As the hype was brewing prior to its initial airing on NBC, I was really looking forward to watching Merlin and what seemed a promising addition to an almost non-existent collection of "good quality" Arthurian films available. High expectations can often lead to big disappointments, and such was the case here. The acting was horrible, the dialogue ridden with cliches/nonsense drivel, and the plot full of holes leaving the viewer with more questions than answers. Even an all-star cast of such legends as Sir John Gielgud, Helena Bonham-Carter, Rutger Hauer, and Isabella Rosellini couldn't save Merlin from becoming yet another casualty of the TV junkpile (`Journey To The Center of the Earth' should ring a bell). I blame this soley on the poor direction of Steve Barron, who blew a golden opportunity to right the ongoing injustice of one bad Arthurian film after another. Rather than taking time out to do the research, it appears that most of the screenplay was borrowed and put together from various Arthurian films, most notably Disney's animated `The Sword in the Stone,', `Knights of the Round Table', and `First Knight'. Sam Neill and Martin Short were both also mis-cast for the title role and sidekick respectively, and it shows throughout the annoying banter between the two. It's like a nightmare of watching a bad Abbott & Costello film, only worse. The only bright spots were Paul Curran, whose portrayal of a weak King Arthur was more an afterthought than anything else, and the talking horse whose voice I could've sworn was the reincarnate of Mr. Ed. The special effects and Jim Henson Muppet Shop also deserve mention, but weren't nearly enough to offset the absence of a plausible storyline and great acting as can be found in `Excalibur' and `Dragonslayer'. Chalk up another in a long line of mediocre outings from Hallmark Entertainment. 1/10 stars