S05.E07: Nimue

[formerlyfreedom]

In Camelot, Merlin spearheads a mission to reunite the dagger with Excalibur so he can use the weapon to save Emma from the darkness threatening her soul. With Zelena in tow, Hook, Mary Margaret, David, Regina and Robin steal into Arthur’s castle to take the broken sword from the maniacal king. Meanwhile, Merlin brings Emma along on a journey to confront his ancient nemesis and retrieve the sacred spark he’ll need to reforge Excalibur. Both parties are tested, but one suffers a blow that could derail the entire operation. In a flashback to long before the Age of Arthur, young Merlin finds purpose after he is blessed with magic and immortality, but when he falls in love with a young refugee named Nimue, everything changes for Merlin, as their romance starts a chain of events that touches every one of our present day heroes.

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5_ox62SVvs

[InsertWordHere]

Emma screaming "I am not nothing! I have never been nothing!" is quite possibly my favorite moment in the entire series.

 

Emma clutching the ring Hook gave her as she chants in fear that the darkness won't take hold made me tear up. And that Captain Swan moment was just the cherry on top of a beautiful Emma sundae. Why don't they focus on her more often? She is everything.

 

I am done trying to figure out this show's timeline. I gave it a good go, but it's impossible. You win, show!

Edited November 9, 2015 by InsertWordHere

[Randomosity]

Can we not with the awful Dark Swan voice anymore? Makes me want to mute all of Emma's scenes. It's so grating.

 

ETA: Aw, Baby Mickey :) And Captain Swan *swoon*

Edited November 9, 2015 by Randomosity

[Mari]

1000 years ago--before the age of Arthur?  Um . . . if it was a 1000 years ago, duh?  Now, 200 years earlier?  So, before/after/during the Rumple/Milah/Zoso/Hook era?  Or doesn’t that matter?  Then, “Years earlier.”  What is the point of the mix and match specific/nonspecific timeline tags?  Because it’s sort of ridiculous.

 

The ropes on Merlin’s hands--runaway captive or slave?

 

Yay, Hook!  Someone needs to be worried about Emma.  The tantrum at the beginning had some good points--and, well, during his scene with Emma, having him point out that just because she can’t be killed right now doesn’t mean Emma would survive.   And, huh, there are fewer operational buttons than usual on his shirt. 

 

Zelena’s Granny’s planning scene was reasonably entertaining, but why is it supposed to be funny when Regina controls people?  Yes, Zelena’s not a nice person, but, umm, Regina’s not either.  Why is it supposed to be funny when she controls Zelena (and in an earlier episode or two, Emma)?  Because it’s sort of gross and creepy, and sort of contradicts the “She’s totally a hero, now!  The hero-est hero, ever!” thing they’ve been going for.

 

Production-type things:  Zelena’s aqua camelot dress was a really pretty color for her.  Also, couldn’t they have gotten a less rose-ish flower to be the fake middlemist?  Because everytime I see those perfect long-stemmed roses in the middle of all those ferns, it is so obviously fake it throws me out of the story like the bad CGI almost never does.

 

I would also like to do a little dance of triumph, complete with victory arms, because Nimue was the Dark One.  I realize that some things are beyond easy to predict for this show, but it’s been a crusty week, and I’m going to relish the little wins.  Yes, parts of it were pretty obviously taken from Return of the Jedi, but I still won.

[Jul 68]

Go Emma!

Bad spfx at the end of this episode, but Go Emma!

What was Merlin compensating for when he made Excalibur so long?

[superjengirl]

Wow... I can't wait for next week's!

[Curio]

So we’re supposed to feel sorry for Nimue when Vortigan burns down her village and the audience sees all the skeletal remains left behind from the destruction on screen, but we’re not supposed to feel sorry for Percival when he describes Regina burning down his village, and in fact, we’re supposed to root for Regina while Percival gets killed off? Screw you, show.

 

That scene where Merlin stood around while Vortigan stabbed Nimue was oddly staged. Merlin didn’t have to use magic to help her and could have physically tried to do something about it, but instead he just stood there dumbfounded and did nothing.

 

Oh, and I like how last episode had literally no effect at all on the series of events in this episode. No one even batted an eye or asked about where Belle and Merida disappeared to.

 

With that said, I’m glad they’re finally moving the plot along and it was awesome to see Emma battling Nimue in her head—and winning! And as usual, Hook and Emma are pretty damn cute together.

Edited November 9, 2015 by Curio

[bmoore4026]

So they took one of the best, strongest female character in the Arthurian Legend and made her into an Elphaba Green witch?  FUCK YOU, SHOW!

 

Also, I think I know what's bothering me about Merlin.  It's not because he's black - it's because he's young.  I didn't mind it on the show Merlin, but on this show, it drives me up the wall!  I know it's a double standard, but I would have greatly preferred it if he was at least in his 40s.

 

Zelena is growing on me and I hope she really does kick everybody's asses whilst giving birth.

Edited November 9, 2015 by bmoore4026

[InsertWordHere]

Production-type things:  Zelena’s aqua camelot dress was a really pretty color for her. 

Someone on tumblr pointed out that it's almost the exact same color and pattern as the dress Amy Adams wore as Giselle in Enchanted and now that's all I can see. Doesn't help that they're both redheads.

 

I am done with the timeline. It makes no freaking sense. Merlin says 500 years ago but the timestamp said it was 200 years before the six weeks ago scenes but that doesn't add up to 1,000 so what the heck, show? And there's way too many Dark Ones for Rumple and Hook to be as old as they are if that was only 200 years ago. Even 500 is pushing it. 

[superjengirl]

Zelena always messes things up more, sighs

[Babs Gordon]

I've officially giving up trying to figure out the show's timeline. It hurts my head so I think it's best not to think about it.

Emma fucking Swan everyone. That moment when she yelled "I am not nothing. I have never been nothing" made me cheer. I'm so proud of my lost girl. Too bad it's gonna go to hell next episode.

I am super super pumped for next week's episode!

[OnceUponAJen]

I loved Emma taking control over the Nimue in her head. She really owned it. Go JMo....a great moment for Emma!

So Merlin's name is on the sword now? An interesting twist that I will enjoy discussing more later.

I felt bad for Nimue, but the actress was awesome in that role. She's worse than Rumpel in your head.

I thoroughly enjoyed the episode. This season is knocking it out of the park for me on the Dark Swan front, at least.

[mjgchick]

Has anyone accepted Emma Swan as their lord and savior? Just me? Seriously that scene where she destroyed Nimue was awesome. Now all we need to know is wtf did she do to get to where she's at now and why did she say her parents betrayed her because it's episode 7 and so far all they've done is half assed trying to save her. Which leads me to think she lied to them because she's trying to push them away.

That was a pretty entertaining episode.

Merlin and Nimue are one hell of an attractive looking couple. Good lord.

Season 1/2 Snow would've never let Z catch her like that but I guess they needed an idiot for this episode and she drew the short stick.

Loved seeing Regina take charge without being an asshole. More of that please.

And last but not least, I see what you did show. Them parallels were strong between Emma/Killian and Nimue/Merlin. Emma/Killian will probably succeed in what NM couldn't do.

[Mari]

It makes no freaking sense. Merlin says 500 years ago but the timestamp said it was 200 years before the six weeks ago scenes but that doesn't add up to 1,000 so what the heck, show? And there's way too many Dark Ones for Rumple and Hook to be as old as they are if that was only 200 years ago. Even 500 is pushing it. 

Math and morality.

 

Once's downfalls.

[HoodlumSheep]

Good episode! Definitely a step up from the last two.

I'm happy that the story actually progressed.

The guy poofing to death after grabbing the chalice reminded me of Indiana Jones.

All the CS/Nimlin parallels!

Oh, Snow...*shakes head* that kick to the gut looked like it hurt.

Zelena was awesome! glad that she's still more powerful than Regina magic-wise.

I love King Arthur as a villain! His reasons for becoming villainous are very real and believable. Like his team-up with Zelena too!

Finally some more Emma focus too! Go, Emma, go!

*pterodactyl screech*

All the CS in the promo for next week!

Looks like maybe an Emma/Merlin showdown is coming? Based on the names on the swords, and how it was hinted at by Emma asking if dark magic can be used for good...I hope merlin doesn't die.

Also, young Mickey!!!!

Edited November 9, 2015 by HoodlumSheep

[KingOfHearts]

I'm not sure what to make of this episode. Most of it was just exposition.

 

Pros:

* The Holy Grail being Excalibur was creative. It fits with the Dark One's immortality.

* Nimue's actress did a decent job. She was pretty and I liked her accent.

* "There's no rest for the wicked."
* Like I said, a lot of stuff was explained this episode about the past. Some good revelations.

* Excalibur finally fixed.

* Nice to see Young Apprentice! Wish we could have gotten more of him.

* Captain Swan's epic scene of romance. Those few minutes were better than all of Nimue/Merlin's saga.

* Emma triumphing over the darkness. "I am not nothing!"

 

Cons:

* Not all the exposition made sense. The Holy Grail was a huge contrivance to explain away Merlin's power. Why did it not reject Merlin, and why was it just sitting out in the middle of nowhere? The Flame of Prometheus was just as contrived.
* While turning the Holy Grail into Excalibur was clever, using it to "cut away" Merlin's magic was hokey.

* Vortigan was a random killer. Never even had any lines. In all the history of fairy tales, surely there could have been some obscure character or villain suitable for his place.

* This might be an unpopular opinion, but I didn't find Merlin and Nimue's story all that compelling. Nimue was proto-Guinevere, basically.

* Merlin is the EF version of Jesus? He's a bit overpowered, imo.

* Perhaps I missed it, but did we ever get an explanation for why Excalibur needed to be fixed and why the Dark One needs it? I don't get it.

* While Zelena's betrayal was delightfully Zelena, I hate Arthur so much. He seems to always get the cards into his favor without trying.

* If Merlin couldn't raise Arthur because he was stuck in a tree, why couldn't he send over his Apprentice? That guy loves to meddle into young ones tied to prophecies. (*cough* Lily *cough*) Merlin could have appeared to Arthur like he did to Young Emma, at least.

* Somehow Nimue was the origin for dark magic? Never explained how.

* Overall this was a dark and grim episode, deviating quite a lot from the show's usual format. The size of it all was a little too big for Once's britches. 

 

Meh. Get me Emma's true intentions next week.

 

 

So they took one of the best, strongest female character in the Arthurian Legend and made her into an Elphaba Green witch?  FUCK YOU, SHOW!

That DO make-up was horrendous. Rumple's reptile skin looked like a Covergirl model's compared to that crap. I remember complaining about the glitter we saw on Emma in the ComicCon promo, but this was way worse.

 

 

Zelena is growing on me and I hope she really does kick everybody's asses whilst giving birth.

Like Regina was going to fulfill her end of the deal anyway. Zelena was smart.

 

 

How is Nimue the original Dark One when this shit with the sword went down 200 years ago, you know, when Rumple was the Dark One? They made her a contemporary of both Hook and Rumple, so how does this make any kind of sense? Plus she treed Merlin a 1000 years ago, you know when he was apparently a slave fugitive from the Roman Empire.

With that mind, there could not have been that many Dark Ones. That final scene showed many more than there could have been within the span of 200 years.

Edited November 9, 2015 by KingOfHearts

[AmeliaBedelia]

This episode was way better than the last two. It kept my attention even though I was scratching my head at certain parts.

 

Likes:

 

Hook/Charming/Snow/Regina/Robin working together as a group.

The casting department did a great job getting charming/capable actors to play Merlin/Nimue. I like these two a lot more than Arthur/Guinevere.

Captain Swan moments were awesome. The "I Love You's" (though spoiled) were just as good my tenth time watching them lol.

 

Dislikes: 

 

The Merlin timeline was wonky. The show should stop trying to put specific dates.

I had a hard time keeping track of the Camelot storyline since last week was a momentum killer. I didn't get why Arthur would immediately resort to a cauldron of burning magic (which he didn't even need because oil would have worked just the same) because some prisoners escaped the jail.

Emma's Dark Swan voice is horrible. It ruined what could have been a really powerful scene with Nimue. Instead of cheering at Emma's "I was never nothing," moment, I wanted to clasp my hands over my ears.

Snow was the dumb one this week. She shouldn't have gone within ten feet of Zelena.

Didn't care for Zelena double crossing them.

 

My biggest problem in this episode and with the whole show is the notion that good people can't kill to protect themselves. It doesn't always make someone bad...it makes them not dead.

 

Despite the criticisms, I did enjoy this one and am looking forward to next week (the first hour anyway).

 

[YaddaYadda]

It wasn't a bad episode all in all.

 

Hands down, best scene was Emma/Nimue confrontation, and the whole I'm not nothing outburst. Emma has always been made feel like she wasn't enough just as herself. 

 

CS scene, awesome. Hook losing his shit at Merlin, pretty good. 

 

I didn't find anything epic about the Nimue/Merlin romance.

 

Mary Margaret is so useless! I get she was worried about the baby, and all, but sheesh! This is Zelena we're talking about.

 

Timeline headaches.

 

How is Nimue the original Dark One when this shit with the sword went down 200 years ago, you know, when Rumple was the Dark One? They made her a contemporary of both Hook and Rumple, so how does this make any kind of sense? Plus she treed Merlin a 1000 years ago, you know when he was apparently a slave fugitive from the Roman Empire.

 

Excalibur is the Holy Grail in disguise. I remember saying Excalibur was probably the equivalent, didn't think it would be it though.

Edited November 9, 2015 by YaddaYadda

[Senna]

I don't get how Zelena was able to enslave Merlin so easily.  Not sure if I missed something or it just makes no sense *shrug*  (Kind of like how magic never seems to work for things like transporting a person or an object right where they want to be ...)  I'm also disappointed in how easily Snow went down.  I mean, it has been a while since she's been awesome, but that could've been staged in a way to look less pathetic.

 

Emma was awesome this episode; clutching the ring and yelling "I am not nothing!".  And that line about Rumple disappearing when she embraces the darkness?  Guess that's proof that she hasn't yet, even in Storybrooke :)

 

The timeline makes absolutely no sense; I don't know why they bother to put amounts when "long, long ago" would actually make things less confusing.  1000 years ago!  800 years later!  Oh, crap, that might overlap with Rumple!

[InsertWordHere]

I still don't get why Merlin would tell them to contact Nimue. Is he trying to get through to the Nimue inside of Emma or something?

[Spartan Girl]

Maybe next time an evil witch returns the good guys won't keep her alive just because she's pregnant with a rape baby.

[Writing Wrongs]

Did Merlin create the Enchanted Forest?

[mjgchick]

It feels like Emma's a video game character. She won a stage and then was about to have a nice conversation with Merlin about Henry (side note, i would've love to see Emma just talking about her son while doing this quest with Merlin.) and then he peaces the fuck out because this show never let's you win just a little bit. She's going to come back with her family and friends off god knows where.

[Rumsy4]

Really liked the episode. I don't think Nimue ever loved Merlin as much as he did her. I liked the idea that Nimue drank from the Cup to make herself immortal, and then gave into Darkness to become the First Dark One. At least Merlin wasn't directly responsible. I liked Nimue as the Dark One. And apparently she still loves Merlin.

Merlin is totally getting his heart crushed. Sob!

 

 

I LOVED the Captain Swan scene. I think Hook was a little hesitant to confess his love directly in case Emma regretted the ILU she said just before she took on the Darkness. I loved Emma's brighter than sunshine smile, and it was sweet how she reiterated her love for him. At least she got to say one "I Love You" when not facing a crisis!

 

The final scene where Dark Swan puts Excalibur together with all the past Dark Ones surrounding her reminded me of the Avatar (the last airbender). 

 

Poor Snowy Margaret got to hold the Idiot Ball this episode. 

 

Emma screaming "I am not nothing! I have never been nothing!" is quite possibly my favorite moment in the entire series.

 

Yes!! It has officially topped Charming sword fighting the Black Guards while holding infant Emma in the crook of his arm as the most iconic moment in the series. JMo was awesome in this episode! No wonder she loves the Dark Swan arc so much. It's given her a lot of room to flex her acting muscles.

 

 

I am done trying to figure out this show's timeline. I gave it a good go, but it's impossible. You win, show!

 

Math and morality.

 

Once's downfalls.

 

My OCD brain is going NUTS!! I tell you, nuts!! What's wrong with these writers?? 200 years ago? A long while ago? How can there be 100s of Dark Ones if it was only 200 years ago??!  Aarrrgh.... someone help!! 

[Randomosity]

It feels like Emma's a video game character. She won a stage and then was about to have a nice conversation with Merlin about Henry (side note, i would've love to see Emma just talking about her son while doing this quest with Merlin.) and then he peaces the fuck out because this show never let's you win just a little bit. She's going to come back with her family and friends off god knows where.

It didn't even register that we were basically Henry-less today until you mentioned him here. Says a lot about him that I don't even notice when he's not around.

[Rumsy4]

Did Merlin create the Enchanted Forest?

 

I think he created Camelot. 

 

I still don't get why Merlin would tell them to contact Nimue. Is he trying to get through to the Nimue inside of Emma or something?

 

I think Dark Swan/Nimue may have modified his voice mail. :-p 

[OnceUponAJen]

I still don't get why Merlin would tell them to contact Nimue. Is he trying to get through to the Nimue inside of Emma or something?

Isn't it because Nimue had the spark that they needed?

[InsertWordHere]

The final scene where Dark Swan puts Excalibur together with all the past Dark Ones surrounding her reminded me of the Avatar (the last airbender). 

Me too now that you mention it. 

My OCD brain is going NUTS!! I tell you, nuts!! What's wrong with these writers?? 200 years ago? A long while ago? How can there be 100s of Dark Ones if it was only 200 years ago??!  Aarrrgh.... someone help!!

Multiverse? That's literally the only explanation I have.

Yes!! It has officially topped Charming sword fighting the Black Guards while holding infant Emma in the crook of his arm as the most iconic moment in the series. JMo was awesome in this episode! No wonder she loves the Dark Swan arc so much. It's given her a lot of room to flex her acting muscles.

Ooh, that is a tough scene to beat! Both? I like both.

I think Dark Swan/Nimue may have modified his voice mail. :-p

Good thought. Or maybe Zelena/Arthur made him do it. Only Arthur doesn't remember (probably) so he was still afraid to contact Merlin from Storybrooke.

Isn't it because Nimue had the spark that they needed?

Maybe? But Merlin would have already known that Emma had the Spark by the time he made the voicemail if the Dark One's attacking him, right? IDK. 

Edited November 9, 2015 by InsertWordHere

[Rumsy4]

Isn't it because Nimue had the spark that they needed?

 

Nope. Emma got the spark this episode.

 

Or maybe Zelena/Arthur made him do it.

 

That's possible too.

Edited November 9, 2015 by Rumsy4

[Blue Plastic]

* While Zelena's betrayal was delightfully Zelena, I hate Arthur so much. He seems to always get the cards into his favor without trying.

 

This is just because "Team Good" has such idiots like Snow on it.  With dimbulbs like that, Arthur can pretty much just show up and win.  I'm sure eventually he will be defeated but it won't be because of anything poor Emma's mentally challenged parents did.  She might need to look at hiring a minder for them when this is all over because I don't think they're safe to be left on their own.  Couldn't the writers have come up with anything else, anything at all, to avoid making Snow so painfully stupid in this episode?

 

I don't see why Arthur needed a magic potion to eat away people's flesh when other non-magical substances would work just as well or, I don't know, just shooting them with arrows.

 

Merlin and Nimue weren't all that to me.  They foreshadowed Nimue's descent into evil throughout the episode with stronger and stronger hints that she was fairly easily corruptible by power.  I guess Merlin was blinded by love, but he should have noticed that about her and thought twice about altering the Holy Grail and giving up his people-helping "gift," especially since it required a kind of out-there plan that could itself be turned for evil.  What did he think was gonna happen with that sword after he used it to "cut away" his magic?  He's a dimbulb too.

 

The only one I rooted for was Emma and, by extension, Hook.  Loved that the writers let her have that line about not being nobody.  Loved it.  Really it's chapping my hide that they keep acting like this stupid Dark One power could intoxicate someone like Emma, who already had power (and had shown no inclination to use it for bad, BTW).  What Hallucination!Nimue said didn't really make any sense, actually.

[sharky]

I feel like we're all on the same page again as last week. Much better episode. Amazing what a difference it makes when you give us real character development instead shoehorning people in.

Another shout out to awesome Emma. And Hook too. There was just a lot to like.

Also, I realized Merlin's name isn't on the sword in Storybrooke. I'm wondering now if Emma brought everyone back to break Arthur's control over Merlin. Perhaps that's how she's justifying the darkness-- she used it to save them from Arthur. It would make sense considering the hints tonight when she was asking if she could use her power for good.

All that being said, ugh timeline! It's like they've spent all this money on guest stars instead of hiring a basic script supervisor to check the math and maybe refer to a show bible while they're at it. Of course that is made more difficult when you don't have a show bible but I guess whatever?

[mjgchick]

It can't be that because he saw Emma took the spark from Nimue this week. Unless of course that voicemail was done long before he met Adult Emma but I'm thinking Emma was the Dark One he was running away from because Nimue has gotten to her.

Did anyone get a first Vampire Slayer, first Avatar from Emma meeting Nimue? lol All I kept thinking of was how Korra and Buffy did this already.

[Panopticon]

Poor Snow getting stuck with the idiot ball in a massive way was the one black mark on what is otherwise my favorite episode in about a year.

Yesss, Emma!

Yesss, Hook and Captain Swan!

[Shanna Marie]

In the next episode, Emma gets back to Granny's and faces her loved ones and learns what happened. Her reaction: "You had one job!"

 

At least, that's how it plays in my head.

 

1000 years ago--before the age of Arthur?  Um . . . if it was a 1000 years ago, duh?  Now, 200 years earlier?  So, before/after/during the Rumple/Milah/Zoso/Hook era?  Or doesn’t that matter?  Then, “Years earlier.”

Yeah, I missed most of the next scene while trying to puzzle that out. The only way it makes any sense is if it was a typo and it was supposed to say that it was 200 years later than the earlier scene. They said in the last episode that Merlin was stuck in a tree for a thousand years, so all this has to have happened longer than 200 years ago. So, we had the escaped prisoner/slave finds the Holy Grail, turns the desert into forest, and becomes immortal with magic scene. Then 200 years later, he's becoming aware of the burden of immortality while doing good and basically being Jesus. Nimue comes to town, he decides he's done with immortality and turns the Grail into Excalibur to cleave himself (ugh, but I'm starting to get an idea where that might have come from) from the power, but Nimue makes herself immortal and dark and breaks the blade so he can't get rid of power and immortality, he turns the dagger end into something that can control her. Sometime later, she trees him, and he's stuck there for nearly (give or take a couple of centuries) a thousand years before Emma frees him.

 

It's weird that they threw the Holy Grail into this version of the story, even with crosses on it, and showing him praying before and after drinking from the cup. It's awfully religious imagery for a show that avoids dealing with religion.

 

Is Hook's ring really magical, or is it just a keepsake he considers his lucky charm?

[statsgirl]

I was getting so many Buffy flashbacks.....

 

I loved this episode. I'm so glad JMo gets to do more interesting things as Dark Emma.  And there was minimal Regina propping so that's good too.

 

I would take the Hook/Emma scenes and the Merlin/Emma quest any time.

My OCD brain is going NUTS!! I tell you, nuts!! What's wrong with these writers?? 200 years ago? A long while ago? How can there be 100s of Dark Ones if it was only 200 years ago??!  Aarrrgh.... someone help!! 

Merlin got his magic "more than a thousand years ago".  He told Nimue that he was 500 years old.  That still leaves 300 years for multiple Dark Ones before Rumple gets it 20o years ago.

[Mathius]

My biggest problem in this episode and with the whole show is the notion that good people can't kill to protect themselves. It doesn't always make someone bad...it makes them not dead.

 

I didn't think that was the case this time: the Holy Grail's magic is holy, granting eternal life to the one who intakes it, which means that there is no need to kill anyone in self-defense because you can't die now (unless killed by the same power, so in Merlin's case either Excalibur or the Dark One can kill him), and your magic is so powerful that you can subdue an enemy nonlethally.  Nimue had Vortigan's heart, she could have controlled him to walk into prison where he can rot, but instead she murders him out of personal vengance.  And any killing, no matter what the reason, perverts and corrupts the holy magic, turning it into darkness. And thus was the Dark One born.

 

It's a good story, except there is a minor retcon: the Apprentice said Merlin bound the darkness to a human soul that could be controlled with a dagger in the Season 4 finale.  Turns out, the darkness came from that human soul, and all Merlin did was make the dagger to control it. Oops!  Mickey must've gotten forgetful in his old age!

Edited November 9, 2015 by Mathius

[TheGreenKnight]

These are the kind of exposition episodes I usually don't like. For instance, the Guinevere/Lancelot episode really sucked. What made this work is Merlin's and Nimue's actors, they were both great.

 

That was my favorite Emma moment of the series. Nimue's costume/makeup, the dialogue, the vein in Morrison's forehead--magic!

 

Also, more Zelena is always a good thing. I think this arc is the least I've paid any attention to Regina so far.

Edited November 9, 2015 by TheGreenKnight

[KaveDweller]

I am done with the timeline. It makes no freaking sense. Merlin says 500 years ago but the timestamp said it was 200 years before the six weeks ago scenes but that doesn't add up to 1,000 so what the heck, show? And there's way too many Dark Ones for Rumple and Hook to be as old as they are if that was only 200 years ago. Even 500 is pushing it. 

 

Here I thought I had just misread the title card when I heard him say 500 years.  Good to know I'm not going crazy. I'm guessing they had a script change and the information didn't get communicated to the title people.

[Shanna Marie]

I really liked Nimue -- not in the "I want to be friends and hang out" sense, but I liked the way the character was written and I liked the way the actress played her. Aside from Regina, the show has been good about showing the danger of wanting revenge for the sake of revenge and how it hurts the person seeking it more than the target.

 

If we weren't supposed to think that Snow was a raging idiot, Zelena's crying needed to sound a lot less fake. She was practically outright saying "Boo hoo." The only appropriate response to the way she was acting would have been, "Oh, give me a break."

[CalamityBoPeep]

I don't even know what to say.  Part of me is screaming and rolling my eyes (yeah, not simultaneously) with the idiotic timeline, the idiotic Snow, Charming all "if you hurt her" like he could do anything useful about it, Merlin's nonsensical motivations....

 

But then the other part of me is going "Awwwww.... Emma!"  How I adored her "I am not nothing!" and the Captain Swan scene.  I especially loved how she quickly covered when he said he wasn't proposing.  Like she went from "oh, ok" to "wait... why not?" and back again.  It was kind of a blink-and-you-miss-it change of expression on her face, and it had me laughing out loud and going back to rewatch.

 

But seriously... why, why, why do they even attempt having a timeline, when they can't even sort it out within one freaking episode.  Rumple was the dark one for what, about 300 years or so?  Merlin got magic about 1000 years ago, met Nimue 500 years into his immortality, and she's supposed to be the first dark one.  So were dark ones dropping like flies and getting whacked by the dagger for 200 years before Rumple?  They'd have to be for there to be that many of them between Nimue and Rumple.  Gah.  Stupid show.

 

And Merlin's motivation... what's up with that?  One minute, he's all tired and wants to be mortal to marry Nimue and grow old together. ( And btw... Merlin, she wouldn't be moving on, she'd be dying someday... fine.  You didn't want to watch her die.  Why didn't you just say that?)  Then the next minute, he's perfectly fine living forever again, after she broke the sword and said no one was going to be cleaving anyone from their magic.  But then she wants to kill him later?  Wtf, show?   Was he hoping that Emma would actually kill him, then?  Has he just decided it's not so bad, being immortal?  Why did Nimue change her mind?  Feeling rejected that he didn't want to hang out, all magically immortal, with her?  His motivation throughout the episode clearly changed, but we never actually were given any information as to why it changed.  This show, I swear.

 

But then... Awwwww, Emma! 

[Randomosity]

I especially loved how she quickly covered when he said he wasn't proposing.  Like she went from "oh, ok" to "wait... why not?" and back again.  It was kind of a blink-and-you-miss-it change of expression on her face, and it had me laughing out loud and going back to rewatch. 

 

I thought I saw that too; it was a great subtlety.

[mjgchick]

But seriously... why, why, why do they even attempt

And Merlin's motivation... what's up with that? One minute, he's all tired and wants to be mortal to marry Nimue and grow old together. ( And btw... Merlin, she wouldn't be moving on, she'd be dying someday... fine. You didn't want to watch her die. Why didn't you just say that?) Then the next minute, he's perfectly fine living forever again, after she broke the sword and said no one was going to be cleaving anyone from their magic. But then she wants to kill him later? Wtf, show? Was he hoping that Emma would actually kill him, then? Has he just decided it's not so bad, being immortal? Why did Nimue change her mind? Feeling rejected that he didn't want to hang out, all magically immortal, with her? His motivation throughout the episode clearly changed, but we never actually were given any information as to why it changed. This show, I swear.

Maybe he didn't believe Emma would be that strong to not kill him. He probably thought she was already getting dark. He accepted that he'll die some day.

[OnceUponAJen]

Bless him, Hook really does put Emma first. I loved him raging inside Granny's. I'm really wanting to know more about that ring, because you just know something has been keeping him alive all this time. He has more lives than a cat.

[CalamityBoPeep]

Maybe he didn't believe Emma would be that strong to not kill him. He probably thought she was already getting dark. He accepted that he'll die some day.

 

If he wanted Emma dark so she'd kill him, then I can't say I really like the guy, even if he's pretty.  But if he's just being a pessimist then ok, he's the opposite of Madam Hope (aka: Snow).   Just wish the show could have given us a bit more insight into his motivation.  I guess that's a pointless wish by now.  They're never very great at showing us motivations of most characters not named Regina.  I ought to just give up wishing for a deeper level of story telling from these writers, and stick with my "Awww, Emma" reactions.  Until they wreck that too, I guess... then it'll be easy to quit, so there's that.

Edited November 9, 2015 by CalamityBoPeep

[YaddaYadda]

Merlin lied to Emma. What I hated the most is that he was willing to take the chance that she would fail, and become the most powerful Dark One ever. Seriously, why would he wanna unleash something like that on the world, and then he calls it a test when he's trying to talk Arthur down. 

 

Dude needs to take several seats. Also, Nimue turning into the Dark One...I still don't understand what happened there.

 

What I'm getting is that she is the one who ended up creating the Dark One. But it seems to be such a steep price to pay. I know I'm not supposed to feel sympathy for her, but the man killed her family, destroyed her village, she escaped with flower seeds.

 

Meanwhile if this man has no magic, and is just a murdering asshole, why doesn't the all powerful Merlin who knows him, and what he's been doing, go and stop him? Stop him, throw him in a dark hole where he will never see the day of light again? It's not the kind of justice Nimue wants, but at least he doesn't get to harm anyone else.

 

Merlin is a moron.

[Rumsy4]

And Merlin's motivation... what's up with that?  One minute, he's all tired and wants to be mortal to marry Nimue and grow old together. ( And btw... Merlin, she wouldn't be moving on, she'd be dying someday... fine.  You didn't want to watch her die.  Why didn't you just say that?)  Then the next minute, he's perfectly fine living forever again, after she broke the sword and said no one was going to be cleaving anyone from their magic.  But then she wants to kill him later?  Wtf, show?   Was he hoping that Emma would actually kill him, then?  Has he just decided it's not so bad, being immortal?  Why did Nimue change her mind?  Feeling rejected that he didn't want to hang out, all magically immortal, with her?  His motivation throughout the episode clearly changed, but we never actually were given any information as to why it changed.  This show, I swear.

 

I don't see where the confusion is. Melin fell in love and didn't want to watch her grow old and die (moving on is an acceptable euphemism for death). But Nimue got blinded by vengeance after seeing the destruction of her village once again. So, she broke Excalibur and took the Spark so that Merlin wouldn't be able to make himself or her mortal again. Nimue probably grew to hate Merlin after living as the Dark One for however long. 

 

Was he hoping that Emma would actually kill him, then?

 

No. It was a risk he was willing to take. What else was he supposed to do? He was the only one who could tell Emma what to do to get the Spark from Nimue. 

Edited November 9, 2015 by Rumsy4

[tennisgurl]

So much better than last week. Things happened that actually *gasp* matter to the plot! Crazy talk! 

 

Emma is amazing. Her fight against the darkness was amazing to behold. Why is this show so afraid to focus on her? Because if she was a major focus more often, our screens would melt from sheer awesomeness? 

 

Captain Swan are the cutest cuties who have ever cuted. Unfortunately, I do not at all like the amount of forshadowing that seemed to be going on. I am going to enjoy our super lovely scene of the not (but in my head, it totally was) engagement while I still can. 

 

The actor playing Merlin and the actress playing Nimue were both great. They made a lot of the most exposition based stuff work a lot more than I think it had any right to. 

 

So, watching the episode, and reading some comments here and elsewhere online, I was struck by something. Maybe its because these stories and characters are so archetypal, or because its a show based around crossovers between fictional characters, or something like that, but this episode kept reminding me of other stories. Constantly. You could practically hear the old knight from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade saying "he chose....poorly" as Merlins friend drank and then exploded. All the talk of giving into rage and anger, and doing evil to protect your loved ones, and the power of the dark side was giving me huge Star Wars vibes. Other people have already mentioned the Buffy and Avatar connections, and I have to say, the second I saw the Dark Ones mask, my first thought was "so, Doctor Doom was a Dark One"? Is this show just unoriginal, are these coincidences, or is it all more of a universal story kind of deal? This story and the images around it are so ingrained in society, that they just start to look like other stories?

 

This timeline...a wizard did it. Thats all I've got.  

[KingOfHearts]

 

It's weird that they threw the Holy Grail into this version of the story, even with crosses on it, and showing him praying before and after drinking from the cup. It's awfully religious imagery for a show that avoids dealing with religion.

Then having the guy say "gods" beforehand seemed strange, since the Holy Grail really has nothing to do with polytheism. I know, I know - it's FTL's version of the Holy Grail. But it still had the crosses on it and the setting looked biblical.

[Rumsy4]

Is this show just unoriginal, are these coincidences, or is it all more of a universal story kind of deal?

 

Merlin drank from the Holy Grail and acquired magic/became immortal. Who does this remind one of? Jacob from LOST. They both also had a loved one turn into a monster they needed to destroy. Very original.

Edited November 9, 2015 by Rumsy4

[MedievalGirl]

Loved the episode but I gotta say, dark hoods and glowy eyes is never not gonna be Jawas.

 

 

Vortigan was a random killer. Never even had any lines. In all the history of fairy tales, surely there could have been some obscure character or villain suitable for his place.

Vortigan or Vortigern is part of Arthurian Legend. Not random. 

Edited November 9, 2015 by MedievalGirl