Scrutinizing Queen Mab

Mab trying to comfort Merlin would have been a great scene. bwahahahaha Mab would be entirely out of her element.
I'm not sure if she would comfort him if he cried though.
In some situations I've been in I've felt really awkward because someone was grieving, but I'm not a huge social people-person so I didn't feel comfortable trying to comfort them. Basically, I'd just stand there til they were done because it was insensitive/rude to leave completely, but at the same time you didn't really know what to do for them.
So I could see three possible options for Mab: try to comfort him, just stand there and wait, or actually leave and come back later.

Here's a great idea. Someone should rewrite that scene and have Mab trying comfort Merlin..hehe...hmm. I'll think about it myself. If you've got any good ideas shoot them at me.


well perhaps you could compare the word "witch " to "woman". When someone says "You know that woman..." blah blah
It depends on the tone of voice used as to whether the word "woman" sounds neutral or insulting...


btw, just saw The Last Airbender movie, it was pretty good. The magic was very beautiful.

I'll post more questions up soon. If you have any of your own, I'd love to hear them. Anything at all in the movie that you would want a second viewpoint or impression on.

Mordred is a spoiled child with a temper. I get the impression he acts first and thinks later.

Mab intentionally taunted him when she said, "Ah less than perfect."
I don't know if she expected him to fire an arrow at her, but she didn't seem surprised by it. So it's probably Mordred's normal behaviour.

I think Morgan was lucky that she convinced Mordred to stop by the time he aimed at her. I don't think Mordred was really thinking about whether his mother would be able to catch the arrow or not. He might have been, but I doubt it. He was very angry and not thinking about anything.

Morgan is either extremely naive; or, just like Mab, she is accustomed to Mordred's violent behaviour and isn't surprised by it. Because Morgan takes the situation as calmly as Mab does, despite not having the power to protect herself if Mordred did fire at her.

Frik probably would have tried to stop Mordred's arrow from hitting Morgan, but there's no guarantee he would have succeeded. He seemed to have difficulty catching his own arrow. I'm not sure if its because Mordred happened to catch him off guard or if he is simply slower than Mab.

Clearly, Mab is more skilled because she didn't even have to look at the arrow to catch it, but I don't know if she is physically quicker than Frik or not.

Mordred says "Auntie Mab understands!"

Mab responds, "Of course, I understand. You were testing yourself."

Now that sentence is somewhat ambiguous. Does she mean Mordred was testing his skills? Or was he testing his ruthlessness? Like he was willing to fire at his own family without hesitation.


*Go to youtube and watch The Last Airbender trailer, then you'll know what I'm talking about.

In the Merlin novelisations, Frik comments that Mab has had physical relationships with mortals in the past. But it was very random and brief encounters with someone she just happened to take a fancy to. And Idath was her lover long ago.
So she seems to enjoy sex or she wouldn't do it all, but recently it seems to have taken a backseat. I think its something she did when she had the time for such frivolity. Now she's too focused on the war and the country etc. to spare much thought for her own personal pleasure.

Her survival is top priority over any fleeting sex encounter.

I love mab/vortigern.
But as for vortigern, he never trusted her really. I think he found her beautiful and compelling, but I'm not sure if he'd trust her enough to sleep with her or not. He might think she would try to bewitch him or something.

And Mab, hard to say what game she was playing. Perhaps she found him somewhat attractive. Maybe she was just playing along with the situation. She was trying to get him on her side so she's not going to slap him or anything for inappropriate behaviour.
With Mab, you'll never know if you were actually a fun toy or just a tool she found convenient.

But hell you never know. Maybe they did do something together afterwards. I just don't think its likely since Vortigern was about to go into battle. He would want to be prepared and focused for something like that.

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Mordred/Mab is even worst because sometimes it seems less likely than vortigern/mab, but other times even more probable.

At first, the atmosphere between Mab and Mordred is that he is a spoiled child and she intends to use him. Later in the fire "delicious" scene, there was some possible tension, but still doubtful that Mab would go for someone like him. He is still very much a child and spoiled rotten. He only took seven years to grow up so he might be in love with Mab, but I don't know if she would find spoiled rotten arrogance attractive.
She spoiled him so that he would be totally devoted to her. But I don't think that's a behaviour she would usually cultivate in a person unless it was the only way.
She didn't treat Merlin like that. She gloated over him and stuff, but she wasn't showering him with attention and gifts. She pretty much ignored him until he defied her and caught her attention because of that. *wink* Merlin, the problem child, just wanted mother's attention so he caused some trouble.

But Mab does seem to have possibly loved Mordred as a son. She did truly grieve over Mordred when he died. But I think a lot of that was also grief over the fact that she had no cards left to play and was going to die.

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XD I love Mab/Merlin too. hehehe
Good, but very difficult question as to why Mab said that to Merlin.
"as a son" is very strange to me. Mab, he is your son. Of course you love him that way. You shouldn't have to say "I love you...as a son."
It should be more like, "You're my son Merlin. Of course I'll always love you."
But the way Mab said it was strange. As if she was realizing it for the first time and had to say it that way.

I think she secretly loved her son for a long time, she just didn't realize it. Remember that scene between Mab and Frik where she slaps him. She wanted him back so badly she was deluding herself into thinking it was possible.

When it came down to the moment of her death, she was desperate and terrified. Desperation can make people do things/admit things they never would have otherwise. I don't think she would have ever told Merlin "I love you" unless she had been on the verge of death. I'm sure she would have implied her love for him if they had stayed together, but she would have never admitted it out loud.

Mab may have known all along her feelings for him and was finally desperate enough to mention it. Or she suddenly realized it and that's why she said "as a son".


I dunno if Mab would have sex with Merlin even if he did want to do it. That's really inappropriate because she does view him as her son. But it would be awesome. squee

I don't know if Mab would have killed Merlin. Magic cannot kill and all that. But she certainly could have arranged to have him killed. But how difficult would it be to kill Merlin if he decided to use his magic to protect himself? Can he detect poison? Does he have a sixth sense for danger?
What really stands out is that she eventually tried to get him out of the way, but she waited a long time before doing that because she was hoping he'd come back.

That's a good idea about her wanting to go down fighting. Other than that, perhaps she was deranged and desperate at that point and not thinking very clearly. Maybe there was no going back. Maybe her land had already faded away or something.
Because trying to kill Merlin at that point wasn't going to accomplish much. Merlin did walk into the room and challenge her to her face. Maybe that was the last straw on a bad day and she just wanted to put him in his place. And then unexpectedly Merlin found her weakness and destroyed her. She was just pissed and wanted to smack him around a bit out of fury and frustration. She wasn't expecting anything else.

I don't think Merlin cared if Frik had powers. Merlin would have been happy to get rid of his own powers. And I think Merlin knew that if he tried to bargain for Nimue's freedom, there's no way Mab would settled for anything less than him swearing his loyalty to her eternally.

Mab wasn't really at fault for his mother and Ambrosia. She didn't plan for that to happen, it just did. But she was totally unsympathetic. And yes, she's not human, blah blah, but half of Merlin is human so it bothered him. It was a total misunderstanding between the two of them because he couldn't comprehend her fae behavior and she couldn't comprehend his human emotions. I'm surprised Merlin never understood her at all because he is half-fae. Perhaps he never tried to since she upset his human side so severely.

But Nimue was totally Mab's fault. Mab deliberately provoked him and Merlin retaliated. It was all part of the plan except Merlin's retaliation. She thought if she could force him to use his magic, then he would be hers. Maybe she thought the fae part of him would surface if he used magic. But that didn't happen because once again his human side was really upset over Nimue and couldn't forgive Mab.

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I think it was just centuries of calling her "madam" that Frik did it without thinking even if he didn't like her. He hasn't really liked her for a long time, but he still addressed her respectfully because she would've kicked his butt. Frik has always been a coward. Morgan's death gave him unnatural courage because he wanted Mab to kill him on the spot because he didn't want to live without Morgan. But after he had emotionally calmed down, he went back to be a coward.
I'm surprised how cowardly he always was. We never get to see the full extent of his powers. Was he a Thought Wizard like Mab or not? I suppose he was always scared because he's just used to having Mab looming over him.
I wonder if its because Frik is not human, that his emotions seem to be more fleeting that humans. If Mab's kind was constantly getting deeply attached to humans it actually would not be a good thing. The humans they fell in love with would always age and die eventually and then they would have to carry the pain of their lost love for the rest of eternity.
From a vampire show, "To love us is to watch us die." Vampires who fell in love with humans could only helplessly watch their loved ones grow old and die unless they wanted to risk turning them, which might kill them. So they always made a point to never fall in love and constantly changed companions to ensure this.
Perhaps the fae are made in a way that they cannot love humans deeply because then they would have to watch them die of illness, age, etc. and be unable to do anything about it.
So their emotions, if any, are very fleeting.

she's a dying goddess not an estate agent. lmao!
Ah, but Merlin did realize it was Mab's cave when he entered. Remember the scene. "..Wait this is all Mab."
Nimue "Oh forget her. It doesn't matter anymore."
Or something like that.
Maybe Merlin would have been able to open the cave if he was on the inside, I dunno.
But for some reason, it seems like Mab wanted to give Merlin a choice. She did not want to trap him in that cave with no choice at all. He had a choice to stay with Nimue or leave. She was expecting him to stay with Nimue.
Maybe, in some sense, staying with Nimue equals to staying with Mab since it was her cave. She was giving him the choice to stay in her cave or leave her again.

Even though Mab said "I'll make you" to Merlin. Even though she forced him to use his magic. It all still seems to come back to a choice. She wanted him to choose to help him because in truth she could not force him as much as she may have wanted to. And someone who does something willingly is usually far more helpful than someone who is doing it under force.
Maybe a tiny bit of her still held on to a hope that, using Nimue, Merlin would finally choose her. She gave Merlin and Nimue a place to live away from all the fighting. In Mab's eyes, she probably viewed it as a great gift as well as a trap to keep Merlin out of the way. Merlin was finally free to be with Nimue. She probably thought it might make Merlin like her more.


What would have Frik done? Cried, screamed and run away in terror. He might grovel and go back to her, but that would depend on if Mab would forgive him for his insolence. If not, then he would have remained an ugly mortal and may have chosen to continue fighting, but probably would have found a quiet place to live away from it all. He's never been a "save the world" or "rule the world" type like Merlin and Mab. He would have run away from all the madness. In some ways, he's a lot smarter than other characters.


--------------My Questions:

What was Mab doing the entire time Frik was training Merlin?
Do you think Mab showed Merlin how to do any magic herself? Why or Why not?
Why didn't she? What was she doing?

Why didn't Mab and Merlin spend ANY time together at all in the Land of Magic? It seems like Frik was the go-between and the two of them were never together?


-----------------------Final Note:
I love that new image of yours!
Also there's a new mab/idath fanfic that's been started over here if you'd like to join in:
Idath/Mab MRAP board

Major thunderstorm fried the power supply unit inside my computer so I had to replace that. Then I had internet problems after that thanks to the same storm damage.
Note to self: Always use a surge protector because it will save your computer and other electronics when the storms or the cable company decides to send way too much electricity through the wires.

Mab not offering Nimue to him could be seen as a plot hole. But I think they were both really focused on what was going on and angry, really, really angry. You don't think too clearly when you're angry.

You don't fry people with dragon fire. Even if "the ends justify the means" its not nice and not going to gain any cooperation from Merlin.

Wow you just totally wiped out all respect I had for Frik.
oh I didn't mean to. =P Frik's not a threat. He is intelligent, but not ambitious. I'd be worried if I had someone ambitious helping me because they might try to double cross you or something. So intelligence is very useful and his subservient, cowardly manner means he can be trusted not to chase his own ambition.

Did she teach Frik? Frik is non-human, so maybe he can learn it on his own by reading the books and such. Perhaps he observed Mab quite a lot, but I'm not sure if she really needed to "teach" him since I'm assuming it would come more naturally for him than it does for Merlin. But it would be really interesting!

Yeah I would think he was as he had to teach Merlin.
Does he have to be a Thought Wizard to teach Merlin how to be one? Perhaps he just understands the theory of it, but cannot actually do it? He probably is a Thought Wizard though because of all those transformations he did without any kind of hand-signs.
And since it's Thought Wizardry, its hard to show a person how its done because there are no incantations or hand-signs. The only thing you can really do is explain it and then the student has to will it to happen on their own.

Frik is immortal like the rest of the fae. That is until Mab takes his magic away, she seems to strip him of his immortality as well. I suppose he got what he wished in a really cruel way. He would have to live a long life before he finally got to die.

Nimue didn't want to be used as pawn by Mab to keep Merlin in the cave. That's why she didn't say anything to Merlin. Nimue wanted Merlin to "save Britain" without having to worry about her or being torn between the country and his love. Nimue was playing the martyr.

Merlin is not perfect whatsoever. Given enough time of watching the humans make a mess of things for centuries I think he would have reached the level of Mab's cruelty and fury. She was very old, disillusioned, angry, passionate, probably bitter person.

What was Mab doing the entire time Frik was training Merlin?
The only thing I can think she was doing was a lot of spying on politicians and planning. But still, like you said, since she doesn't sleep, I don't understand why she didn't have time to do that and time to help Merlin. How much spying and planning can one do?

Perhaps they didn't have a scene like this because it would have ruined her "all evil" character portrayal.

She says time means nothing to her, but she's a liar. She is running out of time. Her followers are disappearing. She needs Merlin to take the throne as soon as possible before the damage cannot be undone.

Oh I see, she was spying on Merlin's lessons as well as the country's politicians. hehee

I think Mab was viewing Merlin as just a tool when he first showed up. He wasn't a "person" to her yet, just a "weapon" she had created. You don't spend time getting to know your "weapon". That's what you do with a person. His defiance seems to have gotten her attention and made her realize he had a will and mind of his own and was not just a "tool".

With Mordred, she definitely realized treating someone like a tool, even if that's what you really think of them, doesn't work with humans if you want to win their loyalty.

I'm sure Merlin found her attractive and it might have sitmulated the nether regions a few times too. Faeries are very enchanting in most stories. But I figure it was mostly just normal physical attraction to a very pretty fae, not any love. He didn't know anything about her to fall truly in love with her.

I doubt Mab cared or noticed Merlin's attraction. The fae are deadly attractive without consciously trying to be. If Merlin had done something awkward, I don't know if she would have told him "Don't get any funny ideas" or not.
But I don't think she would have told him no because he was her son. If she said no it would be because she wasn't interested.


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I just finished reading a book called Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr. It's great! It's all about faeries and I think you would really like it.
The story introduces Aislinn, a teen who can see the faeries around her, but who has been taught all her life to pretend not to see them. She is struggling to cope with the faeries when Keenan, the faery Summer King, enters her life and takes away her mortality.
However, Aislinn has no desire to become part of the faerie world, and is already in love with her best friend, Seth...
There's faery queens in this story too.
There are three more books to the series so far that I will be reading soon.

We have thunderstorms A LOT during the summer. The power goes out multiple times.
But it comes back quickly.


Ok, evidence from the books about what happened. You really need to get the books!

"For Merlin still carried Mab's blood in his veins. He was half-fairy, and though he aged, he did so far more slowly than mortal kind." pg266

In the novel, Nimue apparently ages at the same extremely slow rate as Merlin because she was trapped in that cave.

Because when the two of them meet again, their both physically the same age. Frik aged extremely slowly as well because he was still alive too.

And then basically Merlin uses the last traces of his magic to make himself and Nimue young again. "Merlin felt the last of Mab's gift fade from his bones. His fairy heritage melted away, leaving him wholly mortal at long last."pg276


How does he do the thing with the shimmering like moving and appearing in places?
I expect its a fae thing. I've watched lots of anime where they do it. lol Some call it "flash-step" in anime.

Mab through some twist in reality returned. Would she be able to convince him then to side with her? It would take a very convincing argument, but yes maybe. But it would depend on a lot of different variables. If Merlin's emotions had softened towards her and he'd finally forgiven her. If the country needed help and Merlin thought that Mab was the only one who could set things right. etc.

Well that's just crap because as I do ridiculously over analyse her I don't see her as evil. I just see her as determined and desperate.
But the movie (merlin's view point) attempts to paint her evil does it not?
We need a remake movie from mab's view point please. Then we'd have a better understanding, more objective view of the whole picture from hearing both sides of the story.

I think Mab meant time means nothing because she was taunting she could play the game forever whereas Merlin would continue to age and eventually die if nothing else finished him off. But despite her immortality she really didn't have the time. She was just milking it because she had Mordred in her grasp. She thought she was gonna win.


She treated Mordred like a spoilt brat which more often than not wins over a human. Especially one who has such a young mind as Mordred.
I'm surprised Mordred didn't ever tell her "no" about something. Most spoiled children don't listen to their parents. They are so spoiled they refuse to obey at all and still expect presents.


--------Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr
They're not little winged things either. They're full grown faeries as tall as any human. I love the books because I imagine that Mab's court of faeries might be like what the book describes. What her court might have been in their glory days. I just finished reading the second one! At this point, I'll have the whole series done in the next few days, but I can't stop, its too good.





-----------More Questions:
Question, how does Arthur die from a stab wound in his side? Did Mordred hit the liver or something?
Obviously, Mordred was either stabbed in the heart or at least the lung, both very vital.

I wonder what Mab thought when Merlin showed up the last time? Did she know that Nimue had deliberately kept Merlin in the dark or did she think Merlin had actually abandoned Nimue?

Lady of the Lake: "It's human to make mistakes Merlin."
Merlin's snippy retort: "It's fae to leave out vital information and speak in riddles."

Didn't the Lady really want to help him? Or did she assume Merlin would know that she meant Galahad not Lancelot?

You know what, I take back some of what I said about Frik. He did fight in Arthur's battle. Unless he had some unfair physical advantage that was pretty brave. I think he did have a little bit of an advantage because in the movie he makes a easy leap onto the back of a horse to attack a man. I don't think a normal person could do that, but fighting in the battle was still pretty brave.

I noticed a little thing. If you look at the round table, you can see the names of the knights written around it.

Right before Frik runs away, Mab sort of lifts up her cape behind her like she was about to do something. "Not as harsh as I'm going to be."
Other than looking really cool and impressive, what do you think she was about to do?

Why did Mab steal a rock from the lake? Isn't that theLadyofLake's rock since it was in her lake? lol
ok so Mab asked Lady of the Lake for help. Was she asking for general help? Or asking help to create Merlin?


Mab's quick, but awesome wardrobe change. Does she always change clothes that way? Does she ever take her clothes off? Cause no one would ever see her naked if that's how she changes dresses. Does she ever take baths? maybe for fun? hot tub?
She's got a river at the foot of her palace and a lake beyond that. Seems like good places to swim, but maybe the water's really cold.
Maybe she gets undressed and dressed the normal way for her lover's pleasure?

When Frik was running up to the boat, it doesn't seem like the water was very deep in that cave yet they were in a boat anyways. But in the merlin novelisation it does imply there was great depth to the water in places. Frik could have been walking on top of the water, I can't tell.

Why was Mab circling Merlin? when he was a boy in the land of magic. That scene to me did have a lot of sexual tension like she was sizing him up or something.