Okay, I started watching Once Upon a Time because I will go wherever a fairy tale is, and I still haven’t gotten over the fact that the 10th Kingdom didn’t get a sequel. Every time I see Scott Cohen on my TV and he doesn’t have a tail I cry a little. However, I was surprised OUAT was at the top of my viewing list this year, at least for one hour shows, because…I don’t actually like it that much. I sat through a lot of the first season wondering why I bothered but I also sat through Beastly, so I’m a huge sucker for this genre.
I finally became more invested in the show when Belle arrived. Rumpelstiltskin was always interesting but oh my god do I love him and Belle. I spent every episode after her first appearance wishing she would come back and now she’s a series regular. And Red is too! Plus, I have loved the snarly Mr. Sark since I was 15 and I cannot wait to know what fairytale character David Anders plays. Also, Sebastian Stan. So I was very excited for this episode, probably as excited as I was when the pilot aired and OH MY GOD I loved this episode! I’m not sure if everyone is going to be impressed, my mother sure wasn’t, but I will gladly watch this season so far and I’m excited to see where everything is going.
This episode picked up where last season left off with magic returning to Storybooke. Snow White and David have no problem becoming the Queen and King again as they take charge to calm the town and save Regina’s life. I loved seeing Snow reunite with the seven dwarfs, and I was liking Mary Margaret and David for the first time in a long time. Maybe this comes from watching too much Doctor Who and loving River Song a ridiculous amount, but it was really sweet that they barely even blinked at Emma being their child who was now the same age as them and used to gossip about boys with Mary Margaret. And Mary Margaret mentioning her one night stand with Dr. Whale at their little family reunion? Fantastic. Now that her and Emma are back in the fairytale world I’m looking forward to a badass Snow White again.
I was surprised the fairytale world was still somewhat intact, but I was wondering where the Storybrooke versions of Mulan, Sleeping Beauty, and Hot Prince Philip were at first. That was a Lost like twist to switch up the way the story is told a bit just when you’re getting used to it. It paid off in the end but thought there was too much build up with them before they got to the interesting parts. Also, shallowly, I’m not saying that Hot Prince Philip wasn’t hot, but can Mulan and Sleeping Beauty run off together to sing songs and fight evil doers and maybe make out a bit?
Speaking of things I think are homoerotic, how close were David and Dr. Whale standing while they were fighting over what to do with Regina? I’ve always found David a bit boring, but I was paying attention very closely during their weirdly intimate argument. More of that please. And I’ve heard lots of theories for who Dr. Whale is, my favorite being that he is King Arthur. But I have no idea. What do you all think? (P.S. Sorry, or maybe you’re welcome, but I couldn’t find a better photo and they look so pretty all riled up)
Regina has seemed like a solid villain and she moves the story along, but I don’t care about her character. It never actually seemed like she even liked Henry, she just didn’t want anyone else to be happy. However, she showed real feelings for him in the finale and I liked that she continued to be concerned for him now. The one episode love story wasn’t enough to make her sympathetic to me but trying to get her son back will help. I know fairytales have pretty clear versions of good and evil, but it’s so much more fun when things are muddied and I’m glad that’s finally happening with Regina.
Did I mention that I love Belle and Rumpelstiltskin? I will probably be mentioning it often. He unleashed magic and tried to kill Regina despite his promise not to, and I was so afraid they would crash and burn in just one episode. They are going to be so beautiful and painful throughout the season, and I both can’t wait and already want to cry. I’m not exactly thrilled that she stayed to make him a better man, dream bigger girl, but OUAT has a lot of strong female characters so for now I’m okay with Belle focusing on Rumpelstiltskin.
This episode was pretty fantastic. I had no idea fairytale land was still alive and kicking, I didn’t expect Emma and Mary Margaret to get sent there and this season looks promising. What did everyone else think? And is there another theory for who the mystery guy in the city was from the beginning of the episode? I was guessing Henry’s father, but I’d like to know if there are different opinions.
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I don't know I liked MM and David storylines and appreciate what it brings to the characters, especially Charming. Let's face it, flashback-Charming was an idealized flawless person. David on other hand is every flaw Charming has, thus the end-result should be someone that is a sum of both, thus finally being a bit more interesting, multilayered and flawed than flashback Charming.
I always saw Regina as sort of confused lost puppy in the first season. She was evil because she lost everything and completely focused herself on Revenge, but it was not something inherent in her character. So its only normal that after she allowed to open her heart for Henry, her storybrooke persona would be more morally-gray(and for me it did seem like that through S1 since she cried for killing Graham and overall looked really hurt when Henry would reject her, not to mention choosing Henry over the curse in the finale). Regina for me is someone broken down by tragedies and loss, so its very nice to see a redemption storyline for her.
I love the new mysteries the episode interested - the guy at the start, who, I am guessing is March Hare(I doubt they would throw Baelfire or Henry's father at us like that), the mystery of why Aurora's kingdom remained intact(totally agreed on Aurora/Mulan feels, btw), etc.
But the best part of this episode for me was Emma - Jennifer Morrison was PERFECT. Emma looked like a confused, lost, hurt little girl, when in front of Charmings. Here she is - a woman who never had a friend, who never had parents or family, who lived in orphanages and only got first friend, MM, when in Storybrooke....and now that Friend is theoretically lost, everyone she thought she knew, has years upon years of new memories and experiences and here she is, standing in front of her parents....FROM A FAIRYTALE. And they are arguing about curses and one-night stands and Emma is just standing there lost, since, still trying to EVEN comprehend having parents, as well as the impossibility of current situation and the fact that, in some way, she, yet again is more alone than ever. Oh gods, her and Snow's trip to FTL will be fascinating.
You bring up good points with Regina and Emma, but I just haven't been able to connect to their characters for more than an episode. I'm more interested in what happens to them because it drives the plot forward not because I like them. So that being said, I had never considered anything from Emma's point of view until this episode and I agree with you about what she was going through. When she said she would have rather been cursed with them instead of being alone that was definitely painful. If good stuff happens in the fairytale world, I may actually like a character Jennifer Morrison plays for once.
I LOVE THE 10 KINGDOM / This ep was good