There have been so many reiterations that when I learn of a new one, I think there can't possibly be any more different takes on the story of King Arthur, can there? Apparently, there can. We've forgotten that the story of King Arthur isn't just the love triangle surrounding Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot or the rise of Excalibur and Camelot. We've forgotten that there were more magical people than just Merlin, Morgause, Morgana, and Morgan le Fey (even if those last three were in some iterations the same person.) We've forgotten that the story of King Arthur is mostly just that. It is a story and like any story, there are more characters than just those you remember and the bits of the story that you recall easily. After all, Camelot, Merlin, and King Arthur have so many stories surrounding them that it could be just like a quest for the Holy Grail to find out the truth behind them all, couldn't it?
There are contradictions within contradictions and if you write fanfiction, you'll find it rather hard to cross something like The Sword In The Stone with BBC's Merlin, but not impossible. Magic is in both these stories so it wouldn't necessarily be out of place for something like the multiverse theory to come into play. Not only are there shows and movies devoted to the stories themselves but there are those that claim to be the reincarnation of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table (Avalon High springs to mind) or that have an arc the references them (here's to Once Upon A Time...again. They really played around for this particular show! Though DC's Legends of Tomorrow on Netflix have a few episodes that integrate King Arthur as well...) You may be wondering why the hell I'm typing about this?
Netflix has a new series available. You might have only heard its title or heard a little about it because of the show being on the Top 10 list on Netflix. If you've heard anything about it's setting or time period, you might mistakenly think that this series extolls on the virtues of the white man and casts all or almost all women in a negative light. You'd be wrong. To be honest there wasn't a lot of information given or trailers that were seen before my husband and I decided to give it a shot.
The name of the series is Cursed. And in this section, there may be a few spoilers. Alright I can guarantee that there will be a few spoilers and I apologize for them, but this isn't a male-oriented King Arthur's beginnings or ending story. It's not a story that focuses on the relationship between Merlin and Arthur or the sad love triangle of Guinevere, Arthur, and Lancelot. No, this story, though obviously a Merlin/King Arthur story, revolves around a character that no one really knows but everyone subscribes to as evil and the downfall of Merlin. Cursed follows the story of Nimue. You will note familiar characters as the series is watched. Yes, you get to meet Merlin, Uther, and Arthur all fairly early, but the story is not centered on them, but on Nimue and the plight of the fey. It's a story that reminds viewers of the horrors that the church and those with power can be wrought over land that relies so heavily on things outside their control. There are mysteries even in the start and there are changes made to what is widely accepted as the story of King Arthur, Camelot, and the Knights of the Round Table, but the changes make just as much sense as the information a person can find when they research their family history. Vikings are introduced as well as the church's destructive army - the Red Paladins. It's a show that you should pay attention to when the episodes end because it would be easy to binge it instead of making yourself wait to watch because you have to be up the next day. They don't shy away from the horrors of the "witch burnings" that existed during Uther's reign, but they don't glorify it as a just sentence for those put to death either.
Cursed is a show the portrays both the good and the evil in grey lighting. For while killing is wrong, is saving your or another's life wrong? Is harboring someone to protect them from a group that targets an entire species/race/group of people just because they are different right? There is much to consider when watching and you'll find that much like any family research or scientific study that yields new information done, this show will make you question what has largely been accepted by the populace to be a part of the King Arthur and Merlin saga.
