‘Merlin’ series finale airs tonight in the U.S. – we say goodbye to the epic series
May 31, 2013 •Let’s get real: most Merlin fans have already seen the season 5 finale episode “The Diamond of the Day, Part 2.”
It aired December 24 in the U.K., and although Syfy delayed the final five episodes in the U.S., the DVDs were released in April.
Still, a few Merlin fans remain who have somehow managed to remain spoiler-free, and do not know how it ends. (One of them is Hypable staff member Sonya, who will be watching the episode tonight along with the rest of you!)
As we prepare for the moment when the show is really, truly over, we can look back on its five great years – and remind ourselves why, for better or worse, Merlinis a show that will stay with you for a long time.
It began as a BBC children’s series, retelling the Arthurian Legends for a contemporary audience. With Merlin (Colin Morgan) aged down from the wizened old wizard we know from the legends to be the same age as Arthur (Bradley James), we suddenly had a story kids and teens could relate to: how do you find your place in this world when the world doesn’t want you?
Because without Merlin as the wise old teacher there to guide them, the characters had no one but each other to rely on. And Merlin was perhaps the most inexperienced and insecure of them all, what with his magic being untested and unreliable (plus he had to keep it a secret from everyone!), and him arriving to Camelot for the first time along with the audience.
Arthur, too, wasn’t the heroic King Arthur of legend. He was a young, arrogant prince who needed the people around him – mainly Merlin and Guinevere (Angel Coulby) – to mold him into the powerful leader we knew he had to become.
Over the five seasons of Merlin we saw the characters grow and change and slowly morph from the confused, overwhelmed teenagers we met in the pilot into the legendary figures we recognize from the stories we’ve been told.
Of course, there were notable differences: Lancelot (Santiago Cabrera), for one, was disposed of fairly early on. This left Gwen to develop true feelings for Arthur, and thus eliminated the element of betrayal and adultery which in the legends is what leads to the fall of Camelot.
In this version of the story, Mordred (Asa Butterfield, Alex Vlahos) is not Arthur’s son, but rather his knight and his friend. And Morgana (Katie McGrath) was portrayed as being truly a good person, who was slowly twisted and corrupted by darkness while Merlin and the others stood helpless by to watch.
Now, the characters stand on the battlefield of Camlann, all set up for the final chapter of the story. Will the prophecy to come true, allowing the series to merge with the legends? Or will Merlin‘s ending be very different, just as many other elements over the years have been, from what we thought we knew?
See the trailer for the finale, and share your final predictions in the comments:
When you have seen the finale, check out Hypable’s recaps written following the original airing of the episode in the U.K. on December 24:
- Merlin Finale Review – Initial Reaction by Mapthestars
- Merlin Finale Review – the Good, the Bad, and the Unanswered Questions by Tariq Kyle
- The Once and Future King – aMerlin Finale Review by MHutch
- A Merlin Retrospective: The Platonic Love Story of Merlin and Arthur by Selina Wilken
- Merlin Finale – a GIF Reaction Postby Tariq Kyle
The Merlin series finale “The Diamond of the Day, Part 2″ airs tonight at 10/9c on Syfy.
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