S06.E14: Page 23

[formerlyfreedom]

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Believing there isn't room in Storybrooke for both her and Regina, the Evil Queen sets out to eliminate her other half using Robin to bait the trap. Hook, determined to make things work with Emma, turns to his old friend Capt. Nemo for advice, but Gideon torpedoes his plan before he's able to set things right. In a flashback to the Enchanted Forest, the Evil Queen learns a surprising lesson about the true source of her misery.

 

[KingOfHearts]

Screw this show so much. I am sooo done.

[Worsel]

I didn’t find this episode very interesting and could see that the person Regina hates most was herself from miles away.  What saved this plot was Lana’s excellent acting.  And it was nice seeing her father again.  I guess self-love wins the day.  I would have preferred if both had become one person but I suppose complete separation and the EQ’s happy ending in the Wish Realm is an ok way to resolve the two Reginas story.

 

The disagreement between Emma and Hook seems a bit too artificial/manufactured.  But it wouldn’t be this show without lots of angst.  Again, Colin’s acting saves me from completely detesting this plot line.

 

But yay!  Ariel is coming back.  Can’t wait for next week.

[Curio]

Hook and Snow finally got a one-on-one conversation that lasted longer than a minute for the first time in the entire run of the series! I don’t even care about the rest of the episode, I finally got something marked off my OUAT bucket list!

[InsertWordHere]

That was nice that Snow got to show up to witness the touching second chance given to long-haired Regina. Too bad Charming couldn't be present. Oh wait. Charming couldn't be present because he's under a sleeping curse thanks to long-haired Regina. Maybe wish realm Charming will get to see long-haired Regina instead. Oh wait. He's dead because short-haired Regina killed him. 

Emma coming upon Hook trying to burn the dream catcher was the most contrived thing I've seen in ages. That said, I actually like how they handled this contrived drama  

What a waste of Tinkerbell. 

Nemo is so kind to Hook. It's so nice. 

I can't believe we got a Snow and Hook scene, y'all!  

[Randomosity]

What did I just watch? Regina/Evil Queen? *vomit*

The shears and the pen are magically around again just when they need them. Sure...

I mean, I guess at least they didn't go for the obvious in breaking the engagement by making it directly about Hook killing David's father. I suppose that's where the 'real' proposal will come in later.
 

Things I cared about most in that episode? I like Emma's white shirt. Also, all that snow Vancouver got worked a hell of a lot better for OUAT (Maine) than it did for Timeless (Wild West, spring in D.C., etc.)

 

 

[OnceUponAJen]

3 minutes ago, Curio said:

Hook and Snow finally got a one-on-one conversation that lasted longer than a minute for the first time in the entire run of the series! I don’t even care about the rest of the episode, I finally got something marked off my OUAT bucket list!

And the Evil Queen apologized to Snow! Am I dead?

Not a bad episode! I'm glad the Emma/Hook storyline was a bit different than I thought it would be. But yeah,  manufactured angst. I hate it for Emma.

Edited March 27, 2017 by OnceUponAJen

[Mari]

We had to spend an entire hour while  Regina lived out A&E's fanfiction of  a Whitney Houston song?  Because, sorry--Whitney did it better.

Also, (sorry for the rage caps)  REGINA AND THE EVIL QUEEN ARE NOT SEPARATE PEOPLE.  They are the same person.  Just because you divided her in half, doesn't mean one did the things, and the other didn't.

If RegularRegina joined their hearts, and they had all the same memories, why would one Regina get Storybrooke, and the other the NotReal/MaybeReal Wish realm?

EQRegina's happy ending is in a place where the teen-age king despises her for killing his real/notreal grandparents and abducting his mother, making EQR a wanted criminal?  That'll work out well.

Edited March 27, 2017 by Mari
clarification

[Shanna Marie]

Could someone be so kind as to provide me a quick recap of the second half of the episode? My local station cut to weather coverage right after Emma gave Hook back the ring. There was a tornado warning in a nearby county -- no threat anywhere near me, mostly them showing off their fancy radar technology that allowed them to predict where things were going to happen right before they did.

[AmeliaBedelia]

As a non-Regina fan, I knew I wouldn't like this one. And, I mostly didn't. Of course Regina hated herself more than anyone else duh.

I spent the first minute of the Hook/Emma scene convinced it was a dream because of the contrivance of the set-up. Shame on me. The show that has Emma find her engagement ring offscreen of course has her find out Killian's secret conveniently in the next episode. No need for build-up/suspense/pay-off.

I did like the Hook/Snow scene.

The Evil Queen getting her happy ending does make it feel like the show is wrapping up.

[Curio]

3 minutes ago, Worsel said:

The disagreement between Emma and Hook seems a bit too artificial/manufactured.

 

How did Emma even know that was David's father? How does she even know what he looks like? The only person who knows how Robert actually died was Killian, so if David ever told Emma off screen about his father, all he would say is, "I finally found out the truth. The king ordered him to be killed on his supply run." How would that dreamcatcher scene tip Emma off about Robert? That could have been any random person Captain Hook killed in the past. She should have been more inquisitive and say, "Who was that? Why do you want to burn that memory?" instead of immediately knowing it was Robert.

[Worsel]

5 minutes ago, AmeliaBedelia said:

 

I spent the first minute of the Hook/Emma scene convinced it was a dream because of the contrivance of the set-up. Shame on me. The show that has Emma find her engagement ring offscreen of course has her find out Killian's secret conveniently in the next episode. No need for build-up/suspense/pay-off.

 

Building the suspense and allowing Hook to complete his journey to asking for forgiveness would have been by far a much more interesting and elegant way of telling this story, but as always the writers prefer to create acute moments of angst within a limited amount of story telling time.

Edited March 27, 2017 by Worsel

[sharky]

The Regina/Evil Queen stuff was annoying. I couldn't decide if it was an ABC after school special or an episode of Oprah. Either way, glad that's over with.

I loved Captain Swan this week! They did the angst so well and Emma's truthiness needed to be said. I LOVED the Hook/Snow scene, and the fact that Snow was the one to make him realize he needed to stay and face his demons made it so good. More angst? Meh. I can take it for now, but don't push me too far. Just please say Emma finds out what Gideon did in next week's episode.

Overall, this episode was so much better than last week. Amazing what can be accomplished when you can actually juggle the ensemble right and bring in guest characters that push the story forward. I mean, of course, I still minded the Regina/Evil Queen nonsense but aside from the stupid flashback, the Storybrooke plots were good.

That being said, this was definitely a good example of why the flashbacks need to be drop kicked into the wish realm so we never have to see another one of them again.

Edited March 27, 2017 by sharky
commas are good

[KingOfHearts]

Time for the real post.

I thought the Captain Swan scene with the dreamcatcher was a dream at first. Emma and Hook were both very OOC this episode. Hook would have gone and told her the truth. Emma came off as very hypocritical. Just a week or two ago she lied about having a death sentence. Before that, she lied about Hook being a Dark One. She wiped memories to burn it from existence, just like Hook was about to do in this episode. So why does she get to yell at him? Wouldn't she know how hurtful taking off the ring would be? She went totally judgey and assumptive.

There's not much to note about the Regina/Evil Queen resolution. Yes, it was nice, but it should have happened two seasons ago. Oh wait - it did! Regina learned she was her own problem way back in 4x20. We already went down that road. I was ready for Regina to kiss herself.

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That being said, this was definitely a good example of why the flashbacks need to be drop kicked into the wish realm so we never have to see another one of them again.

What was even the point of the Tinkerbell retcon/cameo? All Henry Sr. had to say was he talked to Tinkerbell. Just like Cora did. In 4x20.

Edited March 27, 2017 by KingOfHearts

[AmeliaBedelia]

2 minutes ago, Worsel said:

Building the suspense and allowing Hook to complete his journey to asking for forgiveness would have been by far a much more interesting and elegant way of telling this story, but as always the writers prefer to create acute moments of angst within a limited amount of story telling time.

Agreed. I'm hoping Hook/Emma get some good pov next week, but it looks like they'll be separated. I hate the feast or famine aspect of this show when it comes to character development.

[Worsel]

11 minutes ago, Shanna Marie said:

Could someone be so kind as to provide me a quick recap of the second half of the episode? My local station cut to weather coverage right after Emma gave Hook back the ring. There was a tornado warning in a nearby county -- no threat anywhere near me, mostly them showing off their fancy radar technology that allowed them to predict where things were going to happen right before they did.

The second half of the episode involved the EQ using the shears to completely separate herself from Regina, then a sword fight between the two of them, then Regina getting the upper hand and deciding to love the darkness as well as the light parts of herself; she took EQ’s heart and her heart, transferred some darkness to her heart and some light to EQ’s heart, replaced EQ’s heart.  EQ then became contrite and asked Snow for forgiveness, and Henry wrote using the Author’s pen that EQ should get a “fresh start”.  EQ ends up in the Wish Realm where she meets Robin in the Tavern, and Robin offers to buy her a drink.

 

Hook was going to go away with Nemo but ultimately changed his mind, unfortunately he was on the Nautilus and Gideon showed up to send them on their way with Hook trapped on board.

[Daisy]

So. Emma could make Hook the Dark One, lie about it, lie about her saviour tremors and that her life could be in danger and Hook always stands by her.  But Hook has one moment of legitimate self doubt about something in his past and Emma is like here's the ring?  Whatever 

Also if she thinks David will forgive that then Rumple is as innocent and pure as the freshly fallen snow. I knew Hook would get slapped with Charming Self righteousness

[InsertWordHere]

Three weeks in a row of Emma waiting around for Hook to come home at the end of the episode is not the kind of domesticity I've been wanting to see. This all would be so much better if we had any clue about Emma and Hook's daily life when they're not hiding secrets from each other. 

[Katherine]

I only caught the last 10 minutes of the episode so Regina and the Evil Queen hugging it out seemed extra ridiculous and over the top. Was there any satisfying build-up to it? Haha, nevermind. I know the answer. Are we really supposed to find it surprising that Regina basically fell in love with herself? Again, no need to answer.

That being said, I didn't mind the Evil Queen ending up in Wish Realm with Robin. She doesn't deserve the happy ending, but at least it gives Outlaw Queen fans something? I'm sure most of them are still pretty disappointed by this Wish Robin arc, but it ended better for them than I was expecting. However, I still can't get over the fact that we're supposed to think of Wish Robin as real--so real that the Evil Queen gets to live happily ever after with him--but we aren't supposed to care that Regina murdered Wish Charming and Wish Snow. The writers thought this plot through even less than usual.

I missed most of the Hook stuff but youtubed his fight scene with Emma. I really wish he hadn't decided to get rid of the memory. No wonder she was upset. Then again, she claimed that the man she fell in love with would never lie to her, and that isn't exactly true. Isn't this at least his third or fourth major lie? I'm never going to forgive the writers for this whole plot line. How can we root for a couple when one murdered the other's grandparent? Then again, Emma's bestie murdered her other grandpa, so at least she isn't holding Hook to a different standard there.

[Senna]

Yeah, the dreamcatcher scene was contrivance of the most bizarre kind.  They might as well have had Emma read the secret in Hook's secret diary under the mattress.  But at least the secret is no longer polluting the air and we can move along.

The Evil Queen/Regina stuff ... should've been over episodes ago.  I mean.  I was almost liking the Evil Queen and Wish!Robin snarking at each other (would've liked something more like that back when Robin was Regina's love interest), but the flashback was a total snooze and a waste of Rose McIver as Tinkerbell.  Though once again, at least this plotline is over and we can move along.

What there is to move along to ... well, we'll see.  I'm cautiously optimistic for Hook's little adventure (I like Nemo and Ariel), but less so for Emma angsting back at home.

[Shanna Marie]

19 minutes ago, Curio said:

How did Emma even know that was David's father? How does she even know what he looks like?

The only thing I can think of is that Hook showed her the page August gave him -- it just showed Robert at Pleasure Island, right, not the murder itself? So Hook might have passed on the page, and Emma recognized him from that.

What I was wondering was how Hook got the memory into a dreamcatcher. Doesn't that require magic? Have we seen someone get memories into dreamcatchers without having magic powers?

And, yeah, Emma has very little room to complain, given her own history of lying to him about things that directly concern him -- like the Dark One stuff -- and hiding the Savior tremors/death sentence stuff. Plus the fact that he said he needed to tell her something, and she ran right over him and ignored the way he was acting to all but demand a proposal. A more reasonable reaction might have been along the lines of, "Oh, that's what was wrong when I forced you to propose."

I hope they get the episode up OnDemand tomorrow so I can see the rest.

Did the Evil Queen do anything about breaking the curse on the Charmings before she left town?

[Mathius]

So we finally get an apology to Snow from Regina...and it's from the split Evil Queen Regina?  I guess she's actually the better half!

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Did the Evil Queen do anything about breaking the curse on the Charmings before she left town?

Nope, just the abovementioned apology. 

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Emma came off as very hypocritical. Just a week or two ago she lied about having a death sentence. Before that, she lied about Hook being a Dark One. She wiped memories to burn it from existence, just like Hook was about to do in this episode. So why does she get to yell at him? Wouldn't she know how hurtful taking off the ring would be? She went totally judgey and assumptive.

To be fair, she did say "We can't keep doing this to each other!" or something like that, so she didn't totally excuse herself for her past behavior.

Edited March 27, 2017 by Mathius

[KingOfHearts]

Quote

Did the Evil Queen do anything about breaking the curse on the Charmings before she left town?

She told Regina everything she knew about the curse. Regina didn't disclose what she said, but we may learn what it was later.

Edited March 27, 2017 by KingOfHearts

[Worsel]

4 minutes ago, Shanna Marie said:

 

Did the Evil Queen do anything about breaking the curse on the Charmings before she left town?

No.  To be fair things happened fairly quickly with her apology to Snow, then Henry writing her happy ending, maybe the show writers are planning something else.  At least, I hope they are... 

Edited to add: I missed the part where she told Regina everything she knew.  Hopefully Regina will end the curse soon.

Edited March 27, 2017 by Worsel

[InsertWordHere]

1 minute ago, Shanna Marie said:

Did the Evil Queen do anything about breaking the curse on the Charmings before she left town?

I believe she gave the other Regina info on the Curse she used, which I guess means Regina didn't know anything about that kind of curse until after the split. I'm really hoping Hook discovers something about the curse in his travels. I almost thought Snow would mention her sorrow over the curse during her long-awaited scene with Hook and that was going to be what prompted him to go to the EF (after saying a proper goodbye to Emma, of course). 

[scenicbyway]

First, what the heck is up with Snow's hair?  It's shorter than ever and buzzed in the back.  It's so much more flattering an inch or so longer.

 I loved the snow fall throughout the show, it was beautiful.

Then the show completely lost me.  

Emma gives the ring back because she forced him into the proposal and he just happened to have a secret from his past haunting him that she didn't know about?  Newsflash Emma, you do the same thing to him.  Ugh.  The guy is 200, he's going to have a lot of secrets!

The Evil Queen gets a fresh start?  WTH!  This makes literally no sense.  The EQ isn't a separate person from Regina.  And the EQ gets sent to wish realm Robin?  It's just beyond me that the EQ gets a sweet send off by Snow of all people who is currently cursed by her?  It's freeing a serial killer?!

Hook thinking there finally might be hope for him because the EQ got a happy ending?  Dude, you DIED to save the town a few weeks ago and were sent back by Zeus because you redeemed yourself many times over.  Ugh.

So Emma's been in less than 5 minutes of the last 3 episodes, does that make any sense?  Charming's been missing from the last two.  Good thing Zelena is still around though...said no one ever!

And will someone on team hero please tell Gideon you don't become Savior by killing the current one?!!!

[Mari]

21 minutes ago, InsertWordHere said:

Three weeks in a row of Emma waiting around for Hook to come home at the end of the episode is not the kind of domesticity I've been wanting to see. This all would be so much better if we had any clue about Emma and Hook's daily life when they're not hiding secrets from each other. 

But . . . but. . . . but, then we might not have time for the riveting scenes where Regina learned the greatest love of all! 

[Mathius]

5 minutes ago, scenicbyway said:

Hook thinking there finally might be hope for him because the EQ got a happy ending?  Dude, you DIED to save the town a few weeks ago and were sent back by Zeus because you redeemed yourself many times over.  Ugh.

Seriously.  The show just wants to forget that, and the entirety of "The Brothers Jones", ever happened, and wants the audience to forget too. 

Edited March 27, 2017 by Mathius

[sharky]

2 minutes ago, scenicbyway said:

Hook thinking there finally might be hope for him because the EQ got a happy ending?  Dude, you DIED to save the town a few weeks ago and were sent back by Zeus because you redeemed yourself many times over.  Ugh.

I actually looked at it like he has hope because of Snow, not because of the EQ. Snow is the one who said she was happy for them and told him that Emma has been waiting a long time to find the right person. I think that heart-to-heart made him realize that he and Emma were supposed to be together, that he was supposed to be part of that family and that any fallout they would face from his past is fallout they would face together. I think it had alot more to do with Snow accepting him than the EQ/Regina revelation.

[Guest]

I thought this episode was ok. 

It was kind of weird that Emma reacted to Hook with being able to get through this if he had enough fsaith/trust in them to tell her which I didn't take as hypocritical.  I took it as Emma learned lessons and they stuck.  WTF?  Yay?  I've been wanting actual character progression so glad I got it for Emma although in contrived circumstances that required Hook to do the relearning  this time, so boo?

It did seem that Emma and Hook would have worked it out if he'd come home.  She didn't completely shut him down.  Even when she returned the ring she left him an opening to come back when he figured out how to trust in them.   Show gave him cover for leaving by Gideon being responsible and Hook telling witnesses he was planning on staying.

Not particularly thrilled that Hook decided that he could have a second chance because EQ/Regina was inspirational.  But at least we got the first, and probably last, Hook/Snow conversation.

At least the EQ stuff is over.  The acting was atrocious.  It was clear that the arrow was going to head towards Regina once it was changed to find who she hated most.  I was just hoping for a cartoon scenarios where it was chasing her through the forest.

[Artsda]

So I guess that is the end of Sean's arc as Robin 2.0? They had him come back so they can do an alternate universe happy ending for him and Regina/EQ.  They basically brought him back to fix it. 

Emma's reaction to Hook killing David's dad in the old life was ridiculous. She's done so much worse to him in THIS life and he's always stood by her. I am thinking they had her give him back the ring also so he can propose for real a 2nd time.

[Mathius]

Just now, Artsda said:

Emma's reaction to Hook killing David's dad in the old life was ridiculous. She's done so much worse to him in THIS life and he's always stood by her. I am thinking they had her give him back the ring also so he can propose for real a 2nd time.

Huh?  She specifically said she doesn't care about him killing David's dad, it was the not telling her part that irked her. 

And for some reason I suspect that Emma is going to be the one to propose the next time.

[Worsel]

7 minutes ago, ParadoxLost said:

It was clear that the arrow was going to head towards Regina once it was changed to find who she hated most.  I was just hoping for a cartoon scenarios where it was chasing her through the forest.

Actually, I thought the arrow chasing EQ was exactly what was going to happen, and wondered if it would be just like the scene where Robin's arrow plunged into Rumple a few seasons ago.

[StaceyNotStacie]

I'm glad that Hook's secret was revealed sooner than later. I'm just surprised that Snow didn't know about it when she talked with him at the end. While David should be understandably upset, I'm hoping that he won't be in full revenge mode for the rest of the season. I'm also hoping that since he was mentioned in conversation, we'll get a scene or two with Hook and Liam.  

Glad the EQ stuff is over and we can focus on the other stories for the remainder of the season. Hopefully the sleeping curse will end next week. 

[Guest]

Emma and Gideon are going to start dating next week?

Squicky thing that went through my mind when Gideon said he had to get Hook out of town for what he had planned next and preview  with Emma talking about needing to move on.

Edited March 27, 2017 by ParadoxLost

[InsertWordHere]

1 minute ago, ParadoxLost said:

Emma and Gideon are going to start dating next week?

Squicky thing that went through my mind when Gideon said he had too get Hook out of town for what he had planned next and preview  with Emma talking about needing to move on.

Oh God, me too. That's Neal's brother. 

Still better than August as an Emma love interest option though.

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, InsertWordHere said:

Oh God, me too. That's Neal's brother. 

Still better than August as an Emma love interest option though.

I was more like.  Oh, God he's a baby.

Damn it.  If Emma goes on a date with August to get over Hook I will lose my damn mind.

Edited March 27, 2017 by ParadoxLost

[Selina K]

My husband at 8:47 when we go to commercial after the heart merge.

"well that was dumb."

Return from commercial as two Reginas sit down to chat.

"Oh God, now they're going to talk about it?!"

[Curio]

Quote

Could someone be so kind as to provide me a quick recap of the second half of the episode? My local station cut to weather coverage right after Emma gave Hook back the ring. There was a tornado warning in a nearby county -- no threat anywhere near me, mostly them showing off their fancy radar technology that allowed them to predict where things were going to happen right before they did.

 

 

In the Enchanted Forest flashback that we all called coming a mile away, Regina's father urges her to enter a light magic archway (thanks to Tinkerbelle's magic?) that leads them to Cupid's arrow. Cupid's arrow is magically enchanted to show someone who they love most, but Regina hijacks the spell and uses her dark magic to have the arrow point out the person she hates most. The arrow points to Regina!!! Wait, we're not that far yet. Regina and Henry Sr. slowly follow the floating arrow through the woods and come upon Regina's castle. Regina remarks that Snow surely must be stealing from her castle because why else would the arrow lead them to her own castle? Because Regina hates herself!!! No? We aren't ready for that reveal yet? We have to drag this on for a few more minutes? Regina and her father go to Regina's bedroom because the arrow strikes Regina's vanity armoire. Hmmm, why would the arrow hit Regina's own furniture? Because Regina hates herself!!! No? She still hasn't figured it out? Okay then, Regina opens up the door and searches for Snow and thinks she's hiding somewhere in the huge pile of hanging Evil Queen dresses. How could this be? Did Snow escape to Narnia?! Nope, Regina finally sees the mirror inside her armoire, and finally realizes...say it with me...she hates herself. This pisses Regina off and she smashes the mirror. (There's an important shot of Regina looking sad at herself in the multiple shards of glass on the floor.) And with that, this totally shocking reveal that took up nearly the entire episode is finally resolved!

In present-day Storybrooke, the Evil Queen kidnaps Robin and uses magical ropes to keep him tied up in the mayor's office as bait for Regina. He pleads with her that she should just send him back to the Wish Realm (she eventually does later in the episode) and suggests she should come with him, but she's dead set on killing "Good" Regina. At some point—I forget when—The Evil Queen goes and steals Henry's magic pen from his bedroom because she was afraid of how he might use it (don't worry EQ, Henry hasn't done shit as The Author), and then she tells him to deliver a note to Regina. The note was written on Page 23 and says something like, "Meet me in my office, this stupid plot ends tonight." Snow, Emma, and Henry plead with Regina not to battle the Evil Queen alone, but Regina is persistent that she does this by herself. Regina goes and meets up with the Evil Queen at the mayor's office, the Evil Queen uses the magic shears to officially separate the two of them (as if the writers haven't been doing this for the past several years already), and they battle it out not using magic, but instead use swords for some reason. At one point, Regina manages to use apples to knock over the Evil Queen. (Seriously, she just chucked a bunch of apples in her face and then pushed her down. That's a real thing that happened.) Eventually, Regina finally uses magic (I don't know why they weren't using magic on each other to begin with) to throw the Evil Queen across the room, but the Evil Queen does the same and Regina smashes into a mirror, causing a bunch of shards to fall to the ground. (That's important, I guess.) Eventually, Regina manages to magically tie up the Evil Queen using magic vines. (Sounds like a tactic Cora would do...) They have a heart-to-heart where the Evil Queen screams at Regina that she HATES her, so Regina pulls out the Evil Queen's black heart and is about to crush it when...Regina sees those important mirror shards on the ground. Apparently, this jogs Regina's memory of that one random time she also stared at herself in mirror shards that one day she realized she hated herself the most all those decades ago. That causes Regina to stop crushing the Evil Queen's heart and she chooses love instead of hate. Regina rips out her own bright red heart (even though she murdered Charming and Snow a few days earlier) and she holds one black heart and one red heart in her hands. Using some kind of magic, Regina balances the two hearts so they're equally good and bad/red and black. She shoves the Evil Queen's heart back inside her, this time filled with more love, and shoves her heart back in that has a little more hate. They talk some more about happy endings and hope and blah blah blah, and that's when Regina comes up with the idea of sending the Evil Queen to a place where she can get a fresh start. In order to do this they need Henry's author skills to write the Evil Queen off to a new place, so they meet up with Henry at Granny's and he writes a line in the book that says something like, "And the Evil Queen finally went to a new place to get a fresh start. What place is that you ask? Why, it's her happy ending with Robin! Page 23! I'm sure she'll get a fresh new start in a place where her other half murdered the king and queen and her son still wants to kill her. But hey, at least Regina and Robin look happy together in the tavern." Before Henry writes this in the storybook, Snow and Zelena kind of give Regina crap for being too nice to the Evil Queen, and all I can think is where was this kind of sassy attitude before? Why weren't you saying these things about Regina this entire time? The Evil Queen walks in on Snow and Zelena saying mean things about her, but this time the Evil Queen actually owns up to her mistakes and genuinely apologizes to Snow for the crap she put her through, which is something Regina hasn't even bothered to do. 

On the Hook/Emma front, Hook shows up at the docks at night and tells Nemo that he wants to join his crew because he needs to be a better man for Emma. Hook wants to find that better man by taking a vacation in the Nautilus and taking nightly "How to Be a Better Man 101" courses from Nemo. (I don't know why Nemo thought they could leave Storybrooke because we just spent an entire episode on Robin and Zelena being unable to leave Storybrooke...unless the Nautilus is a special realm-hopper. Which, if that's the case, why did we spend an entire plot on Robin and Zelena attempting to escape Storybrooke only to fail? Why didn't they escape in the Nautilus?) Just as Hook is about to leave, Snow randomly shows up at the docks and they have their first ever one-on-one conversation. Snow is super excited because Regina finally defeated the Evil Queen, and even better, the Evil Queen has a happy ending. That makes Hook realize, wait a second, if the Evil Queen is allowed to get a happy ending and be forgiven, what the hell am I doing getting caught up in this REC nonsense? Snow also congratulates Hook on getting engaged to Emma and she walks away. There's a scene where they want to make it look like Hook goes home to Emma, but instead, Emma finds an empty house. She's sad and turns off the porch light knowing Killian isn't coming home. Instead, Hook decides to board the Nautilus to tell Nemo he won't be joining his crew after all because he needs to go home and make things right with Emma and her family. Nemo is pleased by this news, but suddenly the Nautilus is hijacked by Gideon. Gideon magically appears on the ship and says, "Sorry Killian, but for what I have planned for Emma in Storybrooke, you can't be here. Because you're literally the only person who actually cares about Emma as a person and not as the Savior, and by taking away her true emotional support, she'll go crazy and devote all her time to obsessing about this Savior stuff and I'll get the upper hand." And then Gideon disappears.

Edited March 27, 2017 by Curio

[Mathius]

8 minutes ago, Curio said:

so Regina pulls out the Evil Queen's black heart and is about to crush it when...Regina sees those important mirror shards on the ground. Apparently, this jogs Regina's memory of that one random time she also stared at herself in mirror shards that one day she realized she hated herself the most all those decades ago. That causes Regina to stop crushing the Evil Queen's heart and she chooses love instead of hate

A direct recycling of the resolution of 4x20 where Regina was going to erase Zelena from existence until she had a flashback to some random time.

Edited March 27, 2017 by Mathius

[Guest]

The resolution to the EQ/Regina did a particularly fabulous job of emphasizing the biggest flaw with the entire story line.

There is no difference between Regina with pure red heart and Regina with half dark heart.

The only conclusion that can be reached is that Regina's good is so good now that it completely overwhelms the darkness in EQs heart that or Regina is fabulous at hiding her inner turmoil.

[Mrs. de Winter]

So if Henry in the wish realm stabs the EQ who he saw kill his grandparents does that mean Regina dies too?  Wasn't that the deal with Jekyll and Hyde?  Here's hoping. 

I am surprised Snow was allowed to leave her BFF's side to even speak to Killian.  How many seasons did it take for them to have a conversation alone?  Too little, too late.

And speaking of great parents - Gideon is now wondering around town, armed and plotting against Emma.  I am so glad that Rumple and Belle have warned Emma that their psycho spawn has repaired the sword he needs to kill her in the last episode and is coming for her.   Oh, wait. 

So much stupid and some many characters I can no longer root for (at the beginning of the season I even had hope for Belle, more fool me).  I realized after enduring yet another ode to the Evil Queen that I hope so many of these characters die or leave and never come back.  So I guess technically A&E are right - it is a show about hope!

[Rumsy4]

Thanks for the recap @Curio. I haven't seen the episode, and your recap was more interesting to read anyway. I watched the CS scene and the initial Hook-Nemo scene on youtube. Hoping to catch the Hook-Snow scene and the final Hook-Nemo scene. 

The resolution to the split queen plot is ridiculous. What was the whole point of anything? Who cares if a clone of Regina got to live out the OQ fantasy in some alternate realm?? The supposed original recipe is yet to apologize to Snow or Emma or make reparations to the thousands of other people whose lives she ruined, but she gets to make peace with her dead parents, her sister, and now--with herself. Her family either go to heaven or get some kind of happy life with loved ones (EQ with Wish!Robin, and even Zelena has her baby). So--yay!? The writers can't even bring themselves to make the "evil" clone unhappy. Smh. 

[BoPeeps]

Knowing that we were going to be bombarded with inconsistencies and "retold a dozen times" flashbacks...knowing that much of it would be repetitious and 
"been there, heard that"...knowing that these writers have lost their way and it won't be found soon, if ever...knowing that their characters would be hit with serious OOC moments...putting all of that aside because, well what is the point of dwelling on any of it...

There were moments that I really liked.  I even smiled.

I have always liked Regina. I never pay any attention to the pointless idiocy of SwanQueen obsessions, so I can enjoy the relationship b/w her and Emma for exactly what has been shown.  Even with the relentless, over the top, scene chewing EQ moments,  I liked the symmetry of her finding Robin in the tavern.  (It did pretty much point to the high probability that this is the final season.)  Though I thought the splitting into two of them was creator desperation...I was quite OK with her *ending*.  I don't think traditional true love is in Regina's cards. And that is OK, too.

They thrive on CaptainSwan drama.  It's a successfully working gig with the audience even though it really betrays their story on several levels.  But, they have a few more angsty moments to play out before the big bash finale.  Fortunately these dramas play out pretty fast. And it allowed for what looks to be a pretty cool rousing mini adventure with some under-used characters with Hook swashing his buckles in a way he hasn't been allowed to for a while.  I can embrace that cause, well, you know. TRUE LOVE and hope are great but Yo Ho Ho, me likey the pirate side of Killian.  I enjoyed all THAT drama tonight, too (as reverse and go again as it was. I still feel they are inching forward. 

Maybe because the rest of the real world in the U.S. is such an f'n continuous nightmare of hideousness, I was able to calmly enjoy the acting chops of Colin, Emma's moment of clarity and old time Emma strength.  And I was glad to see Snow do more than hold a baby.  A few shining moments of nice dialogue spread across the board.

Faults? Oh, Yeah. But we got NEMO and Tink back!!

[Frozendiva]

34 minutes ago, ParadoxLost said:

The resolution to the EQ/Regina did a particularly fabulous job of emphasizing the biggest flaw with the entire story line.

There is no difference between Regina with pure red heart and Regina with half dark heart.

The only conclusion that can be reached is that Regina's good is so good now that it completely overwhelms the darkness in EQs heart that or Regina is fabulous at hiding her inner turmoil.

She misses the more over-the-top wardrobe. The tiaras, the sequins, compared to boring business wear.

No one is that good. Humans can be very fickle.

[Guest]

27 minutes ago, BoPeeps said:

They thrive on CaptainSwan drama.  It's a successfully working gig with the audience even though it really betrays their story on several levels.  But, they have a few more angsty moments to play out before the big bash finale.  Fortunately these dramas play out pretty fast. And it allowed for what looks to be a pretty cool rousing mini adventure with some under-used characters with Hook swashing his buckles in a way he hasn't been allowed to for a while.  I can embrace that cause, well, you know. TRUE LOVE and hope are great but Yo Ho Ho, me likey the pirate side of Killian.  I enjoyed all THAT drama tonight, too (as reverse and go again as it was. I still feel they are inching forward. 

I'd rather an adventure together.  But next best thing is having the feelings turned up to eleven while being separated.  At least their separation seems to be tortured emotions over the absence of the other.  It could have been worse, I was expecting Hook to leave and wallow in self-loathing and not deciding to stay/go back and fight for Emma until he learned a lesson in the next episode while on his adventure.  This is at least better than that.

Edited March 27, 2017 by ParadoxLost

[Mockingbird]

Remember when this show used to be fun? Then, for a while, it was still more fun than frustrating. But now, it's just mostly exhausting to watch.   

[Guest]

Quote

"Sorry Killian, but for what I have planned for Emma in Storybrooke, you can't be here.

I was joking that Gideon wants to date Emma, but this is sort of odd.  

I wonder if they will come up with an actual explanation for why Gideon doesn't want Hook around to get in the way for his plans for Emma and if they do whether it will be absent a retcon (I know, stupid of me to wonder).

[Mathius]

48 minutes ago, Mrs. de Winter said:

So if Henry in the wish realm stabs the EQ who he saw kill his grandparents does that mean Regina dies too?  Wasn't that the deal with Jekyll and Hyde?  Here's hoping. 

No, because the EQ used the magic shears to separate herself from Regina.  

And even before that, the doppelganger couldn't die, it was only if the original was killed that the double would die too.

Edited March 27, 2017 by Mathius

[Curio]

Quote

The only thing I can think of is that Hook showed her the page August gave him -- it just showed Robert at Pleasure Island, right, not the murder itself? So Hook might have passed on the page, and Emma recognized him from that.

 

I totally forgot about those pages and assumed Hook never showed them to anyone because...well...I assumed we would have seen that on screen. But of course, that's yet another very significant scene happening off screen. Wouldn't giving those pages away make Killian feel super guilty about not telling her the truth? Doesn't that make him come off even worse for not telling the truth right away? Is that why he was drinking an entire bottle of rum during the day when Archie found him? Did he just come straight from delivering the pages to Emma? Did Killian show the pages only to Emma or to both Emma and David? Why do we constantly have to connect these dots ourselves?

Quote

So we finally get an apology to Snow from Regina...and it's from the split Evil Queen Regina?  I guess she's actually the better half!

Honestly, I came away from this episode liking the Evil Queen more than Regina. Why can't we keep her around instead now that they're officially two separate characters? (I still can't believe the writers actually went there. I mean, I shouldn't be shocked because TS;TW, but still.)

Quote

She told Regina everything she knew about the curse. Regina didn't disclose what she said, but we may learn what it was later.

We'll learn exactly what was said whenever it's the Snow/Charming centric episode. The plot will conveniently be forgotten during any episodes before their centric.

Quote

I'm really hoping Hook discovers something about the curse in his travels. I almost thought Snow would mention her sorrow over the curse during her long-awaited scene with Hook and that was going to be what prompted him to go to the EF (after saying a proper goodbye to Emma, of course). 

 

I hope so too, otherwise, his side adventure is kind of pointless. My ultimate hope is that Emma and Killian are able to Mirror Skype with each other next episode and he can tell her that he's safe and didn't run away from their issue, but during their Skype call, Killian learns about a special and extremely rare plant that can help break the Charmings' curse which only he has access to since he's in another realm.

Quote

And will someone on team hero please tell Gideon you don't become Savior by killing the current one?!!!

Why isn't Gideon using the shears to cut Emma away from her Savior title? No murder required! Why did it take Robin digging a hole in the woods to find the shears? Why didn't Gideon find them sooner?

Quote

Damn it.  If Emma goes on a date with August to get over Hook I will lose my damn mind.

Sadly, the writers set up an August/Emma love connection thanks to the stupid Wish Realm. I will straight up lose all respect for Emma if she goes on a date literally hours after Hook leaving. Technically, they didn't even totally break up because she gave him the window to come back when he's ready and seemed to expect him to come home at the end of the episode. Like, girl, can you wait at least a month before you go on another date or try to "move on"? If you truly love someone and break up, it should take a while to even think about hopping back on the wagon.

Quote

There is no difference between Regina with pure red heart and Regina with half dark heart.

This is why it's so frustrating that they didn't even bother to have "Good" Regina act any differently than her old self. They easily could have had Regina act a little too nice this season or even lose her magic, but they straight up said at Comic-Con over the summer that Regina would still be snarky and have an attitude and apparently she has no problems using magic or murdering Charming clones. It makes no sense.

Edited March 27, 2017 by Curio