Welcome back to White Rose of Avalon my Darlings. Today’s post is going to be another ranking of seasons of one of my favorite fantasy television shows. I will be doing a very biased ranking of all five seasons of Merlin. Ironically this is not a series I watched when it originally aired, even though it is based on the Arthurian legends, making it clearly something I would enjoy. I finally did finish watching it a few years ago, and it has quickly become a show I adore and a truly nice comfort watch for me! As with all comfort television shows, I do love the whole show, every season, but there are definitely more well-done and re-watchable seasons.
Number 5: SEASON 1
~I know this may surprise some people, given that this is the season that launched it all. However, I have made it clear that for long-running series, I often find the first seasons lacking in actual events that move the plot forward. This is due to all the time that is spent setting up the dynamics at play in the series. We do get a lot of set-ups but little payoff in this season, which is why I rank it lowest in the series. I will admit that there are some good plot points, but I find them to be less consistently paid off than in the subsequent seasons. Again, this all goes to the attempt to set long-running plots into motion, which is important, but makes for a slower start.
Number 4: SEASON 2
~Now, I really enjoy the second season, as we get a lot of development in the characters and the relationships between the characters! That being said, it is a very solid season that perfectly aligns the next three seasons of plot lines. I really love the development of Morgana, especially in this season, as it does lead up to Morgana as a villain. I will say that I totally understand Morgana becoming a villain when she has been developing magickal abilities in a place where magick is outlawed. Her later ire towards Merlin for never telling her that he also possessed magick is totally valid, and I am on her side. This is because Merlin could have been a safe space to land and helped Morgana with her magick instead of completely pretending that she was going crazy thinking that by doing this he was protecting her!
Number 3: SEASON 4
~Now the fourth season of this series is really good and served as a great set-up for what would happen with the final season. I also adore that it begins with Morgana as Queen of Camelot, although I associate this story more with the third season because it is the climax of the season. This includes a lot of great moments with Arthur and Merlin as friends and of Arthur and Gwen as their relationship has really solidified!
Number 2: SEASON 5
~The final season is one of my favorites of the series! It is such a great way to wrap up this series. However, I do not like the fact that Morgana had to die at the end, but I do get that being Merlin was the hero and Morgana the villain having Merlin defeat and kill Morgana was the logical end. I personally would have preferred to have Morgana not die and instead ferry Arthur to Avalon as she always does in the various retellings of legends. But I did like the idea of Gwen getting to be the Queen of Camelot as a solo ruler after Arthur’s death instead of living out her days in a nunnery! The final thing I liked about this season was the acknowledgment that Merlin is still alive today, which is canonically something that would happen given that people with magick in this universe do not ever die unless killed in a very specific way! It may seem silly, and it is, but it does make sense so I actually enjoy it.
Number 1: SEASON 3
~Now, my very favorite season of this series is the middle season. I loved getting to see Morgana finally own her power and become the villain she was sadly destined to become from the first episode! I like a good villain whose motives I can get behind, Morgana felt abandoned and ostracized, but was taken in and cared for by her half-sister Morgause. It makes sense that she would take on a lot of the beliefs held by her sister about how to wield magick and how to avenge her being made to feel fear for her life in Camelot over the first two seasons! I also really love the idea of Morgana triumphing and getting to be Queen of Camelot for a while! To be totally honest, I would have loved for Morgana to keep her throne and have Merlin come to her side so that they could jointly rule a magickal land. Maybe they would not have to use only dark magick if they lived in a land where magick was acceptable. Alas, the dynamic that could have led to a truly interesting romantic pairing was never paid off or even explored, as the series was set on having the alignment of Merlin as a hero and Morgana as a villain!
~I hope you have enjoyed this countdown of the seasons of Merlin. What is your favorite season? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
Note on Image: The image at the top of the post is Morgana from the series. I had to include this because she is my favorite character in the series, obviously. I found the image on https://denieceliza.wordpress.com/2012/10/20/cosplay-morgana-pendragon-bbc-ones-merlin/.
Tarot Note: I have a page offering tarot and oracle readings for those interested in these services! I am very happy to be offering these readings to my treasured readers at White Rose of Avalon! Link to page: https://whiteroseofavalon.life/tarot-and-oracle-readings/
Further Reading
- Merlin (2008)