corilannam | The end of Merlin

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merlin

The end of Merlin

Well, we certainly saw it coming a mile away (or really about 4 years away -- as Colin pointed out in his statement, it was always supposed to be a 5-year show). Yet I'm still having a lot of pretty unhappy emotions at the news that the show is, in fact, ending after the current season.

I'm tremendously sad that I won't see Colin and Bradley (and all the rest) on screen in their ridiculous outfits anymore, though I am happy that they can move on to bigger and better things. I'm sad that there won't be many more adorable moments of Merlin and Arthur proving they're the real married couple on this show.

And now that we're 3/4 of the way through the final season, I'm mourning all the things I wanted from this show that it's now clear I won't ever get.

* a redemption arc for Morgana

* Merlin and Arthur having a long time to work out the consequences from a reveal

* Merlin taking his true place as an equal around the Round Table

* Merlin having an adorable storyline with Aithusa

* Having Gwaine's backstory revealed and explored

* Having cool storylines for the knights, preferably with Merlin

That being said, I was always much more in love with the fandom and fanfic than I ever was with the show, so I don't see this as any sort of death knell for my love of these characters or my participation in the fandom. If that ends, it won't be because of the show.

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Ah, but all those things you didn't get from the show--those are things you can write!!!

-J

I subscribed to you last night because people keep talking about you and you live close by and then I saw this post through network. I can always use more Merlin friends on DW. Do not feel obligated to subscribe back. I'm ridiculous. I post multiple times a day:) I might come back and leave a comment that actually pertains to this post, but guh, all the feelings (plus, kids are in the middle of violin lessons and I'm required to pay attention to them).

That's always the hardest part, isn't it? The what-ifs and might-haves. I've had my heart stomped on that way a lot lately, so I've been working hard on letting go of wanting things from my shows, at least as much as that's possible. It's not easy. Stupid TV!

*hugs*

No, it's really not easy. And I've known since S1 that the show is what it is and it was never going to be anything else. But there were still certain things, like the reveal, that I think we've all been awaiting for so long that it's kind of devastating to realize that it really might not happen, or at least will happen so late that it almost won't matter at that point.

Stupid TV!

Yep, pretty much ALL OF THIS WORD FOR WORD.

Love you and love Merlin fandom. Always. ♥

Love you too! Merlin fandom has staying power - I believe this in my heart. And the fact that we're going to have so damn much to fix means we'll keep busy for a long time. :-D

Merlin fandom has staying power - I believe this in my heart. And the fact that we're going to have so damn much to fix means we'll keep busy for a long time.

Exactly. Yes. There's still so much love in this fandom (not for canon but for the fandom and the characters) that it'll keep on keeping on. ♥

I basically agree on every point. I would only add something more about Mordred (because I really like his character).

I'M STILL SOBBING THOUGH.

Yeah, I hate that Mordred has been so underdeveloped this season. It's just so stupid that they'd set him up like that and then ignore him for 2/3 of the season. Oy.

I find myself very sad tonight...strange, considering the only episodes I have seen in the last two years were ones I happened to catch while in London on my way back from Afghanistan or Egypt. It's definitely the loss of hope for better stuff from the show. The definitive end means so much that could have been is gone...or up to fandom to make up for.

That loss of hope is definitely what's bothering me the most. I feel like there's so much I was either consciously or subconsciously waiting for since the beginning. As long as the show kept going, I could always hope for next season being the season when everything comes together.

I've been rereading your stuff this week. All the things I love about Merlin fandom are there!

Aw, thanks! That's so sweet of you. :-D

Color me confused. I went into this season with the understanding from the outset that this is the last. Had I heard a rumor that is only now confirmed?

I really expected Morgana to be redeemed before the end, and now I hope it won't happen because it would be far too fast, and therefore lame. I also expected Merlin to be an equal by the end and that, by far, is the biggest travesty, imo. :-/

I'm so sorry to hear about your show ending. Thank goodness for fandoms that fix shows. We'll always have that.

Yes, it was strongly rumored/suspected during the pre-season that this would be the last one due to some very strong evidence, but now it's official.

Merlin not becoming an equal is going to be the thing that I mourn the most out of this entire stupid show. I'm not sure I realized just how strongly I was waiting for and expecting that until now. I knew we'd probably have to wait until the last season, but now that we're most of the way through the last season and it's still not happening.... :-(

The part of this which seems to be affecting me most is not seeing my otp onscreen together any more. I'll be mourning the end of that relationship, too. I always hoped we'd get more B and C, not less and less as time wore on. I agree with all the Wish List bulletpoints above, too. Sad day.

I will miss B and C onscreen together the most out of everything. Even during the worst episodes, one good OTP scene would be enough to have me over the moon for the whole week and not caring about any bad writing or logic holes.

There were so many things I thought might happen, so many hopes and dreams for future storylines or explanations... I guess that is what I'm mourning as much as 'the end' of canon. It's the fact that, with the next 4 episodes pretty much laid out before us, all the gaping holes are clear, particularly those you've noted above.

I think I need a bit to mourn those... maybe up until Christmas when I know for sure all hope is lost. Then I'm going to pull up myself up by my bootstraps and dive into fics and writing and hope that together fandom will do with all that potential what the writers could not.

I'm with you on that. I thought I might stop writing fanfic after this year, but now I'm feeling the need to go fix everything the show is leaving undone.

It's definitely the loss of hope that's saddening me. I knew I'd have to wait for a lot of what I wanted to see, but now knowing (almost) for certain that I'll never see it at all really hurts.

I agree with everything you said regarding the storylines that could've been that will not be, ESPECIALLY the one regarding the magic reveal and having time to work through that. I'd expected it much earlier in the season... ah well. It is what it is, as they say, and I agree - if the show doesn't give us what we're wanting, that's where fanfic steps in.

Yeah, I figured we'd have to wait for the last season for it, but I thought they'd allow at least a little time to deal with it. Now if they do it at all, it'll be so rushed. Instead of moving us closer to it, they just keep moving it further away. Infuriating.

I'm sad that there won't be many more adorable moments of Merlin and Arthur proving they're the real married couple on this show.

I'm going to miss this so much--all the wonderful moments between them that we've had over the years.

You know, despite everything else wrong with the show at times, all it ever takes is one adorable Arthur/Merlin moment to make me giddy with joy. I'm going to treasure every single one of them.

All of those things sound so awesome. Especially a redemption arc for Morgana. That was always a longshot, but I did want that, too. Now we just have to wait for people to write the stories that will deliver them to us.

I really wanted that. All these seasons of mindless villainy, I wanted so much more for her. *sigh*

We need to set up a virtual season or something!

I would have forgiven them almost anything if we would have had a long reveal. So sad to lose the hope of that.

It really does break my heart. At this point, I'd take even one episode of really dealing with it between Merlin and Arthur.

If there is one episode, it would likely be ep. 13. But I doubt it. :(

Yes, all of those storylines! I will never understand why they seem to think a reveal would have meant the end of the show (I am fairly sure they could have filled an entire season dealing with the fallout alone, and even then there would have been so many stories left to tell) or decided that episodes with enchanted knights were better than actually exploring any of their backgrounds (or, well, the way they've dealt with Morgana's entire storyline, really). So many baffling choices.

But yes, without the show, there never would have been a fandom or any of these characters to start with, so that's something to be grateful for, because I love both very much. :)

I'm sad that there won't be many more adorable moments of Merlin and Arthur proving they're the real married couple on this show.

Yes, this. I will miss their faces so much. Even if we're lucky enough to end up seeing Colin and Bradley in other things, it seems unlikely they will be in something together again. And they'll never be Merlin and Arthur again. But maybe it's time for another season 1 rewatch - I feel like I almost know it by heart, but after all this time, it might feel fresh again. ;)

Yes, I think a season 1 rewatch is an excellent idea! I want to go back to the days of coins and video diaries when everything was happy and full of endless potential.

Merlin and Arthur having a long time to work out the consequences from a reveal

This. Though I was always braced for it never happening, kind of like Smallville had the "we're gonna stop before Clark can fly, because then he's Superman and this is about him before Superman", I was always hoping. And considering the amount of time Arthur has been kept in the dark (though, he really should have figured it out a thousand times over), it feels like the fallout should have reflected that.

Sigh. Mostly, I think, I'll miss Colin being fantastic as Merlin, Bradley's awesomeness aside.

I don't think I was ever prepared for it not to happen, not until right now. I understood that they were terrified of trying to reinvent the Arthur/Merlin dynamic as would be necessary after a reveal, so we probably wouldn't get it until late in the game, but they've telegraphed it so hard for so long that I couldn't believe that they didn't intend to ever pay it off.

I still don't entirely believe that there won't be a reveal, but at this point in the season I'm pretty sure it won't resemble the reveal I've been panting after for 5 years.

If there is no reveal at all (or not in a meaningful way), you'll be able to hear my howls all the way over there. *g*

That being said, I was always much more in love with the fandom and fanfic than I ever was with the show, so I don't see this as any sort of death knell for my love of these characters or my participation in the fandom. If that ends, it won't be because of the show.

This, and everything else you've said.

The underdevelopment of Merlin and Arthur's story post-magic reveal is the saddest thing for me. I think they're going to have a major cop out with it, and all of us are going to be further disappointed with what the Beed potentially could have done but yet again didn't.

Yes, I think major cop out is exactly what it's going to be. Whether it's a last-minute reveal or a twist of some kind to avoid the reveal, I can't imagine not being sadly disappointed.

I'm certainly open to a pleasant surprise on that count, but not holding my breath!

Yes, I agree completely with everything you've written.

Up above you mentioned the idea of a virtual season. I am hardly the fest organizing type, but wouldn't it be wonderful if there were a fandom event of some kind after the series ends to write alternative (or continuation) episodes?

I'm going to needs lots of that, I can tell.

I've seen a number of virtual seasons start up in various fandoms over the years, and almost all of them failed because it's such a considerable undertaking. However, I think a general continuation/fix-it fest would be a fantastic idea! I guess we can see what the exact theme should be when we know exactly what we're dealing with after the finale....

Every storyline possibility you mentioned is far preferable to what we got in the Evil!Gwen storyline. It breaks my heart, truly. I will miss this show so much. I will miss seeing Colin and Bradly together on screen, being amazing and perfect and beautiful.

*hugs*

I completely agree, and I want your potential story lines, as well, especially the first two!!!!!

At least we have fandom to rely on now...and sometimes, I think that's better than what some of the show's writers do...

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The end of Merlin

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