Merlin - Aithusa - An Episode Review

Merlin continues to recover its former atmosphere after a very dark beginning to the series resulting in Lancelot's departure and Uther's death. This time round, we're getting a spot of good news!

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Gaius gets a visit from an old pupil in the middle of the night, Julius Borden. Borden is searching for the third part of a Triskellion, an ancient key. The key is rumoured to open a tomb that has been left unopened for four hundred years - a tomb that contains the last dragon egg. When Arthur hears of this, he sets out immediately to destroy the egg. After consulting with the Great Dragon, Merlin vows to save the egg - but can he live up to his promise?

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It's good to see a storyline that doesn't revolve around the evil witch Morgana for once. Morgana is completely out of the picture, this time focusing on restoring the former glory of the dragons. With a suitably selfish and evil villain to chase after, Arthur and the Knights of Camelot, set out to destroy the egg. However, Merlin does not want to destroy the egg but rescue it instead. Finally, we see some nobility returning to the show. Another plus is that, for once, almost all the scenes are shot in broad daylight! You can't tell me that this is a dark episode now.

The thing I really liked about this episode is the ending. But I can't say anything about that, otherwise I'd have to kill you. Other things I enjoyed was the sheer magic of it (and not evil magic either - yes!), the scenery used (just brilliant, suits the episode perfectly) and the various dangers encountered by Merlin and his friends. Merlin himself has ample opportunity to make use of his special skills, as you shall see if you actually watch the thing.

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All in all, I'll give it a seven and a half out of ten. It's got the action, it's got the peril, it's got a definite absence of the Lady Morgana and lots of opportunities for Merlin to use his awesome powers! However, it is lacking in the funnies department. In a perfect Merlin episode there should be a balance of magic, action, good old-fashioned villainy and a bit of humour thrown in there too. This one's lacking in the humour department, but delivers the goods elsewhere.

If you live in Britain, then you can watch then Merlin episode 'Aithusa' at the following address: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b016dnyh/Merlin_Series_4_Aithusa/

Next week, I'll be back with more news of Merlin and another review. Until then, that's this review over.