S04.E16: Poor Unfortunate Soul

[Joenigma]

 

It's further complicated by having this Ursula be named after another Ursula who was an ancient deity. So is she more ancient than Poseidon, or were they pals and he named his kid after him to honor her? Could the Yvette Nicole Brown (who I'm watching on Talking Dead as I type this, LOL) Ursula be a relative of Poseidon's? It didn't sound like he knew her personally.

It's also possible Poseidon isn't the Greek God we think but named after the Greek God.

[Mari]

Was it established what made Ursula a villain?

 

Because not wanting to kill sailors isn't evil, and being a teenager who doesn't get along with your parent just makes you a teenager.

 

The evilest thing I can remember seeing her do was the kidnapping of Belle, but that seemed to be mostly because she was hanging around with Maleficent and Cruella.

 

Is she seriously considered a villain because she had bad taste in friends, or was there some actual villaining in there, somewhere?

[Souris]

Well, after Hook took her voice, she turned herself into a sea witch and told her father he should fear her because the ocean would bow to her whims. So it looked like she was about to make a hell of a lot of bad choices. Which probably got her banished to this world to stop her.

[stealinghome]

Oh, and we've now identified yet another way Rumpel could've traveled between realms if he'd wanted. Apparently all he needed to do was make nice with Ursula because her tentacles (!) can actually transport stuff from one realm to another...literally Rumpel is now the dumbest mofo around.

[resonance]

So glad the writers explained away the Ursula retcon! The Sea Goddess Ursula and the Ursula this season aren't the same individuals. That had been bothering me for a while.

[tennisgurl]

So, I actually liked this episode. Go figure! I`m always pleasantly surprised to actually watch an episode without wanting to throw things!

 

The good:

Oh the good ship CaptainSwan? It sails true! Love love love them so much! I had to fight the urge to go full on fan girl...and I am failing miserably. 

I actually liked Ursula and her story. I thought the younger Ursula was great, and so was older Ursula. Makes me sad she didn't get more screen time before this.

Ernie Hudson, king of the sea!

Ariel! She`s like a breath of fresh air every time she comes by. AND she points out that the problem the villains are having have nothing to do with some mystical authors fault, its because they find their happy endings the wrong way. FINALLY actual logic and acknowledgement of free will!

Not much Regina

Not much Henry

Little mermaid stuff! Including the voice!

Ursula we know is not the badass Ursula sea goddess, shes just named after her. I really liked her sea goddess story story, so I am glad they are keeping it.

Ursula and her dad got a happy ending by...actually talking and dealing with their issues! Crazy! 

The bad:

Robin. Still lame.

I am interested in Dark Emma, but not if they act like evil is some kind of genetic disorder. 

August still not very interesting

This freaking author thing continues, and continues to make no sense. 

Stop doubting Hook!

Why is Will here again?

No more Ursula? The Plastics broke up pretty quick. Happy she got a happy ending, but I`ll miss her

 

Maybe Ursula and Posiden can pop up again to save the day?  

 

All in all, not perfect, but I pretty much loved it. It had an old style Once feel I can really appreciate these days. 

Oh, and I managed to go without making a single Ghostbusters joke...except now. Damn it! 

[TheGreenKnight]

I hope the person on tumblr who does plot recaps with the Disney versions of OUaT characters does one for this episode. That scene of Disney's Ursula, Cruella, the Evil Queen, Mal, and the Beast torturing poor little puppet Pinocchio will be fun to see. That's all I could think about when they were all in the cabin.

 

It's further complicated by having this Ursula be named after another Ursula who was an ancient deity.

Does anyone have a link for this person's tumblr? I'd never heard of it, but I imagine it's hilarious.

 

Ursula being different than Ursula the ancient goddess reminds me of Aurora and her mother, Briar Rose.

Edited March 23, 2015 by TheGreenKnight

[Camera One]

I thought this episode was a mixed bag.  I mean, it was better than the last two episodes, which were decidedly atrocious.  But it was still a weak outing.  

 

If this is it for the actress who plays Ursula, as others have said, what was the point?  I too was looking forward to the Queens of Darkness turning on Rumple.  They could have had Ursula decide to join the heroes as a second mole in this episode.  Because, if she is a villain, Ursula has not earned her Happy ending at all.   Granted, we've never actually seen her do anything truly villainous (aside from drowning Hook but even that was done sloppily).  She was definitely not very villainous working that dead-end job feeding fish and letting Rumple crash on her couch.  Overall, I just feel that Ursula was very ill-defined, and because of that, I couldn't really feel happy at her Happy Ending.

 

The flashback actress was alright (and looks wise, she was very similar), but I would have preferred flashbacks using the older actress.  I usually like the backstories, but this one didn't engage me too much and gave me whiplash near the end.  The first whiplash was when Killian stole Ariel, uh I mean, Ursula's voice, and the second whiplash was when Ursula went all octopus/evil.  Both of those scenes were very abrupt and unconvincing to me.  The younger actress didn't have enough oomph to the line that she wants to be feared.  I did like the use of the trident to split her tail, but I don't get how using his trident to make herself an octopus suddenly makes her more powerful than her father.  And Triton hasn't tried to get the Seashell back a thousand times since then even though Hook is constantly on his ship?  It takes more than that to convince me someone who's all "all I want is to use my voice to make people happy" decides to be a Megavillain.

 

I don't understand why Ursula didn't try to or make plans to kill Hook upon entry to town, if this was the backstory all along.  If Hook had told Emma the story in the 4B premiere, she would be like, "What the hell, you still have her voice?  Why not give it back?"

 

Why would they drop the enlargement potion on the outer glass?  How did it pass through the glass?  And why wasn't a giant jar surrounding the enlarged ship?  Who knew Elsa had that power?  Pretty careless to have that spell affect any life around the ship.

 

Why was Ursula walking around with Hook in plain sight?  And then Cruella's "We have a MOLE!"  *dramatic pause* "It's Ursula!"  Clearly, Snow gave her the idiot ball after hitting her on the head with the frying pan.

 

The Author revelations in this episode were as random as ever.  It's impossible to guess since these developments are just pulled out of the writers' backsides.  The Sorcerer trapped the Author behind the Door?  What the hell?  The Author is trapped in the book?  It is just so dumb.  So let me get this straight.  The Author can't change things in this world, because Emma gave everyone their happy endings here, so as long as there's a Savior, the Author can't give the villains what they want, but they can't kill the Savior but they need to fill her heart with darkness instead.  Uh, oooooookay. 

Edited March 23, 2015 by Camera One

[Rumsy4]

This has been the best episode after 4.04. I loved seeing a flashback to Pirate Hook. Colin's acting nuances are sooo good. Hook's scenes with young Ursula were so good. They gave closure to Hook's arc with two people he had wronged in the past (Ursula and Ariel), which is probably a record in this show. Emma looked so proud of her bf for helping Ursula. Ariel's cameo was great! A+ slapping action by Joanna Garcia. I actually liked the twist that Ursula was named after an older sea-goddess. That solved some of the continuity issues from S3. 

 

Finally they gave Will something useful to do, even if it was off-screen. So, he randomly had magic mushrooms from Wonderland stowed away in his pocket? lol The Will/Hook sass-off was great! 

 

It was surprisingly nice to see August back. I hope they don't turn him back to a little boy, even if he lives off-screen. The reunion between Emma and August was sweet.

 

The Rolly Joger is back!!! I hope for good... Does this mean another nautical adventure?

 

It was sad that Hook has started buying into Regina's BS idea about the Author. But, his declaration to Emma that she was his Happy Ending more than made up for everything! Sigh... So so good. It's up to Emma to make the next declaration now. 

 

Regarding Ursula’s backstory: I don’t understand why Ursula’s father did not simply take the voice-stealing shell back by force from Hook – he was easily able to take the Squid ink and immobilize Hook.

 

I think he was afraid of Hook crushing the shell in his hand, and losing Ursula's voice permanently.

 

Fuck you David for having so little faith in the guy that you think he already turned because of his reaction to being impersonated by Gold.  And fuck you Snow (and I'm sure there will be more where that came from next week).

 

Agree. And their reaction to Emma saying she understood Hook wanting to shove the Dagger into Rumple's chest was eye-roll worthy. You could tell they were thinking "Emma is going DARK!!!111". Ugh...

[Camera One]

And their reaction to Emma saying she understood Hook wanting to shove the Dagger into Rumple's chest was eye-roll worthy. You could tell they were thinking "Emma is going DARK!!!111". Ugh...

 

That was so contrived.  This is blatant ret-conning at work here.  No way Snow would have taken what Emma said literally if this had been Season 2 or 3 or even 4A.

[Zuleikha]

Oh, and we've now identified yet another way Rumpel could've traveled between realms if he'd wanted.

 

What I've always understood the issue to be is not that Rumpel couldn't figure out how to travel between realms, but that he couldn't figure out how to travel to the Land Without Magic and bring magic with him. The whole Dark Curse/Savior craziness was so that he could have his cake and eat it, too. 

 

I thought this was a very good episode, and I was just laughing at Emma needing Hook to spell out that she's his happy ending. It was like, seriously, she didn't figure that out at the latest when he explained that he gave up the Jolly Roger to get to her? I do wish Ursula had been developed a little more to make this episode more emotionally satisfying. We don't even know any of the villainous things she's actually done! Or how/when/why she was banished to this world.

 

I felt very tense for Regina and August. Between what Regina's already found out, what August told them, and what Ursula told them, it seems like it's time to pull Regina from the villains crew. Rumple's games with August were a reminder about how dangerous it is for Regina to be undercover. Plus, they can't be idiots enough to give Rumple the page with the Author, right? (I'm totally unspoiled... they're going to be that dumb, aren't they?)

 

I really wish the show follows up on Ariel/Hook's conversation and Hook/Emma's conversation to have an exposition fairy (Blue, perhaps?) set down some rules for the villain/hero happy ending thing because I agree with the point made by many others that Ursula appears to have just received her Happy Ending and undermined the basic premise of 4B. I liked Hook's moment with Emma, but I don't see why seeing a villain get her happy ending would make him suddenly fear for his. 

[KingOfHearts]

More "fun" Author plot holes.

 

I don't buy Emma being the missing ingredient because she brings happy endings in this world. What I could buy is that the Author's book can't affect Storybrooke because the story ends at the Dark Curse. Then they need Emma as a magic source to get enough power to write a new fate-altering book, or the Author simply can't write any more books because he only has power in EF, thus Emma is the only one powerful enough to be the new author. I don't know, any of that would have made more sense than "she writes people's happy endings". That's not even logical - it's something Emma made up at the beginning of 4A.

 

Then there's the Author being trapped inside the door page... how the heck did August know that? Where did he get the page? How does he know so much?! The door is in the Mad Hatter's room. I don't see how its suddenly in the book.

Edited March 23, 2015 by KingOfHearts

[Camera One]

So did any of them ask Ursula's Father to leave behind some vials of Squid Ink?  Anyone?  Anyone?

Edited March 23, 2015 by Camera One

[Dianthus]

I know Hook's no coward, but going up against Rumple in 4A, and now Poseidon...? The power dynamic is just too skewed.

My eyes nearly rolled out of my head when Emma asked Hook what was his happy ending. Still, she's not used to thinking like that, poor kid. Guess she forgot about his attempted TLK from last season.

[Zuleikha]

What I could buy is that the Author's book can't affect Storybrooke because the story ends at the Dark Curse.

 

I feel like I have been so close to being able to make the plotline make sense, and this whole thing with the Author being trapped by the Sorceror has just thrown me all upside down. If the Author is trapped, shouldn't that mean the Author isn't writing anyone's endings--happy or otherwise? That, in turn, almost makes the Regina aspect of the plot make sense because then her problem could be that her sentencing to an unhappy ending was written when she was a villain and there's no way to update it to reflect her personal growth. Wait... as I'm typing this, I feel like the Emma connection is actually making a bit of sense. Emma as the Savior was tasked with breaking the curse and bringing back the Happy Endings; that was definitely part of her S1 mission as given to her by Henry and shown to us in a number of episodes. So it makes some sense that there's a link between her and the happiness/unhappiness of endings as written by the Author pre-Curse.

 

But it doesn't make sense that Emma's presence would prevent a freed Author from updating things. It would make more sense to say that the Author can't update things in Storybrooke for Land Without Magic related reasons and so the only way to have the Author update things would be a return to the Enchanted Forest or something like Jefferson's room between worlds, not a corruption of Emma. And who is the Sorcerer and why did he trap the Author? Isn't anyone concerned about this? (at least enough to ask Blue to sit down and tell them in a bit more detail what she knows!)

[The Cake is a Pie]

Oh god, I laughed so hard when the wee little Jolly Roger popped up in the bottle. Awwww, who's a cute little ship? You are! And then Ursula dropped the potion ONTO the jar instead of inside it and I fully expected a GIANT jar to pop out of the ocean. Hook: "Bloody hell?!"

The puppet torture was the best fairytale torture since Gingerbread man got his little gingerbread legs crumbled off in Shrek.

So the Author is trapped behind the door on that page? Anyone have some scissors?

Anyone else's mind go to a naughty place when Hook said Emma was his happy ending? It can't be just me. Bueller?

I'm glad the Jolly is back. Let's hope Hook and Emma move in. And he puts the pirate coat back on when he's aboard the ship.

[FabulousTater]

I thought this was a very good episode, and I was just laughing at Emma needing Hook to spell out that she's his happy ending. It was like, seriously, she didn't figure that out at the latest when he explained that he gave up the Jolly Roger to get to her?

Well, when even her own parents are like "You're nice and all, Emma, but you're not what we wanted" it's going to take someone saying it plainly for Emma to believe that she is enough for them, let alone someone's happy ending. Emma knows how to expect being let down over and over. She doesn't expect someone to actually want just her for her. She asked Hook what his happy ending was because she's worried that she's not enough for someone, not because she doesn't believe in him.

 

But it doesn't make sense that Emma's presence would prevent a freed Author from updating things.

I think what doesn't make sense is the entire author plot. From start to finish to everything in between, it's a bunch of crap. No one thought their lives or "happy endings" had anything to do with some mystical author until Regina shat out this idea whilst wallowing in her pity wagon (her usual habitat, really, because when is Woegina not wallowing in her pity wagon). And not to mention there are no "happy endings" until you're dead. So unless you literally die happy, there's no "happy ending". Life is moments. Good and bad and the notion that some ink stained idiot somewhere (that apparently is trapped in his own book because now the show writers are lifting the plot from Inkheart) can just hand out "happy endings" like a candy machine at the gas station is STUPID. 

 

This half-baked, crackhead author plot, writers? IT'S STUPID and for me, FWiW,  it's ruining the small handful of things that are left in the show that are any good. 

 

#StopOperationMongoose2k15! 

Edited March 23, 2015 by FabulousTater

[Camera One]

How did Cruella know how to get to the Sorcerer's Mansion?  Is that some sort of SmartCar with GPS?

[scarynikki12]

I enjoyed this episode very much.  There are small things I can quibble about (I agree about the abruptness in Ursula's back story) but it felt like a cohesive story and, more importantly, kept me wanting to watch the show generally.

 

I hope this isn't the last we see of Ursula.  I would love it if she shows up in the inevitable final battle of 4B to snark at Regina, Rumpel, Cruella and Mal about how she didn't need to find the Author and make him do her bidding to find her happy ending.  All she needed to do was work with a former foe to ultimately help others and she got her voice and her relationship with her father back.  I want her to repeat Ariel's line about how the villains go about their business in the wrong ways and that's why they don't get their happy endings.  What a crazy idea!

 

This show is really pushing the Author stupidity and it was never more apparent than when Hook was worrying about losing his happy ending mere seconds after Ursula achieved hers.  I understand that he's worried about reverting to vengeance Hook but he'd just helped a villain achieve her happy ending!  If he'd spent the episode at Granny's and was hearing about it from Emma, then I could understand his worry that his past might result in him losing out but he was directly involved.  This show really revels in not making sense doesn't it?

 

I have no evidence of this but I got a bad feeling when Emma and August reunited.  The way the scene was framed it looked like a reunion between exes and Snow watching with her Team Neal look wasn't helping.  I don't think the show will move away from Emma/Hook, in that there's nothing to indicate that August is anything more than a guest star, but what's so great about the Emma/Hook relationship is that they aren't being made to jump through crazy relationship hoops.  Their big obstacle has always been Emma's walls and the pace in which she's been letting them down has been well managed.  I'd like to keep it this way.

[KAOS Agent]

Well color me surprised because I kind of liked this episode. It wasn't the greatest thing ever and since I broke out the rum, I'm pretty toasted and the judgement is suspect, but still it was fun. This show is so much better when the A plot is just a good fairy tale mashup and not a bunch of morality twisting, pity parties for the villains. So yay! On with the notes...

 

- Pirate!Hook gets to do something. It's nice to see that some of the Lt. Jones traits still remain. It was really sweet that he wanted to help the person who took away his pain. And centuries where every waking thought was of Milah? Ouch.

 

- Also, note to the showrunners: That was not the worst thing ever. Not even close. When Hook starts abusing animals and killing kids, we'll talk.

 

- "Gold might not hurt a kid, but August? Who knows what he'll do to him." Ummm Emma? That guy once tried to kill your son. He'll definitely hurt a kid.

 

- The torture stuff was really uncomfortable. That said, I love all out evil Rumpel. As long as they don't try to pretend he's redeemable, I'm in.

 

- Snowing suck. Yes, let's pile on Hook for no reason and then panic when Emma defends him. Emma is EVIL don't you know?

 

- Hook's Theme returns along with the Jolly Roger. Hook's expression of relief/joy when he walked into the cabin with the safe was really nice.

 

- Way to screw over Ariel, Elsa. Loved that she was more pissed at Hook for having to save Blackbeard than that he killed Blackbeard at all. Also, thank you Ariel for being the voice of reason.

 

- Snow's face while being strangled was hysterical.

 

- Emma;s reunion with August seemed a little too sweet considering August's role in her past misery. I would have enjoyed it more if after expressing concern and showing her relief at seeing him again she'd said something like "Now about my twenty grand..."

 

- They did not kill off the people of color this episode. And they got a happy ending. Bravo!

 

- Not so surprised that Emma wasn't sure she was his happy ending. She has very limited self worth and he just got his ship back, so who's to say he wasn't worried about losing it again?

[Daisy]

Oh god, I laughed so hard when the wee little Jolly Roger popped up in the bottle. Awwww, who's a cute little ship? You are! And then Ursula dropped the potion ONTO the jar instead of inside it and I fully expected a GIANT jar to pop out of the ocean. Hook: "Bloody hell?!"

The puppet torture was the best fairytale torture since Gingerbread man got his little gingerbread legs crumbled off in Shrek.

So the Author is trapped behind the door on that page? Anyone have some scissors?

Anyone else's mind go to a naughty place when Hook said Emma was his happy ending? It can't be just me. Bueller?

I'm glad the Jolly is back. Let's hope Hook and Emma move in. And he puts the pirate coat back on when he's aboard the ship.

 

 

I  had the line from Moulin Rouge in my head. "you'll get your happy ending, when he gets.. his... end... in." (#dirty). 

 

I will admit though I'm not an Emma/Hook fan so i'll go sit in my corner all alone. I don't know why i'm not vibing them, but i just, don't get it.

It was interesting that they made Ariel's back story (the singing/the voice etc) with Ursula instead, but I digged it. (the Little Mermaid is my favourite movie. Beauty and the Beast used to be tied with it but holy. crap did they ever make Belle completely, utterly stupid). For Shame no one went to Bell and said ":wait you hid the dagger and then Hook came to you and said, "hey let's re-hide the dagger but let ME do it." and you went all "Okay!!" (also. teehee with Hook going "so now you want to verify identities?"

[Zuleikha]

I have no evidence of this but I got a bad feeling when Emma and August reunited.

I saw inappropriate chemistry as well, but I don't think it was intentional. Although August initially seemed to be flirty with Emma in his early appearances, he was always baiting-and-switching her to try and push her to believe in Storybrooke. Also, while Emma was too young to have much memory of their pseudo-sibling status, August definitely remembers and feels guilt over failing her.

[Camera One]

Typical of the show to make it a huge deal/build-up with the whole Pirate's Oath, and then in the very next episode, they have Belle asking Hook straight-up where the Dagger from last night is.  Why not just have Belle realize it herself moments after she hands the Dagger over, or when she gets back to her shop?  Or maybe have her bump into the Real Hook on the street.  It's like setting up for a dinner party and then pushing everything off the table.  Seriously... why set it up in the first place?

[BoPeeps]

To quote one of my favorite "non-dark queen" NYC love-column writers from another land, another time, another female foursome...

"Me likey"

First time in a while I was anxious to get through commercials.

First time in a long while that I genuinely laughed at a line...thank you Hook for your offhand observation that size does matter. Grin.

First time in a while it felt like the show had come "home"

Minor grievances aside, they're 're baccckk!

And the chess game continues.

Edited March 23, 2015 by BoPeeps

[Blue Plastic]

Well, this was definitely a better episode than last, but I'm still waiting for the Hammer of Crap to fall in the future, judging by the tiny little Anvils of Foreboding that were hitting me during this episode.  Anyway...

 

It was sort of interesting that Regina chose Snow to speak her message from.

 

I enjoyed that young Ursula was singing "Fathoms Below," a song from "The Little Mermaid."  I guess they figured they couldn't have her sing Ursula's song since she hadn't done anything villainous at that point plus it wouldn't make sense in the story and they couldn't give her Ariel's song so they gave her the sailors' song.

 

Why did they put that disgusting Robin Hood on my screen tonight?  Even just a few seconds was way too long.  Get him off.

 

That was a big plot hole about Poseidon not being able to get the shell away from Hook.

 

I was surprised they figured out Gold's dagger duplicity so quickly.

[KAOS Agent]

 

If the Author is trapped, shouldn't that mean the Author isn't writing anyone's endings--happy or otherwise? That, in turn, almost makes the Regina aspect of the plot make sense because then her problem could be that her sentencing to an unhappy ending was written when she was a villain and there's no way to update it to reflect her personal growth.

 

Except Regina got her happy ending in the book. That's how it ended. Regina won. The End. So no. This author plot is stupid. 

[Camera One]

Except Regina got her happy ending in the book. That's how it ended. Regina won. The End. So no. This author plot is stupid. 

 

So did the Author write the Robin/Regina alternate page from within the book, and threw it out there as a cry for help (in more ways than one)?

Edited March 23, 2015 by Camera One

[scarynikki12]

So did the Author write the Robin/Regina alternate page from within the book, and threw it out there as a cry for help?

 

If done right, this could be completely hilarious.  They get the Author out of the book, Regina demands he make changes to her story, he tells her he can't, that he just bewitches the books to record what's already happened and she pulls out the page as evidence.  Then he reveals that it was the only way he could think of to get their attention about his entrapment so that he might have a chance to escape.  Because, let's be honest, if the alternative page hadn't been directly about Regina, none of them would have even noticed, much less investigated what it could mean.  By making it about Regina, he would guarantee that everyone would work to free him.

[tennisgurl]

 

#StopOperationMongoose2k15!

Lets get this going! 

 

Was Ursula ever even really evil? She`s kind of like a smarter version of Karen from Mean Girls. Shes the non malicious one who just goes along with what her mean girl friends do. Its not a perfect metaphor, but I am keeping this Plastics thing going as long as I can!  

[FabulousTater]

So did the Author write the Robin/Regina alternate page from within the book, and threw it out there as a cry for help (in more ways than one)?

Oy vey. It probably is because writing "Help me, I'm trapped inside this book! Signed ~The Author" would've been to obvious.

 

*SMH* TW;TS.

[MaiLuna]

Best episode of 4B yet! (and no, I'm not biased because it's a Hook episode, I have no idea what you're talking about).

 

I loved Hook's relationship with Ursula in the past. And she had such a lovely happy ending. I have no idea why she was such a "villain" though since they never showed her doing anything bad besides teaming up with the QoD and she never seeked revenge on Hook! 

I have more hope on the ending of the book plot now with what Ariel said. And  I'm glad they're finally moving that plot along too even if I don't care. I was expecting a better reunion of of Ariel/Hook since he was so remorseful last time. It's like his remorseful scenes (confession to Zelena and voicemail to Emma) are never heard by the right person. And I wanted at least a reaction from Emma thinking Hook was dead before Ursula snatched Snow. But Emma was actually caring and worrying about Hook and talking about him and defending him instead of Regina? Thank you.

 

Emma and August's reunion was sweet. I even liked Regina in this episode! Really I have no real complaints, especially after that sweet CS scene which I may or may not have rewatched a few times.

Also, total shallow note, there have been lot of fictional couples but I think Emma and Hook have some of the best kisses. JMo and Colin work really well and in synch.

Edited March 23, 2015 by MaiLuna

[Mari]

 I liked Hook's moment with Emma, but I don't see why seeing a villain get her happy ending would make him suddenly fear for his. 

We didn't really see Ursula do much that was extra villainy.  She seemed to mostly hang around with the villains, but not do a lot herself.  We also didn't get the impression--or at least, I didn't--that Ursula and Hook saw a lot of each other after that.   

 

To Hook, Ursula was still that young girl he'd doublecrossed.  In her story, he was the villain and she was a hero he'd victimized.  I can see him blaming himself for any evil thing she did, and for changing  her from good to bad--especially since he's been hanging around the Charmings, who seem to blame themselves for Regina more often than they've blamed Regina.

 

All she needed to do was work with a former foe to ultimately help others and she got her voice and her relationship with her father back.  I want her to repeat Ariel's line about how the villains go about their business in the wrong ways and that's why they don't get their happy endings.  What a crazy idea!

 

This show is really pushing the Author stupidity and it was never more apparent than when Hook was worrying about losing his happy ending mere seconds after Ursula achieved hers.  I understand that he's worried about reverting to vengeance Hook but he'd just helped a villain achieve her happy ending! 

Plus, undercutting their Author story was Hook using the same method to get his happy ending.  He switched sides, he cooperated with Rumple and the Nevengers, and good things started happening in his life again.  

 

Of course, then he started worrying about the Author . . .

 

- "Gold might not hurt a kid, but August? Who knows what he'll do to him." Ummm Emma? That guy once tried to kill your son. He'll definitely hurt a kid.

Totally agree--but, did Emma ever find out Gold was willing to kill Henry?  Because I'm not sure she did.  If not, I can believe that they've convinced themselves it's a line Gold wouldn't cross.  It's not, but it's in-character for them to believe it.

 

Why not just have Belle realize it herself moments after she hands the Dagger over, or when she gets back to her shop?  Or maybe have her bump into the Real Hook on the street.  It's like setting up for a dinner party and then pushing everything off the table.  Seriously... why set it up in the first place?

I actually kind of liked this, maybe because I was relieved that it was actually addressed, and Belle noticed that Rumple lied to her, and didn't make excuses for him.  I was just relieved they didn't drag it out and drag it out and then completely ignore it.  (If this were another show, I'd be annoyed they didn't use it to build tension, but, well, TS, TW.)

[Writing Wrongs]

In my head,  Snow hitting Cruella with the frying pan was a shout-out to Tangled.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

August: There's a page with a picture of the door. Regina has it.

Gold: Regina, maybe since you're all evil now, you will share this very important page with the group?

Regina: I would but I already have all the book stuff to Henry.

Gold: Okay, never mind.

 

Seriously? Why didn't he just tell Regina to borrow the page from Henry or call him, ask him to find the page, and then text a picture of it to her? Gold's solution was just, oh, if Henry has it then let's try to figure something else out!

[Serena]

That was so contrived.  This is blatant ret-conning at work here.  No way Snow would have taken what Emma said literally if this had been Season 2 or 3 or even 4A.

The "this is not you!" is also bullshit. Um, it is SO her. She told Regina she'd kill her if something happened to Henry in 122. Stop acting like this is something "new" for Emma.

I thought this was a very good episode, and I was just laughing at Emma needing Hook to spell out that she's his happy ending. It was like, seriously, she didn't figure that out at the latest when he explained that he gave up the Jolly Roger to get to her? I do wish Ursula had been developed a little more to make this episode more emotionally satisfying. We don't even know any of the villainous things she's actually done! Or how/when/why she was banished to this world.

LMAO, that totally looked like she was fishing for a compliment. Edited March 23, 2015 by Serena

[FurryFury]

This episode felt weirdly unlike the previous 3. Some of the stuff was your standard Once issue, but some scenes had a very different vibe, and I can't exactly put my finger on why, exactly. I don't even know if it was good or bad - well, probably good, because at this point, the show's so badly written and boring that different usually means better. 

 

Two biggest WTF moments for me were the Rumple/Queens/August torture scene - you know, the one with the nose - and Ariel's sudden appearance and a somewhat contrived story how she got there. In both of them (and also with Will being the go-to expert on making small things big because of his time in Wonderland) it felt like the show was making an effort to embrace its fairytale roots and its own continuity. August's CGI nose looked incredibly fake and over-the-top hilarious, but at least it was an element that was integral to Pinocchio's story. Ariel's explanation played like an infodump, but it still somehow managed to make sense and attempted to stretch the world of the show and remind us that there are things going on in while the leads are stewing in Storybrooke, that there are other stories with other heroes. I wouldn't go as far as to say this scenes were written exceptionally well, because they weren't - but at this point, my expectations of the show as so low that I'm glad to see at least something different from the usual "Author - Regina - Charmings vilification - everyone obsessed with happy endings" paradigma of this half-season.

 

Speaking about happy endings, once again I want to punch my laptop while having to listen Hook and Ursula's terribly written dialogue in their first Storybrooke scene. Please, writers, just STOP. And then of course Hook also gets obsessed with this stuff. Sigh.

 

We didn't get a lot of Regina (mercifully), it was still too much. Especially that last Emma/Regina scene felt unneeded.

 

Didn't really care for the flashbacks, except for young Ursula's awesome singing voice, if it was indeed hers (too bad her acting wasn't good). I did, however, like that Hook didn't steal Ursula's voice to take revenge on Rumple, he was just being a vengeful dick. Felt consistent with his characterization of that period, I was a bit afraid they were going to whitewash him with the "I have a code" crap.

 

Still, really, singing voice = happy ending? Seriously? Couldn't they tie it to her having magic or the ability to transform into a human or something more important? She was still a mermaid and the daughter of a god, voice or no voice. And nice save here show with the goddess Ursula of old and the current one being two different beings. This was one of my criticisms going on into this half-season. Too bad we probably won't see the goddess one, she sounds way more interesting then Merrin Dungey version.

 

Holy shit, Emma never had this kind of chemistry with August in season one! What happened? This was actually a nice scene. Reminded me of better times (and I never cared really about August before).

 

That was a cute CS scene, even if I'm not a shipper. I actually mostly liked how this episode utilized Hook after almost a whole season of him being a plot device without anything interesting to do.

 

I've been dreading the "Emma goes dark" plot ever since it's been mentioned first, and this episode did nothing to alleviate my fears.

[Rhodri]

 

"Gold might not hurt a kid, but August? Who knows what he'll do to him." Ummm Emma? That guy once tried to kill your son. He'll definitely hurt a kid.

Do Charmings have a bad gene that keeps them from remembering what horrendous things bad guys can do?  Looking at you Regina!

Although I'm not sure they know about Rumple's intention to jettison Henry from the swing into the rocks but they know about 1000 other things so why put anything past him?

 

The only real facepalm of the night - well, besides the Sea King being cowed by a lowly pirate - was when David says "we better get out of here before they get back" and then Hook and Emma sticking around so Hook can whinge about how he might not get a happy ending because he was a villain when they just saw a villain get a happy ending not a minute before.  I can think of a 100 better ways to fill up air time if that was all they were doing.

[OnceUponAJen]

Well, there was that reveal in Neverland about the prophecy....Henry being Rumple's undoing. Rumple admitted that he initially had planned to kill Henry.

[Joenigma]

 

What I could buy is that the Author's book can't affect Storybrooke because the story ends at the Dark Curse.

Basically what I got from this episode is, the Author is THE BOOK. And since the Book ended with the Dark Curse being cast, it actually means it ended with Regina getting her Happy Ending. But what I think they are trying to say is, remember that scene in the S1 Finale where Emma grabbed the book, and it woke her up and she finally believed what Henry was trying to say? I think from that moment, the Author's power to make Happy Endings was transferred to Emma.

 

 

Still, really, singing voice = happy ending? Seriously?

 

Actually, Ursula's happy ending wasn't really her singing voice, it was her reunion with her Father and his revelation that she was right. They need to remember her Mom, honor her, not tarnish her memory. So it was actually way more than her singing voice. But that scene could have been extended if they just cut out the Regina-Robin dream.

[Curio]

Finally! An episode I'll actually watch a second time. That hasn't happened since 4.04. See, show? It really doesn't take much to please me. Just give me a Hook-centric and some good scenes for Colin to show off his acting chops and I'll gladly ignore the fact that this episode was basically "The Jolly Roger 2.0" and the numerous silly plot holes you dug yourself into with this author plot.

[daxx]

I loved the ep for the most part. The part that totally confuses me is that Emma called him Hook the whole time. She's been consistently calling him Killian since the beginning of the season, yeah? Why is he suddenly Hook again? Is it because they wanted this to be a more stand alone ep to draw in new viewers and wanted him recognizeable as Capt Hook? I can't think of a plot reason for it.

[darkestboy]

Ursula got her happy ending. I wasn't expecting it and I wasn't expecting it to happen so quickly as well. Does that mean she's gone now for the rest of the season?

 

Also with Maleficent likely to get her happy ending too in later episodes, does that mean Cruella will be the last villain standing along with Rumple?

 

August being tortured wasn't great for him but we finally got to see his nose grow though. Nice that the character is overall back in the mix but I am hoping we do not get a triangle with him, Emma and Hook.

 

Hook had his moments of being both honourable and awful towards Ursula in flashbacks and the present day. Loved Ariel slapping him and her comments on why villains don't get their happy endings.

 

Belle and Will need a lot more to do in the season as well.

 

The Regina/Robin scene was okay and I wished we had gotten a little more of Poseidon as well.

 

Points given to the episode for finally moving things along with the Author plot as well, 8/10

[FurryFury]

Actually, Ursula's happy ending wasn't really her singing voice, it was her reunion with her Father and his revelation that she was right. They need to remember her Mom, honor her, not tarnish her memory. So it was actually way more than her singing voice.

 

I understand all of this, but it's still not a big enough thing to really work in this context, imo.

 

But that scene could have been extended if they just cut out the Regina-Robin dream.

 

Wouldn't argue with that, of course. But then, this season could be so much better (or at least nowhere as bad) if they just cut out all Regina/Robin moments.

Edited March 23, 2015 by FurryFury

[The Cake is a Pie]

Now we have confirmation that the events in Wonderland have already happened, so I can continue to ask: WHERE IS YOUR WIFE, WILL?

[Dani-Ellie]

I understand all of this, but it's still not a big enough thing to really work in this context, imo.

 

I don't know that this is any different that Cinderella and Thomas getting to keep their baby or Hansel and Gretel finding their father. It's about reuniting a family. And I do think it was important that they had a former villain trying to make right what he'd set asunder in the first place and showing that it worked.

[shipperx]

Fanwank: seems the reason Hook doesn't consider Ursula getting her happy ending to run counter to 'villains can't have happy endings' is that he views himself as the villain of Ursula's story. She was the sweet mermaid that he corrupted ergo she wasn't the villain-- he was.

[Primetimer]

Tuna in to Ursula's poor unfortunate backstory as Once Upon A Time goes under the sea!

Read the story

[Rumsy4]

I understand all of this, but it's still not a big enough thing to really work in this context, imo.

 

For a singer to lose their voice would be one of the worst things to happen. Especially considering it was a talent Ursula got from her dead mother. Her father was using her to destroy lives, and Hook's deed crushed all the hope she had of a better life. We didn't get to see what villainous things she did, but apparently it was bad enough to get her banished to the Real World. So, I think her arc was believable in the way it was wrapped up. She got her voice back, and validation from her father that he had been wrong. And she was able to reconcile with him and get back into the ocean. 

[tennisgurl]

 

WHERE IS YOUR WIFE, WILL?

I know right!?!?! Why is he macking on Belle? Did something happen? WHY is he here? He had a perfect ending in Wonderland, why are they screwing it up? 

 

Oh, and was it just me, or did Poseidons guards all look like they had Hershey kisses on their heads? It was kind of distracting. 

[YaddaYadda]

That was so contrived.  This is blatant ret-conning at work here.  No way Snow would have taken what Emma said literally if this had been Season 2 or 3 or even 4A.

Of course not.  Emma talks about punching people in the face.  And she stood there with her gun drawn on the other side of the town line with Pan.  She was ready to kill him because of what he had done, kidnapping Henry, taking his heart.  So her showing some outrage and wanting to shove Gold's dagger in his heart is all of a sudden a bunch of oh noes!  Emma!  You evil, evil bitch!  Never mind that he tormented her daughter's boyfriend, took his heart, tried to put said daughter in the hat and basically kill her.  Yeah, fuck that noise!

 

I have more hope on the ending of the book plot now with what Ariel said.

But she's not the only one who voiced something like that.  Marco told Regina that maybe she should think that this whole Author quest might be ill-fated.

 

And here we are, a villain who got their happy ending.  Ursula was sweet and innocent and she was wronged by two people, Hook and her father.  And they both worked to fix what it is that they had done.  Hook and Poseidon were both villains in this tale.  Both came from a place of pain and misery in what they did, but they did a very bad thing.  

 

Hey, Rumple, Regina, look at this, two villains who came together to fix something they did to victimize Ursula when she was so young.  Maybe you should start knocking on doors and fixing the shit you did.  How about that?