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Another coloring page is done! I hope you all enjoy it :D Link for pdf HERE

So I'm on season 3 and since the start of the show Uther has been a genocidal maniac with no one stopping him. The show tries so hard to make it a "not black and white" case when it very clearly is.

That man is a villain and Merlin and Arthur coming to his defense whenever something is of danger to him makes them just as bad as he is. Like how the hell is Merlin so passionate about protecting the guy who killed and is continuing to kill his people.

Now they are making Morgana out to be a villain with these cartoonish expressions and stupid ass sound track cause she wants him gone??? Like be fr he would've had her hung the moment he would've found out about her having magic.

Idk I can't even enjoy the show anymore cause of how fucked up its morals are.

This has escaped my control, I can’t reign in the ladies, they’re taking over kingdoms and forcing me to write dramatic prose. Uthyr the conquering queen, her prince consort who was the one magic took instead of Uthyr as was what she intended with the deal, and the maidservant Merlyn who is a horrible influence on the crown princess, encouraging her to do things like reject the expectations of her position and become a worthy ruler for Camelot in her own right.

Camelot is newly matriarchal with Uthyr’s reign, the Knights of Camelot made up only of noble women whom she can entrust her life to, though other ranks remain in their canon/historical gender distribution, from guards to servants. Even the queen can’t change some things :P

Arthur (fem name pending) is the acknowledged and rightful heir, though it’s probably an open secret that Morgan is a bastard since Uthyr would’ve had to, y’know, go through childbirth.

And oh god what about dragonlords and their paternal inheritance?? I’m changing characters’ sex, not the way magic works. Balinor (fem name pending, she’s a new addition to the brainstorm) probably knows loads about magic and is still the last of the dragonlord lines alongside Merlyn, so she can pass knowledge to help defeat the dragon still… Merlyn is magic itself though so I could maybe finick the laws of magic to let her do more 🤔

I feel very similar to Gwain personally. We even have comparable hair. His attitude and thought process resembles mine a lot. He is clumsy and always the last to get it. He's smart when he tries but mostly gets labeled as dumb. And I get it when he was sounder by the bees and freaking out. Gwain cares for his friends and is always in trouble. He lives a good fight. And like I always say” If it ain’t dangerous it ain’t fun” which seems like him. not to mention we both like liquor. Overall, we are quite alike.

I could’ve flaired this as Discussion cuz I’d love to hear more on this, but it’s Misc since it’s mostly me rambling :P

So I started doodling fem versions of the guy characters because I find it easier to draw ladies, I love my girlies, but wanted to draw Merlin and Arthur so 😗 But then I started thinking about the plot implications and it quickly got out of control

Merlin isn’t actually impacted by this at all tbh, she’s still a super powerful warlock just trying to get by in a magic-hating country and fulfil her destiny

Arthur was the first issue — she’d be the crown princess since, while Morgana would be a guy he’s still a bastard so only Arthur has a blood-right to the succession, but that changes SO much. Uther wouldn’t let her be a knight, though Arthur would probably still learn to fight because it’s Arthur, take the man out of the knight but you can’t take the sword from the knight.

And then came Uther. Is Uther now Arthur’s birth mother?? Did she think she was giving her own life for Arthur’s but was even more devastated when Ygraine was taken instead but that didn’t even seem like a possibility since Uther was the one giving birth?! What about the fact that canon Uther conquered Camelot?? Is Camelot actually super progressive and has mostly female warriors?? Did this Uther instead take Camelot politically? Is she a hypocrite (likely, knowing Uther) and fought for her kingdom but won’t let any other woman?

In more fun brainstorming:

Merlin has no idea what she’s doing with hair so Arthur spends a while having to go to other people until Merlin learns, though even then Arthur now has simpler styles than before because Merlin can’t do anything fancy (it’s a good visual representation of Merlin’s increasing influence on Arthur 👁️ 👁️).

Arthur is being coerced into marriages all her life, but she totally ends up the reigning queen and if she takes a partner they will only be her consort. The Once and Future Queen we love you. I think it’d be a bit funny if the prophecy is about the once and future king but Merlin truly believes that Arthur of all people could queen her way to kingship, so she just girlbosses her way into her destiny.

Gwen definitely spends his time as a manservant gathering flowers still, though he probably does way more work at the forge. On that note, it seems Elyan running off is lended more weight.

My greatest issue so far is actually picking a fem name for Arthur. My current choices are: Arthea, Martha (kinda sounds like Arthur aloud), Artura and Arthelia

What’s the general consensus on Ygraine’s country of origin? She has a French name (both the chosen version of her first name and the choice of her last name), but her hair and outfit evoke Greece, plus she was the queen of Camelot so there’s some of that influence in her design too.

The costume designers weren’t era-accurate, going for aesthetic over historical accuracy, so going off vibes and my limited fashion history, I’d pin her as Greek.

I’d assume the De Bois family are French and had recently moved to or from Greece, Ygraine carrying that influence with her to Camelot.

Plus, Ancient Greek is used for the language of the dragons so it lends to fun headcanons about Ygraine and Balinor’s possible friendship.

Istg all my posts are titled this, I keep talking about this darn fic I’m writing

Was playing with the idea of a “true love’s kiss fixes everything” solution to the question of what to do with Lancelot’s shade, thought I’d throw this out there while I continue figuring out what I’d like to do with him

I was talking to my mom (we watched Merlin together religiously for years) and she told me she NEVER WATCHED the last episode. I told her that that was unacceptable and we had to watch it- she suggested a marathon during Christmas.

Are any of you marathoning Merlin this Christmas? And what was your reaction to the ending?

I literally got up off the couch and screamed “NO!” And the cried for a long time.

I wanted to do a kid Arthur design so I could doodle for my time travel AU, so please enjoy the silly lil guy (featuring Sir Ranulf, Arthur’s childhood friend who was killed offscreen and was apparently meant to be played by James Robinson, continuing Arthur’s legacy of being one inch shorter than his best friend)

i’ve been putting it off for months, i don’t want it to end and honestly i’m getting a very bad feeling about this especially after episode 5 the disir with the fate and stuff with mordred 😭 MAMA IM SCARED I WANT EVERYONE TO BE HAPPY can morgana go away like how did she survive mordred stabbing her in season 4?????

my question is that should i finish the series at all or is ignorance bliss?

Does anyone know which episode Merlin says "it's as if the world is vibrating. As if everything is much more than itself". And Arthur says "You feel all that"?

Some friends and I started a little film club. Everyone submits a film to get chosen at random. For mine, I choose the episode of dr who midnight. To make it the same length as a film, I’ve decided to also show an episode of Merlin.

I’m not sure which episode to pick. I’m definitely thinking season 2 or 3 (those are my favourites) and I need an episode that is more self contained but still fits the vibe of the majority of the show.

Please give me suggestions!

LANCELOT WAS SO HARD AND I STILL CANT GET HIM RIGHT

I have come to the dastardly conclusion that my history of drawing women of colour… means I draw women of colour most easily — who could’ve guessed!!

Gwaine 🤝 Gwen 🤝 me confusing the “gw” names 🤝 the easiest Merlin characters to draw for me

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Hi I like to draw and I personally think we have too few Merlin coloring pages so I've made this printable one <3 (full res pdf if you want) Lmk if you folks want more, I might need to make a set or smth :D

Edit: omg thank you for the award!! Y'all are the best 😭

I’ve been struggling for forever to catch a bit of the characters’ likenesses and FINALLY!! I can finally relax and get on with writing fics instead of using the transform tool to nudge features three pixels to the left

I’ve only done Merlin, Arthur and Mordred so far but I should probably try one of the ladies, I’d love to draw Gwen

have you ever noticed Arthur's face when Merlin runs in and says "it was MEE" 🤣

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Elyan’s actor suddenly appeared as I was watching Death in Paradise (s5ep2)! I didn’t expect you, sir 😂

He looks like he might end up being one of the main characters of the episode…this’ll be fun, he’s off to check on the canapés (he better not be the victim)

Update: he did not die! He’s the victim’s partner ✨ I think I’ve seen this episode before, but I hadn’t noticed the actor and it’s been a while so I don’t recall the episode. New wish: he’s not the murderer (or maybe it’d be super fun if the lover was the murderer >:3)

Update: THE CANAPÉS WERE A RUSE!!!! 😱

Mine are (& brief reasoning):

• Gwaine: crackhead energy lool, charming, funny, fun, brave/reckless
• Lancelot: so noble, selfless, amazing, kind, caring, quietly charming
• Arthur: so brave, kind, fair, had such great character development as the series progressed

Anyone know where I can find scenes of Gwen as Queen? The only ones I’ve been able to find in good quality are her finding out about Merlin’s magic and her coronation. Thank you in advance !!

For me it must be the whole "there is no place for magic in Camelot" , I get whiplash just stumbling upon a screenshot of this scene snrnntnekfkw

The best Merlin episode is the hunter’s heart, as I will explain below.

Number 1: hot. It’s the hottest episode. Gwen gets hunted like an animal by Morgana, and then she’s turned into an animal and shot by her ex’s new girlfriend. Hot! We also see Gwens tummy, as she’s a fallen woman now. There’s other stuff, fun femdom Morgana and agravaine chemistry, and lots of subtextual merthur (“doomed to be a bachelor”).

Number 2: it’s one of the best Gwen episodes. Gwen is the most vulnerable character in the series: she has the least magical or martial power of any of the main four, and her powerlessness is actually explored, at the same time as we get to see her make decisions and use her agency when she spies on Morgana and tries to escape through the forest. When she gets kidnapped, and essentially kept as a sex slave, the way we see her trying to manage that that relationship and survive is compelling.

Number 3: great hunt. Loads of great historical details like the beaters and the bugles and Arthur being given the opportunity to make the kill. The shot of the broken tree branch when Morgana is chasing Gwen, so good, she’s tracking her. The part where Merlin realises who the deer is! Taking something historical and doing this emotionally heightened story.

Number 4: actually great feasible alternative love interest for Arthur, a believable option for him, making it all the more powerful when he rejects her for Gwen.

I think the comedy is important for Merlin because it’s contrast, but the main pleasure of the series to me, it’s taking some fun historical and mythical stuff and creating magical melodrama.

Edit: the show is quite Madonna/whore in the way it treats it’s two female main characters, and this episode disrupts that a bit. The fact that Gwen is a fallen woman (sort of, at one point needing to rely on sex work to survive) who is also given agency and treated with empathy. But the decision of who is valued, and who protected, still rests on Arthur. The story line sets up that the women in the story are for him to judge and evaluate, apart from Morgana, who sits outside the system and is dangerous and disruptive.

I’d love to draw a lot of my ideas, especially since I can’t share them as fics until they’re complete (I’ll never get the motivation to finish smth if I post it before it’s done) but I’m really struggling to draw the characters in a way I like!

Do you have any features you think are important to translate to make the characters look like themselves? Like with Merlin, his cheekbones and lips are very distinctive, but what about other characters like Arthur and Mordred?

Drawing characters in a recognisable way is always a struggle for me 😅

Edit: the MOMENT I posted this, I was suddenly doing great at catching their likenesses 💀 I love the discussion and perspectives that cropped up though so I’m glad 😋

Update: Mordred is best boy as usual, precious baby

What do you guys think happened right at the end when Merlin crossed that lake where Arthur passed.

In the end, just before the end credits rolled, we should have seen Arthur emerging from the water.

Adding a scene where Arthur emerges from the water at the end would have created a powerful, satisfying resolution for fans, bridging the sense of tragic loss with hope for the future. It would have stayed true to the show's theme of destiny and the promise that Arthur would return in Albion's time of need. Instead of leaving viewers with only the heartbreak of Merlin’s endless wait, this final glimpse of Arthur would suggest that the prophecy of "Once and Future King" is more than just a legend Merlin clings to.

Seeing Arthur rise again—even briefly—would have brought poetic closure while still honoring the myth’s cycle of waiting and return. It would have been a small but emotionally charged scene, reassuring fans that Merlin's loyalty and sacrifices would ultimately be rewarded. It would have resonated as a timeless echo of hope, a glimpse that Albion’s golden age might still dawn again, fulfilling the show’s vision with a profound sense of resolve.