So, I’m in the middle of making a Merthur vid and I’m more than certain this has already been brought up but I rarely talk about Diamond of the Day Pt. 2 for obvious reasons, so I just had to say that I love this moment:
because the initial language and therefore the initial interpretation is that Merlin laments failing in fulfilling his duty
but when Kilgharrah assures him that he has fulfilled his destiny
you see Merlin’s face and you see,
this is not about destiny, this is not about his mission or his duty, this is about never seeing Arthur again, this is about a profound personal loss that he can’t bear and he can’t take that so it comes out in that passionate plea, but he also yells, like, I don’t think you understand
to which the response is effectively, don’t despair, it is very possible you will see him again in the future
and I just love the Merthur moments like that, like in The Wicked Day when he and Gaius discuss Uther’s death and what that means for this calling, for this destiny, for this mission
and Merlin isn’t indifferent to that and he points out that magic is still outlawed which inherently undercuts the idea of a united Albion
and he expresses his guilt around his hand in maintaining the status quo in that regard
but then we get his personal stake in that reality, which isn’t he will never be truly safe or he will never get to be himself but that Arthur won’t really know all of him, that’s what’s weighing heavy on his heart
and I also think that Gaius’ response to Merlin is a way to lift Merlin’s spirits as opposed to “suck it up, you have work to do”, like he may not know that you have magic but we all know that he needs you
and I say that because Merlin’s expression in response isn’t this, like, resolve, it looks like he feels a little bit better even for just a moment at hearing that
and there’s also a hint of this but inverse in The Moment of Truth, which is an episode I’ve already broken down, but Merlin insists that Arthur’s presence is nothing more than him doing his duty as a prince, as a good person, as a valiant knight, it’s kind of all business,
and his mother is, no, this is personal
what you two have is personal. When she tells him to go, she doesn’t bring up destiny, she brings up their connection
and I just really like that aspect of their dynamic where there are all of these epic circumstances and implications and all of these epic results and consequences to their relationship to each other but at the heart of it, their relationship with each other is actually what’s truly epic?
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