What if Yoda was a wise dragon, Obi-Wan was an elderly wizard, and Darth Vader was a prejudiced king blinded by his hatred for all those who oppose him? Jedi Knights are not so far off from the Knights of the Round Table. Some fans might be tempted to draw parallels between the hero's journey in Star Wars and that of another legendary tale of Merlin and King Arthur, thanks to the BBC show Merlin, currently airing on NBC.
Merlin explores the story of the young wizard Merlin, as well as Prince Arthur, Morgana, Guinevere, Nimueh, Mordred, Uther Pendragon, Lancelot and other well-known Arthurian characters.
Starwars.com chats with Merlin producer, writer and co-creator Johnny Capps about this new twist on the tale of Merlin, why the Great Dragon and Yoda make excellent teachers, and why the master/apprentice relationship is crucial during a hero's journey.
How did the project of the Merlin TV show come about?
We wanted to recreate the Merlin legend for a new generation. Inspired by TV shows like Smallville and Buffy we thought what better way to do that than to show Merlin and Arthur before they became the wizard and the king of legend. Once we had the concept we started playing around with the world and the characters and everything grew from there.
Why do you think audiences are forever entertained by the story of King Arthur?
King Arthur is the original romantic hero. The ideals of bravery, chivalry and the fight against evil are universal, as shown by the success of Star Wars. King Arthur embodies all of those things. Plus every generation reinvents the legend for themselves, from the first appearance of Arthur in Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the King's of Britain to Malory, Tennyson and eventually us. With every retelling of the story, King Arthur is updated to suit the current time.
Why did you think it's interesting that the show looks at the early lives of famous Arthurian characters before they have become known for their legendary actions?
When people fall in love with characters they want to know everything about them, as shown by the success of the Star Wars prequels and the new Star Trek movie. So looking at Merlin and Arthur's early lives gives the audience an insight into what they know happens later. You feel like you truly know a person if you know where they come from. It's like when you make friends with someone -- the first things you ask are where they grew up and what their family is like. Merlin aims to answer those sorts of questions for the characters of the Arthurian legends.
Why is the theme of destiny so important throughout the story of Merlin?
"Destiny" refers to the great future that the audience knows Arthur and Merlin will have. It's almost like the audience have already seen that part of the story, because it's such a famous legend, just as the audience for the Star Wars prequels have seen A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. So that's why it's important -- the stories we tell in Merlin explain a future that the audience already knows well.
Heroes are often made, and not born. Why did you want to portray Merlin as more of a hero and not just a friend to Arthur?
Merlin is the greatest wizard of all time. The legend makes it clear that Arthur would never have become King without Merlin. So that hero theme was always there. But we were also influenced by comic book heroes like Superman and Spider-man. The idea of the hero who has to save the world whilst keeping his talents secret is a very powerful one.
