Merlin was a five-year plan
For a show about a young wizard, Merlin couldn’t conjure a decent response when the television gods shook the Magic 8 Ball and determined the fantasy adventure’s future last November. The result: Outlook not so good. The series, based loosely on the legends about Merlin and King Arthur, was cancelled.
Though the BBC One show aired its finale in the U.K. last December, Merlin only begins to cast its Season 5 spell on Canadian viewers today. And, as Katie McGrath (Morgana) told the Los Angeles Times, that’s just what the creators intended. “The producers had a five-year plan,” she said. “They always had plotted out the storylines for five series and the character arcs so we knew a good bit before everyone else (that the end was coming), and we feel very lucky to tell the story properly as it was intended.”
Illustrating the divergent TV tastes between Brits and Yanks, Merlin was a smash in the U.K. and brought an average of seven million viewers per episode. On NBC, not so much — it debuted to 5.35 million, and when NBC later shuttled it to cable network Syfy, it took in 1.7 million on a good day. Season 5 fast-forwards to Camelot three years after Season 4, with peace enveloping the kingdom and Arthur (Bradley James, Doctor Who) feeling the flush of success.
Yet, there’s a menace in them thar meadows. Men begin disappearing into the frozen territories of the north, and King Arthur and his knights must find out why. Similar to the way Smallville updated the story of Superman — with The CW’s trademark goodlooking cast and high drama, no less — Merlin breathed fiery life into the mythological English characters.
What’s beyond this incarnation of the King Arthur story? Well, TV execs seem to be fond of the tale — CBC recently aired the short-lived series Camelot, courtesy of U.S. cable network Starz — and there may be another take brewing, but Bradley James, who plays Arthur, is certain he won’t be part of it.
“It was something discussed,” he said, when asked about a sequel. “But I think it’s time for me to hang up the chain mail, to be honest with you, and pass the mantle on to the next person who shall take on the throne of Arthur Pendragon.” (Space — 6 p.m.)
Wedding Band, Brian Austin Green’s new comedy about, well, a wedding band is back with an episode titled 99 Problems. We’re assuming that Jay-Z doesn’t make an appearance. The band, Mother of the Bride, is hired to play a divorce party, which turns out to be the breakup of the couple whose wedding was the band’s first assignment. (MuchMore — 8 p.m.)
The Mob Doctor’s slow plod toward TV death continues with the episode ironically called Resurrection. In it, Constantine (William Forsythe) uses Al Trapani (Mike Starr) to try to reconnect with his son Garrett, who owes the Nogales Cartel a favour. (Fox, CTV — 10 p.m.)