Merlin
Episode Eight: “The Beginning of the End”
BBC One, Saturday 8 November 2008, 7.20PM
Written by Howard Overman
Directed by Jeremy Webb
Warning: this review contains some spoilers. If you’d rather not know what the story is going to include, bookmark this page and read it after viewing.
Up to now, Merlin hasn’t built a reputation for outstandingly memorable episode titles; most have been straightforward, verging on the dull. However, this ominously titled episode promised something of a change, particularly relevant as the series heads down the home stretch toward the final episode of the season. So it was slightly disappointing when, at first, the episode seemed to be rerunning an earlier “hide the sorcerer from Uther Pendragon” tale when Merlin saves and hides—with the help of Morgana—a young Druid boy whom the king of Camelot has ordered killed.
However, as the episode progresses, it soon becomes clear that there is much more at stake, on this occasion, for all the characters. Dropping the riddle-speak, the Dragon makes it clear that Merlin must not save the boy—who you’d think had stepped straight out of The Omen, the way he looks at everyone—because his being alive will prevent Merlin and Arthur from carrying out their destiny.
So, this is an episode where many of the main characters face potentially life-threatening decisions; for example, Morgana’s choice ultimately provokes Uther Pendragon to say in no uncertain terms that—if he hadn’t sworn to protect her—she would be literally losing her head in the courttyard outside. More importantly, young Merlin is faced with a real dilemma; thanks to the scripting, acting, and direction, even the most experienced viewer can’t be entirely sure that he will choose to save the boy and so potentially damn Arthur and himself.
Ultimately, of course, he does—focusing on the personal rather than the bigger picture, you could say. Arthur returns the boy to his people, although how he has sent word ahead is one of those annoying bits of detail that the show never bothers explaining—unless we’re to assume that the young prince is already establishing his own network of contacts independent of his father?
Up to this point, though, there has been no real indication why the episode was given the title it has. Then in the final scene, we get the answer. Arthur asks the Druids what the unspeaking boy’s name is, and is told: “Mordred.” In one sense, the portentious positioning of this revelation technically means little in terms of the series so far, but for viewers with any knowledge of the Merlin myth—and Mordred’s later role in the battles against Arthur—this is an introduction on a par with the early debut of Lancelot. All we need now is the forging of the sword Excalibur and the series will have reclaimed most of the symbols of Camelot for itself.
Oh. Is that a glowing sword in the next episode preview? Well…