Director: Ed Fraiman
By the fifth episode of any new TV series you expect to have seen some character development; but we're still none the wiser about Merlin (Colin Morgan), Gaius (Richard Wilson), Gwen (Angel Coulby) and Morgana (Katie McGrath), in particular. They still exist as the two-dimensional people introduced weeks ago, which is quite a disappointment. As the series approaches its halfway mark, key elements of the show's mythology (like why Anthony Head's King Uther despises magic) remain unanswered, and there's no tangible reason to get excited about Merlin's voyage of self-discovery..."Lancelot" introduces the eponymous Arthurian character, played by Heroes' Santiago Cabrera, and reimagined as a young man with a tragic past who has dedicated his life to swordplay, in an effort to become a noble knight of Camelot. After saving Merlin from a not-so-terrifying Griffin (a mythical half lion, half eagle creature) in the forest, the young wizard decides to repay Lancelot by helping him achieve his knighthood. He does, after all, have the ear of Prince Arthur (Bradley James) and the magical skills to forge documents that prove Lancelot's of noble blood...
The introduction of Lancelot isn't too shabby, but while Cabrera is suitably handsome and mysterious, his take on Lancelot is incredibly boring and straight-laced. The series again plays with expectations if you're half-aware of Arthurian legend -- with future-queen Gwen finding herself attracted to the dashing Lancelot, who will one day destroy her marriage to King Arthur – but a lack of chemistry between Cabrera and Coulby extinguishes any potential sparks, and the foreshadowing is half-hearted.
Indeed, with the series so focused on Merlin himself, the supporting characters often play second fiddle. I'd have liked to see the Lancelot/Gwen attraction take centre stage in this episode, and be built on in future episodes– but, as it is, a sense of direction and purpose in this "prequel" series has yet to arrive. I'm not even convinced we're building towards a merger with traditional legend – and, for me, that's one of the few things sustaining my interest.
On the positive side, this episode did a good job of making Arthur look more threatening and imposing as a young warrior, instead of a cocky blonde pretty-boy. A climactic fight sequence between Arthur and Lancelot (organized so the latter can prove himself worthy as a knight) was particularly well choreographed and filmed by director Ed Fraiman. And I again applaud the writers' steadfast refusal to soften the callous King Uther, whose narrow-minded prejudice are great fun and give the show a much-needed sting of drama and human obstacle.
The production remains strong, with wonderful interiors and exteriors of Camelot castle and its surrounding grounds. The CGI effects for the Griffin (which returns throughout the episode as a beast the knights of Camelot must slay to protect the kingdom) was generally good, if more successful in flight than interacting with people on the ground. Its appearance in the teaser was noticeably bad, but thankfully the quality of FX rose for the rest of the episode. I think we know where the CGI budget for the Great Dragon has been going for the past few weeks...
Overall, this wasn't a very good episode, thanks to the dull characterisation of Lancelot and a sidelining of half the cast. It's almost comical how unnecessary Morgana is to everything, Gaius' constant protests against using magic are becoming irritating (particularly as Merlin regularly saves the day by using magic), and even Colin Morgan's perky performance got lost in the mix. Still, James is steadily improving as Arthur, and I enjoy Head's performance as Uther far more than I expected to -- but none of that's enough to rescue a plodding and predictable instalment. I still believe there's a hot spring of imagination and thrills running under the ground, but I'm still awaiting a geyser to burst through the surface.
18 October 2008
BBC1, 5.55pm
Cast: Colin Morgan (Merlin), Bradley James (Prince Arthur), Richard Wilson (Gaius), Anthony Head (King Uther), Santiago Cabrera (Lancelot), Angel Coulby (Gwen), Katie McGrath (Morgana) & Michael Cronin (Geoffrey of Monmouth)
