#arthur and gwaine say FUCK toxic masculinity

[bitsandbobsofwriting]

yeah, fuck toxic masculinity!! can't wait to see what you've got for us in the next part!!

(Referencing This Post)

Indeed!!!

Let's have a sneak peek, shall we? Just a short one, this time:

As a shaking hand reaches out blindly in the dark, large and calloused and shaking—Gwaine’s—Arthur considers the legacy he’d built. He limply lets Gwaine squeeze his wrist and then tentatively move down to intertwine their fingers, comforted and annoyed and indifferent, as he tries to think clearly but just can’t can’t can’t. He knows somewhere in the back of his mind that Gwaine would normally be the first to blame him and punch him and curse his name. But he also knows that Gwaine is feeling guilty just like the rest of them, and the warmth of Arthur’s hand in the darkness is just as much a comfort for him as it is for Arthur.

Here's Part 1 to this!^

[weakforarwen]

Lamia

This episode is disturbing on many levels:

There is Lamia, created by the High Priestesses who “in their wars with the ancient kings” “took the blood from a girl and mingled it with that of a serpent”.

Typical. A girl is robbed of her agency, and becomes both victim and perpetrator, though no one ever feels sorry for her, only for her male victims; the girl literally became a snake. The misogyny sure is subtle on this one. 

Moreover, the Lamia can “control the mind of a man, suck the life from him with a single embrace.”. Yes, yes, I get it. Women are evil temptresses who seduce men, drain them dry, and leave them broken. Moving on.

Poor Merlin. In the beginning of the episode, Elyan stood up for him and Gwaine was nice to him too. But as soon as Lamia appeared, that snake, she made the good boys go bad and turned brother against brother. There’s nothing like the bond of brotherhood, though! The knights still wanted to save Elyan after turning on each other, and Leon came to his senses when he saw Lamia had hurt Percival; he attacked her. 

Also, it turns out the Lamia’s true form is a hideous monster. Women are always pretty on the outside, rotten on the inside, WBK.

In a rare turn of events, it was up to Arthur to save the day, especially because Gwen was with them. He was immediately worried when they took too long to return to Camelot, though not that much time had elapsed. Arthur went to look for them personally. Arthur’s very consistent when it comes to Gwen: all the times she leaves (or returns to) Camelot without Arthur, she's escorted by all the living Knights of the Roundtable (eg. The Coming of Arthur Part 2, Lamia, The Dark Tower, The Diamond in The Stone (?)). Also, when Gwen goes missing, rest is no longer part of Arthur’s vocabulary. Like, he told Agravaine, Gwen when missing so they had to keep going “all night if necessary”. It was the same thing when Gwen went missing in Lancelot and Guinevere and The Dark Tower. Not even Agravaine could convince Arthur to just chill. 

However, Arthur annoyed me in this episode. 

He made fun of Merlin for being saved by Gwen, joking that being saved by a woman is worse than dying. Fuck you very much, Arthur. This is what happens when you’re raised by an arrogant, megalomaniac, alpha male douchebag vs. being raised by a single mom in a loving home (Merlin). Toxic masculinity so thick you could choke on it 

Also, Arthur told Gwen he was surprised by her bravery when facing the Lamia:

I thought I knew everything about you, Guinevere. Your loyalty, your wisdom. Since when did you become this fearless hero?

Are you joking? She literally risked her life to get clean water for the sick in The Last Dragonlord, and she knocked you out of harm’s way twice in The Curse of Cornelius Sigan. Did you really forget that, Arthur? She also convinced you to let women fight in The Moment of Truth. Dude. WFT. Gwen even replies with: “Well, maybe you just didn't notice before.”. You don’t say.

It was sweet that Arthur praised her and told her she equaled a knight in courage and that he was proud of her, but it was also condescending. It’s like he just figured out women can be brave, and, worse, that Gwen was.

I maintain my opinion, though, that the whole point of this episode was to give Arthur the final push he needed to propose to Gwen. By “proving” that she was brave and willing to fight off a creature of magic, she showed Arthur, or, rather, Agravaine, that she would indeed make a good Queen. Arthur used these events to justify his decision to Agravaine. It doesn’t make sense, but I think the writers wanted something to motivate Arthur’s proposal rather than just having it sprung on the audience. If he hadn’t married her yet, that means he needed a bigger reason than love, right? And that reason was, mostly, Gwen’s courage and the compassion she showed for the people of Camelot, but also Arthur’s own fear of losing her which is generally a huge motivator for him (ie. The Hunter’s Heart and The Sword in The Stone). Imo, Arthur’s loneliness was another reason, as seen in The Secret Sharer. 

But, yeah, anyway, Gwen’s reactions to Arthur’s praise were so cute, she looked so happy, and their kiss was cute too.

Speaking of Gwen, it kind of bothered me how scared she looked when facing the Lamia. The men never look scared, but it’s like they wanted Gwen to look terrified and powerless before the Lamia. I understand that she doesn’t have Merlin’s powers or Arthur’s experience, but her facial expressions were almost comical, she looked so silly. Considering that Arthur made fun of Merlin for being saved by a girl, I feel like that was on purpose. Or maybe Angel wanted it to look realistic?

So, yeah, not a great episode, but it’s lighthearted, Agravaine isn’t that annoying, and there’s Gwen and Arwen, so it’s not too bad. It’s hella sexist though.

Lastly, Gaius and Merlin are so cute. Gaius looked like he was sending his baby off alone to school for the first time. He even gave Merlin his medicine bag, haha. And Merthur were cute when Arthur rescued him and Gwen. Arthur's cute when he’s happy and playful, he looks so boyish, Gwen jumping into Arthur’s arms and Arthur holding her with his eyes closed was cute too.

[shesnake]

whats ur alternate ending for merlin im v curious

i barely remember what actually happens in merlin just the characters and the ending but FIRST OF ALL. someone needed to ask if morgana was okay. like season 3ish. she can have her whole wrestling with the darkside And We Should Definitely Let Her Murder Uther but merlin needed to fucking talk to her and develop a goal of actually trying to help her WITH GWEN yes she knows too. like why was merlin such a liberal rat. internalised homophobia that’s why!

secondly! arthur needed to find out way sooner. honestly cannot forgive this show for stringing along the same goddam dilemma until the final episode only him to fuckign DIE as soon as he found out. maybe beginning of season 4 when he takes the throne question mark? there’s some other kind of anti-magic faction in camelot now maybe uther’s cracked distant cousin enforcing his bullshit??  and arthur’s all conflicted and shit?? and unable to face merlin but unable to condemn him. they’re separated. and during this time is when merlin goes off to find morgana and they’re practicing magic together building their strength and maybe having their own monsters of the week and meeting other sorcerors as B plots. gwen becomes a round table knight alongside arthur and it’s sickkkkkk. she helps him come around eventually and it’s amazing bc now merlin and morgana are THE dynamic duo THE secret weapons with their jock best friends.

then series 5 idk some Big Evil let’s make it mordred AND the dragon idgaf makes them all unite and end of the series is them defeating him through the power of love and friendship <3 then magic is unbanned and it’s a metaphor for gay rights <3

also just gonna say it i never gave a fuck about merthur as a ship... like i believe they are both gay but just really beautiful friends. kinda like the movie handsome devil where one gay is treated like a freak the other gay is struggling with toxic masculinity. the endgame is merlin x gwaine, gwen x morgana, arthur x lancelot but tbh doesn’t have to be anyone solidifed he had chemistry with all his bros let him do what he wants.

the THING about merlin, the REASON we kept watching the same episode over and over for 5 years, was that all of the cast has such beautiful chemistry together. there was so much love in this show. you could ship almost anything and it would be realistic. the writers didn’t want us to think that though, but the cast were on a whole other level. which is why everything felt so disappointing and so lovely at the same time.

also if i had it my way this could all be condensed into a tight 3 seasons MAYBE 4.

[thegeminisage]

on a lighter note 4.10 is probably one of my favorite episodes in the entire series...i did re-stan arthur for like ten minutes near the end...it was So Good. a cut because i talked for so long about how good it is:

first of all i love that the episode opens with everyone giving elyan shit not because i dislike elyan (i love him he does not deserve to be the butt of jokes) but because i like that as far as this group of guys goes their primary form of affection is roasting each other. that’s toxic masculinity! it’s also a little charming

when i first watched this episode i thought the reason arthur looked so spooked at the shrine was that it was spooky and potentially magic and he’s not down with magic. rewatching it now that i Know has me screaming into my hands!!! when he first catches sight of it he looks as though he’s seen a ghost and watching his slow creeping recognition is like. mm. really good. good stuff

(as an aside: i’m not talking about it: but if i was: merlin calling arthur nothing but sire during this ENTIRE EPISODE as a form of rebellion because he’s still pissed about gwen is a whole ass mood. i have never loved merlin so much as i did when he was gwen’s only friend and stuck up for her and stuck his neck out for her REPEATEDLY despite knowing it could cost him)

gwaine talking about salt circles made me nostalgic for a different show :’)

arthur with stew in his hair is what he deserves

i was VERY MAD AT HIM for this WHOLE EPISODE so when (possessed) elyan was trying to kill him i was all YEAH BABE CMON GO RIGHT FOR THE NECK but then arthur USED HIS FOOTSTOOL AS A SHIELD and effectively fought off an ARMED ATTACKER while TOTALLY WEAPONLESS. it’s so under-appreciated there aren’t even gifs of it (i know, i looked, i would kill for some). it’s one of the coolest fight scenes in this entire series despite only being 20 seconds long. my love for arthur pendragon returned with a vengeance and i had a good bit of difficulty shoving it back down

elyan’s buddies all tracking him down and tricking him into surrendering peacefully only for percival to punch him in the face to knock him out. GUUUYSSS come on

merlin like straight up weeping upon witnessing the BRUTAL GENOCIDE that “uther” committed there 20 years ago is like...jesus FUCKING christ. they went SO hard.

ok so do we all remember in 2.08 when arthur tried to kill his dad (changed my life......) in the throne room or dining room or wherever that is and uther would only block and not strike back because arthur’s rage was just and true?? WELL PARALLELS because now arthur’s the one blocking and not attacking and i know a lot of it is because he didn’t wanna hurt elyan but also in my heart it’s partially because that little kid’s beef with him was LEGIT!!! and i think part of him realized. we even had merlin running up there to put a stop to it and arthur begging him to stop because he didn’t wanna kill him

i think the plot twist at the end of this episode (that it’s arthur, NOT uther, who was responsible for the slaughter of children at the druid camp) was really good and it makes for a very interesting second watch. case in point: arthur’s face when merlin and gaius are explaining to him that the spirit seeks revenge and the only way to save elyan’s life is to atone. very haunting: merlin says that uther is dead, and he can never atone for what he did now. unspoken: arthur’s NOT dead, not yet, and he CAN.

also interesting: merlin’s attempts to comfort arthur fall flat. “you can’t be held responsible for everything your father did” gets a dark look and a quick dismissal. it’s because merlin doesn’t know what the fuck he’s talking about

it’s a REALLY interesting dynamic swap because usually merlin is the one keeping his secrets close while arthur unknowingly blunders around in the dark trying to guess at what he’s thinking...with this, it’s the other way around, and i gotta say, arthur’s poker face is MUCH better than merlin’s. when he stews on something he stews on it hard. none of merlin’s horsing around and playing the fool and barely scraping by with dumb luck for arthur: he’s a WALL. maybe this is just the arthur stan in me but it makes getting a look at what’s going on in there SO much more gratifying

i know how this sounds, but i almost wonder if arthur didn’t give merlin extra chores on purpose - the extra chores were why he was up so late, and why he saw arthur slipping out of the castle in a cloak...this is far from the first time merlin’s followed him, and far from the first time merlin would witness him totally losing his shit emotionally (2.08 babey), so maybe arthur was scared of going back by himself and didn’t know how to explain the whole thing and ask for the company because toxic masculinity, and it was easier to just set merlin up to do what he naturally does best: be a nosy little shit

evidence: he catches on to merlin’s tailing him VERY quickly (was he looking out for him?) and doesn’t seem at all surprised or angry that he’s there, nor does he order merlin to go back (his exact words are “feel free to go back to camelot anytime you like”) - if you watch very VERY carefully, you can also see his expression shift just a little after merlin states his intention to tag along - there’s just the barest hint of a smile

arthur looks SO SPOOKED walking back into this shrine. it’s so good. he gets real intense

merlin also sort of shifts his weight back after arthur confesses to his checkered past as a WAR CRIMINAL and like...wow

this dynamic. arthur is kind of afraid of magic and merlin is kind of afraid of arthur’s reaction to his magic. and when i say “kind of” what i mean is they’re scared shitless of each other despite trusting each other implicitly. it’s a lot for me. it’s my favorite dynamic in the entire world

i restanned arthur for this section because he was SO GOOD. he’s really actually quite scared of dying (in the opener for s4 he was really troubled by his supposed upcoming doom and in this he lowkey starts to hyperventilate when he thinks the druid kid is about to kill him) but he’s always jumping at the chance to lay down his life anyway - they say atone to save elyan, he fucking atones, even if he has to die for it

AAAAH his whole SPEECH he was YOUNG AND INEXPERIENCED he was TRYING TO PROVE HIMSELF TO HIS DAD he can STILL HEAR THE SCREAMS hes NEVER GONNA LET THIS HAPPEN AGAIN god im gonna LOSE MY MIND

like i said aloud going into this “i am still so mad at him he better display some top-tier empathy if he wants out of the doghouse” BUT HE DID...MY BOY...

also i feel like this hug from this kid he GOT KILLED is maybe only the 8th time he’s ever been hugged in his whole entire life

am not a big fan of merlin giving him shit about his lil moment in the end but like also...maybe he was just trying to cheer him up...the way Men do...i hurt

anyway this is like the first sign we’ve seen since arthur’s coronation that maybe he isn’t going to be totally anti-magic like uther forever...the first sign we’ve seen that he truly is anti-genocide...it’s true atonement and it’s Good

and not to give the writers this much credit but in my heart the reason he was so adamant to save that little druid kid (mordred) in season 1?? was because of this, the dead druid children weighing on his conscience. also gives new weight to the very brief scene in i think the s3 finale where he held his sword to a druid kid’s neck in exchange for the cup of life, and maybe explains a little bit why he looked so fucking spooked in there. no they didn’t do it on purpose but why ignore something that’s so good even if it is accidental THANK YOU AND GOODNIGHT