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This soothes the pain of the end of Gods of the Arena ... a little
*bows down at the feet of her majesty Queen Eva*
Seriously, the show is worth watching if for no other reason than seeing Eva HBICing like it's going out of style.
TV Series: Camelot (2011)
Network: Starz
Creator: Michael Hirst, Chris Chibnall
Cast: Eva Green♥♥♥, James Purefoy, Claire Forlani♥, Jamie Campbell Bower, Tamsin Egerton and Joseph Fiennes
Genre(s): Drama | Fantasy | History
Certification: US: R, UK:15
Plot: England is threatened with chaos after the sudden and untimely death of King Uther. The sorcerer Merlin sees visions of a future filled with darkness, and helps install Arthur, Uther's son -- raised from birth as a commoner, with no knowledge of his royal lineage -- as the new king. When Morgan, Arthur's half-sister, learns that she has a half-brother, one for whom Merlin claims proof that he is the legitimate heir to the thrown, she is determined to battle and defeat Arthur "to the bitter end," using "unnatural forces to claim the crown" in what will unfold as an "epic battle for control.
Camelot - 1x01 - Pilot
Thoughts:
- The episode starts off slow and badly edited, and the pacing throughout the whole thing is almost incomprehensible (there is almost no sense of how long is supposed to have passed between scenes), but picks up in the later half. I got genuinely interested in what was happening when Merlin, Arthur and Kay arrived at the abandoned castle Camelot, and thought the episode stayed strong after that. I'm willing to give this show a while to find it's legs though, because I was thoroughly unimpressed by Spartacus: Blood and Sands pilot, but I ended up loving (and still love) the hell out of that show. Also, Eva Green.
- I'm glad that we won't have to suffer that bastard Uther in this series like we do on Merlin. I love you Giles (ASH) but Uther is such an asshat. I'm glad that the character's douchery is called in this show and he gets what's coming to him. I like Sebastian Koch though, so I'm sad that he's gone (it was like watching S.W.A.T: Firefight for Kristanna Loken and her only being an screen for two minutes all over again. Okay, this was less disappointing, but it's the same principle)
- Eva Green is phenomenal. It's going to be awesome watching her be powerful, bitchy, wrathful, manipulative, and regal for the course of the show.
- As a Merlin viewer, I couldn't help but love that Camelot's Morgan, is pretty much Morgause. Her background, her hatred for Uther, her mastery of magic, her disdain for Arthur, and her seducing King Lot in order to gain the use of his army (it's basically exactly what Morgause did with Cenred). And my love for Morgause is well known, so I love that Morgan shares similarities with her.
- I'm actually really liking Claire Forlani as Igraine. And after the first scene of the show, I kind of ship Igraine/Morgan. The look Igraine gives Morgan right before she leaves the room did it.
- Not sure how I feel about Jamie Campbell Bower as Arthur, or maybe just how I feel about Arthur at this point. JCB managed to charm me a few times, but they were far and few between. Arthur is a real teenager right now, and I'm not really interested in watching him emo his way onto the throne. I wish they'd switched the personalities of Arthur and Kay. Kay is great so far, and much more noble/heroic than Arthur.
- I'm sorry show, but the softcore porno dream Arthur had about Gwen (and Merlin hilarious creepin' in on his sex dreams) did not inspire a sense of epic romance in me.
- This is an interesting presentation of Merlin. He comes across as a real arrogant bastard, but then again it's not surprising that someone as powerful as Merlin would be. He definitely has the potential to be a magnificent bastard though, so I'll see how I feel about him in a few episodes.
- James Purefoy is a lot of fun to watch as King Lot. He's basically playing a bearded Marc Antony, and this time is sexing up Eva Green instead of Polly Walker. Say is with me people .... lucky fucking bastard! I don't think King Lot is going to be around for the whole first season, but I'll enjoy him while he's here. Also, the sex scene between Lot and Morgan was ... I don't even know how to describe it. It was kind of hilarious, but also pretty awesome. Oh, those two.
All in all, the pilot was okay, but I definitely sense potential for the show to become Must-Squee-TV.
Seriously, the show is worth watching if for no other reason than seeing Eva HBICing like it's going out of style.
TV Series: Camelot (2011)Network: Starz
Creator: Michael Hirst, Chris Chibnall
Cast: Eva Green♥♥♥, James Purefoy, Claire Forlani♥, Jamie Campbell Bower, Tamsin Egerton and Joseph Fiennes
Genre(s): Drama | Fantasy | History
Certification: US: R, UK:15
Plot: England is threatened with chaos after the sudden and untimely death of King Uther. The sorcerer Merlin sees visions of a future filled with darkness, and helps install Arthur, Uther's son -- raised from birth as a commoner, with no knowledge of his royal lineage -- as the new king. When Morgan, Arthur's half-sister, learns that she has a half-brother, one for whom Merlin claims proof that he is the legitimate heir to the thrown, she is determined to battle and defeat Arthur "to the bitter end," using "unnatural forces to claim the crown" in what will unfold as an "epic battle for control.
Camelot - 1x01 - Pilot
Thoughts:
- The episode starts off slow and badly edited, and the pacing throughout the whole thing is almost incomprehensible (there is almost no sense of how long is supposed to have passed between scenes), but picks up in the later half. I got genuinely interested in what was happening when Merlin, Arthur and Kay arrived at the abandoned castle Camelot, and thought the episode stayed strong after that. I'm willing to give this show a while to find it's legs though, because I was thoroughly unimpressed by Spartacus: Blood and Sands pilot, but I ended up loving (and still love) the hell out of that show. Also, Eva Green.
- I'm glad that we won't have to suffer that bastard Uther in this series like we do on Merlin. I love you Giles (ASH) but Uther is such an asshat. I'm glad that the character's douchery is called in this show and he gets what's coming to him. I like Sebastian Koch though, so I'm sad that he's gone (it was like watching S.W.A.T: Firefight for Kristanna Loken and her only being an screen for two minutes all over again. Okay, this was less disappointing, but it's the same principle)
- Eva Green is phenomenal. It's going to be awesome watching her be powerful, bitchy, wrathful, manipulative, and regal for the course of the show.
- As a Merlin viewer, I couldn't help but love that Camelot's Morgan, is pretty much Morgause. Her background, her hatred for Uther, her mastery of magic, her disdain for Arthur, and her seducing King Lot in order to gain the use of his army (it's basically exactly what Morgause did with Cenred). And my love for Morgause is well known, so I love that Morgan shares similarities with her.
- I'm actually really liking Claire Forlani as Igraine. And after the first scene of the show, I kind of ship Igraine/Morgan. The look Igraine gives Morgan right before she leaves the room did it.
- Not sure how I feel about Jamie Campbell Bower as Arthur, or maybe just how I feel about Arthur at this point. JCB managed to charm me a few times, but they were far and few between. Arthur is a real teenager right now, and I'm not really interested in watching him emo his way onto the throne. I wish they'd switched the personalities of Arthur and Kay. Kay is great so far, and much more noble/heroic than Arthur.
- I'm sorry show, but the softcore porno dream Arthur had about Gwen (and Merlin hilarious creepin' in on his sex dreams) did not inspire a sense of epic romance in me.
- This is an interesting presentation of Merlin. He comes across as a real arrogant bastard, but then again it's not surprising that someone as powerful as Merlin would be. He definitely has the potential to be a magnificent bastard though, so I'll see how I feel about him in a few episodes.
- James Purefoy is a lot of fun to watch as King Lot. He's basically playing a bearded Marc Antony, and this time is sexing up Eva Green instead of Polly Walker. Say is with me people .... lucky fucking bastard! I don't think King Lot is going to be around for the whole first season, but I'll enjoy him while he's here. Also, the sex scene between Lot and Morgan was ... I don't even know how to describe it. It was kind of hilarious, but also pretty awesome. Oh, those two.
All in all, the pilot was okay, but I definitely sense potential for the show to become Must-Squee-TV.
no subject
Honestly, couldn't they have cast someone who actually looks like they're capable of producing testosterone!! I'm sure somewhere Bradley James is kicking himself right now. But, things could've been worse - they could have cast Alex Pettyfer!!
Eva Green is phenomenal.
My only gripe is did they have to make her *soo* batshit insane? Like, a little nuance goes a LONG way! IDK, it kinda reeks of sexism. Like, Morgan can't be powerful *and* female unless she's crazy.
no subject
Heh! I know. In that sex dream sequence with Gwen it was almost impossible to tell who was who with both of them having flowing blonde hair and delicate frames.
But, things could've been worse - they could have cast Alex Pettyfer!!
Ugh. Alex Pettyfer's 15 minutes have only just started but I already want him to go away forever. He's not even that pretty anymore. Hopefully once "Beastly" tanks, Hollywood will stop trying to make him happen.
My only gripe is did they have to make her *soo* batshit insane? Like, a little nuance goes a LONG way! IDK, it kinda reeks of sexism. Like, Morgan can't be powerful *and* female unless she's crazy.
I wish she was a bit more subtle, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt for now. They did portray Uther has an utter douche which gave credence to Morgan's hatred of him, and she did apologize to Arthur to before Lot murdered his non-Claire-Forlani mom in retribution for Arthur killing his son in self-defense.
Merlin comes across as a manipulative, kind of creepy dick (though we're supposed to cheer for him and presumably love to hate Morgan), Lot is crazy (over-react much there buddy?), and Uther was a cold-hearted, pillaging rapist, so it's not like Morgan is the only person of questionable morality.
Hopefully the flesh out the character a bit more though. I don't want another smirking!Morgana debacle.