This is good, isn't it? I don't remember the song from the TV programme at all, though: was it actually written for it?
About 'Merlin' (to answer Sigune's question): it is now into its second series in Britain, and I continue to be surprised at how well-made and well-thought-out it is. I love it - I find that it is something I look forward to every week. But it is definitely not for those who subscribe to One True Version of the Arthur story! It presupposes a basic knowledge of the story - when Arthur smuggles Mordred out of Camelot against his father's wishes in the episode featured in the video, for example, you are clearly meant to know that he is saving the boy who will grow up to kill him - but it is very much its own take on the legend. So no, here Mordred is not Arthur's child - as Arthur is only about 18-20, he would not really be old enough to have a son this age! Instead he is the son of a druid, a wizard - the man we see near the beginning of the clip. We have not seen his mother. His father is put to death by Uther, who is paranoid about magic in any form, and Mordred flees into the castle. Morgana, Uther's ward, who is not aware of her own magic powers, feels herself drawn to him, and hides him at great risk to herself: eventually she persuades Arthur to smuggle him back to the other druids and to safety.
So, as you can see, a very different take on the Arthur legend! But if you can bring yourself to see it as 'different' rather than 'wrong', it is entertaining, and not without its virtues. Arthur, for example, is so exactly what James Potter should have been - arrogant, spoilt, something of a bully, but also very aware of the duties as well as the privileges of his position, always trying to do the right thing, and unquestionably brave. Uther's hostility to magic is implacable, and increasingly paranoid - he will kill any witch or wizard without hesitation, and Merlin and Morgana are in constant danger of discovery - but at the same time we do see how magic has corrupted this world, and get some idea of what lies behind his fear. It might be worth watching as much as a commentary on the world of Harry Potter as anything else!
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Date: 2009-11-12 12:39 am (UTC)About 'Merlin' (to answer Sigune's question): it is now into its second series in Britain, and I continue to be surprised at how well-made and well-thought-out it is. I love it - I find that it is something I look forward to every week. But it is definitely not for those who subscribe to One True Version of the Arthur story! It presupposes a basic knowledge of the story - when Arthur smuggles Mordred out of Camelot against his father's wishes in the episode featured in the video, for example, you are clearly meant to know that he is saving the boy who will grow up to kill him - but it is very much its own take on the legend. So no, here Mordred is not Arthur's child - as Arthur is only about 18-20, he would not really be old enough to have a son this age! Instead he is the son of a druid, a wizard - the man we see near the beginning of the clip. We have not seen his mother. His father is put to death by Uther, who is paranoid about magic in any form, and Mordred flees into the castle. Morgana, Uther's ward, who is not aware of her own magic powers, feels herself drawn to him, and hides him at great risk to herself: eventually she persuades Arthur to smuggle him back to the other druids and to safety.
So, as you can see, a very different take on the Arthur legend! But if you can bring yourself to see it as 'different' rather than 'wrong', it is entertaining, and not without its virtues. Arthur, for example, is so exactly what James Potter should have been - arrogant, spoilt, something of a bully, but also very aware of the duties as well as the privileges of his position, always trying to do the right thing, and unquestionably brave. Uther's hostility to magic is implacable, and increasingly paranoid - he will kill any witch or wizard without hesitation, and Merlin and Morgana are in constant danger of discovery - but at the same time we do see how magic has corrupted this world, and get some idea of what lies behind his fear. It might be worth watching as much as a commentary on the world of Harry Potter as anything else!