 | | Episode 206: Beauty and the Beast (Part 2) Recap
by amk358
 Lady Catrina is sitting in her bedchamber by the window, in the castle brushing her hair delicately and speaking to her servant Jonas. They are discussing the problem of Merlin and how to get him out of the way. Jonas asks, “But what about the boy Merlin he knows your secret?”
Catrina replies, “Leave him to me.”
Suddenly Uther comes in and begins to rail about how happy he is to spend time with Catrina alone. She tells him that she is very upset as she had one possession remaining that belonged to her family and meant everything to her, her family seal. She tells Uther that it has been stolen and that it was Arthur’s servant Merlin who committed the crime. Uther says that he will have Merlin arrested directly and goes to summon his guard.
 The guards go to Gaius’s quarters looking for Merlin. Gaius tells them that he is working for Arthur as usual and we now see Merlin in Arthur’s bedchamber making the bed, Arthur rushes in looking worried and tells Merlin that he has to leave now as he has been sent to arrest him. He tells Merlin that he has been accused of stealing Queen Catrina’s seal and Merlin denies it but leaves quickly, as Arthur advises him that there is no time. He also tries to tell Arthur again that Catrina is a troll.
Arthur abruptly, “Catrina’s accused you of taking her seal.”
Merlin exclaims, “But I didn’t!”
Arthur replies hastily, “I don’t want to know and you haven’t got time to explain. If you value your life you’ll leave Camelot right now.”
Merlin answers imploringly, “Arthur, she is a troll and she’s trying to set me up.”
Arthur a little angrily, “We’ve been through this.”
“I’m telling you the truth, I saw her.”
“I don’t care, you need to leave Merlin … Go! … go!”
 We now see Uther and Katrina in the throne room and Arthur tells them that Merlin is long gone by now and it is no use wasting resources to search any further. Catrina accuses him of not doing his job properly and he is sent out again to search. Uther tells Arthur that he wants the boy (Merlin) found.
We now see Catrina in her troll state with her tusks, surrounded by rotten fruit and filth and talking to Jonas. She asks about a
“lovely” smell and Jonas produces some horse manure, “a treat from the stables!” Catrina is delighted.
In the forest just outside Camelot we see the King’s guards searching for Arthur as Gwen looks on nervously. Gwen is worried that they have found Merlin’s trail as she speaks to Gaius. Gaius though is not worried as we then see Merlin inside one of the houses emerge from a barrel of grain. Merlin grumbles, “That was comfortable!”
Gaius replies tersely, “A necessary evil I’m afraid. They’ve picked up the trail we left but it won’t fool them for long.”
Merlin sarcastically, “Then, I’d better get busy.”
“Careful, the guards are still searching for you,” Gaius warns him.
 We are now in Jonas’s quarters with wooden shelves and bottles all around. He gives a round jar of light brown potion to Catrina to drink and we see some warts that were on her arm suddenly disappear. Merlin is watching out of sight in a cupboard.
Back in the throne room Catrina has persuaded Uther to order a new tax on the people. He summons Arthur and orders him to collect the new tax from everyone, stating that anyone who doesn’t pay will be publicly flogged. Arthur argues that the people cannot afford to pay the tax and that they are loyal to the crown. Uther refuses to listen.
We now see a snoring Jonas, sleeping in his chamber as Merlin sneaks in to steal a bottle of the potion he saw Lady Catrina drinking earlier. Jonas stirs but doesn’t wake up and Merlin takes the potion to Gaius in his quarters. Gaius and Merlin decide to replace the potion with something else, so that everyone will see what Catrina really looks like. He tries to make it taste as bad as the original.
 Catrina is in her bedchamber in the castle by the bed, Uther is hiding with a bunch of flowers and as he hands them to her she sneezes several times and tries to ward off his advances. She begins speaking to him, saying that she cannot keep pretending like this and that Arthur is too weak and Uther’s love for him has blinded him to this fact. Uther tells her that he treats Arthur just the same as everyone else and he rewards his successes and punishes his failures. She blows troll’s breath (green smoke) onto Uther and he passes out. Catrina breaks wind loudly as she walks away from the bed where Uther is lying unconscious.
In Gaius’s chambers Merlin and he are stood next to the window talking. He tells Merlin all the horrible things, including sheep’s brains that he has put into the potion and Merlin exclaims, “Sounds delicious!”
“Good,” replies Gaius, “because you are going to taste it!” He assures Merlin that it is completely harmless but Merlin looks unconvinced and tries to get out of it. He is forced to taste it though, as it must taste the same as the original. “That is disgusting!” he complains pulling a face. “I can’t believe you let me put that in my mouth.”
“Not to a troll!” Gaius assures him.
Gaius then tells him that he must also taste the original to make sure that it tastes the same, but he must make sure that he spits it out. Merlin does and screws up his face again. “It’s disgusting!” he announces, “It tastes exactly the same.”
“That’s good,” replies Gaius.
He explains that it needs to if Lady Catrina is not going to suspect anything.
Merlin goes to Jonas’s room again and replaces the potion in the spot from where he took it. Jonas is in his chamber but Merlin uses magic to shut the cupboard behind him as he is sitting at his desk. He turns his head and is distracted.
 In Camelot Arthur is out collecting taxes with the guards and sees an old man being seized as he hasn’t got enough money to pay what they are asking for. Arthur asks the guard to give him the purse, which is light tan in colour and full of coins. He hands it back to the old man and orders the guards to let him go, they tell him that the king had ordered them to do this but they did as he asked. He also tells them to give everyone else back their money as well. Gwen is watching this happen and looks happy with Arthur’s decision.
Back in the castle in Uther’s throne room Arthur is talking to Uther and Lady Catrina. Arthur refuses to do his bidding and the king orders him to and tells him to get out of his sight. Arthur leaves and Catrina begins rubbing Uther’s shoulders from behind. He cries out several times as her grip is so strong and she asks if she’s hurt him. He admits that her grip is strong for a frail woman and she continues making him cry out and flinch again. She suggests to Uther that Arthur is not a good heir for the throne and he agrees to make her the heir instead. She then breathes on him again and he passes out on the throne.
 Back in Jonas’s room Lady Catrina takes the false potion that Merlin has put there. Arthur meanwhile is in his room, Gwen comes in a speaks to him. She tells him how proud of him she is for standing up for the people and Arthur replies that it did no good as he’s still going to be forced to collect the taxes. Gwen tells him that he has a good heart and that he should never change. When he is King she tells him, things will be different.
Arthur is summoned to the throne room where he is told that his title has been revoked and he has been disinherited. He is relieved of his duties and leaves the room very upset. The King announces that his decision is final. Queen Catrina is named the rightful heir.
Merlin comes in to Gaius’s quarters to tell him that Lady Catrina took the fake potion and Gaius tells Merlin that Arthur has been disinherited and that Queen Catrina is now Uther’s heir.
 In the throne room the court historian is about to place the crown on Queen Catrina’s head as she starts to turn into a troll. She can’t wait for him to get through the ceremony and grabs the crown, places it on her head and scurries quickly out of the room. Uther, Arthur and Morgana who were all present in the chamber look on and Uther and Morgana follow her to see what is happening.
Queen Catrina tries to get out of the wooden doors before she transforms back into a troll and anyone sees her. Merlin uses his magic to make sure they shut and she transforms before a stunned Morgana and Arthur who has now joined them. Uther who is still under an enchantment and wearing the necklace that she gave him cannot see her as she really is. Queen Catrina rips the door off its hinges, which Arthur points out to his father who doesn’t pat any attention. He then blurts out that she is a troll and Uther announces that if he calls her that again he will have him executed. He is quite upset and remarks “Haven’t you hurt her enough?”
 Back in Queen Catrina’s bedchamber Uther is still trying to get closer to his bride and remarks on her scent, stating that it is “so fragrant”. Queen Catrina tells him that it is, “dung!” Uther throws Catrina who now looks like a troll onto the bed and kisses her passionately.
In the throne room the next day Gaius attempts to tell Uther that his wife is a troll. “You do realize that your wife is a troll sire, at least that’s how she looks to us,” Gaius tells him but to no avail. Another one of the knights chimes in with the fact that she has fangs, or rather tusks. Everyone can see what she looks like now except Uther who is still smitten with her.
Back in Gaius’s quarters Merlin and he discuss how to break the enchantment and he tells Merlin that he must speak to the dragon. He warns Merlin to be careful telling him that dragons and trolls have been allies in the past.
 Under Camelot in the cave, Merlin speaks to the dragon who cannot stop laughing at Uther’s plight. Merlin tells him that if she is allowed to stay queen that Albion will never exist. The dragon reminds Merlin of his promise to release him one day and tells him that the only way to break the enchantment is to make Uther shed tears of true remorse. As the dragon points out, Uther has a cold heart so this is no easy task, as he is never sorry.
Back in the throne room Catrina is now fully visible as a troll and is breaking wind and burping loudly. There is dung on the table and the guard’s are arguing about the taxes. Jonas is present and Uther looks happy.
In Gaius’s quarters Merlin and he are discussing how to make Uther cry to break the enchantment and decide that he must see Arthur dead. Merlin goes to Arthur’s chamber and lies under the bed. When Arthur enters he calls out to him and comes out. Arthur is surprised to see him and says, “If you say I told you so..” Merlin tells him that he wasn’t going to but can’t help adding, “Well if you had listened to me!”
 He tells Arthur the plan and he exclaims, “So your great plan is to kill me!”
Merlin explains that Gaius has made a potion to bring Arthur as close to death as he can get and an antidote to revive him. The potion is really a poison and Gaius slips and calls it that once. If the antidote isn’t taken within half then you die and Arthur is a little worried about this. “I suppose it is a bit important,” Merlin states. Arthur retorts with, “Don’t be late!” To which Merlin replies, “Am I ever?”
Gaius goes to tell Uther that Arthur has taken his own life and Uther hurries to see his son. In the meantime, Merlin who has the antidote is on his way to give it to Arthur. Jonas drops a light blue vase on his head knocking him out and the glass jar with the clear antidote breaks on the stone floor. Merlin rouses to look for the antidote and sees the smashed glass.
Uther is in Arthur’s chamber and wracked with guilt that he has caused his own son’s death, he cries as Queen Catrina arrives and tries to drag him away. Uther now sees Catrina as she really is and is confused. Merlin turns up and has one drop of the antidote in his palm, he slowly holds it over Arthur’s lips and it drips onto his mouth. Arthur comes round and grabs his sword. Catrina throws him against the wall. Jonas attacks Arthur who is now conscious and Arthur stabs and kills him. Arthur now attacks Catrina and Merlin uses magic to pull the rug out from under her tripping her up, and Arthur stabs her too. She breaks wind several times more as she dies.
 Arthur and Merlin meet in the corridor and Arthur thanks Merlin for his help. He tells Merlin that there is something shifty about him, as if he has something to hide. “Without your help, I’d still have a troll for a step-mother,” he muses.
Arthur goes to place his hand on Merlin’s shoulder and he leans in to hug him. Arthur pulls away and glares at Merlin. “What are you doing?” he says, looking at Merlin in disgust. Merlin mumbles that he thought he was going to hug him and Arthur looks at him contemptuously.
 Back in the throne room Uther is sitting opposite Arthur at the long wooden dinner table and eating fruit. Uther begins talking about how magic has once more infiltrated the heart of Camelot and Arthur says, “More like your heart!” He continues eating and says he doesn’t want to hear about the time his father spent with the troll. Uther looks far from happy. | |
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