Merlin (SPOILERS)

(This is a post about the final episode only, for those not wanting to be spoiled.  Although in hindsight, I think I may have been grateful to have been spoiled so I didn't expect a wonderful ending.  Your choice.)


I enjoyed the British tv show Merlin.  It is fantastical and funny and the acting is quite good.  I mean, it has Anthony Head who will always get love from me just for the fact he played Giles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  In fact, the show deserves its own post where I say nice things about it.  And when I get past the series finale, I will write about the good things... BUT having just watched the final episode, I feel utterly misled.  I don't know if I am missing something about British tv, but I'm trying to figure out exactly what the point of the series was and/or what the writers of this show were thinking.

A little background: Throughout the series,  at the beginning of each episode is a voice-over that says: "In a land of myth, and a time of magic, the destiny of a great kingdom rests on the shoulders of a young boy. His name... Merlin."  There are also numerous references to the destinies of Arthur and Merlin and how they are destined to unite all of the U.K. (I think) as the Land of Albion.  This is not just something someone mentioned once, those two things are mentioned in almost every episode.  Everything in the series builds towards Merlin becoming a great wizard and Arthur and Merlin restoring the land of Albion (which I think means something in Arthurian legend but I'm not entirely sure what) together.  Ok, so those viewers who watched the entire series felt like they were witnessing the birth of a legend... BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT WAS TOLD TO THEM ALMOST EVERY EPISODE!!!!

So now I watched the final episode.  I assumed there would be an epic battle, Arthur would learn of Merlin's magic, he would accept his friend and they would bring about a wonderful kingdom together.  Yea... that's not what happened.  Instead, Arthur takes an entire episode to accept that his friend uses magic... and then he dies.  Oh, and then we see a lonely Merlin walking along a modern road, apparently waiting for Arthur to rise again?  I'm sorry, but what just happened here??  For five seasons I have been waiting to see Arthur and Merlin creating greatness together and for Arthur to allow magic back in to Camelot...  So that doesn't happen.  I've been waiting to see a few episodes where Arthur learns Merlin's secret and how that plays out to become a great destiny... and we got about twenty minutes.

I don't know if the writers were trying for a hopeful end, thinking that the best is yet to come and Arthur will apparently rise from the dead?  But they just failed miserably.  Instead it is a depressing end where an apparently friendless Merlin wanders around with no purpose.  And I don't care if the best is supposed to come in a future time... then show us that time in the future!  As viewers, we've watched the whole series with the promise of these two men sharing a great destiny and that promise does not come to fruition.  It is not shown on-screen.  I feel like it would be like watching Smallville or Superman if they ended right before Clark Kent actually BECOMES Superman, in which case those would be a show or movie about a boy growing up with cool powers and they should be advertised as such.  Don't let viewers spend the whole time waiting to see the guy fly around in a red cape if your intention is never for him to do so.  It's ridiculous.  It's way more ridiculous than Lost.  It may be akin to the Red John reveal in the Mentalist (which, in my opinion, was horrific and ruined the show up until that point).  Either way, it was depressing and I feel cheated because they promised one thing and then never gave it.  If the show was supposed to be a set-up to the glory days of Camelot, I apparently missed those short days.  I also can't imagine any viewer who watched the show who was not expecting for Arthur to accept Merlin and finally accept magic as part of the world in which the show is set.  It's just ridiculous.

Obviously this is all only my opinion.  Others may feel differently.  I feel like I was the subject of a long con by the producers of this show.  Not cool.

The West Wing

The West Wing had it's natural television run while I was in college for the most part, which means I was oblivious.  I was aware that many people watched the show but not a whole lot more than that.  I also figured that if most of America watched it, it was probably middle-of-the-line politics so as not to offend one side or the other... I was so wrong!

The West Wing came back on my radar when I saw it available on Netflix.  Being sick, I had the time on my hands to give the series a proper watch.  What I saw was nothing short of thought-provoking, inspiring, aspirational television.  I love that the issues were debated and both sides were brought up, even if the show ultimately lands far to the liberal side of issues.  I loved the first entrance of Martin Sheen's mesmerizing President Bartlet.  I loved, when in one episode, they gave me goosebumps by simply declaring "I serve at the pleasure of the president."  I love that the name "Bin Laden" was dropped in a chillingly casual manner in an episode that aired in 1999.  I love recognizing actors who would come to be known on other shows.  And I love that I watched Psych before I watched The West Wing and that only made me appreciate Dule Hill's Charlie Young even more!

For me, the fact that The West Wing introduced characters who had flaws and made mistakes only strengthened the depths of those characters because we got to be aware that they all fundamentally wanted to do the right thing for the right reasons.  I love that the President is almost always the smartest man in the room.  (Without getting too political, I know there are real Presidents about whom the same could not be said).  I loved the honor with which they show him overcoming adversity without sugar-coating those things in his life that were, in fact, adverse.  I love that these characters challenge each other and respect each other and demonstrate their intelligence in each episode.  Sam Seaborn, Josh Lyman, Toby Ziegler, CJ Cregg, Leo McGarry and others are idealists, while being imperfect human beings.  It is how I would love to imagine the White House to truly exist.

This is well-made television, particularly the first 3-4 seasons, although I am glad it ran the course it did.  To transition the Bartlet administration out of office seems like a fitting way to transition its viewing audience away from their habitual watching.  In fact, while I do think the show shifted a bit after Sorkin left, the only thing I could not wrap my head around was the arc for Toby in the final season.  I won't go into it here yet because I'm going to encourage people who have not seen this show to watch it.  Plus, I may feel the need to write about this show in seasons or particular episodes.  I am just not sure.  Of course, it would have been more fitting for John Spencer to end the show with the rest of the cast, but he had certainly already made a mark with his character.  Anyway, agree with it, disagree with it, it doesn't matter.  It matters that it is impossible not to think about it.  And isn't that what all television should aspire to?

The Wire

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I had already seen half of the entire series of The Wire but I recently got on a kick of re-watching and wanting to finish the last two seasons.  I am still convinced it is just outstanding in almost every way.  In a total of 5 seasons, there was only one character who annoyed me (Marlo), and when dealing with feds, police, politicians, kids, druggies, dealers, etc. that is saying a lot.  I am amazed this show did not get major awards in its time.  I am amazed that watching it now feels just as relevant, if not more so, than when it originally aired.  I am amazed that the actor who portrayed Bubbles was an Ivy League grad.  I am amazed that they hit home the hypocrisy to "do more with less" so damn well.  

I loved Season 1.  I thought it introduced great characters who I got attached to, so I was wary when they moved outside of Barksdale's organization, but the scope of the show was great.  The meaning behind the few words in some scenes had me hooked.  If a show can teach a life lesson and an overview of its entire season while one drug dealer explains chess and can also have an entire conversation and exploration of a crime scene using only the word "fuck," it is deep in more ways than one.  This show can be violent.  It can be suddenly and graphically violent.  It is one of the very few shows I can think of though that didn't turn me off because of it.  It's really not gratuitous.  I wouldn't let my kids watch, of course, but it also doesn't glamorize violence in any way.  

I recommend Season 4 to anyone teaching and feeling frustrated... truly.  It just works on every level.  I felt for every kid and teacher, wanted the best for the them and knew there was no way for most of them to achieve it.  And for Bubbles, I was pretty sure things would not work out, but his storyline really worked for me.  The show is frustrating... the good guys do stupid things, they don't always prevail, and sometimes the lesser of two evils is the one that gets put away.  But I thought about every episode.  Maybe I'll write about each season separately... It certainly deserves it.  But while it was fresh in my mind, I am taking the time to remind everyone just how well crafted and well acted this show was.  If you haven't seen it and you're an adult... watch it.  Watch at least 3 episodes.  Then we can discuss, debate, agree, whatever... but I absolutely encourage more people to learn about this exceptional television series.  

And I leave you with characters I loved... good and bad: Bunk, Omar, Bubbles, Duquan, Lester, Daniels, Prez (Seasons 4/5), Sydnor, Avon, Bodie, D'Angelo, Stringer Bell, Gus, Greggs, Bug, Carver, and Carcetti's aide who laughed at all the madness in the final episodes... Thank you to all of those actors for leaving an impression and giving me something to think about.  Thanks to them, I still love seeing them whenever I notice a connection.  I have seen Lance Reddick (Lost, Fringe), Andre Royo (saw him in Fringe), Michael K. Williams, Deirdre Lovejoy (had an awesome and odd few episodes on Bones), Wendell Pierce (FBI psychiatrist in Numbers), Wood Harris (who I loved from Remember the Titans before I saw The Wire and I still bought him as Avon Barksdale), Idris Elba (Pacific Rim, Thor, Luther), Pablo Schreiber (Orange is the New Black), Michael B. Jordan, and I know I've seen others.  They all deserve a standing ovation for The Wire.