The Sunnydale Herald

There are several things that made me pick BBC Merlin as one of my favorite shows.
First of all, there’s ancient magic: spells, curses, potions, druids, warlocks, witches, mythical creatures, and mystical artifacts.
Then there's a kingdom (Camelot) with its king, knights, castles, legends, and battles, including those between good and evil.
These kinds of things have always been fascinating to me.
But what truly captivated me was the bromance between young Merlin and Prince Arthur. Their scenes never failed to amuse me and touch me, with top tier banter (sometimes even comedy) and deep affection.

Along with the bromantic bickering between Merlin and Arthur with recurring gags (like Arthur calling Merlin an idiot or Merlin adding a hole in Arthur’s belt because he’s getting fat), there are also quite often ridiculous evil creatures with silly plots that keep a good balance with some darker tones that are touched by the show.

The main premise for Merlin’s version of Camelot is based on the fact that King Uther has banned magic because it’s dangerous, and he executes anyone who uses any kind of magic. So from the get-go, Merlin has to hide his powers and that’s what strings along the suspense from beginning to end: Merlin forced to hide his magic from Arthur while, at the same time, having to use magic to save his life, on several occasions.

In all this, BBC Merlin re-imagined the world of the Arthurian legend while keeping and remixing a few key elements, like (among others) the forging of Excalibur, the famous “sword in the stone” or the love between Lancelot and Guinevere, or the Knights of Camelot.