This film starts with King Arthur on the throne. Sir Galahad has completed his quest and as brought the Holy grail to Camelot. Everything is peaceful and joyous. Happy with the knowledge that a righteous King is on the throne, Merlin decided to take as rest (lets face it, he deserves a rest after the battle between Queen Mab in the previous "Merlin") Unfortunately, Merlin has a bit of a lie in (50 years to be exact, even I can't sleep that long and I love my sleep). He awakes to a different world with corpses from endless battles. When Merlin returns to Camelot, he is relieved to see it still standing (well he did enchant every stone to withstand any attacks). When he enters, he is horrified to find the grail has vanished. He must find the Holy Grail and restore the harmony to Camelot once more, but "something that is lost, is not as easily found".
Enters Jack, an incompetent thief and an inferior magician. Jack manages to stow away into Camelot with his companion Sir Snout, a pig. After trying to steal Merlin's magic wand (the cheeky little scamp), and is caught. After a clash of magic (and personalities), a vision of the grail appears. Merlin reluctantly agrees to take on Jack as his apprentice and enlists his help to search for the Holy Grail. This is not an easy task, especially when the lady of the lake (now turned wicked) plans to build a great dam and unleash a massive flood on Camelot, drowning everyone (I hope they can swim!). Armed with this knowledge, Jack makes the mistake of disenchanting the protective magic barrier of Camelot and the Barbarians invade the castle, lead by the Lady of the Lake. Their only means of escape is a magical bridge built by Merlin.

Not as many well known actor like the previous Merlin.

Miranda Richardson has had plenty of practice playing a twisted, wicked and evil sorceress as Queen Mab (in "Merlin"). She plays a similar role as Lady of the Lake. Her voice is raspy whisper with an eerie echo. Her appearance is parallel to Queen Mab, if a little toned down (her hair is not as wild and tribal as Queen Mab, and not as much makeup). Sam Neill performance of Merlin is pretty much the same as the first, if a little bit more frustrated and not as much in control. John Reardon is marvelous as Jack, full of life and mischief. Jack provides most of the comedy throughout the film. He has a tendency to mess things up with disastrous consequences.

I often wondered what happened to Merlin after King Arthur and this is an adventurous tale of what could have been. This film still contains the fairy-tale qualities of the first, but I feel the characters are not a strong (such as Frik and Morgan). There is a lack of the mythical beasts, which made the first "Merlin" so enchanting (no dragons, faeries or gnomes). The romantic story was not as powerful as Nimue and Merlin, but you did feel for Yvonne and Graham, and willed them to be together, despite their love being forbidden. The twists in the tale did keep me engrossed until the end. There are still plenty of action, magic and immense battle between good and evil, which provides a pleasant follow up to the award winning "Merlin". Yes, ok, I am comparing it to the first, which is unfair. The best thing about this film is that if you have not seen the first it does not matter, you can still enjoy the story. The special effects through out the film are extraordinary. The dust forming a 3d map of the kingdom, the eerie yellow glow of the Holy Grail are just some of the special effect. Not as amusing as Monty Pythons "Holy Grail". No quest to build a "shrubbery"