ONCE UPON A TIME Finds "Heart" Amid Inconsistencies

Article first published as ONCE UPON A TIME Review Season 4 Episode 18 Heart of Gold on Seat42F.

As this week’s Once Upon A Time begins on ABC, Rumple (Robert Carlyle) finds The Author (Patrick Fischler) as he flees through the woods. This surely spells trouble for our heroes, but this installment, “Heart of Gold,” doesn’t deal with that. Instead, we see flashbacks to both the pre-Storybrooke time and New York City of nine weeks ago. Both periods contain some surprising revelations.

First, in the past we see Rumple send Robin Hood (Sean Maguire) to Oz to steal broken heart potion from the Wicked Witch (Rebecca Mader). Although Robin has already given up being a thief, he is in debt to the Sheriff of Nottingham (Will Traval) and needs the money Rumple is offering. Robin has promised his wife, Marian (Christie Laing), that he will support her, and without what Rumple is offering, he cannot fulfil that promise.

I could argue that Robin’s code is more than a little subjective, stealing when he feels it is justified, and not seemingly feeling any guilt about it. The fact that he lies to Will Scarlet (Michael Socha), whom he meets in Neverland and also promises potion to, proves that Robin’s perspective is a bit skewed. But I didn’t find these plot holes nearly so glaring, given that Robin is consistent with this in the near-present, and I like seeing more of these supporting characters.

Speaking of Will, he is in Oz looking to mend his own broken heart after the death of his sister. This presumably happens before he makes his way to Wonderland. I am still very, very eager to find out how he comes to Storybrooke after the events of Once Upon a Time in Wonderland and where the Queen of Hearts, his one true love, is, but “Heart of Gold” doesn’t answer that.

When Robin gets back to the Enchanted Forest, he re-commits himself to the outlaw life. This seems a little unnecessary and hokey. It does provide, though, an opportunity for Robin of Loxley to become Robin Hood, thus combining the two Sherwood myths. I’m not entirely satisfied with the way this plays out, but learning Robin gifts Will the potion, Will doesn’t steal it as I had assumed, is pleasant enough.

As mentioned, present day New York finds Robin with the same wavering morality as in fairytale land. Rumple has a heart attack in Neal’s old apartment, where Robin and his family are now living. Robin feels bad for Rumple, whose dark heart is failing him away from the magic that kept it going, and agrees to go after the same potion, which the Wicked Witch conveniently sent to the real world with The Wizard. Robin steals it and, after a Cowardly Lion-like escape through a window, thinks he cures Rumple.

That’s when the hour’s big shocker comes to ONCE UPON A TIME: Marian is really the Wicked Witch, whom replaced Robin’s love shortly before Emma (Jennifer Morrison) brought her to Storybrooke, and who didn’t really die in season three. It’s slightly sad that the real Marian is dead, but it’s also a bit of a relief to learn that no one else has a legitimate claim to Robin’s heart other than Regina (Lana Parrilla), who deserves a happy ending. The Wicked Witch can’t resist rubbing this in Regina’s face, er, ear, and this allows Rumple to hold Robin over Regina’s head.

Too bad Marian makes Robin delete Regina’s number from his phone, but he has plenty of other Storybrooke denizens in his contact list, so he should be able to go home. Get home, he must. Regina may be able to help him, either though teaming up with Rumple to turn Emma dark, or after defeating the bad guys, which is the outcome I hope for. Regina’s face at the end of “Heart of Gold” doesn’t reveal her decision, but since Robin is on the line, she will definitely have strong feelings about the choice.

Rumple’s more vulnerable scenes in “Heart of Gold” would be good if not for how much ONCE UPON A TIME has ruined his character. His ruminations feel unearned and cheap because he has turned his back on the redemption he earned without explanation. I feel like ONCE UPON A TIME is trying to explain away this glaring inconsistency, but it just doesn’t work.

“Herat of Gold” is one of the better episodes this season. I like all of the Robin and Will stuff, even when it drifts into goofy territory, and finding out the Wicked Witch never really went away is cool. Still, the show just isn’t as good as it once was, and this hour doesn’t plug the holes from previous weeks any more than any other has. ONCE UPON A TIME may one day get good again, but this is a weak attempt at that, even if it’s OK when taken on its own.

ONCE UPON A TIME airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

ONCE UPON A TIME "Heroes" Threatened By "Villains"

Article originally written for Seat42F.

ABC’s ONCE UPON A TIME wraps up its current Frozen arc in just a portion of this week’s mid-season finale, “Heroes and Villains.” The Arendelle trio return home through a portal, easily overthrow their conquers (off screen), and end with a blessed wedding (also off screen). It’s the fairy tale happy ending, one they deserve and it is satisfying to see them get. There’s even a portrait of Ingrid, The Snow Queen, shown in better times with her sisters, to add a bittersweet remembrance.

But while heroes have their dreams come true, villains do not. The rest of the hour is devoted to Rumple’s (Robert Carlyle) quest for power and Regina’s (Lana Parrilla) desire for a happy ending. It’s actually a pretty good episode, if one can finally bring themselves to accept Rumple as he is, rather than as he was. I’m not talking about Rumple developing into a different person through growth and natural story flow. He is instantly made completely different, and now the show is using revisionist history to ‘prove’ that he has always been this version, which doesn’t at all line up with the first two and a half years of the series. A mention of him changing while being under the Wicked Witch’s control is flimsy, at best, though that’s about the time the transformation happened.

I have come to the conclusion that Rumple’s devolution is made to serve Regina’s tale that villains don’t get a happy ending, but if only his shift were to be tied into the storybook, with an explanation that he got too close to a happy ending and so had to be re-written, then I could get on board. Sadly, it looks like that will not be the case and the show runners just want us to forget a rich, layered character who sacrificed himself for love. Bah humbug.

That being said, if you’re able to look past these inconsistencies and accept things as they now are, which has been a struggle to do but I’m getting there, “Heroes and Villains” provides a cool showdown. Actually, a couple of them. In flashback, we see Rumple face the Queens of Darkness, Ursula (Merrin Dungey, Alias), Cruella De Vil (Victoria Smurfit, Dracula), and the returning Maleficent (Kristin Bauer van Straten, True Blood), demonstrating his true colors and his devotion to power. In the present, Belle (Emilie de Ravin) figures out that Rumple has been tricking her and banishes him from Storybrooke in the most moving scene of the finale, stripping him of his magic in the process.

Runner up for emotional scene goes to the moment Regina and Rumple share in the car, which is an excellent moment, though makes no sense to the story. I’d understand it if Rumple were trying to recruit her for his aforementioned villains team-up, but Belle hasn’t caught him yet at this point.

Rumple and Belle’s confrontation has been a long time coming. She has faith in him, faith that he has been abusing behind her back. She arrives at this conclusion very naturally, accidentally seeing something that raises her suspicion. Thank goodness she has the strength to stand up to him and kick him out, something Belle should be able to do, but not something I had faith that she would, given her inconsistent handling this year. The couple now appears back on track, story-wise, at least within the confines of the new Rumple character.

Now, Rumple is out in the world and is seeking Ursula’s help. One can surmise, given the flashback scenes, that Rumple learns that bad guys cannot win on ONCE UPON A TIME, but hopes that by teaming up with others, he might stand a chance against the mysterious Author, whom only Rumple seems to know. Though it is odd that Rumple tells Ursula they have two stops when we know Maleficent is under the library inside Storybrooke, a place Rumple can’t get to at present. And how did Ursula get outside the town to New York? Hmm. Will there be more story problems going forward?

A few hanging threads from this: Rumple does abandon his plans to take Henry (Jared S. Gilmore) with him, but that makes sense. Earlier, he is saving Henry from a town falling apart. Now, Henry’s mothers are still around and Rumple doesn’t need to save the boy. Secondly, Emma (Jennifer Morrison) forgives Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) for his misdeeds, but since she catches Rumple with Hook’s heart in his hand, she can be forgiven for assuming Hook only acts under Rumple’s control, which isn’t completely true, but close enough to reality to give ONCE UPON A TIME a pass on.

Regina’s story, as has been the case for many episodes now, is better in “Heroes and Villains” than Rumple’s. Robin Hood (Sean Maguire) chooses her over a re-awakened Marian (Christie Laing) and Marian doesn’t fight back. But the Snow Queen’s lingering curse forces Marian to leave Storybrooke to be cured, and Regina isn’t heartless enough to send Marian away without her son and, by extension, Robin, who cannot be separated from his child, leaving Regina alone again.

Luckily, while not having a romantic partner, Regina isn’t really alone. Henry is still set on helping the woman who raised him, and finds the Author’s library where he (or she) writes the stories. Emma also agrees to help, and for once, Regina seems happy to accept it. I think Regina is at a low point in “Heroes and Villains,” and having Henry and yes, even Emma, on her side helps relieve the pain a bit. People care about her, and thus she will be able to go on and love again, whether it be a returned Robin or someone else.

Though it is funny to think Emma, Snow’s (Ginnifer Goodwin) daughter, is buddies with Snow’s step-mother. The age differences and dynamics on this show are some of the weirdest on television.

“Heroes and Villains” is a pretty good episode of ONCE UPON A TIME, mostly consistent with the rest of the season, tying up the current stories and teasing out new ones. It doesn’t match all the previous years, but for the direction the show is going in now, it works well. I’ll miss the Frozen people, but their time naturally comes to an end, so I’m not complaining they’re gone.

ONCE UPON A TIME will return March 1st to ABC.

ONCE UPON A TIME, There Were "Two (Frozen) Sisters"

Article first published as ONCE UPON A TIME Review Season 4 Episode 1 A Tale of Two Sisters on Seat42F.

WARNING: There are spoilers below, but as always for unaired episodes, I don’t give away anything too major.

ABC’s ONCE UPON A TIME is back this weekend, kicking off a whole new arc related to the recent blockbuster movie Frozen, beginning with the episode “A Tale of Two Sisters.” While last spring’s Oz arc didn’t live up to expectations, the previous fall’s Neverland run was nothing short of spectacular. We’re only one episode in to the new story, but as far as first impressions go, this is a solid one, favoring the latter’s quality, rather than the former’s.

As some fans have been eagerly anticipating, “A Tale of Two Sisters” brings Elsa (Georgina Haig, Fringe) and her sibling, Anna (newcomer Elizabeth Lail), into ONCE UPON A TIME. And there is no shortage of the girls in the premiere. We see them in multiple time periods and get Elsa in both their home and in Storybrooke. Whatever this immediate plot entails, it will have plenty of them.

The main portion of Elsa and Anna’s scenes are set in their kingdom after the end of the movie. So if you haven’t seen Frozen, you may want to check it out this beforehand to catch you up on who these people are. ONCE UPON A TIME may eventually reveal enough to follow along without prior knowledge, but the scenes with Elsa, Anna, Kristoff (Scott Michael Foster, Greek), Sven (played by an actual reindeer, hilariously used!), and Pabbie the Troll (CGI, voiced by John Rhys Davies from The Lord of the Rings) may seem confusing to those who don’t already know them.

By beginning after the movie (spoiler for those who haven’t seen Frozen!), Elsa isn’t a villain the way she is for much of the film. She isn’t completely good either, though, as she is still struggling to control her powers. Suddenly dropped into a strange land, and likely on a very important mission viewers can guess at, it makes sense for her to panic and perhaps get a bit defensive. I’m not quite sure yet how she’ll fold in (or not) with the Storybrooke residents, but there is definitely the potential for conflict here, and I will say the earliest, indirect encounters don’t exactly go smoothly.

Some have criticized ONCE UPON A TIME in the past for periodically giving too much screen time to guest stars and not developing the core cast enough. While “A Tale of Two Sisters” definitely has a lot of Frozen fare, it does provide good, character-driven scenes to many of the primary players, too, striking what I feel is a respectable balance between the two camps.

Obviously, the biggest question after last spring’s finale is if Regina (Lana Parrilla) will slip back into her evil ways. This question is addressed a lot in the hour, but not answered this week. She is definitely tempted to smite Marian (Christie Laing), who is long believed dead until she suddenly shows back up to claim her husband, Regina’s boyfriend, Robin Hood (Sean Maguire). She even recruits an old henchman (yay!) to help her out. But Regina is no longer just the Evil Queen, and slipping back to her old ways doesn’t come as naturally as it once did. She also has a perhaps-unexpected ally trying to save her. Parrilla gives an as-usual fantastic performance as Regina struggles with her warring motivations.

Those who prefer the romantic side of things should be happy with “A Tale of Two Sisters.” There is some great stuff between Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and Hook (Colin O’Donoghue), and some even better stuff between Rumple (Robert Carlyle) and Belle (Emilie de Ravin). The latter’s honeymoon becomes quite fairy tale-esque in a scene that will make many Beauty and the Beast fans smile.

Both Rumple and Regina also kick off some extremely interesting arcs, one relating to another familiar tale not yet covered in ONCE UPON A TIME, and the other diving deeper into the base mythology of the show, exploring something not dwelled upon for some time. These are promising, excellent threads that should hopefully pair nicely with the Frozen line, succeeding in keeping everyone important busy in the coming season.

As for the announced new main cast member, the Knave of Hearts (Michael Socha) from the spin-off Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, he’s completely MIA in the first episode back. But his name graces the opening credits, so I expect that won’t be the case for long, and there’s still time to hold out hope that he won’t be coming to Storybrooke alone.

In all, ONCE UPON A TIME has a great return to form, beginning a fascinating series of stories and doing justice to the best characters in the show, even while introducing yet another batch of new ones. It’s too early to tell if this fall will rival the show’s Neverland zenith, but it’s got the right ingredients in place to serve the show well, should they be mixed correctly and baked for the right amount of time.

ONCE UPON A TIME airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

ONCE UPON A TIME "Drifts" "Home"

Article originally written for Seat42F.

ABC’s ONCE UPON A TIME ended their third season last night with two episodes: “Snow Drifts” and “There’s No Place Like Home.” While Zelena (Rebecca Mader) really is dead and is not coming back to cause more trouble, her passing has re-activated her time portal. When Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) get too close, they are sucked back into the past. They decide to seek Rumplestiltskin (Robert Carlyle) to help them return to the present, but before they find him, Emma accidentally disrupts the meeting of her parents, so that must be fixed before she can go home.

“Snow Drifts” and “There’s No Place Like Home” are really a stand-alone two-parter, much more than the wrap up of the Oz arc. Well, not stand-alone, because they culminate everything that has been building for Emma over the past three years, but they aren’t strongly tied to the rest of this half-season. It’s a really fun, reference-intensive journey for the central character, not a battle to the death with a powerful foe.

In a way, it’s good that Zelena doesn’t come back because the false defeat would ring very familiar, similar to the way Peter Pan’s fall story wraps up. On the other, this makes defeating Zelena way too simple, as I complained last week about how easily she is taken down. The trouble she causes in these episodes are purely accidental, and she herself is gone.

Emma’s tale is an Enchanted Forest remake of Back to the Future. Not only does ONCE UPON A TIME borrow the story and some of the conceits, it makes reference to the film via dialogue, just in case viewers couldn’t make the connection themselves. I assume Disney / ABC Studios doesn’t have the rights to the film, or else we might have seen a DeLorean in Rumple’s vault. Still, the parallels are obvious.

Which does not take away from how successful “Snow Drifts” and “There’s No Place Like Home” work. Emma has long been dealing with abandonment issues, and plans to leave Storybrooke now that the crisis is over. This tale wakes her up to the fact that she has a home and belongs with her family. Not only does she miss them when encountering younger versions of Snow (Ginnifer Goodwin) and Charming (Josh Dallas) that don’t know her, but she becomes a princess herself and is permanently injected into their story. This is Emma belonging, once and for all.

Along the way, ONCE UPON A TIME includes a number of bits for the fans. Recurring players such as Granny (Beverly Elliott), the Blue Fairy (Keegan Connor Tracy), Marco (Tony Amendola), and lesser seen faces aren’t really needed, but pop up to help the world feel fully rounded out, something the series needs to do more of in the present day. Even better, the familiar characters of Snow, Charming, Rumple, Belle (Emilie de Ravine), Red (Meghan Ory), and even another Hook are trotted out and interacted with, putting Emma back in connection with who these people were, not just who they are.

The story itself is not too complex. Rumple helps Hook and Emma correct Snow and Charming’s path, disrupting Charming’s marriage to Abigail (Anastasia Griffith, a delight to see again after a long absence) by way of using younger Hook and a ball, then making a daring rescue. The individual elements that come together are far more important than the plot arc, yet it feels cohesive and without any glaring flaws, a triumph for a time travel story.

Emma’s flashbacks, at an orphanage and with Neal (Michael Raymond-James, who can’t seem to stay away, thankfully), enhance the main story. They aren’t strictly necessary, but make sense for what “Snow Drifts” and “There’s No Place Like Home” are trying to do. Plus, they are more fun glimpses of the characters of the past.

The seamless blending of past and present are very well done in these two episodes. Not only do the actors get back into hair, costumes, and makeup to match their former roles, but some scenes already seen before are viewed in a different way, especially difficult to film with a now-very-pregnant Goodwin. Yet, though a combination of body doubles and special affects magic, the visual presentation is solid in the finale.

Of course, this being ONCE UPON A TIME, nothing is without kinks. Emma’s bleeding heart results in saving the life of Maid Marian (Christie Laing, whom you may remember from last year’s “Lacey”), which interrupts the budding romance between Regina (Lana Parrilla) and Robin Hood (Sean Maguire). Regina’s first reaction to this is anger, thinking Emma is just like her mother, Snow, in ruining Regina’s life because Emma doesn’t think of consequences. Hopefully, cooler heads will eventually prevail. We don’t need a tame, domesticated Regina, but we do need one that shows how far she’s come, not ignoring all the growth she’s experienced.

The only real problem I have with these episodes are that Rumple drinks the forgetting potion after learning that Neal is dead. This Rumple of the past hasn’t gone good yet (nor has our present Rumple, apparently, tainting his wedding to Belle in an unpleasant way). This Rumple’s sole goal is to be reunited with his son. Why is he content to listen to Emma when she says that Neal’s death is for the best? And Emma is known to be a terrific liar. Why can’t she do it now, when it’s most necessary?

The slightly lesser issue is that of popping up recurring players for no reason, which should be happening all along, but because it doesn’t, it feels odd now. Why is Abigail / Kathryn at the Royal Baby party, even though we haven’t seen her in a very long time? Aurora (Sarah Bolger) is glimpsed, too, but not her husband, and still no talk about which flying monkeys our heroes might have murdered. It’s these cracks that remind us of the larger flaws in the show itself.

The cliffhanger ending is excellent. We see a blue form emerge from a container that is being kept in Rumple’s vault, now unleashed on Storybrooke. Though I haven’t seen the film Frozen myself, the internet seems to be abuzz that the new figure ties into that. It seems like perfect symmetry, bringing on characters from a very popular film onto ONCE UPON A TIME. I guess this means Carrie Fischer and Mark Hamill might want to clear their calendars in the near future?

ONCE UPON A TIME pretty much nailed the landing, after a few missteps in recent months, and now all that’s left is for fans to wait for its fall return.