Meta: A Merlin Retrospective Part II

Continuing on from the first half of my ongoing Merlin retrospective, here are the rest of my favourite episodes from seasons three, four and five. As you can imagine, things get a little dire after season three, but there are still some good characters, scenes and ideas that manage to wriggle their way through the dross.

The Crystal Cave

You know, for a good long while the show-runners had a pretty firm grasp of the rules surrounding prophesy. Even as far back as The Gates of Avalon they were careful to ensure that even though Arthur didn't die, the events surrounding his near-drowning experience unfolded exactly as Morgana had foreseen.

The concepts of destiny and prophesy have always driven the key aspects of the plot (for good or ill) whether it be Merlin’s belief in his shared destiny with Arthur, or Morgana and Mordred’s inevitable turn to the dark side. And though so many promises aren’t fulfilled by the end of the show, for this episode at least the irrevocability of fate and the trap of self-fulfilling prophesies play out like a Greek tragedy, in which every step Merlin takes in order to prevent the visions of the future only lead directly to them coming to pass.

This was neatly foreshadowed in the sequence where Merlin inadvertently causes Arthur to replace a simple dagger he's brought for Morgana to the more ornate one seen in the vision, and played out over the course of the episode by Merlin’s paranoia causing Morgana to take a nasty fall (when Merlin mistakenly believes she’s on her way to assassinate Uther), leading to her overhearing Uther’s revelation that he is her father and thus creating in her the motivation she needs to impulsively make an attempt on his life.

From an Arthurian point-of-view, it was great to see the Crystal Cave incorporated into the show, which also tied back neatly with the use of the Crystal of Neahtid in The Witch’s Quickening.

Slightly stranger is the inclusion of Taliesin, who gives every indication of being an immensely important figure in the show’s mythos, only to be never seen or mentioned again. Seriously, what was up with this guy? He mysteriously appears to Merlin and displays considerable knowledge of the past and future (telling Merlin that their meeting was “written”, that Arthur will make a full recovery “if my memory serves”) and seems strangely insistent on Merlin looking into the crystals.

And since his knowledge of the future is what leads directly to that future coming to pass, one can’t help but feel that some large, ambiguous force actually wanted Morgana to learn about her parentage – and used Merlin to do it.

Gaius later claims that Taliesin: “died, I'd say, about three hundred years ago,” a statement that is never clarified or revisited. At the time the episode first broadcast, I remember considering the idea that he was Merlin from the future, living his life backwards as per the Merlin Sickness trope. And yet Taliesin disappears forever after this episode, and it would appear that the mysterious, omnipotent force that guides Merlin’s actions throughout the story was simply the driving power of The Plot.

Also interesting was the fact that Kilgharrah was against healing Morgana – not that that in itself was surprising, but because it makes you wonder where exactly his awareness of future events are coming from. Because whatever the force behind the Crystal Cave truly was, it’s clearly at odds with the dragon since the revelation of its visions to Merlin ended with her alive and well.

In this case, it is Merlin who remains the unwitting tool of destiny, and it's a nice comparison to the Mordred situation in The Beginning of the End – both times Merlin is trying to save a life, both times Kilgharrah tells him he's made the wrong decision, and both times fate and Merlin's compassion wins out over the more pragmatic course of action.

Finally, it's interesting to learn that Kilgharrah knew all along that Morgana was Uther's daughter. Is this the source of his hatred for her? Did he know all along that Uther would inevitably corrupt her? If so, what makes Arthur so different? Is it because he has Merlin and she doesn't?

So basically, this is an episode that raises a lot of questions, but never actually answers any of them. And yet, it’s still one of my favourites, if not just because at the time I was able to pretend that it all meant something and would eventually get resolved (hah).

In any case, it was a game-changer what with Morgana learning she is Uther's daughter, has a claim to the throne, and a real reason to kill Arthur. On that note, there’s another interestingly ambiguous scene in which Morgana tries to prod Uther towards admitting that he’s her father – only to turn it into a political move when she brings up the subject of the people.

It has traces of their conversation at Gorlois’s grave in To Kill the King, and we’re left wondering why exactly Morgana is so upset: because she’s being denied by Uther, or because she feels cheated her out of her inheritance?

Thanks to Alice Troughton, it was also a beautiful episode, especially the shots of the rain dripping through the leaves as Merlin cleaned his hands of Arthur’s blood and the slow-motion vision of Morgana trying to settle her rearing horse.

There was another nice moment of role-reversal between Arthur and Merlin, as well as Merlin reaction to the statues when they first entered the Valley of the Fallen Kings. Gwen had a couple of cute moments, whether it was playfully poking Merlin in the throne room when Arthur commended him on his help, or seeking comfort in Arthur’s arms in a quiet moment between just the two of them.

This was really the last Morgana-centric episode that gave Morgana a sense of character and ambiguity (and Katie looked amazing at the dinner table with all those pearls in her hair) and though the final sequence felt a bit rushed, I loved that little tussle between Merlin/Morgana and how she finally used assertive power to defend herself.

The Coming of Arthur Part II

Had I known what was coming in the final two seasons, there’s every chance I would have stopped watching Merlin with this episode and been perfectly satisfied with it as a definitive (yet open-ended) finish. It was the episode in which everyone gets a moment to shine, and it felt like the satisfying accumulation of the past three seasons, bringing certain characters and plot-lines full-circle.

It’s just a shame its setup didn’t last longer – surely storylines of Gwen as a spy in the castle, Morgana trying to assert control over the kingdom, and Arthur/Merlin scrounging for survival in the wilderness could have been milked for longer.

By this point Morgana is little more than a plot-point, but there are two excellent scenes featuring her: the first with Gwen, demonstrating just how far she’s fallen when she lets slip she’s forgotten all about Tom’s death, and the second with Uther, in which she confronts him with her magical abilities in his prison cell.

Not only does it underscore the similarities between them, but brings Uther face-to-face with the result of his own hatred and paranoia. Morgana is careful to point out that Uther is now feeling what she felt for so many years – terror and self-disgust – and that her current cruelty is derived from his treatment of her.

But honestly, three seasons worth of simmering animosity between Morgana and Uther, and the writers only give them ONE scene together post-reveal? Who does that??

In the case of the heroes, everyone got a chance to shine, though some were sadly undermined by the narrative. Gwen’s otherwise awesome jailbreak of Sir Leon was weakened by the fact that Morgana and Morgause knew about it and let her get away in the hopes of following them to Arthur’s hideout, and Arthur’s suicidal attempt at breaking Uther out of prison was rendered completely null and void by Merlin’s far more important mission to destroy the Cup of Life.

But the dual action sequence between Arthur and the knights attempting to free Uther in the dungeons and Merlin and Lancelot fighting their way toward the Cup of Life in the council chamber are incredibly well edited, with each set-back and step-forward in each mission offsetting the other.

There's also lots of good character interaction here, particularly between Merlin and Lancelot. Their friendship is one of the most solid in the entire show, particularly due to the fact that Lancelot knows Merlin’s secret and the writers are prepared to capitalize on it (though as sweet as it was, I question Lancelot’s statement: “don’t think you can lie to me; I know you too well.” Remember how viewers accused Arthur/Guinevere of moving too quickly? But that somehow Lancelot’s over-the-top declarations of love, loyalty and innate knowledge of people he’s spent approximately two days with are just peachy? Yeah, I don’t get it either).

But the way in which Lancelot covers for Merlin, both verbally by finding an excuse for them to slip away from the others, and physically by fighting back against the immortal soldiers in the castle, is ... well, it’s what Arthur and Merlin’s relationship should have been like. C’est-la-vie.

Oh, and as a minor Guinevere/Lancelot shipper, I have to say that the look on Lance’s face when he sees Arthur/Guinevere share a last kiss is pretty heartrending. It’s entirely his own fault, as he had her on a silver platter back in Lancelot and Guinevere and stuffed it up, but a part of me still wishes he’d been around at the end of the show. Nothing on earth will convince me that Lancelot and Guinevere wouldn’t have made better rulers than Arthur and Merlin. Nothing.

But Lancelot's finest moment would have to be at the Round Table, when he is first to stand and declare his loyalty, looking at Arthur, Merlin and Guinevere each in turn and implicitly linking them to what he’s prepared to fight for: justice, freedom and all that’s good.

The quiet affirmations given to Arthur by all of those gathered around the table was perhaps the strongest part of the episode, particularly since it’s one of those rare times in which Arthur genuinely deserves this moment, rather than being handed it to him by Merlin. All the loyalty professed by those around him is very specifically aimed at Arthur, based on his own actions and merit.

Although Elyan and Percival were somewhat short-changed when it came to the knighting (seriously, we don’t know a thing about them at this point), I think the show did right by Lancelot and Gwaine and the importance of each one becoming a knight. For Lancelot, it was his long-held dream come to fruition, and for Gwaine, he’s clearly thinking of his father and foregoes the glib remarks in order to take his knighthood seriously – though he follows up with some great Gwaine one-liners (“I think we’ve no chance, but I wouldn’t miss it”, “that’s Sir Gwaine to you”).

The triple Chekhov’s Gun regarding Excalibur was pulled off perfectly, drawing together the climaxes of three past episodes in its retrieval: first Merlin’s creation of the sword and his act of throwing it into Lake Avalon, second Freya’s death and cremation on the waters of the lake, and thirdly the vial of Avalon water that was given to Merlin by the Fisher King.

Well played, show. This is one of the few times in which I believed the writers had a long-term plan and followed through on it.

Lots of other little bits and pieces here and there:

Gwen utilizes her blacksmith skills and her backstory with Leon is revealed. Kilgharrah actually gets a halfway decent scene with Merlin when he agrees to fly him to the lake, after the rather charming line: “I am not a horse, Merlin!” Arthur offering Guinevere his hand and sitting her beside him at the Round Table, and Lancelot’s line to Merlin: “you’re the bravest of us all and [Arthur] doesn’t even know it.”

There was even a split-second moment of intrigue in which Morgause displays a flash of concern when Morgana talks of hanging the knights – an “I’ve created a monster!” realization that could have been fascinating... were it not just a split-second moment.

Finally, there are a lot of iconic moments on display, probably more in this episode than in any other. There was the retrieval of Excalibur, the Lady of the Lake, the Round Table, the knighting of Lancelot, Gwaine, Percival and Elyan, a Guinevere/Arthur kiss (with Lancelot looking on), the Cup of Life, Guinevere returning to Camelot with the new knights in tow, and the final image of the Sword in the Stone.

This is by far my favourite season finale, and though I cherry-pick a few aspects of seasons four and five for my personal head canon – Lancelot/Merlin’s conversation about Gwen in The Darkest Hour, Queen Annis, A Servant of Two Masters, Ruadan and Sefa, Gwen/Elyan visiting Tom’s grave, Queen Guinevere – I’m happy to accept this episode as the definitive end of the series.

Also worthy of note:

The Eye of the Phoenix; another episode which is heavily drawn from the Arthurian legends and which is all the better for it, what with its esoteric images, redemption themes and sacred quest.

True, Arthur’s journey is badly undermined by the episode’s conclusion, in which we learn that all his tribulations were simply a way of getting Merlin to his meeting with the Fisher King (it always confuses me when people complained that there wasn’t enough Merlin in the show, as quite often it was his centrality to the plot that denied the other characters – especially Arthur – a chance to prove their own merit) but then it’s been often said that it’s the journey and not the destination that’s important.

Throw Gwaine into the mix just to stir up the Arthur/Merlin dynamic, as well as Warwick Davies as the bridge-keeper and Donald Sumpter as the Fisher King, a bona-fide One Scene Wonder if ever there was one (seriously, I teared up as he faced his long-awaited death), and it’s a fun, entertaining, pivotal episode.

Even better, Guinevere and Morgana get their own subplot in which Gwen puts on her detective hat and figures out that Morgana is up to no good (again, I’m left baffled at claims that Gwen was “just a love interest”, as most of her most innovative and memorable scenes were done with Arthur well out of the picture).

Season 4

His Father’s Son

This episode was admittedly a bit of a mess. The five-minute breakup between Arthur and Guinevere required both of them to act grossly out of character and the lack of logic surrounding King Carleon’s execution was absurd... BUT Queen Annis remains a) one of the show’s best guest stars, b) one of the show’s best female guest stars, and c) the show’s only female guest star who is neither a villain nor a victim.

Lindsay Duncan played her with dignity and gravitas, she commanded respect from her people and took control of the kingdom without any sign of contention (one suspects she was ruling the place the whole time while her husband was off making forays into other people’s territories), she was fallible but ultimately wise in her decision making, and she was astute enough to make a judgment call on both the Pendragon siblings. Plus she slaps Arthur in the face, which is always worth a re-watch.

But it was in her interaction with Arthur and Morgana that the real interest of the episode lies. A good guest-star should exist as a strong character in and of themselves, but also shed light on certain aspects of the main cast. This Annis does, for despite Uther’s death, both Arthur and Morgana are very much influenced by his legacy in their decisions and behaviour.

Arthur is easily manipulated by Agravaine’s reminder that Uther was a strong and decisive king and considers Carleon’s observation that “you are not Uther” to be an insult – at least until Annis gives him the opportunity to correct his mistake. This was juxtaposed with Morgana’s claim that she considers herself Gorlois’s daughter being shattered by Annis’s devastating line: “I fear you are more like Uther than you think.”

Ultimately, it’s how Arthur differs from Uther that makes him the better man, whilst it’s Morgana’s innate similarities to him that lead her further into darkness. It was a nice reminder that although Uther was “softened” a bit in his final episodes, he had a hugely negative impact on his children.

Of course, the lessons that both siblings learn here regarding Uther don’t stick (Morgana gets worse and Arthur doesn’t get over his Daddy Issues until season five) but within the context of this episode, the parallels and contrasts between the two of them worked extremely well.

And though I’m disappointed that once again Arthur’s character was reduced by having Merlin use his magic to let him win against Derien – because heaven forbid that the Once and Future King manage ANYTHING with his own wit, strength and cunning – the conceit of the single-combat between the two champions (that at least was Arthur’s idea) with the armies watching from field and cliff-top made for a great visual, as were the connotations to David and Goliath.

A Servant of Two Masters

Much like The Moment of Truth, this is a fun, light, somewhat inconsequential episode that everyone seemed to enjoy, and which is most notable for its ability to incorporate every single cast member. And perhaps it’s a coincidence, but the most popular episodes always seem to be the ones in which everyone gets something important to do.

Arthur shows concern and appreciation for Merlin, as well as an astounding amount of intelligence when he confronts Agravaine with his deduction that he is the traitor (pity it doesn’t stick), Gwen uses her detective skills to realize that something’s up with Merlin and wields a mean ewer in Arthur’s defence (and gets her first look at him naked), Morgana and Merlin ramp up the sexual tension with a bondage/torture scene that’s taken straight out of a fan-fiction, and Merlin gets to prove his worth as an utterly inept assassin. Even the knights get moderately fleshed out.

What’s more, writer Lucy Watkins seemed to have a pretty firm grasp of continuity. Arthur recalls that Elyan’s father was killed by Uther, Morgana confronts Merlin about Morgause’s death, Gwaine reappears as a particular friend to Merlin, and there’s even a throwaway line regarding Percival’s backstory (his parents were killed by Cenred’s men) that had previously been established in a deleted scene for The Coming of Arthur.

The Hunter’s Heart

I’ve already spoken at length about this episode in this post, and I’d be hard pressed to add anymore to that particular meta in exploring the differences between Mithian and Guinevere. But I’ll try.

Truth be told, I wasn’t hugely impressed with the plot of The Hunter’s Heart, which is basically another round of “Arthur is temporarily distracted by a visiting princess”, with a Gwen-centric subplot that it rife with unfortunate implications, and a pointless thread involving Agravaine trying to get hold of plans to the siege tunnel.

But as with His Father’s Son, it’s with the relationships and subtle implications that the real interest lies. Over the years Arthur has had a number of love interests (one per season, in fact) and each one has grown in sympathy and likeability – from murderous Sophia to bratty Vivian to sweet but uninterested Elena, and now finally Mithian, who is characterized as the perfect match and shows genuine interest in Arthur. And yet despite her compatibility with both Arthur and Camelot, he sends her away by the end of the episode, unable to deny his love for another.

In my previous post on the episode I rambled at length on the subversion of the perfect fairytale princess being ejected from her own narrative, so I’ll just say that in conclusion, this episode feels like a vindication of Guinevere. She’s an enduring figure in this story, and nothing – not Morgana, not Helios, not Agravaine or Mithian or fandom or even Arthur himself, can keep her from her destiny, and by the end of this show, she’s one of the few still standing.

Plus this episode gave me the long-awaited Merlin/Guinevere hug.

Season 5

Arthur’s Bane

Ironically, even though Arthur’s Bane is probably the most lacklustre premiere the show ever had, it contained my second-favourite Gwen subplot and two of my favourite guest stars. (The all-too-brief reappearance of Queen Annis was an extra bonus). So for that alone, it’s going on this list.

Other than the visual splendour of Morgana wrapped in furs and presiding over a snow-covered dark tower, there was very little that interested me about her subplot; and that goes ditto for the Arthur/Merlin arc – with the exception of each one’s uneasy interactions with Mordred.

It was back at Camelot that my real interest lay, not only in seeing Queen Guinevere acquit herself, but in her interactions with her very own maidservant. It’s clear that by this point, Gwen has settled into the role of queen (those damn time-skips always deny us what could have been fascinating transition periods) and she’s making suggestions, giving orders, and attending important council meetings in her husband’s stead.

In her dealings with Sefa we see that she’s still innately kind and generous, but her steely side comes to the fore when she deducts that Sefa is the traitor. And since Gwen’s intelligence and protectiveness is now coupled with immense power, she can put into effect a plan that indirectly saves Arthur and Merlin’s lives (consider what a difference it would have made if Ruadan had been present at Ismere when Merlin and Arthur arrived).

Her deductive skills, her persuasiveness in gently extracting a confession, her poker face in front of the court, her faith in hinging her plan on a father’s love, her assurance that she had no intention of ever going through with Sefa’s execution – it was a perfect marriage of characterization and story. A deleted scene even covers for a perceived plot-hole in her plan, confirming that she did in fact alert Leon and Elyan as to Ruadan’s impending rescue attempt.

And even better, the opponents that she’s up against are each sympathetic and intelligent in their own ways, giving her subplot a sense of depth and realism that is usually missing from the show.

Liam Cunningham brought gravitas and conviction to a tiny part – there was more enjoyment to be derived from his two episodes as Morgana’s henchman than an entire season of Aggravating Agravaine, and his cold demeanour toward his daughter and commitment to his cause meant that his interactions with Sefa (such as his quiet: “I hope they have not been unkind to you”) contained a surprisingly emotional punch.

Sefa is also an interesting character study. Though she seems to genuinely like Merlin and Guinevere, she feels it’s her duty to obey her father’s wishes, even if it means treason. Is such devotion commendable? Guinevere describes it as her father “using her”, and though Sefa tries to justify it by saying: “it was the only thing he ever asked of me,” she knows full-well that the information she passes to him will result in the deaths of good men.

The waters stay intriguingly muddied, and it’s one of my most bitter regrets that her character never returned to the show. Why they didn’t conflate her character with Kara is one of the eternal mysteries, though I suppose under those circumstances many viewers would have been all too happy to trace Arthur’s death back to Guinevere’s treatment of Sefa.

But in such a short amount of time, you really got the sense that Ruadan/Sefa had lives and a history outside the constraints of the plot, and they remain the only – I repeat, the ONLY – characters directly opposed to Arthur’s rule that are not turned into cackling cartoon villains.

Ruadan also got hands-down one of the best death scenes in the show, having single handedly stormed the castle and successfully sprung his daughter from prison, and – yup, I’m gonna say it – I was more moved when Ruadan died in Sefa’s arms than when Arthur died in Merlin’s. Sue me.

Another’s Sorrow

In many ways this felt like the last classic Merlin episode before the tone of the show began to spiral down into darkness. It was bright and colourful, and was the last episode to end on an unambiguously happy note.

Of course, in true Merlin tradition, it also contained plenty of plot holes, a lack of common sense, a convoluted Morgana plan, Arthur acting stupid, Gwen being side-lined and Merlin saving the day by standing behind a corner and performing magic in secret.

And yet, despite my hopes that there would be some decent Mithian/Guinevere interaction being dashed, I could at least appreciate it for all the plot-bunnies that it inspired. Out of all the episodes of this show, this is the only one I could seriously considering rewriting as fan-fiction (I won't, but I could). It’s odd that although it fundamentally disappointed me with its lack of female interaction and continuity with The Hunter’s Heart, I can still enjoy my own private version of it.

In my head, Mithian and (disguised) Morgana arrive in Camelot, but Arthur is struck by awkwardness at the knowledge that his ex-fiancée has come to him for help. Of course, in my version of events, the whole enchanted bracelet fiasco was cleared up, but in his infinite wisdom Arthur decided against mentioning his misguided attempt at rebound to the wife.

So as Mithian recovers, Arthur is trying to rope Merlin into keeping the two women apart – just to keep the peace, of course. Naturally, Gwen picks up on his odd behaviour immediately, and begins to ask questions, to which she gets no clear reply.

For their part, both Mithian and Morgana are powerfully curious about Guinevere: this is the first time Mithian has seen the woman that Arthur passed her over for, and the first time that Morgana has seen her in the role of Queen.

As well as coercing Mithian into telling her father-related sob story, Morgana is also digging in some more personal barbs: “just think, you could have been the queen of all this were it not for that blacksmith’s daughter” and (because manipulation has always been her strong suit) “accidentally” letting slip to Guinevere that Arthur and Mithian have a history together – thus explaining Mithian’s cool demeanour.

The men set out to rescue King Rodor, though unbeknownst to them they are riding into a trap, and the women are left at Camelot, trying to negotiate their way through the crippling awkwardness that ensues.

Mithian gets to watch Gwen go through her day-to-day life as Queen: handling the Round Table councils, fraternising with the common folk, dealing with the nobles, and sees first-hand how unassuming and effective she is in the role. At the same time, she’s desperately trying to warn her about the danger that her husband is in, and it is Gwen that takes Gaius’s sleeping potion to her bedroom, noticing just how terrified Mithian is.

Mithian tries to make her escape – not when Morgana is asleep, but when Mithian wakes up to find that Morgana is missing. She’s taken the opportunity to revisit her old chambers, and is sifting through the jewellery and clothing and memories that she left behind.

However, her instincts warn her as to Mithian’s movements, and she confronts her in the hallway and burns her wrist just as we saw in the original episode. But this time it is Gwen that notices the burn mark over breakfast, and begins to suspect that there’s something very wrong.

During a tour of the castle that day, Mithian lingers in Morgana’s old and dusty room whilst Gwen and Morgana are outside (by this point, Gwen is stalling Morgana, instinctively feeling that Mithian is trying to do something) – and when Mithian claims that she’s “accidentally” dropped her bracelet, Gwen returns to fetch it and discovers that the word “Morgana” is written in the dust on the mirror. Now everything becomes clear.

But Morgana has figured out what’s up, and a three-way sword-fight in the corridor commences, with the three women grabbing decorative swords off the walls. Gwen’s prowess in battle has significantly improved since she became queen, but Morgana still has the advantage of magic and soon overpowers the two women.

(I have this vague idea that she uses magic to swap her appearance with Mithian’s, leading to Gwen overpowering “Morgana” only for “Mithian” to knock her out once she thinks the fight is over – and then when Gwen wakes up, she mutters: “now I know how Arthur feels...”).

Morgana makes a break for it. Since Mithian knows the way to the tomb, Gwen organises a rescue party, and we get to see her commanding the knights for the first time. Leading the way, the two women choose speed over stealth and gallop through the forests.

Meanwhile, a simplified version of the Arthur/Merlin rescue attempt has played out, with Arthur’s small team of knights heading for the tomb in order to rescue Rodor, only to fall into the trap and for King Odin to emerge. Arthur still gets his single-combat with Odin ending in a truce, and Merlin still traps Morgana in the tomb, but it is the timely arrival of Gwen and Mithian with the knights that saves the day.

By now Guinevere and Mithian are BFFs, and on leaving Camelot with her father, Mithian tells Arthur that although she spent a long time wondering who it was that “trumps a princess,” she understands now why he was so compelled to marry Gwen. They gallop away as husband and wife watch from the castle steps. The end.

Was it really too much to ask such a girl-centric episode? Apparently it was. Still, it was one of the more beautifully shot episodes, what with the meadow of flowers, the encampment at the ruins and the underground tomb. Many of the most visually appealing episodes are also some of the darkest, but this one was filled with light and sunshine.

And I was impressed that they tracked down Fintan McKeown from all the way back in season two to reprise his role as King Odin, putting a full-stop on a subplot that was started forty-one episodes ago. And regardless of what they did with her, it was nice to see Princess Mithian again. That wistful look she gives Arthur just before he leaves the room with Guinevere was our only indication of her history, a brief but poignant call-back to The Hunter’s Heart.

***

So there you have it; my favourite episodes across the course of five seasons. As you can see, they petered off toward the end of the show’s run, but there is still plenty of inspiration and enjoyment to be derived from the show’s highpoints. 

Stay tuned for Part III...