#arthur critical

[sneakyboymerlin]

Worst most tragic quote of any show ever:

“Some men are born to be kings… I was born to serve you, Arthur.”

How everyone else isn’t horribly unsettled by that line of words fuckin’ astounds me.

HE DOESN’T SEE HIMSELF AS A PERSON!

And he tries to twist it into a positive thing!

It’s the fact that he suddenly believes that anyone is born to be lesser or greater than anyone else. The equality he hoped for at the original round table? No sign of that here. He’s been so socially abused that he’s resigned himself to being “less than.” It’s been impressed upon him again and again that he’s predestined to be Arthur’s inferior.

He doesn’t realize anymore that Arthur wasn’t born superior to him, with a grand entitlement to the monarchy’s hoarded wealth. He doesn’t realize that the scraps he has to his own name are disproportionate compensation for the work he does! He doesn’t seem to recognize that leadership should be divorced from concepts of unlimited power and greater wealth, that a leader should not be “above” their subjects, except when it comes to his own power and leadership. Then, he’s stopping people from bowing to him, and speaking to his followers as equals. But when Arthur expects and enforces the rule that he is treated with greater respect than anyone else, treated to greater luxuries, and that his work is ~more important~ so others (like his servants) don’t deserve their share of the wealth, that’s seen as completely normal and uncorrupt. Arthur’s an over-glorified CEO, and Merlin is placed on the lowest tier. And no one sees anything wrong with this political model?

He genuinely believes that he is Arthur’s inferior, morally and spiritually, and that the position he was born into (as a poor farmer, then servant, and “monster”) was intended to reflect that, as some sort of payment for his ~innate flaws~. He believes that Arthur specifically was born king because he is superior, that he was born into his insurmountable political/social power & wealth because he is somehow more deserving of it, when Arthur is just like any other person ever.

And it’s even wilder because he doesn’t think this about Uther or Morgana! It’s like Stockholm Syndrome. And what’s worse is that the narrative glorifies this perspective, doesn’t treat it as the horror that it really is, doesn’t engage with it as an idea that needs to be challenged.

It’s so different from how he approached his destiny in seasons 1-4, it’s arguably just out of character, plain and simple. He used to have some fight in him, he had a sense of self (even if he was lacking in self-worth, which is why he was so susceptible to this). He knew that he deserved to be seen as a person, as capable, as dignified. This negative development in his character, that he believes he doesn’t get to simply exist as a human being, that he only exists to serve the needs of others, while everyone else gets to just be a person without their very existence needing to be justified… it’s disturbing! How do people romanticize this? He’s an immortal martyr. When he can’t die for his cause, he gives up his life.

Merlin is more than a weapon, more than a shield, more than a thing. He wasn’t born to be used! He’s just a person, he deserves to simply be. Everyone does.

I hope he learned to after Arthur and Gaius died.

#it’s the non-magical version of the tiene diaga lmao #merlin emrys #bbc merlin #merlin meta #arthur critical #show critical #my meta

[clotpolemerlin]

You know, I don't think Merlin ever meant to "reveal" his magic. It was a secret, but unlike most secrets, it was never about trust or even the truth in general. Magic is feared and hated at BEST. In Camelot, people treat sorcerers like they aren't even human. Like you don't even have to do anything at all with your magic, just the act of having magic is worth a death sentence.

You don't tell people about that. It's not an option. There are really only two ways that can go. The first and most expected way is they will turn on you, despise you, and then likely kill you. Or the "better" option is by some miracle they turn away all their prejudices just for you, now they are walking around with a death sentence too. Its canon that Uther killed, or at least jailed, citizens just for UNKNOWINGLY sheltering a sorcerer for the night.

So again, not something you tell someone. Doesn't matter if you feel safe. Doesn't matter if the person is constantly hinting they are pro magic even. You can never ever tell them.

I don't understand why so many people, even in the show, asked Merlin when he would tell Arthur? As if there would ever be a safe time let alone a right time. I mean to be fair, it seems obvious right? Arthur is Merlin's friend and has proved multiple times that he is willing to compromise his beliefs and go against his father for his friends sake. So if Merlin took the risk, Arthur could just free magic and there is a happy ending for all, right?

Except how could that ever be? Arthur has also proved time and time again that he hates magic. He thinks it corrupts and kills and that there could never be any good in it. The best evidence to the contrary is one deleted scene where he is talking to Guinevere like one time about maybe it's not all bad. That's not a chance I'd take. Not when my life, and the huge weight of destiny is on my shoulders. Absolutely not.

So basically, to sum up this odd little rant: Merlin stopped ever considering telling anyone, let alone Arthur, he had magic years ago. It was a fool's notion to begin with. And he was probably right to

#bbc merlin #merlin #since my brain is still on the topic of merlin and magic reveal tropes #have a weird collection of my thoughts #arthur critical #jic #I dont actually think Im being that critical

[sapphickittykatherine]

i just wanna talk for a sec about arthur. disclaimer: i adore him. he's my blorbo boy. however, he definitely does get prince privilege with regards to both the narrative voice of the show and the fandom. i'd like to point to this post as a jumping-off point:

if you're anything like me, you might need cw: lancelot slander

ofc my bias towards lancelot has affected my view of this in absolutely no way whatsoever lmao

i understand that arthur was raised by a power-hungry tyrant - although, one who was said to care for his kingdom even before his own son... - and that being brought up with privilege goes to someone's head. this is why i excuse his dickishness in early seasons. he's going to grow! that's what merlin is there for! by season 5, however, when he has not only not grown but actually gotten worse, you have to question why everyone - including merlin - still praises him so much. he still oppresses magic. he still upholds the inequality of the monarchy. (another disclaimer: i adore fictional stories about monarchs and royalty etc. nothing wrong with liking them!) yet still, people praise him for the absolute barest of minimums. this man will be like, "yeah i don't think we should leave our citizens to die actually :)" and everyone will act like this is some incredibly brave moral stance. "we shouldn't tax our citizens to the point that they starve, or execute innocent people without a fair trial. probably." and the crowd goes wild!

basically every character who isn't a stuck-up noble with their head in the stratosphere thinks this. yet arthur is the one who gets praised for it. why? because he has the power to actually do something about it? the guy actually fights alongside his knights rather than hiding in his castle, which makes him better than the other knights. bc logic. "he's such a great guy!" he's bordering on a mediocre guy with bare-minimum moral stances. and that's okay! he's allowed to be a stuck-up royal prat! he's a medieval prince with a tyrant father, for goodness' sake! but this worship of him - not just by characters, but also members of the fandom - is weird tbh.

how the aforementioned post ties in to all this exactly: lancelot. there is a reason, dear pinterest user, that lancelot is the bravest and most noble of them all, rather than arthur. arthur fights to defend his kingdom, first and foremost. he is the crown prince, and later the kin. if not for the seemingly infinite supply of knights and citizens of camelot, thanks to this being a show, he would have no kingdom to rule if he let everyone die and all structures be destroyed! he wants peace among the kingdoms - great. again, a highly bare-minimum stance, though. you remember when uther signed a peace treaty with a bunch of other kingdoms, even though another king was mad he couldn't get rich off war if that happened? uther the pure-hearted. on the other hand, people like lancelot are just commoners. he wants to risk his life not because he's defending the kingdom over which he presides, but because he doesn't want a bunch of people who, honestly, have very little to do with him, suffer or die like he saw happen to the people in his village. "arthur risks his life for his friends!" the guy has, like, three. i should hope so. not to mention lancelot does the same 💀 for arthur (1x05), for gwen (2x04), for merlin (4x02).

lancelot is literally just one example. if you don't want to, it's chill - it's literally just a work of fiction lol - but maybe try to assess arthur sans privilege. even once. do i think that arthur is better than uther and other tyrants? obviously! do i think that's a particularly high bar? ...

he's a dick with a heart of... bronze. maybe. good for him.

#eeee i hope no one takes this the wrong way. i love my guy. i do. and it's only a work of fiction. i just. #arthur pendragon #arthur critical #bbcm fandom critical #bbcm takes #bbc merlin #mine #i've had this sitting in my drafts for ages and i'm finally just gonna post it

[tiodolma]

anyway the self preservation thing got me thinking

.............................

Kilgharrah: this boy will be your other half and will give you freedom. teach him guide him. this is your mission.

Arthur: threatens and kills merlin's whole family and loved ones and his whole race. Constantly has to be convinced by Guinevere, Merlin and Morgana to defy his tyrant father and think for himself. Morally degrades Merlin at every opportunity just to butter him up when needed.

Merlin: I SEE GOODNESS IN YOU YOU HAVE A NOBLE HEART I KNOW YOU WILL CHANGE. YOU WERE JUST DOING WHAT WAS RIGHT TO SAVE CAMELOT. I GET MY LOVED ONES AND MYSELF ARE A THREAT TO THE GREATER GOOD. UNDERSTANDABLE. CARRY ON. IM THE SERVANT AT YOUR FEET. MY LIFE IS WORTH LESS THAN YOURS. GOD SAVE THE KING. ......................... Kilgharrah: Just kill Uther, boy. Let him die. Merlin: NOOO THAT WOULD JUST MAKE ME A KILLER LIKE HIM. GOD SAVE THE KING.

..............................

Kilgharrah: You need this kind of magic to defeat this magic user

Merlin: YES PLS GIVE ME IT. I NEED TO ELIMINATE THREAT ASAP PRONTO. EVERYONE COMMITTING OR WILL ABOUT TO COMMIT TREASON MUST DIE. GOD SAVE THE KING.

.....................................

Kilgharrah: this girl will be your exact opposite and will go against your goals

Morgana: Helped Merlin in any way she could, respected and trusted him AS A PERSON completely even though Merlin didn't show his true self to her, plotted to kill tyrant king that hurt magic folk, got betrayed by Merlin of all people, eventually turned to insurgency, necromancy and government destabilization when all options have been closed off.

Merlin: YES KILGHARRAH YOU ARE RIGHT. I CANT BELIEVE SHE DID THIS. SHE CANNOT KNOW WHAT I AM OR SEE ME FOR WHO I AM EVER. SHE IS EVIL AND SHE IS OUR BIGGEST THREAT.

....................................................

Merlin: I DID WHAT I COULD

Merlin: Also I can't believe I failed at life

Kilgharrah: none of us can escape our destiny, Merlin (winks)

#mergana #bbc morgana #bbc arthur #bbc merlin #kilgharrah #bbc kilgharrah #thots #arthur critical

[charmed101]

Why do people think Arthur was owed Merlin’s secret? He literally participated in the genocide of Merlin’s people as an adult and every character development he gained was reset and he went back to his bigoted ways on magic.

#merlin #bbc merlin #merlin emrys #arthur critical #arthur pendragon

[soaring-trash]

someone please send me the red dead redemption au, i lost it and i’ve been looking for an age

#gave imogen an arthur outfit #laudna is bbg #critical role #critters #critical role campaign 3 #bells hells #critical role fanart #fanart #laudna #imogen temult #imodna #imogen x laudna #rdr2 #red dead redemption 2 #red dead redemption #cr 3 #cr3 #c3 #rdr2 au

[freezingfogsblog]

Behold: a monster

#critical role #the mangus archives #the penumbra podcast #malevolent #malevolent podcast #tma #cr #tpp #welcome to night vale #wtnv #jonathan sims #jon sims #arthur lester #mollymauk tealeaf #cecil palmer #juno steel #podcasts #podcast shit

[dazednstoned]

Absolutely absurd that people give Arthur and John the benefit of the doubt by labeling them complex characters (which they are), but won't extend that grace to INCREDIBLY complex characters like Abigail, Molly, and Mary.

Abigail is strictly a nag, Molly is a rat, and Mary is a selfish woman who used Arthur. Meanwhile, John is seen as a deadbeat who grew from that into a family man. Arthur is a murderer, but he's also kind and generous.

Stop only extending grace to your male favs when the red dead women are just as complex as them.

#half the complaints abt the women don't even have any backbone too😭 #I swear if anyone interprets this as a John/arthur hate post I may lose my mind #YOU CAN BE CRITICAL OF THEM AND DTILL LIKE THEM #abigail marston #abigail roberts #molly o'shea #mary linton #mary gillis #arthur morgan #john marston #rdr2 #red dead redemption 2

[genericpuff]

how LO has been feeling lately-

#thanks ULO for finding this hilarious arthur fist meme panel #yes that is a real panel #from S1 #lore olympus critical #anti lore olympus #lo critical

[demigoddessqueens]

hugs

thinking of the tightest hugs possible, ones that start so slow and hesitant with arms slowly circling around before they get tight, burying their head in the crook of the neck to hide the betraying emotions behind eyes screwed shut, perhaps flirting with the idea of a kiss on the cheek, fingers digging into the shoulders and where they meet the back to hold on as if it feels like the last time, a forlorn grimace when one pulls away because it wasn’t enough time to savor the feel/touch of another, interlocking fingers when you pull away as if it’s still enough (it’s not)

#critical role #vox machina #the legend of vox machina #the mighty nein #bell’s hells #critical role x reader #all of the party members ☝️ #assassin's creed #assassin’s creed x reader #all the AC leads would!! ☝️ #castlevania #castlevania nocturne #dragon age #alucard adrian tepes #miguel across the spiderverse #miguel o’hara x reader #richter belmont #trevor belmont #genshin impact neuvillette #genshin impact x reader #cullen rutherford #alistair theirin #aemond targaryen x reader #bg3 #baldur's gate 3 #arthur morgan x reader #the arcana x reader #exophilia #all the bg3 companions and npcs would #dragon age x reader

[sneakyboymerlin]

#I didn’t leave ‘SpongeBob’ slightly visible for this to receive no notes #merlin emrys #arthur critical #bbc merlin #merlin memes

[echoesofcamelot]

Hear me out I enjoy this 'Gwaine calls Arthur princess and is loyal to Merlin first' fanfic thing just as much as everyone else but please can we not forget what canon Gwaine is really like?

Let me elaborate.

Gwaine does call Arthur princess once and likes to tease him but that is before he becomes his knight. His attitude towards him changes radically from this moment on:

As Arthur knights him, his carefree demeanour shifts abruptly. Look how serious he is, how solemn. He even closes his eyes, barely containing his emotions. This is Gwaine accepting the knighthood he had never wanted because it was being given to him by a man who didn't know he was actually a noble. With this gesture Arthur was giving him something he had always been looking for: a purpose, a meaning to his life. And he finally finds it in serving and protecting that man who believed in equality above all things and who had found Gwaine, a supposedly nobody, worthy of bestowing upon him the greatest honour he was capable of.

In that moment Arthur gave him a home, a family and something to fight for.

And in exchange Gwaine took his oath of allegiance to heart and became fiercely loyal and protective of Arthur.

This is his reaction when Dragoon threatens his king's life:

This is how he responds when Merlin asks him to look after Arthur because he fears that he may be in danger:

In the Disir's cave, of all the people present, it is Gwaine who gets super angry and jumps in front of Arthur the moment the Disir start attackig him.

And when Arthur is poisoned and Gaius tells them that it's deadly, there he is, on the front line, clutching his chest, utterly devastated.

So, yes, of course Merlin was Gwaine's first friend, of course he'd always remain loyal to him no matter what. But he loved and respected Arthur just the same.

And the fact that he dies thinking he has failed him will haunt me until the day I die.

#leon and gwaine hold the title of arthur's most loyal knights #no i will not take criticism #gwaine loved arthur so much #and that’s a fact #gwaine #arthur pendragon #merlin #bbc merlin #sir gwaine #meta #merlin meta

[bruciemilf]

The justice league taking pictures with Bruce like men do with fish

#just thinking abt bruce and co again djdjd #when bruce joined the team he forgot one critical issue: they're a band. they're a glorified boy band. at that #and as an eye witness to dick's meltdown when 1D broke up - he knows he can never leave #and unfortunately some of them are so popular that they MUST HAVE PR #basically give me the JL treating bruce like the autistic orange tabby cat they found in an alley #bruce wayne #dc #dc comics #batman #clark kent #diana prince #arthur curry #hal jordan #oliver queen #the justice league #jla #text post

[tiodolma]

s3 Arthur: everyone on this table is equal. no man is more important than other. Merlin: im on the table yay Everybody: pledges loyalty Arthur: merlin. Merlin: no thanks Arthur: u have no choice Merlin: aw ok Merlin: but remember I am on the table. ..... Arthur: You see these dirty boots? Go clean them. Merlin: so about that equality stuff. i was wondering- Arthur: LOL SIKE Merlin: the round table?? a few days ago?? Arthur: I CAN'T READ Merlin: quiet ouch ..... s4 Arthur: dont sacrifice urself ur just a servant, ur not a knight Merlin: (ahahahahaha dont i know that. i was booted off that table the moment we got back) Merlin: my life is lesser than yours lol .......... Lancelot: bruh he should've knighted you Merlin: *remembers how he was shot down with the equality talk* Merlin: nah im just his servant. Lancelot: quiet ouch Lancelot: I will protect you with my life ........ s5 Arthur: AW SHT YOU HAVE MAGIC Arthur: WHY ARE YOU ACTING LIKE A SERVANT Merlin: You kept me your servant. Arthur: it's my fault? Merlin: You are also my friend. So like i dont want u to die. Arthur: fine. .......... Arthur: *sees Merlin do cool magic stuff* Artuhr: I SHOULDVE RESPECTED YOU Arthur: I AM SO SORRY Merlin: well. okay. Arthur: WHY DIDNT YOU TELL ME? Merlin: (reviews entirety of s1-s5) WHY INDEED Arthur: that is fair. i didnt know what i'd do tbh. Merlin: didnt want to put u in that position. Merlin: anyway. dont worry my life aint worth shit. Happy to serve you. Born to serve you. Arthur: *entire life flashes before his eyes* Arthur: (fck i didnt treat him well) Arthur: I want you to be always be you. Merlin: idk what that means but i cant lose you. Kilgharrah: lol sike.

#bbc merlin #bbc arthur #anti merthur #anti arthur #anti merlin #arthur crit #merlin crit #arthur critical #adventures of merlin #arthurs carrot and stick treatment of merlin is just horrible #this was the shttiest thing to happen #merlin was proactive #he immediately called arthur out #but arthur doesnt wanna be called out #especially by merlin #now u realize why merlin was never good enough for a council seat #you cannot tell me in my face that merlin wouldnt want to be his equal #u really think merlin didnt suffer a really bad blow to his psyche after this #everyone on the table became kind of an equal to arthur except for him #im prety sure we know now how bad his downward spiral of IM JUST HIS SERVANT #u dont hype someone like that in public and then tear them down in private #that is NOT ROMANTIC

[queer-ragnelle]

"In another life... I really would've liked just doing taxes and laundry with you"

-Arthur Pendragon, Excalibur 1981

I'M IN SO MUCH PAIN

#arthurian legend #arthuriana #arthurian legends #arthurian mythology #king arthur #queen guinevere #excalibur #excalibur 1981 #everything everywhere all at once #eeaao #quotes #ask #strejdaking #me & strejdaking getting the critical hit psychic damage on you poor innocent followers

[darkbitchithic]

not to be a hater who works in disability services but as much as I am loving (and I mean Loving) malevolent I will never stop being incredibly frustrated at the lack of inclusion of accessibility tools. I am only just starting s3 so Maybe it gets better but from what I've seen online they really do just keep this man caneless the whole time!!

I understand that it would cause complications for the writer(s), but also I think if you're going to write a blind character you should do the bare minimum. Hell, I would even take john learning that he has to use a more precise vocabulary when guiding (he says stuff like "no, the other way" and "that one!" way, way too much), but as far as I can tell we're just going to have to suspend our disbelief the whole time

I'm not asking arthur learn braille right off the bat - I completely understand there are tight deadlines and life is on the line, plus hey, it's the 30s! information is absolutely going to be limited if one doesn't seek it out directly. but it feels uncaring on the side of the writer(s) + just makes me a bit sad about a podcast I'm having an incredible time with, especially since it's Such a core element of the narrative.

There are ways to write accessibility into your story without bogging it down! you just have to put in the effort

#malevolent podcast #malevolent #arthur lester #john malevolent #malevolent critical