- Alternate Character Interpretation: Aside from whether or not Drake is truly evil, there's the bit with Morgana herself where her Start of Darkness is revealed to at least partially be because she didn't want to serve anyone, especially Merlin (a man). On the other hand, what Merlin was actually talking about was being a servant to the power you wield (and thus showing it respect and honoring the people you're supposed to help with it), so Morgana refusing to do this is actually a sign of her arrogance and megalomania, not a real Freudian Excuse.
- Cliché Storm: A major criticism of the movie, though it's probably intentional. And to its credit, no other work of fantasy has ever before combined Merlin legends with 21st-century New York college students.
- Draco in Leather Pants: Blonde, arrogant young evil wizard with a British accent? Who's actually wearing Leather Pants? Whose name is Drake! Considering that Drake didn't seem to relish the idea of killing children to take over the world and didn't really do anything all that evil, this is one of the more plausible cases...
- Evil Is Sexy: Drake Stone, although he's only partially evil. Like, maybe, sixty percent evil? Still hot, though.
- Genius Bonus: It's not likely that historians and fans of The Crucible would be seeing a Summer Blockbuster like this in the first place, but who else would know who Abigail Williams
was?
- Some teen viewers might know due to studying it in school.
- Hilarious in Hindsight:
- A nod to Toy Story in a Disney movie? Makes sense. A Shout-Out to Star Wars? Give it a few years...
- Jay Baruchel's character claiming he has no idea how to command the giant steel eagle. Think he'd have better luck with a dragon?
- Becky Barnes is just one letter away from Bucky Barnes, another regular human whose childhood friends with an awkward nobody who becomes the hero.
- Idiot Plot: This film would have lasted five minutes if Balthazar had put the Grimhold in a safe.
- Narm/Narm Charm: "I brought some science with me!" Dr. Insano would be SO PROUD.
- Nightmare Fuel:
- When the dancers inside the Chinese dragon get stuck inside when it transforms into a real dragon. Played for Laughs.
- The Rising when it is cast. Dem Bones crossed with Zombie Apocalypse, with one of the shots being of the Paris Ossuary. Horrifying.
- So Okay, It's Average: The general consensus of the film.
- They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character: Horvath summons Abigail Williams to kidnap Becky... and then absorbs her power to raise Morgana as soon as he has Becky.
- Vindicated by Video: The film recouped its losses when it was released on DVD and Blu-ray.
- The Woobie: Dave, to a certain extent. Especially at the beginning of the movie.
