Merlin Week 2022 Day 5: Free - Gwen and The Women of Camelot
I wasn't going to write another Merlin Week post, and Merlin Week is technically over, but after seeing some of the hateful posts fans used to write about Gwen, I wanted to show my appreciation for her again.
Gwen was the reason I didn't drop Merlin. After season 1, I'd become incredibly frustrated with the lack of progress in Merlin and Arthur's relationship, and how it seemed to evolve backwards as the power imbalance between them grew on both sides - Merlin's lies and good-natured manipulations kept increasing in frequency, while the trust and equality of treatment Arthur had initially shown Merlin all but disappeared until he began actively abusing his power. The lack of a magic reveal was infuriating as well, since I had expected it to occur early on in the series; when I learned it happened in the last episode I almost called it quits... until I watched The Once and Future Queen and decided I still had a good reason to finish the show, which was Queen Guinevere (and Arwen).
I honestly hadn't been paying attention to the episode, or the series in general at that point, but when Arthur kissed Gwen I knew they were it. I hadn't expected Arthur to ever become more than an idyllic hero, until he impulsively kissed Gwen and was no longer exclusively defined by his destiny and duties to Camelot. And I was so surprised and happy with how stable and healthy their relationship proved to be: no annoying breakups for the most part (4.05 doesn't truly count and, tbh, 4.09 is no conventional breakup), and no dating other people only to reunite in the last episode.
Gwen and Arthur were given a chance to grow and mature and I love them so much for it. I loved their relationship in season 4, how they became a normal couple. For the first time ever, a ship I genuinely loved was allowed to mature and become 'boring' and married; most other ships that get to develop onscreen and never really break up aren't particularly exciting or fantastical (Leslie and Ben from Parks & Rec are an example of this, though I adore them). However, despite Gwen's banishment and the Lancelot ordeal of season 4, and the lack of Gwen and Arwen in season 5, we know those two knew, trusted and shared many of the same values as each other and were equally committed and devoted to one another. Having this kind of paring in a series - one that is exciting and fairytale-like while also being so wholesome, mature, and normal - is truly unique. I admire this a lot about the show; most "mature" and consistent ships are not the main pairing, so I have a lot of love for Arwen and for the example they are of a healthy and strong relationship.
I also never expected to love Gwen so much when I started Merlin. Of all the characters, she had the best and most satisfying arc. I love that she grew and blossomed before our eyes, but, at the same time, never changed and remained loyal, honest, strong, optimistic, gentle, kind, compassionate, humble to the last. I love that she was sweet and conventionally feminine when most great female characters are badass fighters with attitude problems. Many of them also end up quite bitter and morally ambiguous in the end, but not Gwen.
Gwen was so normal and wonderful in a way that was human and achievable. She was a role model; she felt real, warm, and comforting to me. In a show that full of men, Gwen's growth surpassed all of theirs and she alone was enough for me not to choke on all that testosterone. I also love that her relationship with Arthur was good for her. It's true that Arthur failed her when he banished her, and their relationship put her at risk many times, but she grew so much with and from Arthur. He undeniably loved, trusted and grew from her, and would do anything for her as well, and that made her feel safer and confident in herself. She was his love interest but he put her first and their relationship was surprisingly equal. Arthur wasn't jealous or possessive, they talked (in 3.06, Arthur and Gwen openly discussed his engagement to Elena, in 4.09 he told Gwen not to kneel before him and let her explain her actions, they talked many times about his decisions as Prince/King, etc.), he listened and followed her opinion a lot too and stood up to her (to Uther in 1.03, 2.03, 3.07, 3.10, 5.03; to Agravaine, in 4.09 at least, to Merlin in 4.06 when he wasn't himself), he arranged picnics and breakfast in bed for her, gave her flowers, helped her brother and her friends, etc. I hate Gwen's banishment as much as any sane person, but, other than that, Arthur truly respected Gwen. I also love that Gwen had love interests before Arthur; it made her character, and her and Arthur's relationship, even realer and more balanced.
Lastly, I really love that Gwen became Queen. I hate Arthur's death, but her becoming Queen regnant, especially because Arthur chose her and wanted her to be his successor (how feminist of him), made a huge statement imo. I certainly hadn't expected Gwen (keep in mind I knew nothing of the Arthurian legends) to end up the most powerful person in Camelot. Here you have a normal woman - significantly a woman of color at that - usher in the Golden Age instead of Arthur. That was really cool. Gwen alone made the show enjoyable to me as a feminist (despite everything...). And some of the best characters in the show were women who only appeared in a few episodes. Truth be told, the show had great diversity of well-written female characters, but the writers chose not to do anything with them.
We had Princess Elena, sweet, kind, adorable, a bit unladylike, one of my personal favorites; Queen Annis, one of the few older women in the series, wise, strong, fair, and an admirable Queen; Lady Vivian, bratty, innocent, charming, honestly the female version of Arthur if he hadn't had his duties and friendships to ground him; Freya, sweet, loyal, beautiful, strong and tragic, had loved Merlin; Hunith, strong, compassionate, inspiring, brave, a leader, always fought for what was right and raised Merlin so well on her own; Ygraine, gentle and loving, loved her son and told him not to let the truth of her death hurt him; Princess Mithian, dutiful to her father and to her Kingdom, assertive, kind, strong, brave; Grunhilda, evil, but also endearing, hilarious, and refreshingly sexually empowered; Sefa, sweet, gentle, good, had only wanted to please her father; Mary, brave Mary who alone made the dangerous journey to Camelot to seek help for her village; Morgause, not a minor character, but the best female fighter, strong enough to beat Arthur, resourceful, knowledgeable, intelligent, had truly loved her sister; Isolde, loyal, optimistic, brave, empathetic, believed in the power of love; Alice, not a favorite but seemed like a good person; Lady Catrina, one of the most disgusting yet genial villains, so kudos for deceiving and embarrassing the hell out of Uther; Nimueh, she was right in some aspects and very wrong in others, but she had a lot of potential; Morgana, not a minor character, of course, the only one who could match Merlin in power, not an entirely unsympathetic villain, had genuinely loved her sister, Aithusa, and even Mordred.
