The 13-episode fifth and final season of Merlin aired during the fall and winter of 2021. It picks up after a three-year time jump from the end of season four. Arthur is fully in his role as King of Camelot after Uthur's death in the previous season. This season also sees the return of Mordred, who was recast with an older actor to account for all the time jumps the series has taken. Many of the 13 episodes revolve around Merlin being wary of Mordred and circling back to the warning that Merlin was given by the dragon in season 1 that he would bring about Arthur's doom. That, and of course, a final battle between Camelot and Morgana's forces.
I will not go into too much detail to avoid spoiling it for people who have not seen the final season, but the show manages to tie up various loose ends while actually changing up character arcs and storylines quite a bit. We are also treated to "Old Merlin" again, with Colin Morgan doing a great job with that character, among others. We also get an appearance from Anthony Head to reprise his role as Uthur in a unique way.
The DVD set is a four-disc set. The extras include commentary tracks on select episodes, then some behind-the-scenes material, deleted scenes, storyboard sequences, and a gag reel, all on the last disc. One thing you may run into is that the episode numbers on the final two discs may be incorrect. In my set, disc 3 is labeled that episodes 9-12 are on that, and episode 13 is on the final disc, whereas in reality, episodes 9-11 are on disc 3, and the final two episodes are on the last disc. Also, in some of the episodes, the frame rate is a bit off so the characters will look like they are moving in slow motion for a few seconds before it corrects. For people who are huge on AV quality, it could be irritating, but I did not find that it lessened my viewing experience.
Overall, the series comes to a good conclusion. It definitely ended in a way that I did not expect, but I was pleased with the ending. I do think that all the actors continued being stronger with their performances, even as the show got darker over the course of the series. It is definitely worth checking out, whether you stream it or get the physical discs.
I will not go into too much detail to avoid spoiling it for people who have not seen the final season, but the show manages to tie up various loose ends while actually changing up character arcs and storylines quite a bit. We are also treated to "Old Merlin" again, with Colin Morgan doing a great job with that character, among others. We also get an appearance from Anthony Head to reprise his role as Uthur in a unique way.
The DVD set is a four-disc set. The extras include commentary tracks on select episodes, then some behind-the-scenes material, deleted scenes, storyboard sequences, and a gag reel, all on the last disc. One thing you may run into is that the episode numbers on the final two discs may be incorrect. In my set, disc 3 is labeled that episodes 9-12 are on that, and episode 13 is on the final disc, whereas in reality, episodes 9-11 are on disc 3, and the final two episodes are on the last disc. Also, in some of the episodes, the frame rate is a bit off so the characters will look like they are moving in slow motion for a few seconds before it corrects. For people who are huge on AV quality, it could be irritating, but I did not find that it lessened my viewing experience.
Overall, the series comes to a good conclusion. It definitely ended in a way that I did not expect, but I was pleased with the ending. I do think that all the actors continued being stronger with their performances, even as the show got darker over the course of the series. It is definitely worth checking out, whether you stream it or get the physical discs.
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