So far it is still a great alternate version.
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There are IMO two big groups of stories about Arthur: the ones were Excalibur is the Sword in the Stone, and those where Excalibur and the Sword in the Stone are different blades. Maybe the most famous versions are those were Excalibur and the Sword in the Stone are the same blade because that makes the plot more simple, nevertheless the versions that separate them emphasize that Arthur demonstrates his right to be king by getting the Sword in the Stone and gets the Power to Rule (or at least an excellent blade) when he gets Excalibur. In this case, the Sword in the Stone is also called the "Sword of the Gods" and it is said that it belonged to the god Mars. We will have to wait a couple of episodes to know about Excalibur...
Merlin takes Arthur to get the Sword of the Gods and tells him that he will get the sword because no one had ever needed so much to get it as him. Arthur gets the sword with a lot help from Leontes and Kay, which is very different to the versions where he releases the sword from the stone as if it recognized his touch. In this case, cooperation more than destiny or heritage is emphasized.
We have Arthur making some obvious and obviously bad decisions during his first days in charge. He makes Kay, Marshall of England, which is an obvious decision since Kay seems to have much more vocation and idea of how to rule than Arthur, and an obviously bad decision when he concedes Sir Ector his wish of being his champion, being an old man he was obviously not the best choice, or at least not the first option we could think of since there were many men to choose from. Nevertheless, we have never seen Sir Ector fighting, maybe he has good swordsmanship tricks under his sleeve. Being prevented by Morgan, who wanted to get rid of her new ally, Lot, about his next attack, that should have given Arthur and his men enough advantage to repel the attack efficiently. Sadly, this wasn´t so, and our heroes survive in high proportion because of luck, or at least a big miscalculation by Lot, that allowed a dying Ector to give a killing strike to him before having his last breath.
Talking about the performances, I like them all but IMO, Claire Forlani´s Igraine seems too so very peaceful and sweet for someone who was married to Uther for about 18 years (or maybe she is just happy he is gone!) and Sir Ector seems too serious, he is ok but I would have liked to see a more expressive character.
The episode ends leaving some mysteries that could or could not be solved in the future as why Merlin uses his powers so scarcely even in the middle of the worst crisis or why he doesn´t prevent Arthur about Morgan´s intentions when he wants to befriend with her or if the "Sword of Mars" will confer Arthur one or more of the many qualities normally related to the god Mars as strength, stamina or courage...
So far, it is still a great alternate version...
--- --- --- ---
Thanks for reading.
IMDb Review written by David del Real.
December 17, 2017
México City. México.
------- ------- ------- -------
There are IMO two big groups of stories about Arthur: the ones were Excalibur is the Sword in the Stone, and those where Excalibur and the Sword in the Stone are different blades. Maybe the most famous versions are those were Excalibur and the Sword in the Stone are the same blade because that makes the plot more simple, nevertheless the versions that separate them emphasize that Arthur demonstrates his right to be king by getting the Sword in the Stone and gets the Power to Rule (or at least an excellent blade) when he gets Excalibur. In this case, the Sword in the Stone is also called the "Sword of the Gods" and it is said that it belonged to the god Mars. We will have to wait a couple of episodes to know about Excalibur...
Merlin takes Arthur to get the Sword of the Gods and tells him that he will get the sword because no one had ever needed so much to get it as him. Arthur gets the sword with a lot help from Leontes and Kay, which is very different to the versions where he releases the sword from the stone as if it recognized his touch. In this case, cooperation more than destiny or heritage is emphasized.
We have Arthur making some obvious and obviously bad decisions during his first days in charge. He makes Kay, Marshall of England, which is an obvious decision since Kay seems to have much more vocation and idea of how to rule than Arthur, and an obviously bad decision when he concedes Sir Ector his wish of being his champion, being an old man he was obviously not the best choice, or at least not the first option we could think of since there were many men to choose from. Nevertheless, we have never seen Sir Ector fighting, maybe he has good swordsmanship tricks under his sleeve. Being prevented by Morgan, who wanted to get rid of her new ally, Lot, about his next attack, that should have given Arthur and his men enough advantage to repel the attack efficiently. Sadly, this wasn´t so, and our heroes survive in high proportion because of luck, or at least a big miscalculation by Lot, that allowed a dying Ector to give a killing strike to him before having his last breath.
Talking about the performances, I like them all but IMO, Claire Forlani´s Igraine seems too so very peaceful and sweet for someone who was married to Uther for about 18 years (or maybe she is just happy he is gone!) and Sir Ector seems too serious, he is ok but I would have liked to see a more expressive character.
The episode ends leaving some mysteries that could or could not be solved in the future as why Merlin uses his powers so scarcely even in the middle of the worst crisis or why he doesn´t prevent Arthur about Morgan´s intentions when he wants to befriend with her or if the "Sword of Mars" will confer Arthur one or more of the many qualities normally related to the god Mars as strength, stamina or courage...
So far, it is still a great alternate version...
--- --- --- ---
Thanks for reading.
IMDb Review written by David del Real.
December 17, 2017
México City. México.
