That's very well written out and I agree with a lot of it. I usually read the episode reviews before I see anything of the episodes because they're not shown here since NBC stopped carrying it. So when I actually saw some of the episode I was surprised that there was such little sympathy for Freya. It's quite clear that she had to kill to stop her rapist, so accusing her of weakness is a little off. In fact, I never got the impression that she was looking to Merlin as a savior. She just seemed so floored that somebody actually cared enough about her to go to all that trouble. And she knew from beginning that she and Merlin could never be though she may have desperately wanted it. Their moment before he ran off to secure the supplies for their escape, was wonderfully done by both of them. She seemed so happy and hopeful then, and you later see that she leaves before he returns. She was a realist throughout. Merlin was the one fooled throughout and that's for many reasons but not because she lead him on. Colin and the actress had great chemistry together. Dare I say it, more so than Bradley and Angel have shown in their time together.

Overall the writing has gotten better and the characters have grown. Perhaps the growth has been in some unexpected directions especially with regards to Merlin who is idealized in fandom. He's shown in a more ambivalent light in the show especially with regards to the lying.

It was good to see another perspective of this episode.