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Episode: To Kill the King
Written by: Jake Michie
Directed by: Stuart Orme

Tom (Gwen’s father) has been commissioned to do some work (melting lead) for a mysterious man in Camelot. Right in front of Tom, the man pulls out a large magical stone and proceeds (via chanting a spell) to turn the lead into gold. Just then, Arthur and the royal guards burst into Tom’s forge. They arrest Tom, but the other man gets away. In his room, Merlin is abruptly woken with the sense of powerful magic in Camelot.

Uther charges Tom with the crime of treason, stating that the man he had been doing work for was a man named Tauren – the leader of a band of sorcerers who were intent on destroying Uther. He states that he believes that Tom was making weapons for the group. Morgana comes to Tom’s aid and tries to reason with Uther, and does not believe him when he assures her that Tom will get a fair trail. Morgana tells Uther that if he kills Tom, she will never forgive him. Uther orders Arthur to hunt down Tauren, and punish whoever is harbouring the fugitive.

Meanwhile, Gwen visits her father in jail. Tom tells her that he did not know that Tauren was a sorcerer, and that all he had wanted was for her to have a better life. Gwen states that she doesn’t understand why Tom would turn to magic for money, but swears that she will get him out of the dungeons. She visits Merlin and Gaius and relays everything she and her father talked about, including Tom’s story about the stone turning the lead into gold, and that Tauren had stated that he had been conducting a scientific experiment. From Gwen’s information, and from the large gold nugget that had been found with Tom, Gaius deduces that Tauren was practicing alchemy.

Morgana visits Tom’s forge , in search of Gwen, and stumbles across the magic stone that Tauren had used. Morgana eventually finds Gwen resting in Gaius’ rooms. Morgana shares with Merlin that she believes that Uther is just proclaiming Tom will have a fair trail as a formality, and that he will be executed regardless. It is this belief that leads Morgana to visit Tom in the dungeons, and slip him the key to free himself. Tom manages to knock out a guard and make an escape, but unfortunately his escape is reported to the King. Uther, enraged, states that the trail is just a formality, and that Tom is now to be killed on sight. Eventually the guards catch up to Tom, and he is killed. Gwen screams in anguish as her father’s body is brought out.

Read the rest of this recap and disscus more HERE.