Review – Merlin: The Poisoned Chalice (1.4)

King Bayard of Mercia arrives in Camelot to celebrate a new found peace between the two kingdoms. Nimueh, who now has set her sights upon destroying Merlin, poses as a serving maid and fools Merlin into believing that Bayard is seeking to poison Prince Arthur. Merlin plays right into Nimueh’s hands and is poisoned in Arthur’s place. Arthur seeks out the antidote to save Merlin’s life, despite his father’s demands that he allow Merlin to die, for he is just a servant after all.  Nimueh’s plan also seems to have set Mercia and Camelot on a path for war, as both King’s try to recover their wounded pride. It is Gaius who wisely councils Uther on who the real threat is and the two speak of a secret about Nimueh not yet fully revealed. Arthur returns with a cure for Merlin but not before he is saved by the ailing young warlock. Every new episode we see Merlin’s power growing, along with the hatred of his new found enemy, Nimueh. It is also a treat to see Michelle Ryan gracing the screen as well. Many American viewers will remember her as The Bionic Woman, a recent television series remake that suffered at the hands of the writer’s strike in 2008.

The magical honeymoon is over, we are now in for a bumpy ride. Nimueh has arrived, and even Uther’s anger and persecution can’t keep pace with this sorceress who has a taste for vengeance. She is said to be old magic and powerful; perhaps Merlin better start reading that spell book Gaius gave him, and fast.

I would like to note that Arthur, as a character is growing on me now, during the first two episodes he came off like a prat. He is actually becoming interesting, and this episode while devoid of Merlin’s charm, gave the viewers a chance to know Arthur. After all he is the “other side of the coin” as mentioned by the Great Dragon to Merlin. All characters must grow in order for the story to grow with them, Merlin’s illness allowed room for the rest of the cast to shine in this episode, and that I truly enjoyed.

I cannot say enough great things about this show and I hope we get a second series here in America. NBC there is still room for fantasy on the television landscape, some of us still believe in magic.  So gather the family around the Plasma or LCD and watch with wonder the continuing story of Merlin.

About PLMII

Philip Lee McCall II or “PLMII” to his legions of manuscript minions has authored several dark fantasy collections. Through the use of poetry and prose, PLMII takes readers on excursions into a dark fantasy realm filled with vampires, werewolves, exorcism, and a lot of other creepy things guaranteed to make you lose sleep. For more information on PLMII visit his website by clicking here.