REVIEW: Merlin – The Castle of Fryien

This article may contain spoilers.

Proving his love once again for Guinevere (Angel Coulby), Arthur (Bradley James) undertook a risky mission to rescue Gwen’s brother from King Cenred (Tom Ellis). Cenred had kidnapped Gwen’s brother Elyan (Adetomiwa Edun) and was holding him hostage at the Castle of Fryien in an elaborate scheme to trap Prince Arthur; and heedless of the risk to himself and to Camelot, Arthur rushed to Gwen’s aid promising to save her brother.

Arthur’s gallantry and willingness to face danger head-on for the sake of the woman he loves is magnificent. Yet his constant faith that he will always prevail in the face of certain death places him at even greater risk. Fortunately for him, he has his own personal bodyguard in the form of the young sorcerer Merlin (Colin Morgan).

However, Merlin’s abilities are being taxed as of late due to the added burden of avoiding Morgana’s (Katie McGrath) inquisitive and watchful gaze. Morgana is much too curious about the young magician, who hides in plain sight as if he were nothing but mere servant boy. But, as Morgana has begun to figure out, no one is exactly what they appear to be: Gwen is not just a handmaid for she is Arthur’s beloved and he will move mountains for her; Gaius (Richard Wilson) is not just the court physician, he is a long-time friend and confidante of King Uther (Anthony Head); and Merlin cannot just be Arthur’s servant, for Merlin is constantly taking unnecessary risks himself to keep Arthur safe — and he has not revealed the treacherous acts that Morgana has made to kill both Uther and Arthur. Everyone has a secret and Morgana is searching for ways to exploit all those secrets and hidden relationships to her advantage.

So while Morgause (Emilia Fox) may be a powerful and ruthless sorceress in her own right, given Morgana’s natural aptitude for deception and lying in wait, Morgana is likely to be the more dangerous of the two dark-hearted sisters. The sooner everyone besides Merlin and Gaius realize Morgana’s true threat to them all, the safer they will be. For having a serpent laying in await in their midst, ready to strike, is much too dangerous.

What Worked

It was chilling to see to what depths of depravity Cenred would go in order to win the favor of Morgause; for man so enchanted with a woman will do anything – no matter how despicable and wrong. When Cenred outright told Morgause, “I am rich and powerful already, I do this only to please you,” she smiled cruelly and remarked, “Then please me.” With this command weighing on him, Cenred quickly revealed his weakness vile nature by kidnapping Gwen only so that she could see in person that her brother was being held, opposed to simply sending word of his capture. Such a gesture was cruel and ugly. Another good example was when Gwen angrily asked Cenred, “What can I possibly do for you?” and Cenred replied, “You can bring me Arthur Pendragon.” As Gwen tried to protest, “I’m just a servant — I have no influence with the prince,” Cenred just laughed. He knows all too well what a man will do for love — he will sell his soul and torment others simply in the name of love – and Cenred knew that Arthur, being a man in love, would not hesitate to come to Gwen’s rescue.

In contrast to Cenred’s obsession and moral decay, it was refreshing to see how love can change a man for the better. In Arthur’s case, it is the making of him. Upon hearing that Gwen was missing, Arthur did not hesitate to demand that Uther send troops in search of her; and despite Uther’s incredulity at using his personal guards for such a purpose, Arthur remained undeterred. With or without Uther’s aid, he would have scoured the entire kingdom and beyond, for the woman he loved was missing and he was not going to let his father stand in the way of finding her. The time for being cautious about his feelings and worrying about what his father thought was put aside out of fear over what had happened to her.

Arthur was just as undeterred after Gwen’s safe return once he found out that she needed his assistance in rescuing her brother. It was enough that Gwen worried for the safety of her brother. There was no question that Arthur would help her rescue Elyan. Just as Gwen explained that she would do anything for her brother because that is what one does for those that they love; it was clear that Arthur felt exactly the same way. So after the successful rescue and their returned to Camelot, Arthur made it a point to tell Gwen, “It’s like you say, Guinevere, it’s what you do when you love someone.” That Arthur said this so openly, it was an open declaration of love. There was no reservation or hesitation. Arthur was acknowledging his love for her and his unwillingness to stand by and do nothing, if she needed him.

It was beautiful and telling that throughout the entire episode Arthur was much more open about how he felt about Gwen. In fact, Gwen rode beside Arthur as an equal as they traveled to the Castle of Fryien, leaving Merlin and Morgana to trail behind them. Arthur also had Morgana and Merlin fetch the firewood – not just because he wanted a moment to speak to Gwen alone, but as a sign that as his beloved, he would not ask her to do such a thing. He would not treat her as a servant, for one day, he will find a way to make her queen of Camelot and she will deserve to be treated accordingly.

Even Elyan took note of the significance of the fact that Arthur came to rescue him simply because Gwen asked. Thus, Elyan curiously noted, “It seems that things have changed for you, Guinevere,” Gwen did not pretend to not know his meaning and openly admitted, “Yes, I suppose they have.” Seeing her happiness, Elyan softly said, “I’m glad.” To have won the heart of a prince that will be king, is wonderful, but to have found a man willing to put his life on the line for her and her family, Elyan was happy that his sister had found such a love.

It was also fun to see how Gwen tested her newfound power a bit by defying Arthur’s edict to ride straight away from the castle and instead waited for him with the horses. When she firmly told him, “You might be a prince, but I don’t always have to do what you tell me too,” she was testing her newfound power. In fact, Gwen’s station as a servant does mean that she has to obey Arthur. Yet the fact that she no longer believes that she has to obey his commands shows her growing confidence in their love and her freedom to think independently. In addition, if Arthur would never leave without her, why should she leave without him? Love goes both ways.

So while Arthur and Gwen may feel more confident about expressing their feelings in front of others, such as Morgana and Merlin, it has led to a grave problem. Now that Morgana knows, she is going to exploit that weakness every chance she gets. She will continue to torment the young lovers and use their love for each other as a weapon against them. Thus, when Merlin told Gaius, “[Morgana’s] found Arthur’s weak spot,” it was not just with worry, it was with anger. Merlin is angry that Morgana is using love as a weapon. Love is meant to be healing and to be celebrated, not feared.

What Didn’t Work

Arthur should not have been so quick to believe Morgana’s flimsy excuse that Cenred wanted to get information out of her as Cenred would not have wasted his time with Morgana and instead would have pressured Arthur for information. After all, it was Arthur he wanted, not Morgana. Morgana was also not supposed to be there and would have known little about Camelot’s defenses. Thus, Arthur should be using better judgment and asking these very same questions – if he did, he would wonder why so much of what Morgana has told him does not make any sense. Blind loyalty is a great fault and may prove deadly one day.

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

‘The Castle of Fryien’ was written by Jake Michie and directed by Dave Moore. Merlin stars Colin Morgan, Bradley James, Katie McGrath, Angel Coulby, Richard Wilson and Anthony Head. Merlin airs Fridays at 10 pm on Syfy.