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I agree with the other comments about the series finale. Skip it if you want to end the show on a good note. I LOVED this show because of the two leads. Not every episode was amazing, but there were real gems in there. They could have really done something different with the ending; it left me with a sour taste in my mouth... That said, I still recommend the rest of the series. It's one of my all-time favourites.
This is a decent show...not really good but cheesy good. There are some parts that are fantastic and some parts that are subpar so it evens out to a decent show.
Anthony Stewart Head as Uther is probably the best part of this show, he is a rock solid actor.
This show had so much potential with having them the same age, they could have done SOOOO MUCH but they chose to ignore pretty much all of that potential.
With that said, the series finale is INCREDIBLY AWFUL so it tainted the show for me so I would suggest just skip the last episode.
So painful to say goodbye. What an amazing series! Oh great. I'm crying again.
Now I know why the finale was disliked by some fans. I get what parallels and messages they were trying to go for in this kind of ending, especially with that modern-day old Merlin which is decidedly lame anyway no matter how anyone may look at it. I mean, come on. I absolutely hated this entire ending at first but now, moments later I think I'm slowly beginning to come to terms with… parts of it. Still a very good series that deserves a rewatch because it's just a fun show to see. I just would have really preferred this to have the predictable yet happy fairy tale ending I'm sure most fans wanted to see. Oh for the love of Camelot! This could have ended much, much better. The rest of the show was just good ol' adventurous fun (often precipitated by stupid decisions by many of its characters.) And now with the ending they suddenly decide to have something deep and relevant to tell us and so they shock us with a totally uncalled for and unexpected ending? Come on! A good story ruined by (political?) propaganda. Now we can only leave to our imaginations all the adventures Merlin, Arthur and the rest of their friends could have had with magic finally free again. I will no doubt come back to Camelot many times but time will tell if I'll ever be at peace with how things ended for them. Is it my destiny?
Goodbye, with all my heart. It’s been a beautiful journey. To those who are considering on watching this amazing show, do not hesitate a moment and see it, it’s wonderful. A part of my soul will lie with this show. Goodbye
Considering it’s 12yrs old and just a tv series, I enjoyed it. It’s easy to watch, lighthearted, but it still has a good storyline.
It regularly features guest actors too, as well as having some well know British TV actors in it.
It never became boring despite having 5 seasons, but the finale was sadly disappointing. But, that’s just one episode and perhaps if I’m picky, there may have been another one or two dodgy episodes.
If you enjoy fantasy and the supernatural and don’t want anything heavy to watch then do give this a watch.
Ps. It is cheesy at times, but in an endearing way.
The weird thing about this show is that it is so awfully written, yet the humor is amazing.
The early seasons were pretty great but it got progressively worse until I gave up, halfway through season 5. I hear I didn't miss much.
Loved the dynamic between Arthur and Merlin though and am angry that they didn't do more with this show. If I had stopped at season 1 or 2 I would have probably given this an 8.
super amazing!
when i first started watching merlin i was just curious but now i cant wait till next season recommend this to anyone who would like to have another view at how king arthur became the man he was (in this tale ofcourse :) )
Overall, this has become one of my favorite shows. It’s not the best in terms of writing or directing or set design or originality, but it’s just one of those shows that has a soul and such a lovable personality with such amazing characters that you can’t help but love it.
As for the last episode, I think you either love it or hate it. Personally, I loved the scenes between Merlin and Arthur. I guess it really only took one episode for Arthur to see how amazing Merlin is. And I think the ending was a bit poetic; the one time Merlin couldn’t save Arthur was when Arthur knew who he truly was, not just cementing their destinies, but also their friendship.
I highly recommend this to anyone who just wants a fun show where they can fall in love with the characters, and I envy those who get to watch it for the first time again.
@rottnkorpse .. I thought the whole series was pretty awesome, and I loved the way year by year it grew, as the characters grew! Everything about it was excellent! However, I don't agree about the last episode. Yes, I was disappointed, but only because I knew it was over! It was pretty much the way I would expect an incredible series like "Merlin" to end! I really wish it wasn't over!!
Series is decent but plots keep repeating. Everytime there's another infiltrator.
So sadending, they couldmake better ending for all fans, who was loyal to this show. . But series was really amazing :)
What am I going to watch now that Merlin is done!?!?
I've watched all seasons and started again... can't believe it's over... :'( please come back!
oct this is almoust here!
anyone know when s5 is starting?
Awful, even for pre-watershed time of 19:45.
How it has a 80% approval rating is beyond me.
The Arthurian legend has never been portrayed worse. It's poorly written, produced and acted. If you like cheesy, camp, wooden and hammy froth go for it. If you've got the slightest semblance of taste, other than in your mouth, avoid this like the proverbial.
Four and bit episodes were more than enough for me.
I can't believe I hate-watched the entire five seasons!
They have Merlin "in the closet" about magic for the whole show, and with the parallels to LGBTQ+ life, you really want him to come out or even be discovered, but the situation never gets better. Disappointing. Strings you along.
Due to the fact that this is a family show, which is sometimes endearing and sometimes pretty irritating to an adult viewer (farting episode, I'm looking at you!), most of the characters were changed to more positive versions of themselves, with the exception of Morgana, who is evil up to eleven, whereas she is an ambiguous character in some versions of the legend, and perhaps Agravaine, who is a traitor from the start. Even Mordred is a really nice boy up to some point. Arthur himself is a better person than the king from legends, as for one he does not have a child born of incest with one of his sisters, as Mordred is totally unrelated to him, and he does not sentence his wife to die on the stake either. Merlin was also often depicted as an ambiguous character, here he is the viewer's POV protagonist and even though he does make some morally questionable decisions, he is generally on the side of the angels. Gueneviere is also depicted in a much positive sense, as she is not one of the reasons for Camelot's downfall, but on the contrary, the ending of the show suggest that it is she who ushers in the golden age and not Arthur, who dies sort of prematurely (though "cannonically") as he has hardly achieved even half of the things he was rumoured to in the prophecies (and did much less than the Arthur of legends). Gwen cannot do anything wrong or evil, unless she is enchanted. The same case is with Lancelot, as the worst thing he ever does happens when he is a shade rather than a normal person. Due to the family nature of the show, the whole plot of Guinevere and Lancelot's adultery and its consequences are removed, which also removes a lot of tension and emotion from the story as a whole. It also changes Gawaine's character significantly, who turns from a violent and aggressive person, who becomes completely vengence-ridden into a likable protagonists, who may be too quick to act and a bit irresponsible, but has a heart of gold and can be considered one of fan favourites.
The biggest "victims" of the show and maybe its family aesthetics are definitely Lancelot and Tristram, as they were both considered the best knights in the legends and featured heavily in the stories, particularly Tristam has an extensive storyline in Malory, where he is one of the most important main protagonists. However, in the show he appears only in a couple of episodes and what's more, he is not a knight at all, but rather a smuggler helping Arthur, who disappears after his beloved Isolde is killed, whereas in the legends he was quite a valued knight of the Round Table. This is rather disappointing as Tristram could have been incorporated among the knights, instead of creating original characters who had no Arthurian counterparts. Though maybe not the Tristram of the show, I guess this character should have been created anew as it is hard to imagine the middle-aged smuggler as one of the best knights of Camelot.
Lancelot is another person almost omitted from the series, even though he had more luck than Tristram as he features in more episodes and was after all knighted by Arthur. In some ways his character was improved as it is the shade!Lancelot that committs all the negative deeds associated with this hero, whereas while he is alive, he is a brave and honourable knight who sacrifices himself to save Arthur and his kingdom. So generally, it may be considered an improvement had it not been for the fact that he is almost completely absent from the show, while he was considered the best knight of Arthur's until Tristram joined the Round Table, when they were basically equals as far as their skills as knights were concerned.
Arthur's reign seems short and rushed, it hardly begins when the signs of its impending doom and destruction start to appear. This may be due to the constant back-stabbing of Morgana, who is much more active in trying to destroy Camelot and Arthur than it was the case in the legends, often putting the characters in a defence position in which they are forced to react to what she is doing rather than be proactive and create their own stories and adventures. There is no storyline about adventures of knight-errant, which is a staple of the Arthurian stories. At least one such tale could have been incorporated without changing the light-hearted mood of the family show.
Watching it again after years. Still a good one :)
I do not understand that Merlin loves the king while he was treated badly, it annoyed me ..
The only reason I watched this series was.
That I worried about the white dragon.
What went wrong with Morgana's fault.
They have not shown anything anymore.
The best of this series was the Dragons and the Wizards.
Oh man. Wonder where Aithusa went? I gotta say tho, Merlin got away with SO much considering that he is merely a servant xD
I seriously love Arthur and his denial of missing Merlin whenever he's not around. And.. how tf does Merlin know any of these spells? They never mentioned if it's just spur of the moment kind of blabber.
@marilyn05 there were some aspects of the show that just seemed like Merlin was making the dumbest decisions possible and it just disappointed me. I don't want to go into too much detail for fear of spoilers but in my opinion, the moment Uther died the show went downhill. (in terms of the show, Uther's death is kind of a spoiler but the story is about King Arthur so I seriously doubt anyone would be surprised by it.)
I think Arthur was a solid character and his development was done very well in the context of what information he was provided. There were many instances you see Arthur is torn with the laws and his own opinions and values. That's a very interesting aspect to the show but when offered the solution to ultimately stop a war . . . Merlin shows his stupidity and chooses what results in the death of Arthur (which again Arthur dying is not a spoiler as it is suppose to happen)
I think the vast majority of the show relies on Merlin making stupid decisions and that is what disappoints me in this show. They could have done the same ultimate result of Arthur dying in battle without the catalyst being Merlin's stupid decisions.
In many instances he could have stopped the war before it started but the worst decision was when Arthur asks Merlin for advice on a very important question and Merlin makes an incredibly dumb decision that ignites the war. It's just a terrible ending to a overall fun show.
É a melhor série que eu já assisti. Amo muito!
honestly my complaints about this show would probably equal to a 6-7/10 score, but i love the characters too damn much!! SO i'm giving it a solid 9. it started falling apart at Season 5. i think they should have revealed Merlin's magic much earlier than what we had. Arthur and Merlin are supposed to go on all these adventures together :( SO MUCH POTENTIAL WASTED MY GOD. but still to this day, i rewatch some of my favorite episodes. i don't think i can say that to a lot of the shows i watch.
Ending and last season was utter balls but as a whole I love this show.
If after a couple of eps you feel you can survive with little real plot movement for 3 seasons, go for it.
That is one show that could do with less seasons or less episodes in a season or something. The intermediate seasons were such a drag, until plot picked up in 4th/5th.
Overall structure-wise, I'd call it a show where characters compete in doing stupid things, and the one who does the grandest stupid thing is called the most valorous; that rubbed me the wrong way. Colin Morgan is pretty great, though, as is most other cast.
I like everything about this show, the characters, the setting, the humor.
Great TV series indeed. I really hope they will reconsider and continue the story (under different name, maybe).
If you still unsure whether to watch it or not, give it a try. I am sure you will love it.
Great series though the ending was a huge disappointment for me. The last season in general I would say. But I would still recommend it!
Love it! Perfect cast, brilliant acting and awesome stories
Love love love love. Enough said.
The characters are my favorite part
thank you! i cant wait!
Season 5 will air in Autumn 2012 (September/October) (This was confirmed by Johnny Capps and Julian Murphy during their acceptance speech for the SFX Phenomenon Award).
This is truly a awesome show! I was a bit skeptical in the beginning but we could not turn it off until we finished it! Cant wait for the new season!!
Then you want Game of Thrones.. Which is a great show and I watch it as well... just not with my 6 & 9 year old :) At this stage of my life I'm just thrilled that I no longer have to watch cartoons geared for preschoolers when the kids want to watch TV. I've had my lifetime worth of powerpuff girls. Merlin is a gem in the much needed realm of family oriented television.
What stryjewski mentioned is actually the problem I have with this show. I want to see something upsetting, sexual or violence-wise!
What a fantastic family show. I can watch this with my 6&9 year olds and not have concern about running into something upsetting, sexual or violence wise yet there's plenty of action, suspense, love story and comedy to keep their interest as well as mine.
Shout by emedemeliBlockedParent2012-12-31T17:04:09Z
Thank you Merlin.