#the pendragons of bbc merlin FUCK ME UP

[thatgaywizardoverthere]

Arthur keeping tabs on Merlin day 1 so they can “accidentally” run into each other at the market

[gd-dollopole]

“In life, you always have a choice. Sometimes, it’s easier to think that you don’t.”

“I don’t want to be brave. I just want to be myself.”

“Some lives have been foretold, Merlin. Take heart, for when Albion’s need is greatest, Arthur will rise again.”

“There is not right or wrong. Only what is and what isn’t.”

“An half cannot hate what truly makes it whole.”

“No young man, no matter how great, can know his destiny.”

“I’m happy to be your servant, until the day I die.”

“Sometimes, you have to do what is right and damn the consequences!”

“You’re a son of the earth, the sea, the sky. Magic is the fabric of this world, and you were born of that magic. You are magic itself.”

“Everything here—is so full of life. Every tree, every leaf, every insect. It’s as if the world is… Vibrating. As if everything is much more than itself.”

“I don’t want you to change. I want you, to always—be you.”

“Until then, we go unmarked in death as in life.”

“You’re wrong. Don’t think I don’t understand loyalty just because I’ve got no one left to be loyal to.”

“You’re like two sides of the same coin.”

And in the same show, you’ve got an episode where the entire castle suffers from flatulence, Uther goes bald, the court physician slaps the king across the aforementioned bald head, more than once, while being possessed by a Goblin, the prince Arthur Pendragon gets donkey ears and brays, and another one when Uther, none other than the King of Camelot, marries a Troll.

The duality.

[pyjamacryptid]

*points with a whole lot of passionate agreement and teary eyes!!!!* I love your further analysis, and as a result I have more thoughts so I'm going to ramble them here, rather than get cut off by the tag limit (I can't believe I reached it last time lmaooo). This is no planned out essay but I'm going to put it under a keep reading break because this is Getting Long lol

I've noticed Morgana only deals in extremes. If she loves you, she LOVES you. If she hates you, she HATES you. If she didn't care for you? Um, do you even exist lol? But she's so extreme that the two "sides" are actually right next to one another. She thinks she's pulled a 180 when really it's a 360 and she's simply at the joining end of the circle, facing where she began. If she hates you, it's because she loves you too much to know how to deal with the pain she's feeling. If she hates you, it's because you're the next best thing to direct her pain and loathing at. And, like I said, Arthur was the next best thing. Uther had his legacy on a marble pedestal and polished it every waking second while his son was begging by his feet for scraps of acknowledgement and his daughter pleading just to be let in the room.

Then the coward died. Arthur inherited the throne. Morgana inherited his hatred.

Arthur opened the door to Morgana but by that point she had made him a substitute. Because, like it was with Merlin's reveal at the end of the series, it was never about the magic. Less and less was her vendetta about magic liberation. It was "I'll hate you before you can hate me first". It was "it's only fair I take what Uther treasured more than me, that I destroy what Uther valued over me" Uther valued (and feared) appearance over his own familial bonds. Uther did love them, as much as he can probably love someone (condition upon upon condition upon condition). But he saw his children as extensions of himself and not as real, true, autonomous people. Yes, it's true that appearances are certainly important in such a political world, especially as a ruler. But Uther used appearances to control Arthur and Morgana.

Arthur, whether he knows it in those words or not, knows Uther values this. He was probably taught this, groomed to be King like he was. And so, he caters to Uther's value and fear of appearance. He mitigates any "scenes" in court. He makes sure not to appear like he's against his father when in the company of others and court. If he must convince Uther of something, he frames it as beneficial to Camelot and/or how it might make them appear to allies/enemies (negatively or positively). If someone speaks out stupidly in court (Merlin) or is being punished for speaking out (Morgana), he makes it appear to Uther like he will deal with his servant (as if it's below Uther, and he's Arthur's responsibility anyway, so sorry sire) when really he's agreeing with Merlin and plans to help him, and he makes it appear to Uther like Morgana has tooootally learnt her lesson, so remorseful (gnashing her teeth and swearing in the bg lol), maybe no more dungeon haha yeah sire?

But, even if Arthur has learned how to play the game Uther has forced him to participate in, Arthur is more prisoner to it than anything else. Even after Uther dies. It's so ingrained in him, by then. Like, for eg, when Agravaine manipulated him to kill the King of Carleon, Agravaine weaved a huge tapestry of BULLSHIT about how this will make him appear like a strong king, like his father. Despite, this - and despite relapses - Arthur usually manages to break out of it. Because Arthur values honesty. He might need reminding of it (which I think he's aware of, in some way. Merlin is his main touchstone but he surrounds himself with anchors), but once he is reminded of it, he sheds the mask Uther wanted to be his own face. But, unfortunately, that doesn't always mean people see that. Especially not when they don't want to see it. You can be as honest and as vulnerable as you want but some people have already made up their minds. Like Morgana had. Morgana also knew how to play this game. Of course she did. Despite her compulsive smirking (affectionate), she wasn't caught by anyone but Merlin and Gwen until she wanted to be. Because she had appearance on her side. Because she was Uther's ward, whom he loved so much, oh-so-traumatised from a year of captivity. But, unlike Arthur who catered to Uther's value and fear of appearances, Morgana - even pre-s3 - always challenged appearances. From the first episode. "Let's give them a night they'll really remember." She used it when it was beneficial to her, and fought it when it was no longer beneficial to her.

Morgana had the freedom to challenge them, however (this statement is made in comparison to Arthur, keep in mind). She was a ward, not an heir. But, just like Arthur, she was also prisoner to it. Though, differently. I bet Arthur has done the "agree with father in public, believe morgana in private" routine hundreds of times, even before Merlin came to Camelot and we, the audience, could see it. But, it's like Morgana falls for it every time. And I don't necessarily blame her. Imagine screaming in a room and everyone looking at you like you're crazy or care too much and the one person who probably believes you and has some power to back you up is like "nope, boss is right" in front of everyone. That SUCKS. Even if it was all a lie and he's totally on your side anyway. Because it's all behind closed-doors. But, she continued to see only the appearances. Even when Arthur is kneeling in front of her, trapped and heartbroken, she can't see beyond the memory of the mask. Or, she doesn't want to. I don't know. But, bringing it back to Uther (naturally, because he's the root cause of this rot, isn't he) - Uther imprisoned Arthur with the appearances an heir should be concerned with. Uther imprisoned Morgana with the exact same appearances. Only, it was the "protection" of Arthur's appearances, which was really, ultimately, the "protection" of Uther's appearances, all by shoving Morgana in a locked box and yeeting it into the Mariana Trench.

This took priority over telling his daughter she was his daughter, even privately, even after she had just woken up from almost dying.

Uther went on about how he couldn't lose Morgana, that she meant so much to him, that he would do anything to save her - but it wasn't enough to tell her just how much she meant? It must make his love feel like deceit. It must have reinforced what Morgana was already concluding; Uther's legacy meant more to him than she did. He would do anything to save her? Yeah, right. Not up against that. Appearances can be deceiving. And I'm pretty sure Morgana chose what "face" to believe long before Arthur could have done much of anything to prove otherwise.

I always think of this scene and the feast with Sarrum in conjunction.

Arthur seems betrayed over and over again by Morgana, like every time is the first time, because it feels like the first time to him

He’s always had the uncanny ability to stand up for her in court, behind Uther’s back for sure, but he had made her a priority when she showed up at his door

And on his trips. And for his counsel. And at his battles. Wherever she invited herself along, he would make the effort to see her, and value her input, like she was equally as important as an advisor even as a cast-off ward, or however much a nobody the rest of the court perceived her- ‘high strung’ and valuable only to look at

…He would think of her, and her well-being, constantly

Even if he had to smile through the pain and lift his goblet at Sarrum, even if he had to put up the pretense of not caring

Just like he said in ‘Lancelot and Guinevere’ - “my father is right Morgana” when she had begged him for help publicly

But afterwards, when he retires to his chambers, he would put on his armor for Morgana

Take up his sword and shield

And believe her

Even if he must do it in secret…

And that’s what makes this scene all the more heartbreaking to me, because yes, appearances can be deceiving

And he had his friends and family fooled all along, if they believed that he had ever stopped loving her

[purple-mushroom-cap]

in honor of merlin trending on a random monday in november, allow me to reiterate AGAIN how much magic in camelot parallels with the queer experience in a community that frankly treats queer children with almost the same hate and violence king uther had against sorcerers.

morgana thinks hating (sorcerers) is morally wrong and disproves of her bigoted father killing them all. she believes that despite what you were born with, you should judge someone based on their character. she figures out she's (a sorcerer). gaius gaslights her into thinking she's crazy. she goes to merlin, also (a sorcerer). he's about to tell her this secret that's been weighing on his chest for so long, that everyone told him to hide because people would look at him differently for being open about. the person he loves most in the world, in fact, might hate him for being honest. he ends up not telling morgana, even though he's the only one that would understand. morgause gives morgana unconditional love and affection after telling her she's (a sorcerer) too! morgana leaves her prejudiced and claustrophobic family life for a girl that's given her validation for the first time in years. (yes, i know morgause is her sister. love comes in all forms, especially the queer community.)

now replace every (sorcerer) with (gay).

[justaz]

oh fuck merlin following after arthur for five seasons, at his heel following him into every battle, every fight, every quest without regard for his own safety. arthur dying on the shore of that damn lake and merlin dying with him but his body remains. arthur goes to avalon and merlin is forced to stay on earth. merlin can’t follow arthur this time. this is one journey merlin and arthur can’t take together. two halves split and kept apart for over fifteen hundred years. goddamn it. these fucking assholes never fail to make me cry. i hate them i hate them i hate them i hate them

[queerofthedagger]

—Nikka Ursula

For @merlinrarepairfest Day 3

[imagine-to-be-a-pike]

Arthur had every right to hate magic. I won't take back these words.

[rnmidnm]

Good fathers do not leave their children in dungeons for a week.

Good fathers do not train their children to kill since birth.

Good fathers do not make their children watch executions.

Good fathers do not hit their children for mere disagreement.

Good fathers let their children learn of their mother, if she is dead.

Good fathers do not choose power over their children.

Uther Pendragon is NOT a good father.

[dragonlordofmiddleearth]

Girl what did Arthur do in the legends

He got Morgana pregnant with baby Mordred

[vi-visected]

i don’t know where the fuck this came from, actually

[1asbrightasthestars3]

Y'all already know how much I adore Merlin but y'all also know how much I hate the Merlin writers. Just simply because they could have done more to add to the plot and they just didn't,

I'm not even talking about Morgana not being corrupted or Arthur not dying (although I want to.) because it really was necessary to the plot, what I am talking about is the plot holes,

The thing that upset me most when watching merlin, the thing that made me stare confusingly at my shitty laptop screen over and over,

The extreme lack of blood.

Now don't think I'm psychotic or anything please, it's merely logic.

Am I supposed to believe that this knight just stabbed a dude and the blade comes out completely clean? Am I supposed to believe that this one girl hit her head on a rock and didn't bleed AT ALL?? just like that??

Like there was a bit of it in the earlier seasons (bloody bandage over chainmail, what the fuck.) but then nothing??

Like I get it was supposed to be a family show (Harry styles reference) but come on. You already stabbed someone, at least make it a little bit more realistic.

COME ON PEOPLE SHOW ME SOME BLOOD

thank you all for listening to my rant<3

[kosmikowboj]

there’s so much I love about this addition in the tags by @fuckingfandomfreak but what’s especially killing me is the comparison to arthur. because. yeah. I feel like throughout the show we watch arthur become a much kinder and warmer person, influenced largely in part by merlin. and yet merlin in that same time becomes a much more cynical and dark person, willing to do anything and everything it takes to keep arthur alive, no matter the cost.

this all makes me desperate for a fic where s5 merlin meets s1 merlin…like even early seasons merlin was a little crazy but he was so much more forgiving and willing to place his faith in the benefit of the doubt, and I think the dynamic of s1 merlin seeing what he’s going to become and s5 merlin realizing what’s become of him would go absolutely fucking bonkers.

more merlin fics should dig into the fact that’s he’s like. legitimately kind of insane. like he heard that mordred was going to be the one to kill arthur and did not think for even a second before deciding to treat him like the literal scum of the earth. he would have lived in hiding for the rest of his life if it meant mordred was dead and, iirc, mordred hadn't even done anything yet. wherever arthur is concerned, merlin will bleed and suffer and kill and he does all of it with a blind loyalty that is definitely not healthy and I just feel like that is such a compelling character element that more people should play with.

[gd-dollopole]

“The Death Song of Uther Pendragon,” 05x03, has to be one of my favourite Merlin episodes (it opens the gate to so many theories)

I rewatched it today, and a lot of things and questions came to my mind:

1) What would have happened if Arthur had summoned Ygraine, instead of Uther?

Following the rules, Arthur should have been able to summon every spirit he wanted. If Ygraine had been able to respond to Arthur, I believe things would have been very different. She would have been proud of Arthur, who would have changed things for the better, and therefore the plot line of the entire show. Ygraine has only ever been the one to make Arthur see what was right in front of him, even more than Merlin, like when Arthur had tried to kill Uther in the second season, and accused him of his hypocrisy, once he knew of how his mother had died, and since the second person Arthur trusted the most, Merlin, told him that what Morgause had shown him was a lie, Arthur believed him, reinforcing the idea that Uther was a good man.

2) If it would have been possible to summon anyone, then why did Arthur choose Uther, of all people?

Even if the answer seems obvious, I don’t think it actually is. Arthur had always known one person that was meant to be family and who technically didn’t betray him. He still felt guilty for choosing magic to save Uther, and it was actually what brought his father away from him, the only parental and father figure (as horrible as he was) who Arthur had ever had. His choice was also influenced by the date, since it was the day after the celebration of his coronation, and the same day Uther died. The moment Arthur meets Uther in the Spirit World, he tells him, even as he fights with him, that he has so much more to say to him. I think Arthur wanted nothing more than validation, something he had never had, and hoped he could find in the same man who had told him, seconds before he died, while being held in his son’s arms, that he knew Arthur would make him proud. The last moment Arthur had with Uther was the only one in his entire life where Uther had actually rewarded him and his duty with kindness and sincerity. Which means, at least in my opinion, that Arthur had hoped that that was the man he was about to meet in the Spirit World. That rare man who had sacrificed himself to save his only son and who had called him Arthie and to whom he had said he was proud of. But it wasn’t that man, and Arthur left the Spirit World feeling disappointed.

3) But what if it wasn’t possible to actually summon Ygraine, or certain, specific people?

When they go back to Camelot, Arthur and Merlin ask Gaius about the Horn of Cathbhadh and they found out that summoning spirits has always been a ceremony, a tradition, even one that Gaius had multiple times attended, held by High Priestesses, meaning that many different people could have been able to participate, which explains while even a commoner or someone without magic or practice could use the Horn, like Arthur did. Later on, after Arthur meets Uther and Merlin confesses what they had gone to do to Gaius, telling him of his fear that Uther may have left the Spirit World, Gaius tells Merlin that those same High Priestesses trained for years before using the Horn, which makes me believe there were so many rules to follow and accept, which brings us to the question. What if one of these rules was to know in your heart who you’d believe had passed away and went into another realm, and who got stuck into the Spirit World?

4) Therefore, what if the Spirit World is actually a place where spirits, who have either undone/unfinished things in life, or are bitter, cruel, and with many grudges and anger inside, or had died in an unjust manner, get stuck there forever?

We have no explanation of it or of how it works, and no one else tried to blow the Horn, but that would explain why Arthur didn’t think of his mother first, Ygraine, instead of Uther. He thought it more simple and less dangerous, since he had no knowledge of magic and didn’t want to ask anyone, not even Gaius, about it (not knowing Merlin had magic, and still, even he had no knowledge of these practices) to summon someone, who deep inside his heart, he knew was still stuck, somehow, in the between of the Worlds, of the Dead and of the Living. This means that Arthur somehow knew that Uther had something he thought was unfinished, or even going more far, we might think Arthur sort of hoped it, and not only to see Uther again because he was his father, but to be right about his character and himself, as a sort of bitter sweet victory, as if Arthur wanted to say to Uther: “If you’re still here, if I’m able to see you, talk to you, you might have done something terribly wrong, which makes me right, because you have never actually been a good and just man, like you painted yourself to be.” It opens a great theory about where Arthur actually went to after his death, since he was burned and mourned by Merlin and sent into the Lake of Avalon.

Another thing I believe further proves my theory, is that all the people in the show that we see dying, are buried in a boat and burned in a lake. Now, I have no idea if it would have been unusual or even disrespectful to burn Uther and send him on a lake, but even Elyan, and Lancelot, two honourable knights with high status, who before were simple commoners, were burned and sent on a boat in the lake when they died.

All, except Uther.

I want to believe that it was a sign to show Uther the disrespect he deserved.

Others may think that it’s the opposite, that Uther was the king and had to be held on an higher position, and therefore buried in the same castle he had conquered, but it wouldn’t make sense, since Merlin buried and said goodbye to Arthur in the same way as the others.

It makes me think that all who had died in the show are free of the Spirit World, unlike Uther.

It also opens so much theory about where did Morgana, or Mordred go.

6) Did people’s beliefs matter?

If the majority of people had supported Morgana and Mordred in their conquest to kill King Arthur, maybe their support would have been enough to make Morgana and Mordred free, to be free in the after life. We also have to remember Mordred was buried, much like Balinor, under rocks, because it was illegal to do otherwise for sorcerers, to be buried in another way.

7) All these people, buried in another way, in an unjust way, like for sorceres, who didn’t even get a burial, but were killed unjustly, where did they go?

I like to imagine they are stuck in the Spirit World too, and take revenge on Uther in any way the can, knowing none of them will ever die again. Uther’s punishment is to live in an endless loop of what he had put magical beings, humans and non, under, while he, a tyrant, reigned.

5) If this is the case, this must mean, in order for the summoning and the ceremony to work in the Living World, there had to be rules in the Spirit World. Did Uther know these rules?

As soon as Arthur entered the Spirit World, taking in consideration the theory that is just a layer of another world, slightly pulled away from the Living one, where some can see the progress of humanity but not so clearly, as if looking through a damp glass, Uther was able to not only spit everything he hated about his son to him, but he also warned Arthur that he had seen the kingdom he had built and that he disagreed on, which is another proof to my theory that those who are like Uther, or simply left to death in an unfair way, without an inch of respect, are somewhat stuck in the Spirit World and damned to see what happens outside of it, but without the ability to stop or intervene in anything they witness (it would explain why Uther hadn’t discovered Merlin’s magic before, since his goal has always been the one to watch Arthur and how the kingdom progressed, in order to protect his legacy, as he puts it in the episode). Not only Uther told Arthur he had watched him, but he warned him that he had to go, otherwise he would have been stuck into the Spirit World forever. This means that Uther knew that there were bounds and rules and that summoning someone with the Horn of Cathbhadh could be dangerous, if a person didn’t know the exact rules.

8) Has Uther seen someone else being summoned?

In this episode, Gaius says the Horn has been saved before the Purge and never been used since. But someone else could have used it, even a simple person, who longed to see their dead lover and blew the Horn. Because of the Purge, many traditions had been forgotten and the use of the Horn could have been forgotten too, used only by simple people who found it or hid it, and who didn’t know what they were doing, but later found out about what it could do, once one of them, out of curiosity, blew it, and summoned a spirit. If the High priestess were people who were born as magic did, and had held these traditions for centuries, it would also explain why ghosts existed. Many people had been left out wandering without a chance to go back into their Spirit World. Uther may have seen, in a world where he wandered endlessly too, someone else being summoned before him, or met someone else who knew all of these things before him.

Which only means one thing:

The last thing Uther Pendragon did before Arthur would disappear from the Spirit World, was to manipulate him until the last moment, and hurt him in doing so:

With the knowledge Uther had, he may have understood that the person who summoned a spirit could have freed it by looking back at it. Uther was a tyrant, a bitter and cruel and murderous man, who without doubts, tried to kill Arthur in the same episode, in the name of his legacy and of “his” kingdom. Uther cared more about something that he couldn’t even rule anymore than his own and only son, manipulating Arthur to no end, so that he would do what Uther wanted him to. His last words to Arthur, that irremediably made the latter turn around, were: “I will always love you, Arthur.” It sounds as if Uther grasped at the little thing he had, knowing that those words would have made Arthur turn. Uther wanted to get out of there, and did not mean a single word he said to Arthur. To Uther, in that precise moment, Arthur was a mean to escape.

9) But what if the Spirits had some saying in being summoned, and refused to appear?

Arthur simply sounded the Horn and Uther appeared, which opens the door to so many possibilities. Uther had agreed to meeting him, but some other Spirit could have also refused to meet the people who had summoned it, and the Horn basically wouldn’t have worked.

10) What if the spirits simply got more bitter with ages of being stuck into the Spirit World and without nothing to do then relive their deaths, or past mistakes, and getting tired of it?

The spirits got stuck in their world for centuries and forgot why they were there or what they did, while they had lived, and just got so much anger inside themselves, they didn’t know anything else except that feeling, like those who believe the theory that every ghost is bad, and does bad things, because it wants to protect their surroundings, or does it because it doesn’t know anything else. Uther may have being fuled with even more hatred than ever and his true feelings actually came out once he got out of the Spirit World, showing himself to Arthur for who he truly was (Uther has always showed Arthur his tyrant personality, but it feels as if we had been the only ones to see it, until Arthur finally did too)

What if Merlin, at the end of the episode, smuggled the Horn into his satchel, promising Arthur he would have put it into a safe space, and went to the Stones of Nemethon instead.

Suspicious, Arthur followed him, and frightened of another Spirit wandering into the Living World again, he jumped into the light with Merlin, who had summoned Balinor,

and Arthur watched everything unfold.

And Merlin, after 1500 years of waiting, found the Horn again, under rubble and rubble of the Camelot castle, as he had desperately searched for it, and decided, in the last attempt to meet Arthur again, to blow the Horn.

But as Merlin had suspected, the Horn didn’t work, and no one, not even a light, appeared in his way. Merlin blamed it on so many factors, on the fact that Arthur had been dead for too long, or because he was in Avalon, and with an heavy heart, and a weary sigh, Merlin turned around and walked away from the dried up Lake.

But the sound of the Horn had been loud enough to disturb the Once and Future King.

And Arthur woke up from his old sleep.

[rainstormsandothersadthings]

He closed the door behind him as softly as he could, as if the slightest echo in the hall would send his father’s knights running down the hall. As if they would be able to sense his mere aura in the castle after he had been gone, not because they cared, but so they could put him in front of the king.

[sarcasticchaosbitch]

I FUCKED UP I FUCKED UP I FUCKED UP

I imagined Geralt and Jask in their places, too. I'm a fucking idiot who enjoys causing myself emotional pain-

And you could technically fit Merlin and an in-the-know Arthur from BBC Merlin into it, with Merlin as the Doctor and Arthur amazed and I love with this fantastic magical genius of a man-

I digress. Point is, you could put almost any otp in the Doctor and River's places to cause immense emotional pain. I'm off to softly weep into my pillow.

A friend of mine (you know who you are, you whore) told me that they had the thought of Johnny and Simon in River and the Doctor's place (specifically "you don't expect a sunset to admire you back" and pretty much every other moment of emotional torment with my favourite Doctor Who couple) and I haven't been able to get it out of my head since.

On a completely unrelated note, I need someone to help me hide a body.

[victimsofyaoipoll]

Round 1

Propaganda Under Cut

Alana Bloom

she kissed will graham in s1 and dated hannibal in s2 so you can imagine how bad the fandom is to her. fun fact she's in a canon lesbian relationship now tho <3

The show literally does the yaoi treatment of victimisation for the benefit of the male leads to her. And then the fandom mistreats her

I'm not sure if this even counts but...Literally a victim of Yaoi along with several other characters in-series, but she got it almost the worst. The entire show is just people dying because the two male leads are OBSESSED with each other and can't be normal about anything. Alana Bloom, actual PhD of psychology and consultant to the FBI, got kissed by one guy, fucked and fed people-meant by the other, and pushed out a window by the murder husbands' forced-surrogate daughter. Like. Actual victim of several crimes caused by yaoi. She's probably one of the few examples of a Yaoi Victim overcoming and evolving past her yaoi-related trauma into a stronger person/character, though: She gets an entire character overhaul and a hot, millionairess for a wife. She kills a man with an eel. She becomes head of the BSHCI, effectively putting her in complete power over her jackass cannibal ex-bf. She does quite well. Unfortunately, the rest of her screen time is spent trying not to get killed in the ongoing fallout of Hannibal and Will's fucked up courtship, but hey. Can't have everything. I don't even know if I'm saying anything valid here: the fandom loves her, but I supposed her position outside of the Hannigram relationship relegates her to a non-subject in a lot of Hannigram-focused fanwork. She's an 'obstacle' to their relationship only in the sense that Will had a crush on her once that went nowhere and Hannibal started an actual relationship with her SPECIFICALLY to piss off Will. I guess she's also a more literal obstacle as Hannibal's jailer and Will's friend who's constantly pointing out to him that Morals exist and he should try having some of those, maybe.

Gwen

She stands in the way of Merthur, by far the most popular ship in the fandom. I haven’t seen it as much in recent years, but back in the days of fanfiction.net she got slut shamed so badly for having been romantically interested in three of the male characters over the course of the show, which is just... normal straight woman behavior, meanwhile Merlin crushed on pretty much every woman who even looked at him in the early seasons of the show and got no hate for that whatsoever. I barely even read Merthur fics (not because it’s m/m, just because certain aspects of their relationship don’t appeal to me) but the “Gwen is a slut” attitude was so pervasive across the fandom, even fics that weren’t explicitly anti-Gwen would “jokingly” call her a slut. I even saw a few fics demonizing her for having an affair with Lancelot despite the fact that SHE WAS ENCHANTED when that happened, and surprise surprise, Lancelot (who was also under the influence of magic) got none of that hate, and neither did Arthur, who got enchanted to fall in love with multiple women over the course of the show.

Canonically Arthur Pendragon's love interest and an important and interesting character in the show who's completely shoved aside and ignored in favour of the medieval bbc yaoi ship. At best they put her and Morgana in Lesbian Timeout (ie make them get together and then reduce them to wingwomen at best because god forbid we focus on the medieval bbc yuri). Justice for Gwen right now!

She is prince Arthur's love interest (eventually wife). Arthur is MADLY in love with her. He tells his tyrannical father he would give up his crown to be with her (she's a servant in the series). He forgives her cheating on him with Lancelot (!), which in the show is caused by an evil enchantment, but the characters never find out about it. He chooses her time and time again. His love for Gwen is literally never put into question. Many fans insist to this day that there was no chemistry between Gwen and Arthur compared to Arthur and Merlin. Arthur isn’t even particularly nice to Merlin most of the time! The funny thing is that Merlin himself ships these two so hard and does everything he can to help them get together!! Gwen & Arthur are adorable and too many fans were drunk on the yaoi fumes to see it. ARTHUR WAS A SIMP FOR GWEN.