ONCE UPON A TIME Comes "Bleeding Through"

Article first published as ONCE UPON A TIME Review Season 3 Episode 18 Bleeding Through on Seat42F.

Tonight’s ONCE UPON A TIME, “Bleeding Through,” finally reveals Zelena’s (Rebecca Mader) fiendish scheme as Regina (Lana Parrilla), Snow (Ginnifer Goodwin), and their comrades look to the past for answers. Zelena plans to do what has not been done before – travel back in time and change things. But to do so, she will need one more important key ingredient: Snow and Charming’s (Josh Dallas) unborn baby.

The formula of brains, heart, and courage is one familiar to Wizard of Oz fans. Zelena has Rumple’s (Robert Carlyle) mind under her control, has swiped Charming’s courage, and now uses Robin Hood’s (Sean Maguire) son as leverage to obtain Regina’s heart. This doesn’t feel like a trip down the yellow brick road, which is disappointing to fans of the Emerald City, but at least there is some cohesion as the plot moves forward, tying ONCE UPON A TIME to the marvelous land of Oz.

Why a baby, though? Does the infant represent Dorothy’s innocence? There have been no hints of gingham dresses about. Or perhaps the past is the home Zelena needs to get to and the child is her ticket there, similar to a pair of silver slippers. Whatever the reason, at least our heroes now know what Zelena wants so they can attempt to stop it.

My only question as this point is why is Zelena being so patient with Hook (Colin O’Donoghue)? She told Hook to take away Emma’s (Jennifer Morrison) magic or Zelena would begin hurting people. Hook has not acted, grumpily arguing with Emma to forestall having to do the deed, and Zelena hasn’t followed up. Why not?

I will say, the flashbacks in “Bleeding Through” are a bit weak in terms of story structure. Young Cora (Rose McGowan) is fleeced by a false royal (David De Lautour, Touch), then tries to cover up her pregnancy mistake by quickly marrying Prince Leopold (Eric Lange, Lost). Unfortunately for Cora, Princess Eva (Eva Bourne, Caprica) interferes, exposing Cora’s lies and winning Leopold for herself.

One problem I have with this is that Eva is supposed to be the good guy, and instead is portrayed as a sneaky brat. Snow thinks this makes the history she and Regina share more complex, admitting that she grew out of her own annoying phase, but that just isn’t how we’ve seen Eva before, and by extension, who Snow has grown into. Secondly, Snow then talks about how Cora is forced to give up Zelena against her will, but from what we see, it’s only Cora’s own selfish desires that necessitate abandoning the baby, and it still isn’t clear why Zelena ends up in Oz. The twister coming along at that moment is too big a coincidence.

There’s also the ick factor that Cora is romantically with Leopold, and even though they don’t consummate anything, Cora’s daughter eventually marries the prince, then a king, herself. Talk about some twisted family relations!

Luckily, the emotional journey Regina goes through in “Bleeding Through” helps make up for this. She reveals some honesty in her assessment of her mother, refusing to condemn Snow for murdering Cora, and even protecting Snow when it looks like Cora’s ghost wants to do her harm. She also shows her great capacity to love, even without a heart, having compassion to Snow and finally kissing Robin Hood. No other character in this universe has been able to love once their heart is taken, and so this makes Regina very special indeed, having the most resilient heart, as it were.

As usual, Parrilla kills the performance. Amid some silly stuff, her tears feel real, and she evokes sympathy in a complicated situation. It would be easy for Regina to be hokey, but Parrilla takes the things that don’t add up about the character and turns them into understandable layers. She comes across as the most mature person on the show, and thus can rise above the squabbles, and even begins apologizing for past wrongs. She is my favorite player on ONCE UPON A TIME for a reason, and “Bleeding Through” gives her yet another opportunity to shine.

Though this current Regina may not quite deserve it, it’s cool to see Belle (Emilie de Ravin) lay into her when Regina asks for help. Many have begun to forgive Regina for what she’s done, seeing first-hand how she has changed. Belle has not had this experience, and her hatred is the exact reaction she should have towards the former Evil Queen. It’s refreshing to get this point of view from someone.

Another scene that stands out in “Bleeding Through” is Rumple’s attempt to seduce Zelena in order to steal back his dagger. She believes him briefly because she is starved for affection, but of course doesn’t let down her guard, hardened as she is. Rumple, for his part, shows how much he’s changed when he respects the sacrifice his son, Bae, made to try to stop Zelena, rather than playing into Zelena’s plan, which could lead to Rumple saving Bae in the past. Rumple is putting the greater good ahead of himself once more, and his interplay with Zelena is both charged and authentic.

“Bleeding Through” hurts itself with going too far into the past and forcing backstory that doesn’t add up. Like McGowan’s previous appearance as Young Cora, the scenes seem forgettable and unnecessary. But solid performances and interactions in the present day save the episode overall, perhaps not ranking it among the best of the show, but certainly not one to ignore, either.

Only four episodes remain in ONCE UPON A TIME’s third season. It continues Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Once Upon A Time there was "The Miller's Daughter"

Article first published as ONCE UPON A TIME Review Season 2 Episode 16 The Miller's Daughter on Seat42F.

Grade: 98%

This week’s installment of ABC’s ONCE UPON A TIME, more than most, is about the past. Every episode of ONCE UPON A TIME gives us glimpses of how the characters were, back in fairytale land. But this one, “The Miller’s Daughter,” finds the meat of the plot taking place back then, even as important things happen in the present.

“The Miller’s Daughter” is the classic Rumplestiltskin tale, where the evil imp helps a poor girl spin straw into gold in exchange for her first-born child. But now we learn that the poor young girl was none other than Cora (wonderfully cast as Rose McGowan, Charmed, in flashback). And Rumple (Robert Carlyle) fell in love with Cora, which left him vulnerable to her trickery and cruelty.

We now know why Cora (Barbara Hershey) hates the royals, especially King Xavier (Joaquim de Almeida, 24) and his son, Henry (Zak Santiago). We see her looked down upon and tripped by a young Eva (Eva Allan), who must not have been taught kindness yet. We see her heart turn black and bent on revenge, which is why she removes her heart, which she sees as a weakness, so she can resist the temptation of Rumple’s love and become a royal herself.

I don’t think this is enough to justify Cora’s bad behavior, not by a long shot. She can be annoyed and not like the royal family without becoming so focused on their destruction. Even as a young woman, Cora is not nice. Yes, her lazy, alcoholic father contributes to a heart full of bitterness, but it is her decisions and her attitude that result in her fate. Cora really is just not a good person.

Rumple knows this and knows that she must be stopped. He has a plan for doing so, and that’s to get Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin) to use a candle to trade Cora’s life for his own. Why does Rumple choose Snow in this moment? Is it because of one of the future glimpses he has seen? Does he take one look at her and realize what a dark path she is considering? Either way, unlikely Snow is his weapon of choice.

Poor Snow is the purest heart in all the land, until “The Miller’s Daughter.” Not only does she curse Cora’s heart, but she lies and tricks Regina (Lana Parrilla) into putting the heart back into Cora’s body to complete the spell. This is an act that will ruin Snow forever. Yes, she may be able to come back from this, but she will always live with the knowledge that she is capable of evil, and that will haunt her for the rest of her life.

How might this change Snow’s marriage to David (Josh Dallas)? He loves her, of course, but he does everything he can to keep her from this act. Now he has to look at his wife differently, her not being the purely good soul he thinks of her as. This will knock her off the pedestal, and could alter their dynamic.

Snow’s actions have an even more dire consequence for Regina. Getting a moment to see that Cora actually does love her (and did love Rumple), and given the knowledge that love would be enough for mother and daughter, Cora then promptly dies in her daughter’s arms. Regina always struggles with her evil side, but having Snow murder Cora so clearly will stamp out any good embers still glowing within her. The feud is no longer about custody of Henry (Jared Gilmore), and no truce will be had. For the foreseeable future, Regina is the evil witch who will do everything she can to destroy Snow.

Snow remains on the side of good and Regina remains on the side of bad, as has long been the story in ONCE UPON A TIME. But now viewers will sympathize somewhat with Regina, knowing Snow makes her into the current monster she is. It means so much more when the story becomes blurry like this, the hero having caused the villain’s descent in such a direct way, not by accident, but through an intentional choice. It’s an interesting move for the show to make, and it really shakes things up as we head into the home stretch of the season.

Rumple, for his part, has never been closer to good, despite turning Snow black, and will definitely be on the right side of the war this time. On his deathbed, he pours out his heart to Belle (Emilie de Ravin), revealing for this first time the depth of his love and desire to be a good man. This happens in front of Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and Bae (Michael Raymond-James), which is enough to soften both towards their son’s grandfather, and to prompt Bae to begin to forgive his father.

Is Rumple’s quest back to the light essentially over? He has Bae, the person he has worked so long and hard to find, and even if Belle can’t remember him, she has to be deeply moved by his words, and will begin to fall for him all over again. Surrounded by family, finally allowed to embrace and show his love, Rumple has a chance to be a hero.

Except, he knows Henry will be his undoing, and despite his doubt in “The Miller’s Daughter” if he should continue living, the Dark One inside of him won’t allow him to give up so easily. I worry this is the wild card left in the year.

Finally, we see Emma embrace her power in this episode. She is able to conjure up a protection spell to save (for a time) Rumple from Cora and Regina just by willing it so. It doesn’t seem a difficult feat for her, and through Rumple’s urging, Emma is getting a small taste of what she can do. I expect this will be explored quite a bit in the coming episodes, as the good guys will need every tool they can to fight Regina, and we’ve barely scratched the surface of what Emma is capable of.

“The Miller’s Daughter” is a compelling tale of good and evil, of love and revenge. It spills a wonderful back story that fills in some gaps in the plot, and changes a couple of characters to their core. Episodes this good, even in ONCE UPON A TIME, which is a great series, are rare. The acting this week, especially from Carlyle, is Emmy-worthy. The writing by Jane Espenson is smart and tight. Brilliant job, all around.

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