From TES issue 3 (June 1996)

MERLIN : SERIES 1-4 : LEVELS 1-3

Undoubtedly a legend among Knightmare characters, Merlin was everything you would expect from one so steeped in history, magic, and great tales of heroic deeds. John Woodnutt played the part of Merlin with perfect accuracy - clearly Merlin was a somewhat dizzy, scatterbrained old wizard - yet it was equally clear that within this powerful mind lay a rich mine of knowledge, in the form of spells, information, and a never ending supply of incredibly devious riddles.

Merlin was never easy to reach wherever he rested in Knightmare castle - indeed Merlin was frequently discovered towards the end of level two - a signpost to tell the dungeoneer that the final glory was not far away. Series three is perhaps the best example of what an achievement it was to actually reach Merlin. Armed with 'steps' collected earlier in the quest - the team had to form a magical pathway towards Merlin's throne. Even then the hard work had to be done - Merlin's magic was always, without fail, essential to any successful quest. If you failed any of his riddles, Merlin was perfectly capable of killing off any quest simply by refusing to reward you with a spell.

Series two saw Merlin at his most generous - where any team reaching his vast level three chamber would be rewarded with one, or even two spells. This is a typical example of the sheer power Merlin could exert upon any quest - his magical image, dressed in shimmering green robes, suited his position perfectly - this man was literally essential to each and every quest.

Unfortunately, Merlin's gradual disappearance from Knightmare was an inglorious affair. His final series - series four - saw the magical green robes replaced with ragged sackcloth robes which even Sylvester Hands would turn up his nose at. Merlin seemed flat, and lacking in the sparkle which made him one of Knightmare's most popular characters. This was underlined by the final quest of series 4, when Merlin had to be freed from the stocks by dungeoneer Giles - surely Merlin's magic was stronger than any other ?! The Merlin of old returned briefly to congratulate Dickon and team - the only winning team of series four. However, the series remained a poor departure for such a strong character.

FEAR FACTOR : 2 Some of his jokes were frighteningly bad.
HUMOUR RATING : 7 The jokes may be bad, yet the spirit is 100% good.
KILLER INSTINCT : 4 He would never kill, but if you don't get a spell from him.....
OSCAR STANDARD : 9 The perfect wizard - spoilt slightly by series four?

Written by and submitted with the kind permission of Paul McIntosh.

login to vote

Among the Knightmare RPG's recreations of familiar Knightmare characters - Treguard (RPG), Mrs. Grimwold (RPG) and Automatum, to name three - is Merlin. After first playing him at the filming of RPG Season 4, Matt denounced the role as 'torture'. His RPG4 cast member autobiography on IKM yields further details:
'Seriously, playing Merlin really hurt particularly on my face when the time came to remove my beard, I'll never forget that! The beard was stuck fast, I felt like a patient on an operating table, everyone tugging forcefully at my face made it really sore, it was painful but funny. I could still find bits of glue on my face up until a week after the RPG! ... One last thing, I couldn't afford a real magic wand so I had to use a pencil!'
In spite of these difficulties, Matt reprised the role for the filming of RPG5 in 2003...
...And again for the RPG6 filming the following year. In doing so, he gave a portrayal that, while acknowledging the great wizard's power, accentuated (perhaps un-intentionally)the old gent's bumbling. This proved infuriating to some, endearingly hilarious to others.

[Previous version: 2007-12-14 03:25:28]

login to vote