The next drama from Netflix Damn look at the legend of King Arthur through the eyes of a different character named Nimue. If you’re only familiar with the most basic versions of the legends of Camelot, you might not recognize his name right away, but Nimue is, in fact, one of the most central characters to the whole of the mythology.
In most of the version of the Camelot mythos, Nimue is the name of the Lady of the Lake, but the complexity and variations of the myths Arthurian can make it difficult to trace the stories are about her and which are attributed to other versions of the character. The Lady of the Lake is known for being the witch that emerges from a lake to give King Arthur his famous sword Excalibur. Yes, that is where the much-memed “Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government” scene Monty Python and the Holy Grail comes from!
His relationship with Arthur, then complete the circle at the end of Camelot. After Arthur is mortally wounded, his knight Sir Bedivere throws Excalibur back into the lake, where it is claimed by the Lady. Nimue is also one of the magical beings that leads to the dying Arthur away to Avalon, the mysterious and magical island, where it is brought to rest until he is needed once more.
In several versions of the story, she is an enemy to the sorcerer Merlin, despite the different versions of the myth give different motivations. Some variations of the Arthur legends cast as a jealous witch that play potentially fatal tricks on Merlin out of spite and jealousy. Others are more sympathetic interpretation, in which Nimue’s fatal enchantment of Merlin is motivated by his continuous and intense, romantic and sexual harassment of her; after she gets rid of him, she becomes Arthur’s wise and compassionate advisor (and marries one of his knights), helping to move Camelot in the right direction.
There are, however, alternative versions of the Lady of the Lake and Nimue, and in some tellings, Nimue is only one of the multiple “the Lady of the Lake” character. Some versions of cast Nimue as Merlin’s enemy and ultimate doom while which separate it from the Lady who gives Arthur his sword; other versions combine the concept of the Lady of the Lake, with the character of Morgan le Fay. Nimue’s name is not always consistent: despite the fact that “Nimue” or “Nimueh” is the more common name for this character, she is occasionally named Ninianne or Vivianne. Damn seems to be taking the most common elements of Nimue different stories, and we will get to see exactly what items appear when the series comes to Netflix on July 17!
