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No Merlin thread?

I thought Arthur was going to bare the weight of the sword anyway, and Morgana was going to do something more obvious that Merlin would have to counter.
 
And I do wish Arthur had won on his own, ok Merlin counteracting Morgana's magic so it becomes a fair fight, but then essentially Arthur would still have died if it wasn't for Merlin, which always seems to detract from Arthur's strength.

The whole stated aim of this show, from the first monologue of the first episode on, is that the fate of Camelot rests on Merlin's shoulders, not Arthur. In fact, the name of the show is a bit of a giveaway in this respect. Arthur has been consistently thick from the start so it's unlikely he's going to suddenly get all kingly on us. The way Agravaine so easily persuaded him to kill a neighbouring king for no good reason was a perfect example of this.
 
^True, but then it was Arthur who resolved the situation in a very kingly fashion. And I don't think Agravaine's advice was completely without merit given the other kingdom had been steadily encroaching on Camelot's territory for a while.

I don't mind Merlin saving Arthur (a lot) but sometimes I think it should just be enough to level the playing field.
 
Yeah, his advice wasn't exactly out of order was it? I mean I'm sure other kings would do the same in his place. Not exactly going to gain people's trust but it is a show of strength to others encroaching on Camelot.
 
Not really.

It's cause for escalation.

if that king backed down from that boy, he'll be perceived as weak and open himself up for invasion too.

There's two things Arthur should have done.

1. cut off one of his hands and promised he'd lose the other if he came back.

2. Send them home naked tied to their horses, which shows power and mercy.

3. Demanded one of his daughters for his queen, thus assimilating the old guys kingdom through marriage instead of war. Your daughter or your life? What are the odds he doesn't have 12?

So, Uthur had sex twice.

In those days evey marriage needed to produce 12 children so that by some miracle 2 would survive to some measure of adulthood.

if Arthur had killed him in combat, wouldn't that have meant he'd "won" the wife if not the kingdom?
 
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Exactly, it wasn't an especially nice or moral thing to do, but given the world they inhabit it wasn't exactly without merit...

Although I like the sending them home naked notion!
 
The only reason that I can think of that they dressed Merlin up as a knight was that a knight wouldn't run from a fight even if ordered to, which I exactly what they needed to have one of them do to win the day.

Next week.

Merlin to Gaius: "I kissed Morganna"

**They High Five**
 
Agravaine's advice was solid, but not for the happy go lucky world of Albion. Agravaine and Uther would have fit right in with the land of Westeros.

Anyway, decent if forgettable episode. Again. Next week's should be hilarious.
 
How often does Castro 'visit" America?

I mean seriously, the wife is going on about Broadway and saks avenue, and it's not like he can send her off alone, or trust the Cuban mail Service if she tries buying on line? And honestly, if Castro wanted to visit Disney Land, would they clear the park for him? So what if he's a despot, with a nod he can start slave labuor digging the foundations for Disney World Cuba, that's some gladhanding you'd be a fool not to embrace.

(google says he visits America now and then.)

But what would be the consequences if the until recently dictator of Cuba didn't forward his intentions through the US State department? if his missus really really needed new shows I mean.

Deportation? Jail? Execution?
 
And I do wish Arthur had won on his own, ok Merlin counteracting Morgana's magic so it becomes a fair fight, but then essentially Arthur would still have died if it wasn't for Merlin, which always seems to detract from Arthur's strength.

That was my favourite part actually, that it became more or less a duel between Merlin and Morgana by proxy. Arthur is the pawn, Merlin is the player.
 
He's trying to make a modern analogy for a neighbouring king trespassing on another king's land, except that Castro is hardly a current example. My contention is that if Arthur had been kingly he would have done the medieval kingly thing and held the trespassing king for a whopping ransom, both to humiliate the king and demonstrate to everyone that trespassing is very expensive.
 
I don't think Arthur was out of line to execute the guy at all actually, what he did was an act of war after all. But yes, the ransom idea makes more sense.
 
He's trying to make a modern analogy for a neighbouring king trespassing on another king's land, except that Castro is hardly a current example. My contention is that if Arthur had been kingly he would have done the medieval kingly thing and held the trespassing king for a whopping ransom, both to humiliate the king and demonstrate to everyone that trespassing is very expensive.

And Castro wouldn't have brought an invading army with him on his visits to America and tried to Annex part of the country.

And you're right, he probably would have been better off doing that, though it may have just invited war anyway.
 
It was the way to get round wars as I recall although it never worked very well. Arthur's solution to the problem was so Boy's Own it still doesn't make him look kingly. The whole point of being king is to lead and serve your people, not sacrifice yourself in a noble gesture.
 
He's trying to make a modern analogy for a neighbouring king trespassing on another king's land, except that Castro is hardly a current example. My contention is that if Arthur had been kingly he would have done the medieval kingly thing and held the trespassing king for a whopping ransom, both to humiliate the king and demonstrate to everyone that trespassing is very expensive.

And Castro wouldn't have brought an invading army with him on his visits to America and tried to Annex part of the country.

Well not outside of Red Dawn anyway...
It was the way to get round wars as I recall although it never worked very well. Arthur's solution to the problem was so Boy's Own it still doesn't make him look kingly. The whole point of being king is to lead and serve your people, not sacrifice yourself in a noble gesture.

Yes but at the moment he's king in name only really, he doesn't have anywhere near the experience that Uther would have had. As for the boys own stuff, well that was his way out of the mistake he'd made in killing the other king. So leading your men into battle where hundreds will die makes you more kingly?
 
^Maybe so, but Arthur isn't supposed to be about that is it? He was supposed to be all honour and fairness and about uniting the country, etc.
 
Boys Own doesn't even begin to describe the can of worms this child has opened up.

All the neighbouring empires are now wondering if they can beat Arthur in Single combat, then they can all be in line for half of Camelot. Of course the second champion to win a fight with Arthur gets half of half of Camelot and so on, so there's a time issue.

Castro retired in 2008, handing power over to his brother Raul. But come on, Cuba is a three hour ferry ride from Miami beach... It's a doorstep issue rather than an imminent threat issue.

Single combat in the modern day...

If Castro had offered to Arm wrestle the President of the USA, depending in which era the challenge was issued, the stakes on the table being Cuba and Florida, which arm wrestling bouts would prove the victory to which side?

Fidel Castro vs. Ike.

Fidel Castro vs. John F. Kennedy?

Fidel Castro vs. Lyndon Johnson?

Fidel Castro vs. Richard Nixon?

Fidel Castro vs. Jimmy Carter?

Fidel Castro vs. Ronald Regan?

Fidel Castro vs. George Bush?

Fidel Castro vs. Bill Clinton?

Fidel Castro vs. George W. Bush?

Fidel Castro vs. Barry Obamma?

Try not to be unreasonably patriotic when fathoming how some one as physically indomitable as Castro would ever lose to one of these guys, even 40 years his junior.

Although?

Eisenhower was kind of wiry.

(Yes, yes, humour this.. MWAH-HA-HA-HA!)
 
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