S05.E01: Dark Swan

[Panopticon]

How did tiny, tiny Emma end up several states away from where she was found?  Apparently, she was in federal custody instead of state custody, like no foster kid ever, in Realityville.

 

I'm insane, so I just looked this up. In the first season, we saw kid August and baby Emma in a group home in Boston. The first scene in Snow Drifts is "Group Home, Boston, 18 years ago." That's when we see Abby Ross' Emma resigned to never finding a home. When we see teen Emma again, she's in Minnesota but clearly ran away to get there.

 

So I guess according to the show she was now shipped back and forth between Minnesota and Boston multiple times. As happens.

[ParadoxLost]

Um, why is it imperative that Belle go along to Camelot and how does she think she'll get back if the rose dies?  I suppose she's there to babysit Henry and Neal?

 

I suspect that Rumple woke up long before they came back and the point was for Gold to spend six weeks becoming whoever he's going to be while Emma is the Dark One without being immediately involved with Belle who would nurse him back to health if she was there.  Plot contrivance fairy.

 

Similarly, I understand why there is a time jump.  They need it for fairybacks.  Its the amnesia that bugs me.  There better be a good reason for it because it was the amnesia that really screwed up the Wicked arc and made Regina/Hood relationship a cluster from the beginning.

[Worsel]

 

RIP Sir Kay, we hardly knew you.

 

Excalibur broken into two, we get Arthur's sword and the dagger. So the sword clearly recognized a jerk and someone who was not meant to have the sword and obliterated Kay, while Arthur was able to pull it unharmed because of a prophecy. Ok, I can roll with that.

 

The scene of Sir Kay's demise reminded me of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade - when the villain thought he had the true Chalice/Holy Grail, but (as the Knight said) "chose unwisely" and was promptly and rapidly aged into dust.  Of course Indy chose wisely and saved the day.

[tennisgurl]

So, actual thoughts...

 

Not a bad start, there is enough here to get excited about, but I swear to God, ANOTHER missing year with lost memories? Have the writers really and truly run out of ideas at this point? 

 

DarkSwan is going to be interesting I think. JMO is already killing it, both the conflicted Emma from the beginning of the episode, as well as evil DakSwan from the end. She does look kind of like Lady Gaga in all those new AHS commercials though. Just saying. 

 

Can you please give Charming more to do? The poor guy just stands there and looks pretty these days. 

 

Regina was...not as bad as sometimes? Thats about all I got. I did enjoy her and Hook being pissy with each other. And Lana was wearing the hell out of that Camelot dress. 

 

Enough Captain Swan to make me happy. They even walked into Camelot together! Awwwww! Oh the angst will hurt!

 

Also, not ok with King Fergus being dead. Please tell me its a fake out or something? He was my favorite character in Brave!

Edited September 28, 2015 by tennisgurl

[YaddaYadda]

ANOTHER missing year with lost memories?

6 weeks dearie.

 

I'm actually not entirely adverse to it just because it's doesn't seem like it's shaping up like 3B where they seemed like they wanted the whole thing to just be over with to get to the finale.

 

They really need to give David more to do. I'm all for him standing there and being pretty, but this is his freakin' daughter. This shit concerns him!

[Mari]

I do have to admit that Zelena's reason for wanting to keep the baby was entirely in character--both for Zelena as an individual, and Zelena as a female member of the Mills family.

 

It was still all about her.

 

It was horribly selfish, but it was in-character.  

 

ETA:

 

I was curious about the twitter reaction, so checked the Once hashtag.

 

One of the tweets said, basically:  Another memory spell?  Storybrookers, learn to journal.

 

I didn't think of it, but have to agree.  

Edited September 28, 2015 by Mari

[thuganomics85]

OK premiere, even though were a few things I wasn't wild about.  I'm curious about their take on Camelot and the various characters (glad they got the same actor to reprise Lancelot again, at least), and I actually didn't see the twist coming about the Dark One's dagger.  It's a part of Excalibur, huh?  Interesting.

 

Since I never seen Brave, this is my first take on Merida, and I'm mainly indifferent.  All I got from her really is that she's is vengeful, good with a bow, and very, very Scottish.  At least the show acknowledges the latter part with Rumpel's crack about it, which amused me extra since Robert Carlyle being Scottish himself.  I have to imagine he and, well really, any Scottish person (including the actress here, who was good despite the campyness), have to be like "I swear, we all don't sound like this!", whenever a show has a Scottish with this thick of an accent.

 

I do like that Granny, Leroy, and some of the other dwarves will be more involved in this too.  I wish Ruby was along for the ride, but I've accepted that Meghan Ory has gone on to other things, I guess.

 

Zelena is not only back, but Rebecca Mader is now a regular, so I guess I should expected the scenery chewing and cleavage shots this season to increase by a whole lot.

 

Rumple being in Dark Emma's head is an awesome choice.  Glad this means Robert Carlyle won't be spending the majority of the season just lying in a bed.

 

Of course, it just has to end with another amnesia plot/time jump.  Really, show?

[LizaD]

So Merlin was really hot even if the lines coming out of his mouth was complete nonsense. Arthur is not too shabby himself. Kid Emma is adorable. That's about all I've got.

 

Rump and Emma were fun together and it looks like RC is back to looking like he's enjoying being onscreen at least. I hope it lasts awhile before he's weighed down by Anchor Belle again. Snow's gasp at the end when DS touched her face was A+. Granny got some good lines. I found everything else a bit bland.

 

The morality preaching on this show just kills me. Every. Single. Time. So Emma is dark and selfish if she tries to go for the magic Macguffin of the hour but somehow Merida escapes that selfish clause? Cause she's "Brave?" Emma killing Merida is OMG!NOES!Evil but Merida aiming her arrow at Emma to take her out is all fine and dandy? Emma can't betray Merida cause it's dark but it's all good if Merida does. So stupid. This is not to say I have anything against Merida but the tunnel vision is just wack. Why can't this show just be a silly super cheesy fairy tale show like it's meant to be?

[Shanna Marie]

I actually got to see this live because I got home early (and then watched Indian Summer on PBS). I think I liked it. I was dead tired and had hit a wall from dehydration (the reason I was home early), so it will need rewatching. I think early Dark Swan was excellent. Emma looked so raw and vulnerable (and I think she looks so much prettier with the more natural look and not all the makeup they usually cake on her). I like Merida, but I think I'm going to have to wait and see how much I like her inclusion here because in this episode she felt a little kitchen-sinky, like a random extra element that didn't fit. That role could have been any person and didn't necessarily have to be a recognizable Disney-related character.

 

Hook's hair is working for me, and I liked his and Henry's plan, especially the wink to the mop guy and the little flourish as he lifted the keys. Bonus style points.

 

One little thing I loved -- Henry being the one to hold onto and reassure little Roland. I work with kids about that age, and the little kids will go to the "big kids" (and to them, 12 is a big kid) every time over the adults, so that rang very true to me. Plus, Roland's dad is kind of useless.

 

At least they did comment on the memory spell happening "again." I guess if that kind of power exists, it would come in handy to weaken your enemies, and I think starting there and working backward will make for an interesting storytelling structure and should mean that we get flashbacks that are part of a story rather than getting Snow vs. Regina part 485,979.

 

What was the big, shocking twist people were talking about in the spoilers? I wasn't really surprised by anything. No big gasp like all the reporters were talking about.

[KingOfHearts]

 

They really need to give David more to do. I'm all for him standing there and being pretty, but this is his freakin' daughter. This shit concerns him!

I thought it was weird when Emma told Regina to destroy her if things got bad and Snowing had zero reaction. The camera didn't even show them in that moment.

 

 

 

The morality preaching on this show just kills me. Every. Single. Time. So Emma is dark and selfish if she tries to go for the magic Macguffin of the hour but somehow Merida escapes that selfish clause? Cause she's "Brave?" Emma killing Merida is OMG!NOES!Evil but Merida aiming her arrow at Emma to take her out is all fine and dandy? Emma can't betray Merida cause it's dark but it's all good if Merida does. So stupid. This is not to say I have anything against Merida but the tunnel vision is just wack. Why can't this show just be a silly super cheesy fairy tale show like it's meant to be?

Why couldn't Merida and Emma make some sort of deal? Merida could let Emma have the wisp in exchange for helping her get her brothers back. Emma's dilemma was quite more important as it involved multiple kingdoms and worlds.

[irisheyes]

You brought Granny's.

And Granny.

Hee!!

ETA: The plot wasn't the greatest, but the one liners were fabulous.

Edited September 28, 2015 by irisheyes

[jackjill89]

This one episode was more exciting than 80% of last year. 

[Lady Calypso]

I liked the premiere well enough. After missing a couple of the final episodes of 4A and missing most of 4B, the start of this season was ok enough. 

 

I have to say, though, I loved Dark!Emma...until she actually consumed the darkness in the last scene of the episode. I guess this Dark!Emma was....I don't know, too boring or something? Maybe because I'm used to Robert Carlyle playing the Dark One differently. This Dark Emma was not what I expected. There's just something off. 

 

So, almost the whole gang is in the Enchanted Forest, including the little kids. So I'm guessing Usher Merlin (most likely) and his warning about the sword will become the reason why Emma turns full Dark One. 

 

Merida kind of worked for me, but yeah, why is she allowed to shoot Emma and Emma's not allowed to smack her around a little? I guess it's because Emma has darkness inside of her or some shit, and she'll go bananas if she uses it.

 

This show really has to balance out these family moments. Snow got to say that they have to find 'her daughter' twice with Charming right there! I don't even think Charming got to say a line this episode. You know, I like Charming but he only gets focus once every half season and then he's relegated to the background. 

 

Ok, I've decided to embrace the fact that Regina's a good person now, because I'll drive myself crazy if I continue to be cynical and have my enjoyment of the show disappear. Ok, Regina's good now.

 

I'm not a fan of Emma/Hook but I'm trying here. They were cute, and I'm warming up to them more now. That being said...Hook, what did you expect to happen when you went to Zelena alone? Thank god Regina had a plan. This guy does not do plans well.

 

Why did Belle go along the journey? And also, that rose is going to lose all its petals and there'll be an episode of Belle angsting before that happens, trying to get back, only to have Gold completely fine. I just know it. But I like how the show brought the rose in. Now...show, give Belle something useful to do!

[HoodlumSheep]

I'm back!

As I mentioned about 2 hrs ago, I liked this premiere better than both of season 4's and probably 3b's.

It was a pretty solid episode:

Random stuff:

-Hook's plan was actually pretty solid. Zelena's wack-a-doodleness is what made it go wrong.

-Bye bye Sir Kay. Clearly he didn't want to see Arthur rule.

-the prophecy thing and stuff pretty much sets Arthur up to be a shady McShadester. He'll want the dagger.

-i liked the tornado-to-camelot bit. Gave the the episode some action.

-I actually kinda liked Zelena this episode. She's still totally bonkers, but I thought her scene-chewing nature was dialed back a bit, which made her scenes more bearable.

-i liked the CS moments. They were cute!

I was actually proud of Grumpy for standing up to the Nevengers. I'm happy he was in a scene that didn't involve a mob. Hopefully he gets to do stuff this season. I thought all the dwarves had gone to Camelot, but apparently that was not the case.

-poor Sneezy

-I can't believe Merida's papa is dead. He was one of the better parts of the Brave movie.

-how the heck is Belle expected to carry around a GLASS jar that could easily break???

-Merida...Merida kinda fell flat for me. So far I like Elsa better.

-Jmo rocked it

-I currently don't mind the memory loss and time jump. It doesn't bug me as much as it probably should. We'll see if they manage to screw it up.

-I didn't really have a problem with the Emma/Regina scene. It lasted 2 seconds. Here the promos and some of the journalists were making it out to be some big, poignant scene and it really wasn't at all. Or at least, I didn't feel it did. Emma was like, "Regina, take the dagger so you you can destroy me if need be!"--Regina, "me?"--Emma, "yup, you."--Henry,"We won't let it come to that!"--cut to everyone waltzing into Camelot.

????

Now unto the things I didn't like:

-I didn't care for the whole "regina stops Zelena" part. I'm still confused on what she did. How did she know using the wand would suck up a bunch of magic power, thus weakening her and giving Regina the chance to cuff Zelena. Also, how are they going to keep Zelena from grabbing knives/weapons and lopping off her hand again? I didn't like how the whole situation turned out to be a "Regina had a secret plan/is a super genius" deal. It made everyone look dumb, and I actually didn't really buy it. It would have been better if it was a spur of a moment plan, or she had let everyone else on the secret.

-I'm not sure how I feel about Zelena being able to regrow limbs. i could buy that kind of stuff from Rumple, because he was the Dark One and had super magic, but Zelena? I guess I underestimated her magic?

-the worst part of this episode was that promo for episode 2. Ugh. A Regina-centered episode right off the bat??

The rest of my thoughts deal with spoilery stuff, so I'll take the rest of them to the spoiler thread.

Overall, solid premiere!

[Anakerie]

Me: On second thought, let's not go to Camelot. Tis a silly place.

My mother: Like the rest of this show!

[Mari]

Okay, I rewatched the scene where Zelena makes the portal.

 

I still don't quite get it.

 

Zelena made the portal, cried out in pain or shock, and then Regina leaped forward and put the cuff on her.

 

Since this is a new magic thing, that we have never seen used before, that Regina didn't even know existed, she should have absolutely no knowledge of what the impact would be on Zelena if she managed to open a portal.

 

And, now that the portal is open, why are they taking Zelena along?  It's hardly like she's willing mission support.

 

Edited because I typed Zelena then I meant Regina, and Regina when I meant Zelena, and while they might both be annoying characters I wish would catch Belle's season 4 sleeping sickness, they are different characters.

Edited September 28, 2015 by Mari

[maryle]

First reaction,

overall loved it, so much better than almost all 4a and all 4b. There was comedy, emotion and I bought the struggle of Emma.

So Jen just killed the emotional moments of temptation, self doubt and even her little flirtation looks at Hook. A + special mention when she touched Snow at the end.

Captain Cobra was promising for their sl. And I liked Zelena better than all season 4. Regina scene was ok and I felt she was helping more for Snow and Henry sake than some strong frienship with Emma. So, it seem more believable to me.

[MadyGirl1987]

Wonder why they didn't get a babysitter for Roland and Little Neal.

Right? Some top notch parenting there....

Loved they started in Minneapolis! Grew up there and went to high school downtown not far from the theatre she was at!

A strong start which makes me excited for this season. I especially loved the ending. Felt like a horror movie.

[HoodlumSheep]

Okay, I rewatched the scene where Zelena makes the portal.

I still don't quite get it.

She made the portal, cried out in pain or shock, and then Zelena leaped forward and put the cuff on her.

Since this is a new magic thing, that we have never seen used before, that Regina didn't even know existed, she should have absolutely no knowledge of what the impact would be on Zelena if she managed to open a portal.

This was one of the few things I didn't like/understand too. Regina wouldn't know the effects of the wand. emma wasn't phased when she used the Black Fairy's wand in 3b. Why would Zelena have trouble with it? Because she's pregnant? It didn't make any sense.

[angora]

Between Dark One Emma's silver hair and turning Sneezy into stone, did anyone else yell, "White Witch!!" at their TV?  The clothes don't fit, but that was the vibe I got.

[turbogirlnyc]

JMo did fairly well as Dark Swan. Zelena wasn't quite as annoying as usual.I expected Merida to have a thicker accent and wilder/fuller hair but she was decent overall.

Despite JMo's claims that Emma turned dark for everyone, it was clear she did it for Regina. No surprise there. I can't believe the show writers are going with the lost memories story once again.

[tennisgurl]

I really wished when they got to Camelot, we got something like...

 

Emma: "Camelot!"

 

Snow: "Camelot!"

 

David "Camleot!"

 

Grumpy, under his breath: "Its only a model" 

[Blue Plastic]

The lost memories trope is so overdone on this show.  If I hadn't been spoiled beforehand, I think I would have been kind of confused about what happened.  It was almost kind of tacked onto the end of the episode as if it was an afterthought.  One second they're all waltzing into Camelot, and the next they're all dumped back into Storybrooke - you could get whiplash.

 

I like JMo's interpretation of the Dark One, but I'm glad I saw the sneak peek on You Tube first.  Seeing her portrayal in the setting on that video made it seem more evil and menacing, whereas seeing her standing there in Granny's diner wearing black pleather kinda took me out of the story somehow.  They probably didn't want to replicate Rumpel's Imp look too much, but I'm not sure what I think of the black outfit with white hair and eyebrows.

 

Henry/Jared's delivery has all the enthusiasm of a piece of toast.  He looks like he's half asleep.  Can somebody give that boy a sip of coffee?

 

I liked Merida well enough (have seen "Brave") but I didn't think the story about her triplet brothers sounded very exciting.  Maybe they'll do something entertaining with it.

 

Too bad Robin and Zelena are in this season.  *Gag*

[maryle]

just something I found interesting. THE Zelenna s.l. . Now, it is plausible they really are going for the redemption road with her and I saw a lots of people are against it.

But I enjoyed her tonight for the first time in a long time. So, it is ok for me!

Why people are so against it? I mean Regina and Rumple did worse thing!

[Mari]

Why people are so against it? I mean Regina and Rumple did worse thing!

Personally, it's because I no longer trust them to write a redemption story that doesn't massacre the characterization of most of the other characters on the show. They had to destroy most of the characters in Storybrooke to "redeem" Regina, and it's the least authentic thing on the show. Even the false eyelashes seem more genuine.

Edited September 28, 2015 by Mari

[Last Time Lord]

I really wished when they got to Camelot, we got something like...

Emma: "Camelot!"

Snow: "Camelot!"

David "Camleot!"

Grumpy, under his breath: "Its only a model"

Shh!

[mjgchick]

After my excitement for the episode, I forgot how annoyed with Zelena pointing out Robins dumb ass not knowing his wife's kiss. Way to keep throwing more salt to the wound of the Robin and Marian canon relationship show. Why couldn't Sean (I actually like him so I wouldn't wish him with unemployment.) be any other fairytale?

[maryle]

Thanks, for answering but I think it is just my contraduction spirit talking!

I do not care one way or the other.

Mostly, just here for the Charming clan and CS and old love for all things Camelot.

[Anakerie]

Shh!

And then the dance starts...

And would it have been too much to ask to have Arthur using coconut shells? And get The Ballad of Sir Robin?? We have a Robin, darn it! "He found Zelena in his bed, and bravely turned his tail and fled!"

Edited September 28, 2015 by Anakerie

[KingOfHearts]

 

After my excitement for the episode, I forgot how annoyed with Zelena pointing out Robins dumb ass not knowing his wife's kiss. Way to keep throwing more salt to the wound of the Robin and Marian canon relationship show. Why couldn't Sean (I actually like him so I wouldn't wish him with unemployment.) be any other fairytale?

Eh, that aside, I still give kudos to Zelena for pointing out how dumb Robin is. She did the same with Neal and she speaks truth.

 

I thought Zelena worked really well as a villain in this episode. She's a raging psychopath willing to cut off her own hand just to get her way. No apologies, no whitewashing. Just plain evil. The spirit of Cruella lives on... ;)

Edited September 28, 2015 by KingOfHearts

[mjgchick]

Let me go back to watching gifs of Emma and Killian swinging each other's hands like the 5 year olds in love they are. Yeah I didn't forget her 3 words she told Killian show so y'all better address it. Probably the best Part of the reunion. lol

I wasn't annoyed at Zelena. I love when she points out how dumb these people tend to be.

Edited September 28, 2015 by mjgchick

[JohnSmithSensei]

The morality preaching on this show just kills me. Every. Single. Time. So Emma is dark and selfish if she tries to go for the magic Macguffin of the hour but somehow Merida escapes that selfish clause? Cause she's "Brave?" Emma killing Merida is OMG!NOES!Evil but Merida aiming her arrow at Emma to take her out is all fine and dandy? Emma can't betray Merida cause it's dark but it's all good if Merida does. So stupid. This is not to say I have anything against Merida but the tunnel vision is just wack. Why can't this show just be a silly super cheesy fairy tale show like it's meant to be?

 

I don't see the double-standard. Merida gave about as fair a shake as she could to a complete stranger who listens to voices in their head and uses dark magic to get what they want.

[mjgchick]

It's a double standard because as of right now Emma needs the wisp as much as Merida. They both want to protect their families but if Emma tries to harm Merida she's the villain but if Merida does she's being brave. If Emma wasn't the Dark One they wouldn't even say that because this reminds me of when Snow/Emma and Mulan fought for a compass. They didn't treat either as if one was in the wrong.

[Rick Kitchen]

I loved Voice of Evil/Rapunzel complaining about not being able to understand Merida's Scottish accent.

[KAOS Agent]

I was pretty underwhelmed with that episode. I didn't watch any of the sneak peeks or read the spoilerific article that was accidentally released and I still felt like I'd already seen the whole thing before I watched it. Maybe that's why I was just kind of meh through the whole thing.

 

A few notes:

 

- Loved that Wee!Emma was always after the food even as a little one. How sad is it that as a six year old Emma was always hungry? 

 

- Merlin is a freakshow. What the hell was he doing talking to a little kid like that? Emma'd be having nightmares for ages. Also, why not appear when she's older and can remember this cryptic little visit? I'm sure Emma is prophesied to die uniting the sword & dagger or something equally asinine. Her life has never been her own. She must sacrifice for the greater good.

 

- Zelena is completely crazy and I'm really not keen on the self-mutilation and immediate fix with magic. Where's the price? Guess she's braver than Rumpel though. Also, I loved her inference that Robin is a terrible lover. 

 

- Emma's basically going to go nuts. I really strongly disliked that almost all of her actions seemed to be not of her own active choice either. And the ret-con on the being reborn was silly when there's an entire episode showing that that didn't happen for Rumpel.

 

- When someone is trying to kill you, apparently it's wrong to stop them from doing so. Not liking Merida although I do appreciate that Emma is still helping people make better choices even as the Dark One. Guess you can't take the Saviour out of her.

 

- How come Regina couldn't wield the wand, but then later could? There was just so much handwaving necessary for the whole create a twister portal thing to work. 

 

- Roland must have taken some of the rapid aging potion Henry did. This show has to skip lots more time than six weeks.

 

- Amnesia. How novel. 

[MaiLuna]

I really enjoyed that episode. It flew by so that's a good sign.

 

I loved JMo's acting and I liked how they included Rumpel as her inner voice. I liked that everyone cared about helping Emma. Except for Henry who was just chilling out, wth?. Snow was actually caring about her daughter!

Zelena wasn't annoying and although Regina had some insensitive lines at the beginning, overall I tolerated her in this episode so that's good.

 

I don't like that they made Hook screw up but at least Regina was smart and didn't gloat afterwards.

 

Captain Swan are so adorable. I enjoyed all the Captain Cobra as well.

 

I think DarkSwan was putting on an act at the end and I wonder if that's the real dagger she has. The scene where she gave Regina the dagger made sense except for the fact where Regina would become the Dark One. Didn't you do this to stop that from happening in the first place?

 

I hope they can pull the amnesia off for once. I didn't like that Emma was going to be the Dark One, but now I'm seeing the potential.

 

It was very weird that Emma crushing Merida's heart was so wrong when Merida shot first and multiple times. I think the thing was that she wasn't killing her for trying to kill her but rather because of the will-o-wisp, though based on Emma's reaction it was the arrow that made her snap.

 

The scenery was very pretty too. Arthur doesn't seem likeable yet, he seems shady.

[MMR]

Great ep, lots of Regina, loved it! Poor Zelena, she loves her baby. Merida was great!

[Camera One]

Overall, I couldn't really get into this episode.  I did love Grumpy's speech about wanting to be part of the next adventure, and Granny as usual got the best lines, but other than that, I didn't enjoy too much of it.

 

So Little Emma was already stealing?  What happened to all her darkness getting dumped in Lily again?  The scene with the candy bar and presumably Merlin felt like a rip-off of "Lost".  So Merlin could go to the World Without Magic himself?  I hate how everything is pretty much pre-ordained and he's just moving the little puppet-strings.  

 

I've had it with Merlin and his idiotic objects.  That Wand requires Darkness to cross realms?  So what's the use?  Was his Apprentice supposed to make an alliance with Evil people to make it work?  As usual, the explanations are so dumb.  And Zelena knew alllllll about the wand... of course.

 

Loved that guy who was with King Arthur and Lancelot.  

 

I did think it was clever how The Dagger was the tip of Excalibur.

 

Rumple in Emma's mind was okay.  There were a few good lines here and there, but I just couldn't enjoy it since it was obvious where it was going... Emma being "tempted".  

 

So I guess it's confirmed via dialogue that Emma sacrificed herself for Regina.  

 

Blue prods Belle to go help with Emma because Belle is so "resourceful".  So what's Blue then?  Burnt toast?  Wouldn't she have been a *tad* more useful?  Oh, and here's a rose so you can tell when Gold dies!  I'm just going to have to imagine Blue tried to strangle Gold after Belle left the room.

 

I like Hook and Henry working together, but Henry's ready participation in the plot to free Zelena made no sense.  "I don't need her permission, I'm not a kid anymore".  Huh?  Where did that come from?  Fine, if Henry was desperate to get to Emma, but they had him sipping soda and reading a book at Granny's like he couldn't care less.  

 

The Merida/Emma stuff didn't work.  It didn't feel organic at all.  They try to kill each other, and in the next scene, Merida's all "Thanks for showing me the darkness in you.", followed by a heart-to-heart?  What the hell?!   Is this the same people who wrote the beautiful friendship between Emma and Elsa?

 

Why would they bring Roland and the Baby with them?  

 

Not enough Charming, and they hardly had Snow doing anything.  

 

How did Hook know it "had to be Emma's choice" not to kill Merida?  

 

Charming: "Our memories are gone."

Snow: "Again."

 

Yep, here we go again.  

 

Glad the show is back for discussion sake, but I hope it gets better in weeks to come.

Edited September 28, 2015 by Camera One

[Souris]

How did Hook know it "had to be Emma's choice" not to kill Merida?  

 

Because he wanted her to choose not to do it and to fight off the dark impulse. Plus, he knows what it feels like to be compelled to do something. He showed he believed in her to fight the darkness.

[Aliasscape]

Because he wanted her to choose not to do it and to fight off the dark impulse. Plus, he knows what it feels like to be compelled to do something. He showed he believed in her to fight the darkness.

Which was a good idea in this let's make Emma make the right choices idea but still terrible and risky timing to do it when she was seconds away from crushing poor Merida's heart.

 

I liked everything about Jennifer Morrison's acting and Emma this episode (though I'm already guessing whatever they decide will be THE event that happened in the 6 weeks that turned Emma completely dark won't be enough to convince me, but we'll see.) She seems to be having a blast and honestly watching Jmo truly get some spotlight and enjoy herself makes me want to watch this season more than anything else.

 

Who said Snow finally seemed motherly? She gave a nice quote at one point but I was annoyed it wasn't her that came up with the baby blanket instead of it being one random thing for Regina who shouldn't even know that blanket exists. I loved Charming's reactions to Emma at least and I wonder if the Dark One has cold hands and that's what made a chill run through Snow when Emma touched her.

 

I think Jared Gilmore might be speaking in a monotone to keep his voice from cracking but I'm not really sure. I do agree his lines could use more vocally though I think his facial expressions  are getting better. Henry's never been that obedient a child so I'm not surprised by his behavior, especially crossing Regina. But yeah how old is Henry supposed to be now that he's "not a kid" hmm?

 

Ugh the idiocy of Regina being all adults only for the Granny ride and yet they take Roland, the Baby and Henry along. Like seriously?  No one in town you trust to watch those 3? At the very least the younger 2? And is that baby going to show any 6 weeks of growth or has their aging been frozen all this time?

 

I thought it was smart with having Robert be Emma's inner dark one while leaving actual Rumpel in a coma. I don't see why we had to drag Belle along though. I would have loved leaving her behind.

 

None of the magic rules made any sense. Cuff suppressing magic ought to be magic enough to keep you from cutting your arm off. Crazy.

 

6 year old Emma being in Minnesota made no sense either. Do Boston foster homes take fieldtrips to Minnesota to go see movies now? At least the casting was good on her so you knew who she was instantly.

 

Merida laying there listening to crazy Emma talk to herself was great. And is Amy Mansion's natural Scottish accent that strong? I know Robert purposely tones down his Scottish accent to be Rumpel and I appreciate it as whenever Robert gets going in an interview how much stronger his Scottish accent is throws me off. So it was funny to hear him make fun of Amy's making me wonder if that's her natural strength of Scottish or not. At least I pretty much hated Brave and hated Merida for cursing her own mother in the movie so they really can't ruin her for me. I'm hoping to like their version more. I wonder if we'll get to see her brothers. Triplet curly red heads, I wonder how hard that is to cast if you're not using wigs/dying hair. Why she was so forgiving of Emma, um hmm.

 

Well we're back. I wonder how the ratings will turn out. It trended a lot on twitter at least.

Edited September 28, 2015 by Aliasscape

[placate]

I'm thinking that darkness and savior should be added to the drinking game, but I don't wanna die.

[PixiePaws1]

Can I just say how freaking funny was Lancelot with his "Your turn...." ..????

Now THAT was humour done well.... more please!

...and was that actually the sound of crickets when Regina failed with the wand???

Edited September 28, 2015 by PixiePaws1

[YaddaYadda]

Hook, what did you expect to happen when you went to Zelena alone? Thank god Regina had a plan. This guy does not do plans well.

 

I'm pretty sure he didn't expect her to cut off her own hand to get rid of the cuff. And if Regina shared her plans with the class, maybe it wouldn't have happened that way?

the prophecy thing and stuff pretty much sets Arthur up to be a shady McShadester. He'll want the dagger.

If I'm counting correctly, we got 3 prophecies in the show yesterday. I don't know if they are part of a whole. There's the one where Merlin tells Emma not to pull the sword out of the stone. The one when Arthur pulls the sword out of the stone and the one at the end, when he tells the gang he's been expecting them. Then he says it's just one of many of Merlin's prophecies.

 

And yeah, he'll probably want the dagger to make his sword whole because I think it's been established that it is his sword because...prophecy!!! My question is more how long have they been waiting for everyone to show up in Camelot and why they want to be reunited with Merlin. I think that's where Arthur's agenda comes in.

 

Loved that guy who was with King Arthur and Lancelot.

Percival

[kili]

I guess chivalry really is dead. The Knights of the Round table including uber-chivalrous Lancelot ride their horses while escorting a pregnant woman and a woman carrying a baby?  I had felt like I was on the bus and those knights were the people who sit their and refuse to make eye-contact with the old lady tottering with a cane.

 

I don't blame Grumpy, Happy and Doc being annoyed that they were being left behind again because it was "too dangerous" when a baby and a five year old were  along for the trip.

 

Why did they decide to take Granny's? Was there no barns full of scythes available? Maybe pick a place without quite so many things to fall on your head while being spun around in a twister.

 

On any other show where somebody was locked up in an insane asylum and escaped just so that they could raise their baby in peace far away from their nemesis, they wouldn't be seen as the villain. 

 

Why did Hook have a large kitchen knife with him? Has he taken up cooking? Was he planning on dicing some chives to make Zelena an omelette? You would think somebody who has had his share prisoners would know not to carry a weapon with him when entering a prisoner's cell. And if he didn't and was on his way to get a portal opened to the enchanted forrest, he'd be carrying his sword. It looked like he had just gotten that knife out of a William-Sonoma catalogue. That thing was so new. Good thing or Zelena would have to worry about bacteria in her wound and I doubt they have antibiotics where she is going.

 

So, Hook has had the ability to rip out hearts all along? It wasn't just a one and done thing? How come Regina didn't just protect her own heart like Zelena did? We know she knows how to do it. I just figured there was some reason why she could not do it to herself. Better to bury it in the forrest and let a stranger guard it?

 

Poor Wee Emma. She can't even enjoy a movie without some weird creeper giving her bizarro advice. She already looked so defeated and world-worn. 

 

I love all of Henry's plots for getting prisoners out of cells. 

 

Why didn't Emma just poof her and Merida to the stones to save time? I don't buy that poofing is evil. It seems like a good use of your time. 

Edited September 28, 2015 by kili

[Mari]

 Poor Zelena, she loves her baby.

But did she?  She talked about how it was going to be her and her baby, together, and how someone was finally going to love her best.  "Someone's finally going to love me best." is totally different than "I'm finally going to have someone to love.".  I thought it was one of the best in-character motivations  for Zelena to want the baby;  it was completely selfish and completely about her, and realistically obsessed with being loved.

Edited September 28, 2015 by Mari

[Humbugged]

Which was a good idea in this let's make Emma make the right choices idea but still terrible and risky timing to do it when she was seconds away from crushing poor Merida's heart.

 

I liked everything about Jennifer Morrison's acting and Emma this episode (though I'm already guessing whatever they decide will be THE event that happened in the 6 weeks that turned Emma completely dark won't be enough to convince me, but we'll see.) She seems to be having a blast and honestly watching Jmo truly get some spotlight and enjoy herself makes me want to watch this season more than anything else.

 

Who said Snow finally seemed motherly? She gave a nice quote at one point but I was annoyed it wasn't her that came up with the baby blanket instead of it being one random thing for Regina who shouldn't even know that blanket exists. I loved Charming's reactions to Emma at least and I wonder if the Dark One has cold hands and that's what made a chill run through Snow when Emma touched her.

 

I think Jared Gilmore might be speaking in a monotone to keep his voice from cracking but I'm not really sure. I do agree his lines could use more vocally though I think his facial expressions  are getting better. Henry's never been that obedient a child so I'm not surprised by his behavior, especially crossing Regina. But yeah how old is Henry supposed to be now that he's "not a kid" hmm?

 

Ugh the idiocy of Regina being all adults only for the Granny ride and yet they take Roland, the Baby and Henry along. Like seriously?  No one in town you trust to watch those 3? At the very least the younger 2? And is that baby going to show any 6 weeks of growth or has their aging been frozen all this time?

 

I thought it was smart with having Robert be Emma's inner dark one while leaving actual Rumpel in a coma. I don't see why we had to drag Belle along though. I would have loved leaving her behind.

 

None of the magic rules made any sense. Cuff suppressing magic ought to be magic enough to keep you from cutting your arm off. Crazy.

 

6 year old Emma being in Minnesota made no sense either. Do Boston foster homes take fieldtrips to Minnesota to go see movies now? At least the casting was good on her so you knew who she was instantly.

 

Merida laying there listening to crazy Emma talk to herself was great. And is Amy Mansion's natural Scottish accent that strong? I know Robert purposely tones down his Scottish accent to be Rumpel and I appreciate it as whenever Robert gets going in an interview how much stronger his Scottish accent is throws me off. So it was funny to hear him make fun of Amy's making me wonder if that's her natural strength of Scottish or not. At least I pretty much hated Brave and hated Merida for cursing her own mother in the movie so they really can't ruin her for me. I'm hoping to like their version more. I wonder if we'll get to see her brothers. Triplet curly red heads, I wonder how hard that is to cast if you're not using wigs/dying hair. Why she was so forgiving of Emma, um hmm.

 

Well we're back. I wonder how the ratings will turn out. It trended a lot on twitter at least.

Which was a good idea in this let's make Emma make the right choices idea but still terrible and risky timing to do it when she was seconds away from crushing poor Merida's heart.

 

I liked everything about Jennifer Morrison's acting and Emma this episode (though I'm already guessing whatever they decide will be THE event that happened in the 6 weeks that turned Emma completely dark won't be enough to convince me, but we'll see.) She seems to be having a blast and honestly watching Jmo truly get some spotlight and enjoy herself makes me want to watch this season more than anything else.

 

Who said Snow finally seemed motherly? She gave a nice quote at one point but I was annoyed it wasn't her that came up with the baby blanket instead of it being one random thing for Regina who shouldn't even know that blanket exists. I loved Charming's reactions to Emma at least and I wonder if the Dark One has cold hands and that's what made a chill run through Snow when Emma touched her.

 

I think Jared Gilmore might be speaking in a monotone to keep his voice from cracking but I'm not really sure. I do agree his lines could use more vocally though I think his facial expressions  are getting better. Henry's never been that obedient a child so I'm not surprised by his behavior, especially crossing Regina. But yeah how old is Henry supposed to be now that he's "not a kid" hmm?

 

Ugh the idiocy of Regina being all adults only for the Granny ride and yet they take Roland, the Baby and Henry along. Like seriously?  No one in town you trust to watch those 3? At the very least the younger 2? And is that baby going to show any 6 weeks of growth or has their aging been frozen all this time?

 

I thought it was smart with having Robert be Emma's inner dark one while leaving actual Rumpel in a coma. I don't see why we had to drag Belle along though. I would have loved leaving her behind.

 

None of the magic rules made any sense. Cuff suppressing magic ought to be magic enough to keep you from cutting your arm off. Crazy.

 

6 year old Emma being in Minnesota made no sense either. Do Boston foster homes take fieldtrips to Minnesota to go see movies now? At least the casting was good on her so you knew who she was instantly.

 

Merida laying there listening to crazy Emma talk to herself was great. And is Amy Mansion's natural Scottish accent that strong? I know Robert purposely tones down his Scottish accent to be Rumpel and I appreciate it as whenever Robert gets going in an interview how much stronger his Scottish accent is throws me off. So it was funny to hear him make fun of Amy's making me wonder if that's her natural strength of Scottish or not. At least I pretty much hated Brave and hated Merida for cursing her own mother in the movie so they really can't ruin her for me. I'm hoping to like their version more. I wonder if we'll get to see her brothers. Triplet curly red heads, I wonder how hard that is to cast if you're not using wigs/dying hair. Why she was so forgiving of Emma, um hmm.

 

Well we're back. I wonder how the ratings will turn out. It trended a lot on twitter at least.

Amy Manson is from Aberdeen and that's a toned down version of her accent as well .My daughter moved there for college(and stayed after) from England and now sounds like that .

 

Go a few miles outside and they speak a whole other dialect called Dorric which no one even in the rest of Scotland can understand .There was a programme that ran called Trawlermen and even I would have to use subtitles

 

[Mrs OldManBalls]

Why did Belle go along the journey? And also, that rose is going to lose all its petals and there'll be an episode of Belle angsting before that happens, trying to get back, only to have Gold completely fine. I just know it. But I like how the show brought the rose in. Now...show, give Belle something useful to do!

That's a big-ass rose to lug around all season. Couldn't the Blue Fairy make it in pocket size? 

[DeLurker]

Because she's the worst.

[kili]

That's a big-ass rose to lug around all season. Couldn't the Blue Fairy make it in pocket size?

And couldn't she also have put it in a plastic bell instead of a glass one. She's in the modern world...make use of light-weight, less-breakable material when you can!

 

What was going on with the backroom of Gold's? It seemed like Blue was attending to the Apprentice lying on a cot in the backroom and in the next scene, he's gone, the cot has moved and there is Rumple. Where is Rumple in the first scene and where is the Apprentice now?  Was Rumple lying crumpled under the counter in the first scene and now the Apprentice is in the dumpster? Or was the Apprentice always in the front of the store and Rumple always in the back? If the Apprentice is in the front of the store, will Belle try to sell him (since Gold's apparently has Hook's hand and Gepetto's parents for sale, why not the Apprentice's body)?

 

I cannot get over how completely useless Merlin is. He tethers Dark Flubber to fallible humans, loses control of the dagger, creates a hat the hoovers magical beings, can unleash the dark one and loses it multiple times, appoints the Author, makes prophesies about a broken sword and frightens small children at the movies.

[Primetimer]

Get ready for every trope from every season premiere as Once Upon A Time sets out for Camelot.

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