#and pro merthur | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

nonunsnonunsnone · 2 years

Text

- Uther, Merlin, and Arthur are trapped and alone somewhere (literally anywhere)

- Uther, upon closer inspection of merlin decides he’s sure merlin is a sorcerer. Like he has the time to examine him and connect the dots from the last several years. He doesn’t say anything until they’re out and on their way to Camelot again.

- Adventure Happens. They are all freed. Uther, upon arrival at the court, immediately orders Merlin’s arrest and puts him to death row for sorcery.

- Arthur goes ballistic. Where is this coming from??? Cmon it’s Merlin !

- Uther recalls the many, many times merlin was conveniently somewhere where magic was used.

- Arthur, dumb of fuck, lovesick of heart, looks back at Merlin with a panicked and betrayed look. He realises his father is right.

- Arthur saying that Merlin is not a sorcerer. That he himself is one. He was also there at every one of the examples Uther gave for Merlin’s usage of magic. He could never tell Uther but it’s not something he can control - it came out of nowhere but it’s been growing stronger and he can’t live without magic. (I should’ve gone to sleep an hour ago is the Merlin is magic metaphor thick enough in this paragraph?)

- Arthur, being the one and true prince and future king, cannot be killed by his father for using magic. Arthur, who will be the person who will rule Camelot cannot be swayed away from legalising sorcery. Uther will die, and there is nothing he can do about it.

- Uther vowing to only release Merlin if Arthur swears to adhere to his magic ban, after his death, as well.

- Arthur swears by the crown. Merlin is devastated.

- Merlin and Arthur have a huge fight - “how could you not tell me about this??” “how could you doom all sorcerers in Camelot for as long as you live??? Doom me???”

- Arthur says he’s not going to keep the laws of his father. Merlin doesn’t believe him. He swears to Merlin by his mother’s sigil and gives it to him. He asks for Merlin to trust him on this.

- Merlin and Arthur practice magic in the woods, Arthur is in awe and in love and they sneak outside of Camelot’s borders often, because Arthur loves seeing Merlin show him so many different things, from moving twigs and making trees disappear to slowing down time.

- Uther dies (rest in disgrace) - Arthur orders for the crown to be broken, scrapped and replaced. Camelot is filled with magic :”) Merlin teaches Arthur magic and I sob in the corner as Merlin is appointed court sorcerer :”))))

#ARTHUR BEING A SORCERER IS JUST SUCH A WONDERFUL HC #SORCERER ARTHUR IS ROLLING INSIDE MY SKULL #Merlin #bbc merlin #Arthur #i just love the idea of Uther having to come to terms with the fact that his son and his kingdom #will be magical in the future #one day he will die and Arthur will rule Camelot as a kingdom filled with magic and he has no say about it #Merlin hc #merthur #bbc merlin hc #Arthur pendragon #he will always be pro sorcery in my heart

865 notes · View notes

marsafter-dark · 2 months

Text

Makes myself piss laughing as I imagine a modern AU where the plot is that Merlin becomes head of the movement to unionize under Uther.

#something something Uther tries to get Arthur to bust them #but jokes on him because Arthur actually becomes pro-union #spies on the other union busters for Merlin #what even is this #I think that working for minimum wage has finally broken my mind #rage against the machine I guess #merlin x arthur #merlin #bbc merlin #bbc merthur

11 notes · View notes

gwenpendrcgon · 1 year

Text

So tired of everyone dunking on gwen unnecessarily out of no where to prop other ships or characters

one day I'd have enough and start naming all those popular tropes in the fandom and deconstruct it using canon evidence and I'll not hold back

#I'm already anti merthur and merthur fans #but even though they out of their way to make content which brings gwen down i try not to engage because i dont have energy to spend on #something i despise #and I don't go out of my way to put down merthur but dont think I can't #I'm always pro gwen pendragon #🤷🏽‍♀️#drashti rambles #gwen pendragon #gwen pendragon defence squad #sorry my merthur friends nothing against you but your fandom is insufferable

18 notes · View notes

ladyofthelake · 1 year

Text

This Merlin vid I’m making is killing me ahahahaahahah (and thats aside from the actual pain of anything Merlin) my program and laptop are being absolute clotpoles seriously I could give up because EVERYTHING has gone wrong and it keeps going wrong BUT I keep thinking of Merlin and though this isn’t on the same level of saving a kingdom or Arthur, Merlin inspires me, saves me, makes me stronger and more determined. WWMD What would Merlin do? He wouldn’t give up and I’m not either I’m determined to get this 10th anniversary video made (and y’all better watch it or I’ll cry)

#merlin #merthur #I wanted to not be this stressed and sad and overwhelmed but here we are #I'm doing this for you Merlin and Arthur <3 for myself and for any fans who may stumble upon it #plans are to upload it christmas eve #also pls tell me Im not alone in saying that adobe premiere pro sucks #because it randomly hates my clips it doesn't save project files it overwrites everything #and yeah Ive only been using it for a day hahah so its extra stressful because its more annoying than any other editor ive used

5 notes · View notes

berrybanana-arts · 10 months

Text

My piece for @excaliburzine !!

Yes, the Merlin BBC fandom IS STILL alive and well! Come join us by buying the zine on Gumroad- excaliburzine.gumroad.com/l/zine

All proceeds will go to Doctors Without Borders! 💕💫✨🌙

(Can you see the Merthur tidbit in my piece?👀)

#merthur #merlin #merlinbbc #merlin bbc #bbc merlin #merlin emrys #fanart #my art #zine art #zine #berrybanana #berry merlin bbc art

309 notes · View notes

that-nerd-who-writes-fanfiction · 3 months

Note

Can I ask your top 10 fav fics ever (from any fandom, if you don't mind)?

Also, just curious, is there a story behind your name "that-nerd-who-writes-fanfiction "?

Top 10 fics, in no particular order, (these are all complete, in English and most have just a touch of angst. Also there’s no smut, it’s just not something I enjoy reading)

things lost in the fire by earlgreylover98

ALTA fic In which Zuko isn't sure Ozai knows which side of his face he burnt off and it sends him spiraling, the gaang finds out about his scar. It's a super great one shot, 5,067 words

Drinking Buddies and Diaries by dove_dove

Good Omens fic where Muriel reads Aziraphel’s diaries and Crowley finds out some stuff about his angel. 31,115 words

The death song of arthur pendragon by hanyuism

Merlin fic, Orpheus and Eurydice but make it Merthur, the angst is amazing, 6,827 words

Two Feasts and a Bard by emerillon

Merlin fic, pure Mercelot fluff, completely destroyed me, I’ve reread this an unhealthy amount of times. 2,785 words

Possessed by Emrys by ooh_look_the_void

Merlin and Gaius tell Arthur that Emrys is a magical entity who possesses people to interact with the mortal realm so Merlin can use magic. It gets a bit out of control when Merlin isn’t the only one getting possessed by Emrys. 10/10 fic had me wheezing. 14,759 words. (You do need an account to read it but well worth it)

Kilgharrah Moves to Camelot by ticketyboo00

In which Kilgharrah learns to actually be a decent person, gets therapy and is surprisingly a good brother figure to Merlin. 55,918 words

i know why the birds sing your name by ironfamjam

Arthur is banished from Camelot, Merlin follows him, together they unite Albion and find a family along the way. It’s really cute, Merthur and background Gwencelot. I can’t remember if there were a few mild smut scenes but they were skipable I think. 113,376 words.

Merlin in disguise by Theroundbartable

5 Times Merlin disguised himself. And 1 time he stops hiding, Gwaine being Gwaine, Arthur being smitten, Merthur. 21,576 words.

For Want of a Nail by 0hHeyThereBigBadWolf

Fleeing from Essetir in the bloody beginnings of the Purge, Hunith finds herself on the doorstep of Leon’s family (Hunnith’s old friends) so Leon and Merlin are raised as brothers. Also needs an account to read, but one of my all time favourite fics 234,831 words

the cute guy next door (might be a villain) by Alesyira

Mha fic Shinsou is an underground, undercover pro hero trying to find a lead on a case that may or may not involve the socially awkward guy living next door, (Midoriya) Misunderstandings ensue

And shit that’s 10. I have so many more so let me know if you want any others. I’ve got a few Yuri on Ice fics, a lot more mha and toh, one or two Sasaki to Miyano, Seraph of the end and Sherlock fics. I’m still getting into Song of Achilles fics, but there’s a few of them and a few crossovers too.

And for my name, there’s a kinda long story behind it, but the short version is my grandad used to call me Nerdy or clever or anything like that, he always said being smart and working hard to be smart was the best thing a person could do and I really looked up to him as everything I wanted to be when I grew up. Then when I came online in lockdown during Covid, it was just a whim that stuck to go by Nerd, or ThatNerd on Ao3 but the user was taken so I added bits till I found something available. After he died, it became more sentimental but generally it was just a lockdown thing that stuck.

98 notes · View notes

sleepyplantperson · 4 months

Text

You know what I love, when fandoms have fics that are fully flushed-out storylines that are occasionally better than the source material. Like No Paths Are Bound, and The Rigel Black Chronicles, were godsends.

I firmly believe that every fandom should have a fic that the whole fandom knows that takes place in-universe.

Like if I see another person say that the ultimate Klance fic is Dirty Laundry I'm gonna flip my shit, like no 😭😭, I want something that's long, in-universe, the fan-favorites survive, the characters are flushed out, and it doesn't completely forget about the other characters.

If anyone has any fics from the following fandom/ships that meet those requirements, or honestly just well-written fics in general, please rec them 🙏🙏:

Voltron (Klance, or just voltron fics in general)

Merlin (Merthur)

Batfam [Platonic]

DC (Birdflash, HalBarry, Supersons, Timkon, Young Justice fics, Boostle)

Marvel (Team Red [Platonic], SpideyTorch, Peter Parker [plot-centric fics])

Tgcf (MuQing, HuaLian, Beefleaf)

Mdzs (Wangxian, Jiang Cheng and Wei Ying [platonic], Nie Huaisang [plot-centric], Wei Yin [plot-centric])

Harry Potter (Harry Potter [plot-centric], Jily, Marauders [plot-centric], Wolfstar, Drarry, Dorlene)

Orv (Kim Dokja (plot-centric), Joongdok, YooHanKim [platonic], Yoo Sangah/Han Sooyoung [ship])

JJK (SatoSugu, ItaFushi, Itadori (plot-centric), Maki/Nobara)

She-Ra (Adora (plot-centric), Catradora)

My Hero Academia (I can't remember all the ships/friendships, so honestly just give me anything that isn't pro-shipping, or bakudeku)

Percy Jackson ((plot-centric on basically anyone is fine), Percabeth, Solangelo, Hazel/Frank)

Supergirl (SuperLuthur)

60 notes · View notes

h50europe · 9 days

Text

MERTHUR - The Nerd And His Bodyguard - Chapter 3 now on AO3

Excerpt: Again, tears streamed down the professor's face. He didn't even bother to wipe them away. Following an irresistible impulse, Merlin put his arm around Arthur's shoulders. To comfort him, he told himself. Just to comfort him for a few moments before he went back to being his bodyguard. Against all his doubts at the beginning of this assignment, Merlin realized that he wanted to stay and protect this man. His fate was sealed the first time Arthur clung to him before looking into those beautiful blue eyes.

It felt like a whiplash that brought Merlin back to his senses. What the hell was going on? He let go of Arthur and said, "I'm sorry. I think I better go now. It's been a helluva day for both of us. And my headache is killing me. I hope you don't mind..."

"No, not at all. Thanks for keeping me company."

Headache. Merlin knew it was a lame excuse, but it was the best he could come up with before he got tangled up in a web of emotions he wasn't ready to deal with.

Arthur stared at the door after it closed. Merlin Ambrose was unlike the other two agents, and Arthur wished he hadn't left. But he understood that the agent was focused on his job and couldn't get involved with him. The guy was a pro through and through. But a pro with a heart.

#merlin #merthurfanart #merlinfanart #arthurpendragon #arthurandmerlin #colinmorganfans #colinmorgan #bradleyjames #merthurfans #bradleyjamesfans #mymanips #missingmerlin #myedits #merlin fanfic #merthur fanfic

6 notes · View notes

ramblingmerlin · 9 months

Text

☆richie's long intro post☆

richie | 18 | bi/arospec/trans

pronouns: any (neos too) EXCEPT she/her

current hyperfixations: dan and phil and baldurs gate 3

sideblogs: spn: ramblingsupernatural dan and phil: ramblingdrama games: ramblingzelda

this is my SFW (minus occasional nsfw jokes) multifandom mainblog centered around what my current fixations & spinterests are! expect multishipping & rarepairs

no dni criteria, if ur a bigot you'll just be blocked! idc who reblogs my posts or how

tumblr backup:

(only computer/laptop compatible)

a few things to consider: - although this account isn't nsfw, I am very pro nsfw content in general, and extremely against purity culture - i am also anti censorship and pro ao3. - if you're one of those people who shame women for reading explicit books, and call them "porn addicts", then u are not welcome here!

read on for my tag system:

GENERAL:

my posts

character/plot discussions & meta

queer stuff / autistic stuff

character misc (just general posts on character tropes and such)

general misc txt posts

my misc txt posts

MERLIN-SPECIFIC:

merlin (both fandom & character)

characters ↓

ships ↓

OTHER FANDOMS:

#richie speaking #merlin #richie blog intro (wild stuff)#multifandom #this gets updated and changed btw

4 notes · View notes

carry-on-every-neverland-magic · 1 year

Text

MERLIN 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FINALE CHRISTMAS EVE 2012

I want to celebrate (and cry) about the show I miss so much and celebrate the 10th anniversary of the finale with the immortal Merlin Fandom. Basically, I’d love to, from now until Christmas, celebrate it being a decade since our beloved show ended and wanted to put together just a casual thing for everyone who is interested.

Guidelines:

1. Create something for Merlin, gifs, art, fic, writing, fanvids, anything that shows your positivity and love for the show and characters

2. It can be about Merlin in general but extra cookies for things dedicated to Merthur and the ‘Diamond of the Day’ Finale

3. Pro-Ship friendly (but no ship hate) Pro-character friendly (but no character hate)

3. Please tag me and use the #merlin10 so I can reblog your posts/creations

4. Open from now until Christmas

Thats it! Even if you just wanna make a post about why you love Merlin thats fine too! I just really wanna celebrate with you guys and don’t wanna step on the toes of the other amazing Merlin weeks going on the rest of the year. This is just a casual ily and miss Merlin thing and you’re all welcome to take part <3

#merlin #merthur #merlin edit #merlin 10th anniversary #diamond of the day #boosting on all my sideblogs #most things will be reblogged to my main ladyofthelake #signal boost

9 notes · View notes

youbelongatarthursside · 1 year

Text

MERLIN 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FINALE CHRISTMAS EVE 2012

Guidelines:

1. Create something for Merlin, gifs, art, fic, writing, fanvids, anything that shows your positivity and love for the show and characters

2. It can be about Merlin in general but extra cookies for things dedicated to Merthur and the ‘Diamond of the Day’ Finale

3. Pro-Ship friendly (but no ship hate) Pro-character friendly (but no character hate)

3. Please tag me and use the #merlin10 so I can reblog your posts/creations

4. Open from now until Christmas

#merlin #merthur #merlin 1oth anniversary #diamond of the day #merlin edit #merlin finale #boosting on my sideblogs since my original post didn't show in the tags #most things will get reblogged on my main ladyofthelake or my sideblogs

4 notes · View notes

hollynutmeg · 2 years

Text

holly ~ 31 ~ she/they ~ pan ~ pro ship ~ fanwriter ~ fanartist ~ i have adhd ~ italian

i love: cats, music (basically any genre), pasta, bright colours, cauliflowers, countryside, bare feet on grass, the smell of rain on dry soil, the sound of waves, pine trees, nuts, socialism, communism, anarchy

i hate: loud noises, big crowds, fireworks, fluo colours, onions, celery, cucumber, the texture of fruit, bigotry, hair removal, billionaires, capitalism, fascists

ships and otps listed by [fandom]

[harry potter] drarry, scorbus, romione, linny, ron/pansy, blaise/seamus, blaise/hermione, james/sirius, pansy/ginny, grindeldore, fred/george

[stranger things] byler, jancy, stancy, steddie, lumax, stonathan, jonathan/nancy/steve

[digimon] taito, yamaken, takari, mishirou, jyouyako

[x-men] cherik, wolverine/jean grey, wolverine/cyclops

[kimetsu no yaiba] tanjiro/zenitsu, tanjiro/inosuke, zenitsu/inosuke, tanjiro/zenitsu/inosuke

[jujutsu kaisen] yuji/megumi, gojo/yuji, gojo/megumi, gojo/yuji/megumi

[hunter x hunter] gon/killua, kurapica/gon, killua/kurapica, gon/killua/kurapica, leorio/kurapica, meruem/komugi

[death note] l/light

[sailor moon] haruka/michiru, haruka/makoto, michiru/makoto, haruka/michiru/makoto, usagi/rei, minako/makoto, makoto/ami, makoto/rei, hotaru/chibiusa, setsuna/hotaru

[kodomo no omocha] akito/sana, naotsumi/brad, akito/shinichi, sana/fuka

[fullmetal alchemist] edo/aru, roy/riza, roy/havoc, havoc/riza, roy/riza/havoc

[the sandman] dreasire, dreamling

[shingeki no kyojin] erwin/levi, eren/mikasa, eren/armin, armin/mikasa, eren/armin/mikasa, jean/sasha, connie/sasha, jean/connie, jean/connie/sasha, reiner/bertold, ymir/historia, annie/mikasa

[the witcher] geralt/yennefer, geralt/jaskier

[lord of the rings + the rings of power] legolas/gimli, frodo/sam, aragorn/boromir, boromir/faramir, faramir/eowyn, elrond/durin, durin/disa, elrond/durin/disa, sauron!halbrand/galadriel, nori/poppy

[a song of ice and fire + game of thrones + house of the dragon] jon/ygritte, jon/samwell, jon/robb, robb/theon, jon/tyrion, young!robert/young!eddard, rhaegar/lyanna, sansa/jeyne, littlefinger/sansa, drogo/daenerys, renly/loras, jaime/brienne, daemon/rhaenyra, rhaenyra/alicent

[merlin (bbc)] merthur

[13 reasons why] winston/alex, winston/monty, alex/charlie, alex/zach, clay/justin

[rpf] jamie c. bower/joseph quinn, foah, james mcavoy/micheal fassbender, bradley james/colin morgan

likes: fluff, smut, fluff&smut, hurt/comfort, vers characters, song!fic, happy ending, angst with happy ending

dislikes: non-con, omegaverse, soulmates, bdsm, bestial, creature!fic, death, crossovers

(YKINMKATO)

i surely forgot something, i’m probably going to update this at some point

3 notes · View notes

weakforarwen · 2 years

Text

Arthur's Bane (Part 1)

God, this episode drags with all those useless Merthur scenes. They're the least interesting parts of the episode. In short:

Merlin was withdrawn and quieter than usual after the druid seer showed him Mordred killing Arthur. Arthur noticed and tried to comfort Merlin but it made no difference. Merlin wanted them to head back to Camelot, and Arthur wouldn't leave his men behind:

M: Arthur, without you, Camelot is nothing. All that we've worked so hard to create. Everything will be gone. A: Look, no matter what adversity we face, we stand for what is right. To betray our beliefs, Merlin, that is what would destroy everything we've strived for. I swear I'm going to rescue my men... or die trying.

One of these conversations should've been enough, but they had it on four separate occasions (at Queen Annis's, at a camp before Morgana attacked them, after the attack, and in the scene above).

Moreover, the writers continue to believe that peak humor is Arthur yelling out Merlin's name or acting like Merlin's an idiot. Was I meant to laugh when Merlin, Arthur's "fool", juggled to entertain Queen Annis and Arthur was shocked he could do it? Was Merlin missing a very obvious trap and getting him and Arthur caught up in a fishing net supposed to be funny? Haha, Merlin's such an idiot. Haha, Arthur and Merlin are so dumb they can't set themselves free?

Similarly, was I supposed to be endeared when Arthur threw his boots at Merlin after they had a heart to heart?

Really? Was this the best they could do?

The highlight of this episode is clearly Queen Guinevere. She made quite an entrance. Arthur had Merlin look for the Queen who was apparently nowhere to be found (and, of course, Arthur wouldn't look for her himself), but she turned up on her own, walking down the stairs all regal-like. She was late to the council meeting, presumably because of Sefa, but Arthur still said she was right on time. It's sweet that he wouldn't start a council meeting without his Queen, although, traditionally, those aren't the type of events Queens attended. But Arthur and Gwen were different. Arthur trusted Gwen the most and didn't wish to rule alone, and Gwen took her job seriously so she was very much involved in the governing of Camelot.

But they still had very different roles. Arthur was their sovereign and had maximum authority; Gwen's judgement was valued and she had her own responsibilities, but she wasn't Arthur. I don't think she would've felt comfortable imposing herself too much as the Queen. She wouldn't have wanted to undermine Arthur's authority, just like Arthur had rarely disagreed with his father in public. Gwen trusted Arthur quite a lot, so she deferred to his judgement most of the time, unless she believed he was unequivocally in the wrong or needed her perspective. I understand why she was so careful. She wasn't brought up to rule like Arthur; she didn't have his knowledge or experience, and wouldn't want her ill-formed opinions to steer Arthur wrong.

But that doesn't mean she didn't voice her opinions or concerns. Though she was quiet, she was really observing, judging, learning, taking mental notes, carefully weighting her options; we've known this about Gwen since season 4, that she thinks before she speaks (eg. the deleted Arwen scene in The Wicked Day or her and Agravaine in The Darkest Hour).

As such, Gwen first weighed the pros and cons of voicing her concerns or sharing her ideas, especially in public (she spoke more freely around Arthur), and, when she felt certain that doing so would benefit Arthur or Camelot, she spoke up. It was Gwen who suggested that Arthur should approach Ismere through Queen Annis's lands to have the element of surprise. It was a very clever suggestion that everyone agreed to, and clearly not for the first time. Still, although Arthur hadn't hesitated to take her advice, Gwen had hesitated to give it. She was silent for some time, deep in thought, before she finally, carefully, spoke. She was visibly relieved and happy that she was right. Even after three years, Gwen was adapting to her role, gaining confidence. Arthur had decades of experience on her and still leaned on others for advice and often made the wrong calls. Imagine how much worse it would've been for a former servant.

Something I've noticed, and mentioned multiple times because it bugged me, is that Gwen was often concerned for Arthur's safety but didn't always voice those concerns; or she did and we just didn't see it... I believe that was because Gwen knew to pick her battles.

Arthur was stubborn when it came to defending his ideals as Gwen very well knew. She knew he would never leave his men behind so she didn't even ask him to. However, she did voice her concerns to Arthur in Another's Sorrow, because he hadn't just been motivated by doing the right thing (helping an ally, stopping someone else from losing their father); he'd been seeking vengeance. So, Gwen kept silent whenever Arthur went on one of his dangerous missions, despite her fears, but on the condition that his motives were pure.

However, despite her cautiousness and inexperience, Gwen was not afraid of leading her people and stepping up her game.

This episode had two goals: 1) foreshadow Arthur's death and who would cause it (Mordred, Morgana), 2) show that even without its King Camelot would be in safe hands because Gwen was more than up to the task.

For three years, Gwen had sat on all of Arthur's meetings, watching and learning about war and governing, building relationships with the knights and the members of the Round Table. Furthermore, due to Arthur's many absences, she had also led the meetings and taken up his duties. Arthur, at his core, was a knight, a warrior. He valued his men as much as he valued Camelot. It was a matter of honor and pride for Arthur that he could not send his men out to fight alone knowing they'd die, and he could not order his men to do anything he wouldn't be willing to do himself. As such, Gwen was often alone, and had to rule alone.

We saw in this episode that Queen Guinevere was confident, firm, decisive, and looked to no one for answers. She understood right away there was a traitor in the castle, and being highly observant, quickly figured out who it was. She arrived at that conclusion alone, and crafted a plan to catch Sefa's father alone too. She told no one of her plan; Elyan and Gaius were shocked by her decision to execute Sefa. But Gwen was strong and confident enough to give out such an order, even if she had no intention of seeing it through this time.

The scene of Sefa being dragged into the throne room and kneeling before her sovereign reminded me of the times Gwen had been in that same position. Even Sefa's dress reminded me of one of Gwen's.

Gwen knelt before the King of Camelot 4 times. Twice with Uther, when she was accused of witchcraft and sentenced to death, and twice with Arthur, after the cheating and during her coronation. But she didn't have to kneel before Arthur for long: he immediately told her to rise in Lancelot Du Lac and helped her up when she became Queen. Thus, the scene between Gwen and Sefa was more similar to the times Gwen was brought before Uther, including the sentence she received. That's why the scene is shocking.

However, their circumstances were different. Sefa was punished because her actions cost the lives of men, not because she and her father were druids, and Gwen also had irrefutable evidence against Sefa, unlike Uther when he sentenced her to die. And, still, although conspiring to kill the king was treason, Gwen didn't want to kill Sefa because she understood her position.

It's also worthwhile to notice that Gwen could've postponed Sefa's judgement. She could've let Arthur take care of it. But she knew she had to act fast, because Arthur's life was on the line. She willingly took up the responsibility of sentencing Sefa.

I wonder what Gwen thought of Sefa's father and the plights of magic users. Did Sefa's actions convince her that Arthur's attitude towards magic was right? She was never too keen on magic.

Sefa: He only wants what's rightfully his. Were he a physician or a warrior, his skills would be revered. But sorcery! He deserves respect like any man. G: Respect is to be earned! It cannot be bought with blood. Your treachery cost the lives of many good men.

This scene reminded me of when Merlin asked Gwen if she would kill Uther as vengeance for her father, and Gwen said she would not, because that would make her no better than him. Gwen is more virtuous than Arthur. He wanted to kill Carleon for killing his father, even if he himself had killed Carleon's son.

These are the only good Gwen episodes of the season. I admire this Queen Guinevere, and I see servant Gwen in her as well. Unlike in the rest of the season, this episode's Gwen feels familiar to me. She was still warm and kind, like when she spoke to Sefa as a friend, or smiled at Sefa and Merlin's awkward interest in each other, but she was also aware of her new role. She knew it was up to her to take charge and lead her people in Arthur's absence.

Gwen's so different from Arthur in so many ways; the way she treated Sefa, her servant, for one. She asked Sefa to sit with her and even offered her the Queen's food. She spoke to Sefa like a friend, taking note of her mood, of how she was adjusting to her new role, praising her work, asking about her love life.

Gwen cared about the small things. She watched over the castle and its people. Arthur cared, but he didn't really notice his servants. Gwen even noticed Sefa leaving the castle at night.

Where Arthur was hasty and hot-headed, Gwen was careful and level-headed. Arthur would've forgiven (but not pardoned) Sefa for betraying him, but he wouldn't have seen beyond her betrayal. He wouldn't have thought to use the girl to get to her father. Maybe someone would've suggested it, but it probably wouldn't have been him. I don't believe Arthur would've sentenced Sefa to die, but he would've wanted her out of his sight immediately.

Arthur expected loyalty from people. All his life he had relied on others. He had his servants to do everything for him, he had his knights to watch his back, and he even had his father to support him. Arthur always had some form of a support system. He trusted people easily because he needed to trust people - for example, he needed to trust his knights with his life in battle. To him, people existed for him.

This is why Arthur was easily deceived or manipulated.

But Gwen didn't grow up relying on anyone, aside from maybe Tom, and her mother before she died. She had to look out for herself, for her father, for Elyan. She had no support system. She was a servant, invisible to most. But that also meant she could observe everyone in secret and learn their true nature. Gwen, unlike Arthur, knew how to read people. She wasn't easily deceived or manipulated. Arthur was coddled and told what he wanted to hear, he didn't know how to see past the lies.

Furthermore, Gwen didn't just live for the present. Like Arthur told Merlin this episode, "a warrior learns to enjoy each day as it comes". That was Arthur's issue. He thought like a warrior, when he really was a King; he couldn't take his life lightly when the future of Camelot depended on him. But Gwen saw the big picture. She waited and supported Arthur all those years because she believed life would improve when he became King.

Gwen was bolder than Arthur. It was perhaps a bit cruel to use Sefa to find her father (Sefa watched her father die and knew it was because she'd been followed), but Gwen's quick thinking helped Arthur, and showed she had vision, that she could be proactive and not just reactive, like Arthur.

Curiously, I think Queen Guinevere was a bit of a mix of Arthur and Uther. Like Arthur, she was compassionate, fair, kind, loyal, a believer of equality, and of the opinion that a sovereign should be respected, not feared, and that respect should be earned, not forced. However, she was cautious and not as trusting as Arthur, firmer, more guarded, more proactive, more independent, more shrewd than Arthur, thus a bit closer to Uther in that regard - not that Uther would've had the foresight to use Sefa the way she did, blinded by magic as he was.

Before I sign off, was Merlin actually into Sefa? It kind of looked like it, but I'm not sure. It's not the first time Merlin had looked interested without being interested - ie. Gwen and Morgana in season 1.

Also, the Diamair being a black woman/alien, hiding underground because her kind had been used and abused by white people, was a bit... The white High Priestesses and druid seers were respected for their knowledge and sight, but the Diamair were hunted? The druids were also hunted but they lived in communities...

Lastly... Arthur said he valued the lives of his men which was why he had to look for Gwaine and Percival. But, in order to save his Knights of the Round Table, he sent many less skilled men off to their deaths. Didn't he see the irony? I understand that he had to fight for his men, to show their lives had meaning to him - but we all know he wouldn't have done it for anyone else. To defend his ideals and find his friends, he risked the lives of men who had no choice but to undertake such a dangerous mission (and without a Merlin to keep them safe). Were those men's lives not important to Arthur? Or were they replaceable to him, unlike the Knights of the Round Table?

#bbc merlin #bbc arwen #gwen pendragon #arwen #arthur pendragon #merlin #arthur's bane commentary #arthur's bane

6 notes · View notes