this was supposed to be a differences between merthur touches post - merlin in gif one vs arthur in gif three, but you must also consider - merthur looks (especially: arthur in the first two)
merlin is such a compelling character because he's so contradictory. he's a man of mystery who's really bad at lying. you can tell he's lying about something, but his behavior is so odd no one can guess what he could possibly be lying about. basically, every character looks at him and goes 'you're clearly hiding something but im not really sure if I want to get into all that right now.' this is why he's able to tell everyone he's a sorcerer in episode three and no one believes him.
I love/hate the idea that Kilgharrah set Merlin up. It makes so much sense though. He hated the Pendragons after Uther.
I think the downright most horrific and brutal detail in the show is that Kilgharrah actually used Merlin to make sure Arthur's death happened with the pretence of protecting him
Sometimes, I think about how Merlin purposefully turned Arthur against magic twice—the first time to save his soul and the second to save his life—so when he finally told Arthur he was a sorcerer, it was the ultimate bamboozle.
“How could the bumbling idiot I’ve known all these years have been my greatest protector the whole time?” Yeah, sure. But also: “How could a sorcerer have chosen me over magic? Over his own freedom and the freedom of those like him? Over the gods who created him and the religion that saves him?” It’s one thing to die for someone and another thing entirely to give up who you are for them.
Obviously, Merlin was wrong, and that’s why playing God had an effect opposite to what he’d intended. But I think it’s so interesting to consider how Arthur might have viewed this confession. He was betrayed by Morgana because she loved herself more than her own brother and betrayed by Uther because he loved himself more than his own son. And all of this while Merlin, at first, fell in love with the cause and, then, even more with the man behind it. His loyalty to and love for Arthur was so pure it turned sinful, and I don’t think Arthur would have ever gotten over that. If he hadn’t died.