Merlin: because what the world needs is a British Smallville

[alexsarll]

Look, it's not that I mind them messing with the Matter of Britain. Every generation re-casts the myth in its own image, it was always that way. That's why I don't object to stuff like the inexplicably multiracial court; when Britain changes so does Camelot, and if you disagree with that then bear in mind you just lost Lancelot.
There was a miniseries a few years back, also called Merlin, which starred Sam Neill; even before it rather ingeniously reconciled itself to the mainstream of the story, I was barely bothered about the inconsistencies because it was good TV. Neill was a younger, more action Merlin than I was used to, but he was still charismatic, wise - and he still had a good script. The basic idea here - Merlin has to work with an Arthur who's a prat, in spite of them hating each other - yeah, I can see that working. If the writers could write, if the Arthur had something to him (cf Excelsor in No Heroics for a similar idea done right, and that was on sodding ITV), and if the Merlin were more than just a whinging telekinetic who seems to have escaped from a particularly self-pitying X-Men storyline. Why does he have to be younger than Arthur? Never mind how much of the myth you just messed up for no apparent reason, is it just that you can't conceive of a story with a central cross-generational friendship, even though you've just introduced exactly such an element with Gaius? Even though Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, not exactly niche entertainments, managed exactly that with characters who are, no offence, blatant riffs on Merlin?
And as for thinking Eve Myles could carry an episode as an enigmatic force when she's barely bearable as Ms Audience Identification in Torchwood...

Every iteration of Arthur says something about its generation. I don't like what this one says about mine.

Comments

[tintintin.livejournal.com]

I thought the Sam Neill Merlin was very pretty, and (mostly) well cast, but the script was mediocre and I HAAAATE Sam Neill, who is a sucking void of charisma and acting talent.

[tintintin.livejournal.com]

Oh, and having got my fingers burnt with the dreadful Robin Hood, I could see that Nu-Merlin was going to be shit a mile off.

[burkesworks.livejournal.com]

If it's from the makers of Robin Hoodie what did you expect - something along the lines of Bresson's grim, minimalist Lancelot du Lac? Didn't bother looking at Merlin tonight for much the same reason; I think I'll stick with hammy old Oliver Tobias in Arthur of the Britons, or possibly the goth melodrama that was Excalibur. Monty Python and the Holy Grail remains my favourite Arthurian film of all though!

[tintintin.livejournal.com]

Er, well, that's precisely why I didn't bother with it.

Agreement on Python and Excalibur - somehow it seems bizarre to me that the Python predated the other film by several years! I always used to assume it was a pastiche of Boorman's film.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Excalibur is very much the definitive screen Arthur as far as I'm concerned. I didn't expect that, but thought something kin to the Sam Neill miniseries might not be beyond the realms of possibility. And bad producers have come good before - wasn't Life on Mars from the same stable as Hustle?

[tiny-tear.livejournal.com]

Yes, Excalibur! that is the film benchmark...

Everyone who was anyone in film in the UK was in Excalibur... or sometimes it felt like it...

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Robin Hood was just *dull*; I've never had the urge to watch another episode, but it didn't annoy me like this did.

Re: Sam Neill - I don't even know where to start, his Hollywood work is often a bit iffy but he does fine work in pretty much all Australian comedies ever made.

[myfirstkitchen.livejournal.com]

I blame Julie Gardner. Even though I sort of love her.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Plausible; it would tie in to the general trend of looking at Who's success and not realising which bits made it a success. Not that such behaviour is exclusive to TV - consider that idiot Warners exec who saw how well Dark Knight did and said it showed that all their other superhero films, even Superman, should 'go dark'.

[miss-sheldon.livejournal.com]

i didnt see it. was it not worth watching then? didnt realise gwen was in it. you don't like her?

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Not really. Her role is to anchor the team to the real world and provide a way in to the show for normal people - and I hate the real world and normal people.

[tiny-tear.livejournal.com]

I watched 15 minutes before giving up, but had decided I wasn't going to stick at it when I saw the sign post pointing to the 'court physician'

I mean, this is the 5th or 6th century... THERE WERE NO SIGNS!!!

And yes, a young Merlin, younger than Uther? And Morgaine living there?

Yes, I admit, my Arthurian rules kind of come from the Mists of Avalon, but still, I can be open minded... but not now..

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Younger than Uther is one thing, but he looked younger than Arthur!

The sign was the sort of thing I could overlook except that by that point I was already in a bad mood with it.

Baby birds are called Bees.

[puzzled-anwen.livejournal.com]

Once Dexter's over tonight, I am fairly sure there will be nothing worth watching on the telly bar Chute and Hedz. Well, and The Daily Show, but that's around J's bedtime so I am usually debating the merits of actually going to bed now.