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yoonnamjin25 · 1 year

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Is it really accurate to use the word "selfless" to describe Merlin?

"Selfless" is a word with an undeniable good "white" connotation and when it comes to Merlin, I don't think we can say something is black or white in its entirety. So this question is kind of tricky and, honestly, far too complicated to answer it with a simple and short yes or no.

Let me elaborate.

He was not selfish when it came to himself as a person —that part is right— as he never hesitated in giving his life for others, always helped his friends no matter what, never seeked power nor recognition for himself, etc.

But I do think he was selfish, extremely so at times, when it came to his own self-interests. The main one being Arthur's safety and wellbeing.

And why do I say this? Let's go back to memory lane and remember some of his decisions throughout the show!

1. He condemned (heartbrokenly, I'll give him that) his whole kin to continue living in the shadows and most probably to be executed if they were caught practicing magic in Camelot just so Mordred could die and Arthur could live by extension.

2. Talking about Mordred, he never gave him the chance to prove himself trustworthy and loyal to Arthur, he just decided he was evil since he saw he was destined to kill his friend instead of trying to change that outcome or understand where would that could come from.

3. He lied to Arthur about himself and what he was for the whole decade they knew each other so Arthur wouldn't feel bad for choosing him over his father when he found out about his magic. Or viceversa.

4. He always put Arthur's life before any other's, including his closest friends: remember when he repeatedly tried to talk Arthur out of going to save them from Morgana because he was worried about him as the druid seer showed him he was going to be killed by a man aka Mordred?

5. He lied to Arthur about his mother and what Uther did to conceive him (he also robbed him that unique and beautiful moment he shared with his mom), something he had all the right to know, so Arthur wouldn't kill Uther and hate himself for it for the rest of his life.

6. He took Arthur's free will away from him so he would agree to everything Merlin said and he could take him out of the castle and save his life when Morgana and Agravaine attacked.

And I could go on, honestly, but I won't because I fear some people might take this as a hating post towards Merlin, which it definitely is not lol. Quite the contrary, actually! I understand and, to a certain point even love, all the decisions Merlin took because it just proved the inmensity of his love for Arthur.

So if I mention all this is because, despite having honorable goals —as saving someone's life (Arthur's) or sparing them the possibility of feeling irrevocably guilty for taking a life-altering decision when their heads were clouded by anger, sadness and fear— the means he used to do all that were highly questionable to say the least: lies, deceiving, manipulation, mind-control and so on are, in no way, justifiable.

They are just not.

But we fans decide to brush those aside and accept them because we understand that it all came out from a place of love. Pure, huge, raw and unwavering love. Although, that still doesn't make it right. Not really.

I will dare to say it actually makes it worse.

Love is a complicated and, may I say, dangerous feeling. It can make us feel happier, confident with oursleves, adventurous and giddy. But it can also make us stupid, blind and selfish.

And that's exactly what it did to Merlin.

He came to a point where he stopped caring about his destiny and focused only on saving Arthur's life, others be damned, just because he loved him too much and he couldn't bare to lose him.

And unfortunately at the end, it was that love, and the King's complete and blind trust in Merlin, that got Arthur dead.

To sum it up, I don't think there's a better way to describe Merlin than to say he was a whole spectrum of greys. A constant paradox of selflessness and selfishness. Another victim of love.

Anyway, he was far from perfect but that's exactly why I love him! He could come as the most selfless person at first glance (and to a certain degree, he was; although I think the word sacrificial suits him even better) but if you really look at it, specially from a canon era outsider POV, he could rather come as a selfish, powerful man that wouldn't hesitate in destroying you if it means he can save Arthur's life with that.

He was truly unhinged when it came to his other half and that's exactly why he's my second most favorite fictional character ever created!

**The first one being Dean Winchester, another unhinged man that couldn't live without his baby brother and would burn the whole world willingly only to keep Sammy safe!

Huh.

Now that I think about it.

Maybe I have a type?

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princess-of-morkva · 1 month

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thinking about. how merlin brings out the best in arthur and on the other hand arthur brings out the darkest parts of merlin. how arthur always tries to be better and do the right thing because merlin believes in him and he wouldn't want to disappoint him. because he believes merlin is good and he wants to be good for him. how merlin always ends up making the worst decision in his desire to protect arthur, doing things he never thought he'd do. how from saving arthur's life because that's a right thing to do, he goes to putting his life above any of his own morals.

#wrote this down a few hours ago #i think about it A LOT #it's tragedy baby #it's why i love this show #and yes of course i love my babies #and that means i love all of them #including their suffering #merlin bbc #merlin #arthur pendragon #merthur #bbc merlin

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marcskywalker · 7 months

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no but arthur gaslighting everyone and their mother to believe that merlin doesn't have magic is so KSGFKJDKV

and it's not even on purpose. It's just because arthur believes in merlin so much; trusts his loyalty and the goodness of his heart.

Even when he catches merlin doing shady (shady AS FUCKKK) shit, there is never any serious questioning or doubt. They'll banter and be nosy about each other, but there is never any serious interrogation on what merlin is doing or what he's hiding.

and then, because he believes merlin so much, he goes and convinces everyone else (his knights, his father, his court members) to have trust in merlin as well. not just that, he actively berates anyone who doubts merlin?????

every time I remember dotd where arthur says "you don't have magic, merlin. I would know" there is legit a physical pain in my chest and stomach that I can't stand WHAT THE FUCK WHAT THE FUCK

#bbc merlin #arthur pendragon #merlin #merthur #meta #I LOVE how much faith arthur has in merlin #and even in general arthur is someone who has a lot of faith and is loyal to a fault #but I LOVE IT when that loyalty is pointed towards merlin #I'm insane about them actually #AND THEY'RE INSANE ABOUT EACH OTHER #even merlins steadfast believe in arthur; that arthur will always do the right thing #it's so KJGSDFBDD #wtf is wrong with them

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lividbrunette · 8 months

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my professor (in my arthurian literature class) was talking about not using fan-wikis/fanfiction for the character profiles we were doing and then she brought up that there are a lot shipping Merlin and Arthur and everyone was like shocked/found it kinda funny and I was sitting there like oh … this is suddenly not a safe space lol

#merlin #bbc merlin #merthur #merthur!!!#they just are!#it’s like canon like no argument! they are soulmates!#they’d all understand if they’d watch the show!#there would be no debate!#love to see the merlin fandom very much alive #like I get it … merlin is a crazy old half demon magic man and arthur’s like a child or just really young in a lot of the stories #it is an odd pairing #but y’all don’t KNOW merlin 😭

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kairennart · 8 months

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And the first time that you kissed me I drank dry the river Lethe The Liffey would have been softer on my stomach all the same But you spoke some quick new music That went so far to soothe this soul As it was And ever shall be Unearth without a name

Hozier, First Time

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queerofthedagger · 3 months

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one thing that keeps me up at night is how, as people have pointed out before, arthur loved merlin simply for being merlin, regardless of magic or destiny etc., but how in some ways, that doesn't exactly apply the same way the other way around now does it?

like. i mean obvious merlin loved arthur for just being arthur, man would have never stuck around otherwise and one may even argue that later on, he actually did put arthur over destiny repeatedly (although i will say i agree only partially with this because why wouldn't he protect arthur above all else, if it's arthur who is supposed to make it happen! that said yes, most of his motivation to keep arthur alive came from arthur being his friend, not some higher calculation.)

thing is. arthur wouldn't exactly know this. arthur in fact in the finale seems to grapple with this a lot, if not most. the idea that to merlin, too, he had been a means to an end, as to so many others, whether in them wanting to use him, or wanting to get him out of the way.

there are very, very few people (gwen, pretty much as the only one alive) for whom arthur was just arthur first, king and destined peace-bringer, prince and first knight etc etc second. and i think if not for the whole, you know, dying business, it would take him a long time to actually, fully believe that merlin was one of them, after all.

which is just fucking heart-breaking, innit.

#bbcm #arthur pendragon #you can read 'love' here however way you please but it's not really intended to be a merthur post #like. i feel we talk a lot (and rightly so) about the messiness of magic reveals #but the whole destiny thing is just on my mind constantly too so yk #why not make it everyone else's problem also <3 #*mine #mona's rambling #bbc merlin #merlin meta

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tobylovesick · 1 year

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Arthur demands merlin make him forget about his powers because he cant trust himself to not tell his father, he wants to keep merlin safe but also his kingdom

#i havent finished merlin so this could be so off #my dramatic ass #i love the glowy sparkles a lot #merlin #merlin fanart #merlin art #arthur pendragon #merlin x arthur #king arthur #fanart #art

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forecast0ctopus · 1 month

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idk if you still draw merlin art that much BUT ,

i always headcanon arthur with long hair for historical accuracy . what do u think of it? what long hair would you give hin?

i’m bad at focusing on multiple things at once which is why i tend to only post art of one thing for a few months straight but trust me i think about merlin and all my other interests All The Time…. i am always up to talk about them!!!

anyways i know this probably isn’t the answer anyone wants but. historical accuracy be damned i like his hair short…… if i Had to have it longer id want it like that scruffy haircut they almost gave him in s4ish? if i remember? i love a disheveled looking man <3 im sure thats not at all what you meant by long hair though haha

consolation arthur sketch for me not being a long hair person:

#hope to get to my other asks soon ive just been. very tired lately haha i appreciate them very much though #anotherchaoticidiot #i still have so so so many merlin wips #ask #anyways im biased to giving characters short hair idk i #i really like s3/4 merlin’s really short hair i dont think he gets enough appreciation :(#i see people make fun of arthurs haircut a lot but truly i love a boring man short haircut im so sorry shfkg #there are so many other characters i see drawn with long hair all the time and its great however im so. i lovw short hair…………..#merlin

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ladyofthelake · 3 months

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Okay court sorceror this should have had a happy ending that blah blah but what we were TRULY robbed of was seeing Arthur with his dog. Arthur Pendragon, puppy, playing with a puppy JUST IMAGINE

#merlin #arthur pendragon #lots of opportunites for cute merthur too #also no I don't like torturing merlin of course he deserves happiness #but angst is my jam and I love the tragedy we got so <3 #wow a happy sad post all in one #what merlin does best

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whataboutthreateninganass · 4 months

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merlin. 🫶 who to most of camelot was just a servant. but who was the most devoted and loyal of any person in the royal household. who had immense power, power to destroy, power to seek revenge. who instead used it to conjure butterflies, save the innocent, and work alongside a man who should have been his sworn enemy to build a better, more hopeful world.

arthur. 🫶 who was the son of a tyrant. who was arrogant and conceited. who was born of immense love, and immense sacrifice, and yet had never been looked at like he mattered, until said servant came along and gave him the chance to realise how deeply he wanted to CARE. who became the head of a kingdom built on violence and pain. who became merciful and gentle and HUMBLE to a fault. who fell in love with a man who should have been his sworn enemy, and by his side, tried to build a better, kinder world.

bbcs merlin is a show for the misunderstood. which happens to be all of us. we all have parts of ourselves we hide away, because we can’t or won’t let anyone see, or because we haven’t yet realised their presence within ourselves. we are human. ever-changing. constantly misunderstood, by ourselves and others. and yet we are always redeemable if we choose to be. the characters of bbcs merlin are excellent because they are too.

merlin. arthur. gwen. morgana. gwaine. lancelot. <3

#lots of words to say every person has contradictions #and that's what makes us interesting and loveable and human #please write for the other characters #I will love you forever #bbc merlin #merlin #arthur pendragon #merthur #merlin and arthur #merlin bbc #morgana #guinevere #sir gwaine #lancelot

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imthursdaysyme · 9 months

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Modern merthur based on those bts photos of them I’m comically large jackets they looked so cute and funny I had to

#drawing #art #bbc merlin #merlin #arthur pendragon #arthur pendragon fanart #Merlin fanart #I’m my mind it’s like college #and they’re walking and see a group of men and they are like holy fuck what is happening over there #wrestling?#orgies?#friendly straight male bonding?#what is happening #I also think #off topic #that many people view merthur as gayxgay or gayxbi but I firmly believe they are bixbi #like also a lot of people will say they believe Arthur is bi #and then turn around and say he never loved Gwen #or never would love Gwen romantically #and like ok just say you think he’s gay then #bc if you say you think a character is bi but then get mad when they are in a straight relationship then you don’t think they’re bi #I’m sorry but it drives me crazy #I’ll get off my soap box now #anyway #digital art #merthur

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sarcastic--knight · 6 months

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in Merlin, arthur was literally born through magic, that is, his birth was so beyond the natural and was such a great stroke of luck that in the end the universe decided to restore balance and made him one of the most unlucky people. seriously, every other character on the show tried to kill this boy, not to mention the betrayals, constant knockouts and all the stupid ridiculous situations. he would have cosplayed as a kebab in the first episode, so the wild universe sighed, “okay, i’ll make him the only and future king, but so that he doesn’t screw up, let this powerful man, magic itself or whatever take care of his ass. yes, i’m literally i mean, you have to button up his shirt and at the same time decide something with this crowd of mercenaries under the window. no, he can’t do it himself, his karma is expired, beaten and showered with fruit. sorry, bro, you’ll have to do it yourself.

#haha don’t worry #you’ll get used to it and i'll kill him right after. What do you mean you've changed your mind now?#i'm not asking you you're not the luckiest here either.#it's explains a lot of #two sides of the same complaint book #these boys need a good lawyer to made themselves free of universe hands #it's tragic as funny #merlin #bbc merlin #arthur bbc #merlin bbc #merthur #arthur pendragon #merlin emrys #memes not memes #it's serious reading #unlucky arthur is so personal to me #i love my universal losers

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justaz · 2 months

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listen. my guilty pleasure is those merthur fics where merlin is handed over to foreign lords and they get violent and then arthur finds out and goes apeshit. love it. so fun. but what i think is so funny is that like,,, merlin would punch back. maybe not realistically, maybe he’d restrain himself, but spiritually merlin is throwing hands. i just think its funny bc in like all the fics ive read merlin is the personification of 🥺 over it

#in my heart #merlin takes the punch like a champ before turning around and swinging on the bitch #the lord threatens to report him to the king and (depending on who is leading camelot) merlin has two reactions #uthers reign!merlin: yeah go tell everybody that you got ur shit rocked by a serving boy. go cry like a little bitch to mommy.#im sure theyll love that. youll make a lot of friends like that. no one will think ur weak in the slightest #and then #arthur’s reign!merlin: trust me when i say this - ur getting off easy. if u tell arthur what u did he’ll kill u himself.#take the punch and go. we’re even #TEEHEE 🤭🤭#GET HIS ASS MERLIN #but im also a fan of protective arthur and hurt merlin so no complaints from me #just a silly thought #just bc merlin is CONSTANTLY taking care of arthur. and yeah arthur takes care of merlin (usually in more subtle ways)#but its still fun to see him absolutely lose his shit and protect whats his #bbc merlin #merlin emrys #arthur pendragon #merthur

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nextstopparis · 2 years

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arthur + his people

#oh good god please do not let this flop i was literally reduced to tears while ordering it bc it was so overwhelming #like theres so MUCH ive had to cut this down like five tomes now and its still HUGE #and wifi SUCKS today and im just rlly not in a good place #i love him a lot though #ugh whatever ignore it im going to cry of frustration anyway so who cares!!!!#anyways you know we always talk about arthurs character inconsistencies #but i think we dont appreciate THIS consistency NEARLY enough #like if arthur pendragons character is gonna do one thing its care abt ppl😫#bbc merlin #arthur pendragon #merlinedit #idk #long post #REALLY LONG POST

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roosterlasagne · 10 months

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I've had a Lancelot based headcanon for the longest time and I've finally remembered it while watching s1ep5 Lancelot.

In the ep Merlin forges a document to make Lance seem like a nobleman so he can become a knight (which is sweet and adorable). And he hides this from Arthur, of course. But going by the fact that in s2ep2 Arthur fully fakes a knight to prove himself and show that he doesn't win just bc he's the Prince, I love to think he would help Merlin forge one for Lance.

He would see that Lancelot is a worthy knight, and Merlin will string him along to forge a document. And they would be successful bc we know from s2ep2 that he can. And they would keep that secret from Uther, who would be none the wiser.

Another reason for this is because after defeating the griffin, Arthur argues with Uther to make Lancelot a knight DESPITE the lack of his noble status.

#bbc merlin #merlin #arthur pendragon #merlin headcanons #merthur #lancelot #lancelot deserves only the best #he deserves the knighthood #he deserves gwen #and he deserves to STAY ALIVE #a side headcanon i have of that episode #is geoffrey of monmoth vouching for lancelot's credentials even though he knows they are fake #but since he doesnt like uther a whole lot and everyone loves merlin he sides with them #or maybe because he's friends with gaius. theyre both old and have probably known each other for decades

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witchmd13 · 5 months

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I think the main difference between he way arthur challenges uther and the way morgana does in the first few seasons comes from the way uther raised them. uther dots on morgana, he allows her certain allowances, he tolerates her answering him back, which I mainly believe is due to the fact that she's a woman and what's the most she could do really other than annoy him, and also partially the fact that she's his illegitimate child as well. arthur, on the other hand, has only to do one thing out of line to have himself publicly humiliated or even thrown into the dungeons. add to that the responsibility uther throws over his shoulders from a very young age. it all makes him think a million times before he says a single word against uther. he carefully thinks every move he makes in uther's presence. which is why i believe it took a long time for him to come around, but also why i think why he didn't break when he eventually figured out that everything he was raised on was a lie.

I think these differences are so important to the way morgana rebelled the way she did against uther. i know her having magic and being uther's daughter and older than arthur play a role as well. but morgana wasn't used to being silent from the first moment we see her and before the magic even became an issue. her first sentence in the dragon's call is practically treason and she says it directly to uther which he ignores. i mean imagine arthur saying that. and when morgana's criticism grew and she was forced to stay silent and behave (being thrown in the dungeons, uther trying to physically hurt her.. etc) she couldn't take it and she eventually snapped.

#i know there's a lot more to it but i love this as well #morgana pendragon #arthur pendragon #pendragon siblings #merlin

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