because she would feel as prince his life was "more important." A horrible choice for anybody.

I really liked Elyan, but I didn't get a good read on him. He's typically a knight in Arthurian Lore so it's nice to see that all of Gwen's family will be moving on up, but why did he leave Camelot in the first place? Gwen tells us he is a bad boy and a nomad, but he seems like a great guy and at the end of the episode he has settled back down in Camelot with a home and a job, hardly the actions of a rascal.

Speaking of kin, I am glad to see that Gwen has family and glad that this family wasn't a long lost king, making her a instaprincess. Also kudos for mentioning Tom. Am I the only one though who thinks its unnatural that Gwen and Arthur never talk about Tom's death? Arthur was the one who arrested him after all. Does she only blame Uther? Was Arthur's "I'm sorry" after her father's death "proof" to her that if he had his way her father would still be alive? Are we even supposed to wonder about this because Gwen seems okay with it? Moving along...

Why has Morgana suddenly lost all feelings for Gwen and Arthur? I know that she is EVIL but come on, she has always cared a lot about them, especially Arthur who she clearly adored in Season One. I can buy that she sees killing him as a necessary evil, but I can't by that she is more thirsty for his blood then Cendred. Even Darth Vader had a soft spot for his family!