**SPOILERS BELOW**
The first scene introduces us to Gilli (Harry Melling), who is traveling through the forest, and meets 2 bandits who torment him, especially after he tells them he's heading to Camelot to fight in the tournament. I must say here, the way that they are tormenting him, it just makes me think, there, now you know how poor Harry felt for all those years, being tormented by you...but I then have to remind myself these are 2 different franchises, and he is not playing Dudley Dursley! Back to the show...
The bandits take his sword, and when they don't return it when he asks, he tries his hardest to fight them, but he's thrown to the ground, and they are off with his sword. He then rummages through his bag and pulls out a ring. On goody, we've moved away from magic bracelets to rings! It glows, and then so do his eyes. Another sorcerer is coming to Camelot.
Merlin (Colin Morgan) and Arthur (Bradley James) are walking through Camelot, and discussing the tournament, clearly to tell us--this is a tradition in Camelot, every 10 years anyone may sign up to win big money--which brings in some not so lovely people, and any weapon may be used, as there are no rules--though I would bet that magic would be the exception to the, "there are not rules" rule. And then, the bandits we saw earlier are flinging axes, and Merlin's head barely escapes.
Later as Merlin is working on Arthur's armor, and the bandits come in and one demands that he clean his boots (what an evil fellow), and Merlin actually goes to do it! When he's not fast enough, the bandit whips him. At this moment, Gilli makes his entrance, wearing the ring. He asks the guys nicely to put down the whip, and when they are rude and don't listen, he uses his magic to quickly summon a sword (which no one seemed to notice) and then he fights them briefly, obtaining the whip, and tells them to get out--and they do. Then it seems that Merlin and Gilli are fast friends as they both know what it's like to be bullied.
At dinner that night, it is clear that Morgana (Katie McGrath) is trying to use reverse psychology to get Uther (Anthony Head) to compete in the tournament and defend his title as 3 time champion, clearly hoping that he won't live to see the following day...her true hope is more than likely that both Uther and Arthur fall in the tournament, then she would be the queen. To Arthur's horror, Uther falls for Morgana's ploy!
We then are treated to a bunch of fighting, old, old, old school style and also getting to see the faces of the spectators reacting to the fighting. Interesting enough, but let's get on with it. Oh, hey, it's Uther, and he won--though by Morgana's face you'd think it was he who fell. Then it's Arthur's turn, he stands and watches his opponent swinging around the swords, and once he advances, Arthur simply punches him out. Too funny!
Bandit #1 is up--though he's quickly taken down...but he's evil, so he pulls a knife from his boot, and cuts his opponent, who goes down. Instead of just taking the win though, he takes an ax and cuts the fellow's neck, WTH?? The audience seems to think the same.
Gilli then walks into the ring, holding only a sword and small shield, with no armor. He looks utterly outmatched by his large and armored opponent, though he is very good at defense. Once he gets his bearings, the rings glows, then his eyes, and magic causes his opponent's sword to get stuck in the wood of the stands, then he is able to take him down. The use of magic wasn't totally obvious, this time...but Merlin looks skeptical.
On his way out of the stadium, Gilli runs into Merlin and Gaius (Richard Wilson), who wants to treat his arm (which was cut in the fight), Gilli covers it up, with his ringed hand, and declines treatment. This allowed Gaius to see the ring, and we learn that the markings are from the old religion, duh? And then Gaius reminds us that Uther will have him killed if he finds out...something that has been made very clear in every episode of Merlin to date.
Gilli then goes to put his sword away, and realizes that his arm is a bit more worse off than he thought, so he steps out into the hall and uses the magic of the ring (My Precious) to heal himself. Alas, he is seen--really, he thought he could hide a massive glow and him screaming while standing in a hallway? Two guards appear and chase him, in the chase, the ring falls to the ground, which he doesn't notice until he's back at his room in the inn, safe, for a moment. Then the bells start to toll...Uther will be after him now.
In the hallway, Uther investigates the burn markings (left by Gilli's spell) and determines it had to be sorcery--amazing, this time he's right! But GaiusUther. This also gives Gaius the chance to find Gilli's ring, who, once Uther has left, tells Merlin to go and talk to Gilli, "before it's too late."
Merlin goes to visit Gilli, and let's him know that though he need not fear him for the use of magic, he definitely needs to fear Uther. Gilli doesn't seem to care, or get it. He says he will not be like his father that possessed magic, but would never use it, even to save himself. He doesn't go for it, and still will fight.
The next day, we are then treated to more tournament fighting...Uther wins, Arthur loses his helmet, but still takes the win...wait a sec...a thought, if both Uther and Arthur win out, won't they then be forced to fight each other?? That wouldn't be a good thing for Camelot, would it? Oh hey, look, they are going to fight each other--remember I write this as I go...oh, and Gilli is fighting the evil bandit, who taunts him right before the match. Maybe not such a good idea.
I'll be honest, I'm kinda bored with this episode, and don't feel like watching anymore of it. I don't like that we've gotten fully away from the Morgana story arch and this is a stand alone episode. I like the epic storyline of Arthur finding his destiny, with Merlin's help, despite Morgana. I love the medieval fighting as much as the next gal, but I feel like we are past that at this point in the series. I want to see the story that has been set up unfold. Not some sorcerer of the week step into Camelot and have the same ol' stuff happen. I'm disappointed in you "Merlin," I expect better. If you want to find out the rest, watch for yourself, as I am going to quickly watch the rest (another 20 minutes) and move on with my day.
WAIT! Okay, I may have misspoken, a tiny bit. Best part of the episode so far is the fight between Uther and Arthur--and of course, Morgana is loving every moment, hoping that they will kill each other. The last 20 min are FAR better than the first, there is an intense scene between Gilli and Merlin about the use of magic--where Merlin reveals his secret, and Merlin seeks advice from the Great Dragon, and there is a suspenseful fight at the end...you'll have to watch to find out more...it's not a bad episode, it's just not one of the best.
Torchline.com: Facebook Recap: Merlin 3.11: The Sorcerer's Shadow
Looking forward to the final episode of the series, a 2 parter...Looks freakin awesome and back to the greatness that is, Merlin. Elyan (Gwen's brother, and a known knight of the Round Table) returns! Here is a sneak peek:
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