Albion's Last Dragon

Merlin

Kilgharrah: The Great Dragon
(A friendly reminder that lettuce spoils easily, so read no further if you are not familiar with the BBC show Merlin, unless, of course you don't care)

         I'm going to start my profiles with a being who is an original character for the series and the first voice we hear in the show. This is the great dragon, Kilgharrah. His story dates back about 20 years before the time of the series when Uther Pendragon, the king of Camelot, decided to ban magic and purge the kingdom of magical users and creatures alike. Kilgharrah was the only dragon kept alive, and was instead imprisoned in a cave under the castle. Somehow, Kilgharrah has foreknowledge of things to come, and awaits the arrival of the Once and Future King, and his warlock assistant, who are destined to return magic to the land of Albion.

         When Merlin arrives in Camelot, Kilgharrah senses the arrival of the great warlock and calls him to the cave. This is where we learn one of Kilgharrah's most defining traits: he's not very good at giving straightforward information. He speaks in riddles and throughout the first season offers Merlin advice on how to defeat the current threat to Camelot. Kilgharrah, however, desperately wants to be free and bargains that freedom in exchange for future help. His years in the cave have fueled his anger, and he no longer has the patience to wait for Arthur. Once he is freed, he attacks Camelot, only seeing the possibility for revenge and not the fact that his actions will reinforce the population's fear of magic. It is only after Merlin, through the death of his father, gains the ability to control dragons that Kilgharrah ceases his rampage and flies to freedom. We do not see him again until he returns to save Merlin before a major battle against Morgana and Morgause. Merlin continues to call on Kilgharrah for assistance, and Kilgharrah sometimes even continues to advise him. Their relationship is strained, but you still get a sense of deep respect between the two. By the end of the series, Kilgharrah has reached the end of his life, but returns one final time to remind both Merlin and the viewers that Arthur is the Once and Future King, and he will return when he is needed.

       Kilgharrah is an interesting figure because he, through the revelation of prophecy and destiny, sets many of the events in the series in motion. It is arguable that his advice to Merlin to ignore Morgana and her powers leads to her isolation, which in turn leads her to Morgause, the only one willing to help her. Kilgharrah also councils patience with Uther and his tyrannical rule, stating that if Uther is killed by magic, Arthur will never restore it to Camelot. He then goes against his own advice, and acts out in anger. This shows the dangers of the frustration of the magic users and why so many of them decide to attack Camelot. If a being with the foreknowledge that things will soon get better, and faith in at least one of the parties that will bring about that change, can lash out in impatience, it's no surprise so many magic users feel their only path to safety is through violence.

For Albion: Revisiting Merlin

Merlin

         

         So as you might have guessed, all three of us hosts have picked a series to blog about and I thought I would take the opportunity to talk about a show that always frustrated me. That show is Merlin, from the BBC. This show is supposedly based on arthurian legend, so it should have been a home run for me because I love the stories of Arthur and his knights. I first read The Once and Future King in sixth grade, and since then I have read many interpretations of the myth. That being said, I was intrigued by a TV show about Arthur from the point of Merlin. Then I saw learned some of the other aspects of the show... Merlin and Arthur are the same age? Arthur was raised as a prince by his father and not as a servant on a faraway holding? Guinevere is Morgana's maid? Magic is banned, and Merlin must live in secret? This is so far away from the legend that it might as well be a different show. 

         And that's the point. Merlin is an amazing show with extremely complex characters, political and magical foes, and an ambiguous ending that is very satisfying when surrounded with shows where the heroes definitively win. One of the best things about Merlin is it’s a show where the main character arguably fails. Merlin is trying to live up to a prophecy that he and Arthur will unite the lands of Albion and bring magic back to the realm. He faces a large cast of foes, but the largest threat he faces is actually the prejudice against magic fostered by Uthur. Arthur struggles to accept that magic can be used for good, and this conflict is what keeps Merlin from being able to achieve everything he wants to. The baggage that comes with using arthurian characters actually drags this show down, creating expectations that it doesn't even try to meet. 
         So how do you cover a show like this? The early seasons have a mix of plot moving episodes and more comedic ones, and the later episodes have many different plots interwoven. This is why, since the I have the advantage of posting about a show that is already over, I thought I would do character profiles instead. Each of the series' characters offer a unique perspective on both the past and present events in the series, and in their own way they are all sympathetic. I will try not to compare them to their legendary counterparts, but if those comparisons slip through I will apologize in advance. I will start next week with one of the more ambiguous characters, The Great Dragon Kilgharrah. 
Until next time,
Tori