Haha! Well, that's one way to see it. That scene always made me sadder, because I interpreted it as Gwen thinking, "Of course, he'll bring Arthur back to me!" only to learn that...no...no, he failed. I've been dying to read a fanfic where Gwen and Merlin talk after those events, but...I just can't find any, and I never have the time to write one myself...
Yeah, it's not that there's anything bad about the Gwen/Arthur storyline, I think everyone would agree on that. It's just...so pitifully weak next to the developing relationship of Merlin and Arthur.
I can sort of see the logic in having Merlin kill her with Excalibur. I'm sure I'm not the only one who was a little excited to see Merlin wield that sword: he made it, after all, and it was kind of a nice turnabout that he killed Morgana with the sword he'd made for Arthur. But what kind of ruined that moment for me was those seconds before the stab. She just kind of stands there, as if she's forgotten that terror of Emrys being her doom (though I suppose one could argue that she was overconfident because it looked nothing like the scene from her vision), bragging, and does nothing to stop herself being impaled. I mean, come on—even if you were positive it wouldn't kill you, you'd think she'd want to avoid having a blade through her stomach...again.
I'm at series 3 in my rewatch cycle, and I'm finding a scary number of parallels between post-dark-tower Gwen and this new Morgana. Plus Morgause's utter faith that Morgana won't betray her: you could say it was just because of their bond, as sisters, but it's so much more resonant when you think that maybe Morgause knows that Morgana is little more than her loyal puppet.
It's all a matter of opinion! Doesn't mean it's not interesting to think/talk about. I'm sure there are people out there who felt completely and utterly fulfilled by the finale, but they wouldn't be much fun to discuss the episode (and the entire show) with. ;)
I think Arthurian legend can be fairly warped to suit whatever moral you want to give.
Very, very true. Some versions even seem to have all of Arthur's mistakes lead back to Uther, for some reason or another. I really, truly loved that this show didn't have the incestuous sex, though I confess to being pretty disappointed in what they did with the Arthur/Gwen/Lancelot triangle. I could accept that it was just a spell. But Gwen pledges her love to Lancelot at one point! And then just turns to Arthur because Lancelot isn't there! *sigh*
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timeasmymeasure
Re: Part 2 II A
Date: 2013-03-10 10:57 am (UTC)Yeah, it's not that there's anything bad about the Gwen/Arthur storyline, I think everyone would agree on that. It's just...so pitifully weak next to the developing relationship of Merlin and Arthur.
I can sort of see the logic in having Merlin kill her with Excalibur. I'm sure I'm not the only one who was a little excited to see Merlin wield that sword: he made it, after all, and it was kind of a nice turnabout that he killed Morgana with the sword he'd made for Arthur. But what kind of ruined that moment for me was those seconds before the stab. She just kind of stands there, as if she's forgotten that terror of Emrys being her doom (though I suppose one could argue that she was overconfident because it looked nothing like the scene from her vision), bragging, and does nothing to stop herself being impaled. I mean, come on—even if you were positive it wouldn't kill you, you'd think she'd want to avoid having a blade through her stomach...again.
I'm at series 3 in my rewatch cycle, and I'm finding a scary number of parallels between post-dark-tower Gwen and this new Morgana. Plus Morgause's utter faith that Morgana won't betray her: you could say it was just because of their bond, as sisters, but it's so much more resonant when you think that maybe Morgause knows that Morgana is little more than her loyal puppet.
It's all a matter of opinion! Doesn't mean it's not interesting to think/talk about. I'm sure there are people out there who felt completely and utterly fulfilled by the finale, but they wouldn't be much fun to discuss the episode (and the entire show) with. ;)
I think Arthurian legend can be fairly warped to suit whatever moral you want to give.
Very, very true. Some versions even seem to have all of Arthur's mistakes lead back to Uther, for some reason or another. I really, truly loved that this show didn't have the incestuous sex, though I confess to being pretty disappointed in what they did with the Arthur/Gwen/Lancelot triangle. I could accept that it was just a spell. But Gwen pledges her love to Lancelot at one point! And then just turns to Arthur because Lancelot isn't there! *sigh*