Four and a Half Torches (Out of Five)

Warning: This review contains plot-spoilers for the “Excalibur” episode of Merlin.

Now we’re finally getting somewhere!

A mysterious and defiant Black Knight comes to Camelot wearing the coat of arms of someone Uther killed 20 years before and who, on his deathbed, vowed revenge on the king.

When one of the knights of Camelot challenges the Black Knight and the visitor easily defeats the young man, it confirms Gaius’ worst fears: the Black Knight doesn’t just wear the old knight’s coat of arms; he actually is that knight, somehow resurrected from the dead.

Problem: you can’t kill someone who’s already dead.

Sure enough, as if to prove that he’s an otherworldly being, the knight doesn’t go to sleep at night, but rather stands, motionless, in the courtyard, until the next match the following day. Very creepy.

But Arthur, who’s not big on thinking before he acts, challenges the knight. And this is what kicks the episode into high gear.

Gaius confronts Uther, telling him not to let Arthur fight the knight, even if it means telling him “who the knight really is.” But Uther can’t have that, because it would mean telling Arthur the truth about his birth.

And what is that truth? Year earlier, Uther made a wish of the witch Nimueh that he’d have a son, but it came with a price he didn’t understand (and that she claims she didn’t know) — the life of his wife.

Okay, I’m not sure why Uther can’t tell Arthur what he needs to know about the Black Knight without also telling him this, but whatever. Finally, we have an explanation for Uther’s irrational hatred of magic. The show was starting to annoy me in this respect, so this is very good.

Rather than reveal to Arthur the secret of his birth, Uther plans to fight the Black Knight himself; he knows it will mean his death, but at least the knight, and Nimueh, who resurrected the knight to begin with, will have their revenge, and Arthur will be saved.

(I have one small quibble: Uther makes Gaius promise that, when he dies, he not tell Arthur what he knows, saying that Gaius is the only other person who knows the truth. But by my count, there’s a crowd of about 50 that Uther knows also know the truth, including Nimueh, the dragon, and any number of dead people who can apparently be brought back to life by magic.)

Anyway, while Uther is plotting to take on the Black Knight, Merlin goes to see the dragon, who helps him forge a sword for Arthur so powerful that it can even kill the dead.

At one point, the dragon says to Merlin, “It may surprise you, but my knowledge of your life is not universal.”

This surprises me too! The dragons seems to know absolutely everything else about Merlin, including his and Arthur’s complete destiny, most of Merlin’s plans and machinations, and, probably, the waist size of his tight-whities.

But the dragon also gives Merlin a warning: “The sword was forged for Arthur, and him alone.”

Well, we all basically know what’s going to happen next: Uther drugs Arthur, meaning he can’t use the sword. And when Uther sees how nice it is, he insists on using it against the Black Knight, despite Merlin’s objections.

Speaking of which, when you’re warned by a magical and (despite what he says) all-seeing dragon that disaster will strike if anyone other than the intended user wields a particular sword, wouldn’t you fight a little harder to keep that sword out of someone else’s hands? It’s not like Uther is merely asking Merlin for, say, a tablet of Xanax from someone else’s prescription bottle.

Still, I guess there’d be no story if Uther didn’t eventually get his way.

And mostly, I liked the synchronicity of this episode, with some nice plot complications placed against the backdrop of the greater Arthinian legend — in this case, the creation of Excalibur, which, of course, Merlin must now hide until it comes into play later in their lives, to be given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake.

Overall, this was an excellent episode, and not to put too fine a point on it, I’ve had to sit through a fair number of crappy Merlin episodes lately, so it was extremely welcome.

Merlin is back on track! Let’s hope it lasts.

The Wisdom of the Dragon:

(1) “The dead do not return without reason.”

(2) “You do not know, you can only guess.”

(3) “What is made cannot be unmade.”

Similar Posts:

• MERLIN Finale and Series Review: Destiny More or Less Achieved
• Episode Review: Last Night’s MERLIN Episodes Kicked Some Serious Ass!
• MERLIN Episode Review: “A Remedy to Cure All Ills” Kinda Made Me Sick
• MERLIN Episode Review: Unicorns, Labyrinths, and Gay Subtext!
• Episode Review: Lancelot Proves He’s Knight-Worthy (and MERLIN Proves It’s Watch-Worthy!)

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