So I stayed up very very late reading Merlin fanfic (more on that later), and then realized that dailies had reset, and went to do dailies and fishing, and spent some time chatting with people, and then it was 5 am, and I decided that I would feel better, on the whole, if I stayed up, versus getting an hour and a half of sleep. So I read more fic and successfully tanked Nexus on my Death Knight and had two very strong cups of tea, which will probably wear off in two hours leveling me half-dead, but classes will be over and I can take a nap then.
And now, thoughts on Merlin, because I basically marathoned the entire first season last week, even going so far as to force Jon to stay up until 5am Sunday morning to finish off. Not spoilery, but possibly a bit rambly.
Character thoughts first, then generalities XD
Merlin - frequently very stupid, but he really truly means well, and he's so adorably awkward you can't help but want to hug him.
Great Dragon - epic troll. I always kind of imagine him adding 'lololol' to like all of his lines
Uther - massive dick. Goes from being a harsh but fair ruler to frothing at the mouth whenever magic is mentioned. However, he he has just enough moments of being a decent human being to make him interesting. Also, he's played by Anthony Steward Head which gives him +10 to Awesome (although I think I agreed with Jon, who said 'I want there to be a Merlin/Buffy crossover fic where Giles goes back in time and kicks Uther's ass for being stupid')
Arthur - Also kind of a dick, but not quite so bad as Uther. He's not actually really an asshat at heart, and definitely improves over the course of the first season. Also, while he is not my usual type, I must say - I would hit that >.>
Lancelot - Somewhat amazingly, not actually a dick. Still kind of a player, though, which combined with his long flowing locks makes him very Harlequin Romance (and after reading SR stuff, that phrase brings horrible images to mind)
Gaius - Wise Old MentorTM , which I fear means he will eventually die tragically to teach Merlin an Important Life Lesson. He's pretty full of win, though.
Morgana - Fucking awesome ♥ Only person with the guts to stand up to Arthur and Uther, and she can fight. Also she's hot XD
Guinevere - Pretty awesome as well, although not quite as in-your-face-awesome as Morgana. I also wish to give her a hug.
The series in general - some excellent lines in there, but I think the really episodic nature of the series kind of drags down the writing a bit - every episode is 'a new threat besets Camelot which will cause Arthur and/or Uther to begin shouting, Morgana to argue with them, Merlin to do something well-intentioned and deeply idiotic, and then subsequently save the day using magic', which makes plot and character building a bit difficult. Hopefully season two will have a more overarching storyline.
There is definitely a very robust fandom however, both femmeslash and slash, which fills me with happiness, and the fandom favorite pairing (Arthur/Merlin) is pretty much my favorite ship dynamic ever - kind of hard to describe, but FF10's Summoner/Guardian is pretty close (see: Cain/Riff, Hamlet/Horatio, Braska/Auron, etc), so omnomnom fic.
And now, thoughts on Merlin, because I basically marathoned the entire first season last week, even going so far as to force Jon to stay up until 5am Sunday morning to finish off. Not spoilery, but possibly a bit rambly.
Character thoughts first, then generalities XD
Merlin - frequently very stupid, but he really truly means well, and he's so adorably awkward you can't help but want to hug him.
Great Dragon - epic troll. I always kind of imagine him adding 'lololol' to like all of his lines
Uther - massive dick. Goes from being a harsh but fair ruler to frothing at the mouth whenever magic is mentioned. However, he he has just enough moments of being a decent human being to make him interesting. Also, he's played by Anthony Steward Head which gives him +10 to Awesome (although I think I agreed with Jon, who said 'I want there to be a Merlin/Buffy crossover fic where Giles goes back in time and kicks Uther's ass for being stupid')
Arthur - Also kind of a dick, but not quite so bad as Uther. He's not actually really an asshat at heart, and definitely improves over the course of the first season. Also, while he is not my usual type, I must say - I would hit that >.>
Lancelot - Somewhat amazingly, not actually a dick. Still kind of a player, though, which combined with his long flowing locks makes him very Harlequin Romance (and after reading SR stuff, that phrase brings horrible images to mind)
Gaius - Wise Old Mentor
Morgana - Fucking awesome ♥ Only person with the guts to stand up to Arthur and Uther, and she can fight. Also she's hot XD
Guinevere - Pretty awesome as well, although not quite as in-your-face-awesome as Morgana. I also wish to give her a hug.
The series in general - some excellent lines in there, but I think the really episodic nature of the series kind of drags down the writing a bit - every episode is 'a new threat besets Camelot which will cause Arthur and/or Uther to begin shouting, Morgana to argue with them, Merlin to do something well-intentioned and deeply idiotic, and then subsequently save the day using magic', which makes plot and character building a bit difficult. Hopefully season two will have a more overarching storyline.
There is definitely a very robust fandom however, both femmeslash and slash, which fills me with happiness, and the fandom favorite pairing (Arthur/Merlin) is pretty much my favorite ship dynamic ever - kind of hard to describe, but FF10's Summoner/Guardian is pretty close (see: Cain/Riff, Hamlet/Horatio, Braska/Auron, etc), so omnomnom fic.