I have a few specific merlin rants/complaints/positive analyses
In the witchfinder episode, it's not really tackled that even if everyone he accused was guilty of magic, they wouldn't have deserved the death penalty. Like, he was just as evil & sinister a villain without the lying part. Especially given how actual irl witchfinders were just evil greedy men who killed women. Having the part about the lying is basically like the show saying see hes evil cause he falsely accuses, plants evidence & tortures out fake confessions and not the more accurate & interesting one for the story that he goes around & gets people executed for magic which is not an inherently evil trait.
They could dive a bit into the discrimination part & the historical elements - especially the criminalisation part & how queer people going to prison wasn't wrong because some falsely accused people were punished under that radar but that being queer isn't wrong & shouldn't be punishable. I personally tend to read Merlin's magic system as a trans/non binary allegory for a lot of the characters as well as queerness generally
It kinda ties into why I can't stand canon Gaius (Fanon is cool tho) because his entire backstory is that this guy was not just complicit but actively aided in a genocide of his own people. No amount of friendship or loyalty could convince anyone with even a shred of moral backbone to stay where Gaius did. If he had used his position in Uther's court to smuggle magic users out of Camelot, I'd find him a much more interesting character - even if he was someone morally grey who arbitrarily decided who to save & not to based on his own warped morality of who is a worthy magic user. But, noooooo, he was just a coward & medieval Hitler sympathiser. Common Gaius L honestly. Just started watching the Morgause episode & wtf gaius - a young child escapes execution & you betray that shit sooo quickly when push comes to shove.
I also genuinely think the Morgause's introduction episode is the best written episode in season 1, partially because Gaius & Uther are the VILLAINS of the episode, Arthur & Merlin are young adults trying to find their way in an awful bigoted society, Morgause isn't remotely evil just a bit socially awkward & trying to do the right thing. Its one of the only ones in the early episodes that actually tackles that it was Uther's selfishness is why so many were executed, magic was merely a neutral tool that many were killed for having, including children. The scene where Arthur confronts his father (& the previous scene where he meets his mother) is the best written scene in the entire season, for me possibly the whole show (Arthur's speech about Uther having committed a genocide against magical people while pinning his father to the throne which was the cause for all of this pain with a sword was amazing) (the best acting of the show). The horror from merlin realising he may have doomed his own people with a single lie is a very well written touch. (Also, the tragedy of him following Gaius down the worst of paths, Gaius's pride is a blood soaked thing, with him becoming an actively worse person). Also morgause never finds out Arthur was told it was all a lie so her anger & murderous rage is pretty justified to now include Arthur too.
I love Merlin & rewatch it regularly, but I always find parts that I have to pick apart. This show was both amazingly written & kind of awful at the same time (Merlin rewrite fanfiction is the best)(helps me further my merlance, mergwaine, merthur, morgwen, & platonic merleon agendas)