S06.E20: The Song in Your Heart

[Camera One]

I was watching the interviews, and David Goodman said they didn't want to repeat tropes they had seen in other musical TV episodes, and how they decided to go with the Disney idea of singing being a good thing (unlike the shows where the characters are forced to sing).  The composer/lyricist talked about how they worked with the writing team to situate each song when characters were at an emotional place and revealing emotions they wouldn't have revealed if not in song.  But as Shanna Marie mentioned, it doesn't work as well when 3 of the 4 featured songs were sung by ex-villains when they were villains, especially when these songs are supposed to give Emma strength.  It doesn't work with the cast, but it would have made more sense to have heroes sing to drive off these villains.  For example, having Granny, Gepetto, Grumpy, etc. sing a song and to have Regina repelled from them.  Or having Dorothy or the Munchkins use song to drive Zelena off.

The musical was fun, don't get me wrong, and at least this episode veered slightly off the sheer boredom of this season, but I'm not sure what we got was what they intended.  

Edited May 8, 2017 by Camera One

[tessaray]

I'll just add my vote to the "CS are finally married" column and awww... to the opening Snowing number. I really hate musicals, so the Charmings really lived up to their name there.  

[Aliasscape]

I've always loved musicals, of course technically this was the episode with music because they were all aware they were singing, which breaks musical rules but ahem. Yeah, the cast did their own singing and it was so cute. I was surprised how much I loved Rebecca's voice. This ep was a strong reminder that Jennifer deepens her voice to be Emma and she didn't do that to be Emma's singing voice so my sister was instantly surprised how high her voice was. And I couldn't help but just watch Ginny and Josh singing to each other and think what a wonderful experience for them as married actors, 6 years into their relationship, a marriage and two kids later. I want the behind the scenes of their rehearsal Paul Becker seems to claim we're gonna get on his youtube. He already put up behind the scenes of Colin's performance so can't wait for the next one.

It did have this end of the series thing going on but without a renewal announcement and upfronts at least a week away I'm already a little annoyed that the next episode might leave things too open ended if they think they're getting another season and then they don't.

All the babies at the wedding. Least they remembered the Snowflake for once.

[JonasArm]

3 hours ago, Camera One said:

Speaking of which, how did The Black Fairy get all that?  I thought Zelena prevented that from happening 2 episodes ago.

Zelena destroyed the fairy dust of StoryBrook, but the BF had accumulated a lot in her dark dimension that Z had no power against.

[JonasArm]

Good but almost pointless. That's how the episode felt to me. A bit like the Black Fairy: now all the vilains do on the show is stand in front of Emma and either cackle like maniacs because she's too lame to do anything or wait in fear that she finally gathers the strenght to do something. Seriously the biggest, baddest vilainnest vilain of all times stands in fear while Emma is on her feet, and waits that Henry enters the room, reads the entire page to Emma and waits for Emma to start singing to throw a weak lazer. She could have at least try to kicks Henry in n*ts. Meanwhile Emma would rather sing than getting rid of the BF and all her problems altogether...

 

Emma learning she isn't alone isn't exactly new. Haven't we seen this is seaon 1 and 2 and 3, 4a as well and 4b, 5a. It's so original there was no real fash-back for her (10s at the beginning).  Each season she learns the same thing.

 

I still think that Rumple is playing his mother. He did say that it may not always seem apparent at the time. In this new curse, he may be the only one keeping his mind and able to help. I know many people are pissed at him but with his mother be able to take his dagger whenever she wants, his only way to help/defeat her is to play along and to stab her in the back or subtely help those who can.

[maryle]

I knew I will loved it!!

And I did! 

Cs and snowing and their dynamic are my favorite. So how I couldn't not loved it! Loved all the numbers! Yes, even the Regina's one because in the show they were funny.

But, Gosh, Colin and Jen were in a class apart and it's not reflecing badly on the others because their jobs is actors not being professional singers.

Loved Zelena song too!! But, I always love Rebecca!

Didn't really miss Belle because I know Rumbelle definitely will have their part in the final! Adding Belle at this point is not really a character just a prop to Rumple. 

I guess a little sad that at the end of the day the songs just serve to hid how it's always the same plot over and over. Maybe, A and E are trauma victim and their own curse is to always revive same story.

[legaleagle53]

11 hours ago, jay741982 said:

I read that they are nearing a renewal for a Seventh season. But only have Jennifer, Colin, Lana and Robert signed for it.

Actually, Jen just announced today that while she was asked to stay on, she declined the offer because she feels it's time to move on to other things.

[buffynut]

I've been losing interest in the show for the past 2 seasons, in fact I guess it started just after the Frozen arc. I did, however, watch most of the fall episodes this season, but only saw a couple of the spring ones. So watching last night, I was a little confused.  I take it the Evil Queen half was defeated.  And the Evil/Dark Fairy is Rumple's mother.  But I didn't figure out why she is trying to kill Emma.

Anyway, I really enjoyed the episode last night. As a Buffy fan, though, it wasn't as good as OMWF.

I think my favourite performance was the opener with Snow & Charming. 

At the wedding, I kept trying to figure out who all the men were, then realized they were the dwarfs. LOL.  

Unlike some fans, I still like Belle, so I missed her last night. And I still miss Red.

I'm glad the wedding actually happened, as I half expected something to stop it. Of course the latest Dark Curse was released, but I think considering today's news that Jen won't be back if there's a 7th season, I'll not bother watching next week and just consider last night's episode the series finale.

[tennisgurl]

That was all a bit pointless, as it was just reiterating points we have seen about a hundred times before, but, damn it, I still loved it! Emma and Hook are married! We got Snow and Charming in the Enchanted Forest! We got songs! Lots of songs! I still loved it!

I agree with everyone that it felt like a series finale, especially the last scene as everyone was singing about their happy beginnings. But, I guess it does well as bridge to the Big Finale. Thanks for the warning, Grumpy. No one states the completely obvious like you do!

I was impressed by how good everyone sounded, especially Josh and Ginny, they're love songs were really good, and you could tell they were having a lot of fun with it. Shallowly, I just really love seeing Snow and Charming in their EF gear, especially Charming. He looks so damn regal in his fur trimmed cloak thing and broadsword. I also loved his reactions to EF Hook. "Man, this guy is ridiculous. He is totally never going to become my best friend/son-in-law".

All the songs were good, but I agree with others that I wish that we got less villain songs. The magic was supposed to be about empowering Emma, so why all the songs about being evil and bitter?

Emma and Hook looked great at the weeding, Emma really did look like a princess. If nothing else, we got this wedding. I really am going to miss this show the way it is, God help me.

[Shanna Marie]

19 minutes ago, buffynut said:

And the Evil/Dark Fairy is Rumple's mother.  But I didn't figure out why she is trying to kill Emma.

Don't worry. You can have watched every second of this season and not know why the Black Fairy is trying to kill Emma. They've given no clue whatsoever other than the fact that centuries ago there was a prophecy saying a Savior would battle a villain with a crescent scar in the Final Battle, and the Black Fairy has a crescent scar and Emma is a Savior. How does the Black Fairy even know that Emma is the Savior she's destined to battle? Maybe she's picking a fight with the totally wrong Savior. She was supposed to fight Aladdin but she missed her chance, or there's some other Savior out there in the future. There doesn't seem to be anything the Black Fairy wants that she doesn't have and that she can only get by killing Emma. She doesn't even seem like she's fighting to win, what with blowing the whole "faked death" thing by showing up to taunt and letting everyone know exactly when she's going to strike and how she's going to do it.

On the other hand, when your enemies are this stupid, maybe you need to level the playing field a bit. When will the heroes in this series learn that the villain poofing away in a swirl of colored smoke does not mean the villain is defeated? This season so far we had Aladdin and Jasmine acting like they'd defeated Jafar because he poofed away, then Emma acting like Gideon was a done deal when he poofed away, and now Emma feeling like she'd defeated the Black Fairy after she poofed away, in spite of the black fairy dust bomb in the clock tower set to go off during her wedding reception. The fight isn't over until you have a body. The villain running away doesn't mean you've won.

[jay741982]

1 hour ago, legaleagle53 said:

Actually, Jen just announced today that while she was asked to stay on, she declined the offer because she feels it's time to move on to other things.

LOL well without Emma I'm done. Not watching Regina with even more screen time 

[Curio]

29 minutes ago, buffynut said:

Of course the latest Dark Curse was released, but I think considering today's news that Jen won't be back if there's a 7th season, I'll not bother watching next week and just consider last night's episode the series finale.

What is this "next week" you speak of? Last night was a fantastic series finale! I always knew this show would end with Emma's wedding and her happy ending/beginning. What better way to send off the show than everyone happy and singing at Emma and Hook's wedding reception?

(Lalalalalalala...I can't hear you...there is no next week...there is no random 2-hour episode to bring this joy down...)

[andipandi]

Buffy and Psych did it better. Except Hook, these songs were boring filler.

[Noneofyourbusiness]

Things that annoyed me:

Rumple saying that the Dreamshade didn't kill him in Season 2 because he's immortal. No, it's because Snow used a magic candle to trade Cora's life for yours.

Fiona and Emma having no motivation to fight each other except destiny saying so. What kind of message is that?

Edited May 8, 2017 by Noneofyourbusiness

[Inquirer]

3 minutes ago, Noneofyourbusiness said:

Rumple saying that the Dreamshade didn't kill him in Season 2 because he's immortal. No, it's because Snow used a magic candle to trade Cora's life for yours.

Well, you can't expect Rumple to own up to that.  And Dreamshade wouldn't kill him now since he's already made an antidote for it.

[Noneofyourbusiness]

2 hours ago, legaleagle53 said:

Actually, Jen just announced today that while she was asked to stay on, she declined the offer because she feels it's time to move on to other things.

And they're going to explain Emma leaving while her husband is still a regular... how? I thought they were asking her to stay on but make much more limited appearances, anyway.

[tennisgurl]

I rally liked the episode, and its probably because it didn't have much to do with the stupid Black Fairy plot. As much as I love Jaimie Murray's performance, she just makes no sense in this plot. If the Black Fairy is this ultimate evil, why are we just NOW hearing about her? And why the hell are she and Emma fighting again? Just...because? The Black Fairy doesn't even know Emma, Emma doesn't know her, this whole thing is just happening because of some stupid prophesy? And where did the fairies even find this dumbass prophesy anyway? Is there a giant crystal ball somewhere? Is it that Blind Witch again? Does this fortune teller, who we never see, have any credentials? Are they operating out of some fucking magical strip mall? How do they even know this is legit?

[Noneofyourbusiness]

12 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

I rally liked the episode, and its probably because it didn't have much to do with the stupid Black Fairy plot. As much as I love Jaimie Murray's performance, she just makes no sense in this plot. If the Black Fairy is this ultimate evil, why are we just NOW hearing about her?

And why did Rumple say the Dark Curse and every other bit of darkness they'd ever faced originated with her, when it seems to have been just the Dark Curse that did? Hades and Nimue both pre-date her, she had nothing to do with Cora, Zelena, the Snow Queen or the Queens of Darkness, Pan was her ex but as far as we know she had nothing to do with the Shadow that gave him his powers, etc.

Edited May 8, 2017 by Noneofyourbusiness

[iMonrey]

If the cast was really doing their own singing, they got some serious help in the recording studio from Autotune and other trickery. Several of the singing voices sounded nothing like the actors' voices, especially Jennifer Morrison's.

Ordinarily I take a dim view of special musical episodes because somebody gets an idea they can suddenly write music and nobody has the nerve to tell them they can't so the songs are generally awful. I'll admit that this show does lend itself to having a musical episode but I still thought the songs were generally awful. The one Snow and Charming sang first was cute but that was about it. They really had to jump through logic-defying hoops to work Hook and Zelina into the flashback, too.

Quote

The only part that really stood out for me was that little shit Henry telling Emma he brought her to Storybrooke for The Final Battle. Really? I thought it was because Regina didn't love you. And that she was secretly the Evil Queen who was oppressing the town. I also remember you telling Emma it was her job to bring back happy endings. Now it's because of The Final Battle? Which you never bothered to mention until recently? Make up your mind kid. I seriously hate this character. 

I know, this retcon is really insulting to anyone who has watched this show from the beginning. The "Savior" was supposed to break the curse, not fight some ultimate battle. They keep shifting the finish line.

Quote

What was the point of Rumple faking The Black Fairy's death last episode when she just waltzes in the next day and spews the same three lines she has had for the last few episodes? 

This whole Black Fairy storyline has been dragged out beyond comprehension and is working my patience more than any other previous story arc. She has to be the dumbest, worst villain this show has ever seen - shows up days or weeks before this "final battle" to alert everyone in town of her presence and taunt them. 

[tri4335]

I enjoyed this episode and must say several of the cast members are wonderful singers.  Like most of S6, the episode itself does not dock well into the overall story and there are RECONs all over the place but the episode itself is entertaining. And I am beyond thrilled that CS is now married.  (stop reading here if you are a LP fan)  The one other thing this episode did for me  is solidify that LP is a one note actress and A & E ruined this show by focusing on EQ/Regina.  Ginny, Josh, JMO, CO and RM hit this out of the park. Josh was the absolute best but I really bought into Ginny's wide eyed wonder with the singing.  Many of them have been mailing it in but when given the right material they excel.  Zelina has been more entertaining the EQ and RM plays her with the right amount of camp.  I'm tired of Rumple but enjoyed the irony of him being knocked out since he does that to his loved ones routinely.  The problem with this series is the REC and I don't blame JMO for not re-signing.  Neither do I begrudge anyone who wants to stay but I won't be watching.

[Noneofyourbusiness]

44 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Several of the singing voices sounded nothing like the actors' voices, especially Jennifer Morrison's.

I disagree. And Jennifer Morrison plays Emma with a deeper voice than her own, which is why her singing voice sounded lighter than you'd expect.

[CCTC]

1 hour ago, tri4335 said:

Josh was the absolute best but I really bought into Ginny's wide eyed wonder with the singing. 

I don't mean this as a negative, but Ginny really sounded like an animated character at times, which I suspect will help her to continue to do voice-over work for Disney.  That can help pay for the bills, and then she can do whatever plays or projects she wants to do when she wants to stretch her skills.

[kili]

Quote

Don't worry. You can have watched every second of this season and not know why the Black Fairy is trying to kill Emma. They've given no clue whatsoever other than the fact that centuries ago there was a prophecy saying a Savior would battle a villain with a crescent scar in the Final Battle, and the Black Fairy has a crescent scar and Emma is a Savior. How does the Black Fairy even know that Emma is the Savior she's destined to battle?

I think that the Black Fairy is fighting Emma due to her sunk costs.

Fiona was told that her son was a savior who would be killed by a fight with the greatest evil. It made her obsessive. She neglected her child, not even naming him, so obsessed was she to stop the evil that would kill her son. She even went so far as to make herself a fairy, search every newborn  in the world and invent a dark curse. When she found out that she was the evil he must fight, she severed his fate and saved him. Just when she thought she could relax, the two goofballs that told her about the prophesy banished her to a realm where she couldn't even touch her child. Perhaps she could watch as her husband (probably her true love) went mad with grief and turned his back on their child. He ended up being Pan and her son was abandoned and tormented until he finally became the Dark One. And then he lost his son too due to Blue (using Stiltskin logic).

With all she has sacrificed, she's determined to kill a savior and prove the prophecy true. If the fight never happens, then she sacrificed everything for nothing.

I still think she ends up having to fight her son. She severed his savior fate, not his fate to fight her.

[Rushmoras]

I'm in the minority, but I didn't like the musical episode at all. The whole time they sang I was like: "Oh, come on!". Don't get me wrong, the songs were good and all, but.. why now, why on the semi-final episode? Who does that?

The wedding... yeah... shoe-horned into the final minutes of the episode as if an afterthought insted of dealing with the curse... Am I supposed to be invested in it, or what? And Archie now can wed people? What the hell? Did he went through Jarrods school of The Pretender (an old school TV about a person that can become whatever he wants to be)?

Also, ooh, the final battle, blah blah. I wonder who will win [sarcasm].

[Inquirer]

42 minutes ago, kili said:

I still think she ends up having to fight her son. She severed his savior fate, not his fate to fight her.

The problem is that Emma needs someone to fight in the Final Battle, and Rumple killing Fiona may backfire on him when Gideon becomes her replacement.

[Rumsy4]

I was smiling through quite a bit of the episode--many of the songs, Rumple's imp-dance when the Evil Queen commanded him to sing, the Wedding... But the episode was a whole bunch of random. Oh well, it's all going to be over one way or the other next week.

Emma's song made me teary. JMo has a lovely singing voice. And sorry writers (not sorry)--Emma was alone for most of her life. Not drinking that kool-aid. Hook's revenge song, and the throwback to his pirate charm was fantastic. Snowing were a delight! Bex Mader can sing! Actually I quite enjoyed Zelena this episode.

Archie officiated the Rumbelle wedding. So, he probably is registered an an officiant in Storybrooke. He likely does a lot of pre- and post-marital counseling in Storybrooke too. heheh

Edited May 8, 2017 by Rumsy4

[kili]

Quote

And Archie now can wed people? What the hell? Did he went through Jarrods school of The Pretender (an old school TV about a person that can become whatever he wants to be)?

Archie has officiated weddings before. He previously married Belle and Rumple (when they got married in the woods with Maurice as the witness).

Maybe he used the same internet service as Joey from Friends to become allowed to officiate weddings.

I actually thought it was a bit interesting that the two couples Archie married are so intertwined. Rumple and Hook? Lot's of history there. Rumple's wife left him for Hook, Hook and Rumple have feuded for years, Hook is marrying the woman that had a child with Rumple's son....of course, the family tree is so twisted on Once that Archie could hardly marry anybody with there not being a lot of connections - maybe all those people dancing at the wedding.

Edited May 8, 2017 by kili

[Rumsy4]

9 minutes ago, kili said:

Maybe he used the same internet service as Joey from Friends to become allowed to officiate weddings.

Dang. I typed something along these lines about Joey officiating the Mondler wedding, and deleted it from my post. :-p

[Writing Wrongs]

This is what "Happy Beginning" reminded me of:

Grease 2: We'll Be Together

[AudienceofOne]

5 hours ago, buffynut said:

 I take it the Evil Queen half was defeated.  

Oh no, she was given a happy ending. Even Regina's evil deserves happiness!

Quote

And the Evil/Dark Fairy is Rumple's mother.  But I didn't figure out why she is trying to kill Emma.

Nobody knows! If you have any theories, we'd love to hear them.

[Daisy]

2 hours ago, kili said:

I think that the Black Fairy is fighting Emma due to her sunk costs.

Fiona was told that her son was a savior who would be killed by a fight with the greatest evil. It made her obsessive. She neglected her child, not even naming him, so obsessed was she to stop the evil that would kill her son. She even went so far as to make herself a fairy, search every newborn  in the world and invent a dark curse. When she found out that she was the evil he must fight, she severed his fate and saved him. Just when she thought she could relax, the two goofballs that told her about the prophesy banished her to a realm where she couldn't even touch her child. Perhaps she could watch as her husband (probably her true love) went mad with grief and turned his back on their child. He ended up being Pan and her son was abandoned and tormented until he finally became the Dark One. And then he lost his son too due to Blue (using Stiltskin logic).

With all she has sacrificed, she's determined to kill a savior and prove the prophecy true. If the fight never happens, then she sacrificed everything for nothing.

I still think she ends up having to fight her son. She severed his savior fate, not his fate to fight her.

I. like that. 
Like. I have to do this to prove it was worth it. 

[Shanna Marie]

2 hours ago, kili said:

With all she has sacrificed, she's determined to kill a savior and prove the prophecy true. If the fight never happens, then she sacrificed everything for nothing.

That kind of works, but it doesn't explain why it has to be this particular Savior, with whom her son's life is so tangled. She has what she wanted in having her family. Being obsessed with killing Emma would actually lose that for her. She and Rumple are basically immortal, so why not wait for the next savior to check off that box? I guess there's that sense of it looming over her, but still, she'd come out a lot better if she left Emma alone. She could be with her son and grandson without them hating her and without making them targets. She could get to know her great-grandson. All she has to gain from killing Emma is ticking off the "kill a Savior" box and making the prophecy come true, but she could lose her son, she's definitely losing her grandson, and she's making life worse for her family.

I feel like this story would be a lot stronger if there were something else going on, some other thing she's trying to accomplish, and in doing that it brings the prophecy to fruition. That's usually how prophecy works -- it results from something unexpected, from doing something else, often from trying to avoid it.

[Randomosity]

20 hours ago, scenicbyway said:

The fashion for the ladies was dismal especially Snow and Emma.  The princess Grace dress just doesn't work and the makeup was too severe.

This times a million. My first thought was, 'ugh, the lipstick'. Then I actually saw what she was wearing on her head. Cringe #2. The dress might have been ok with other hair/makeup styling, but blech. The whole thing together was not a good look, too Dark Swan; I think she looked much better at the Camelot ball. And the time travel ball. And all other times, pretty much.

5 hours ago, iMonrey said:

If the cast was really doing their own singing, they got some serious help in the recording studio from Autotune and other trickery. Several of the singing voices sounded nothing like the actors' voices, especially Jennifer Morrison's.

Seriously. In the first number, I wasn't sure if it was Charming/Snow actually singing. It sounded more like him than her. Then later, I could pick her out as being her. Regina sounded awful and forced. I get that not everyone can sing, but dang, don't force them into a musical episode. Hook's number was best, to me. It really showed that Colin O'Donoghue has experience with performance singing before, and I just like voices like his. Zelena was clearly the one singing her bit, and I did think it sounded decent. But jeez, once it was Emma's turn? Yikes. Did not like that, and that's with autotune.

I'm so bored with this series now that I can't even manage to be very excited about the wedding, which, if it was even a year ago, would have been a very different story.

[LaChavalina]

19 hours ago, Shanna Marie said:

They were all villain songs that were essentially serving the function of introducing the villain characters and the focus of their villainy.

Meh, not really. The implication was that everyone in the Enchanted Forest had a song, and that Emma would have gotten her parents', Regina's, etc., but also Granny's, the dwarves, and others that we caught snatches of or didn't hear at all. 

4 hours ago, kili said:

I think that the Black Fairy is fighting Emma due to her sunk costs.

This made me chuckle. I think you've put way more thought into this than the writers did!

Chalk me up for also being annoyed that this wasn't the series finale. I liked it a lot more than I expected I would. Maybe we'll get a reprise of the musical number at the end of next week's episode? (She asked hopefully.)

[kili]

Quote

That kind of works, but it doesn't explain why it has to be this particular Savior, with whom her son's life is so tangled. She has what she wanted in having her family.

She's been waiting to kill the savior and finish off the prophecy for 300+ years.  She wants to get that over with so she get on with her life. Emma's the savior right now - so she will do.  Plus, Emma rejected her grandson Bae.

Quote

She could be with her son and grandson without them hating her and without making them targets.

Her son appears to have absolutely no problem with the Black Fairy killing Emma.  Her son is a powerful magical being and even if he does become a target briefly, she can quickly ride to the rescue. Gideon doesn't seem especially attached to Emma and Bae is already dead. So, she's good. Plus, once she gets rid of Emma, her descendants are no longer threatened.

She may also secretly worry that she does have to kill her son regardless of the Fate snipping so getting the Final Battle over now can put her mind at ease.

Quote

She could get to know her great-grandson.

She didn't even wave hello to Henry. She obviously doesn't care anything about him. She's all about Rumple - she's obsessed about him for 300+ years. And Rumple doesn't worry about leaving Henry behind (whether by curse or by author), so why should the Black Fairy.

[Curio]

Are the magical shears still around? I forget what happened to them. Why again can't Emma just snip her Savior fate away?

[sportsgirl]

When I first saw Frozen, I was convinced that Josh Dallas was the voice of Prince Hans. His singing voice in this episode again reminded me of that comparison to Santino Fontana -- they are similar in depth and tone, and both really strong.

I definitely thought Charming and Snow were the best -- not just vocally, but actions/reactions mid-song. Hook's, too, was pretty awesome, and again, Colin's comfort level with performing in song was evident. The rest seemed less comfortable: the Queen's was maybe too campy for her to ever settle into, Rebecca's voice is a pure soprano but neither it or the song felt right for the Wicked Witch (I kept thinking 'but this is the character who gets Defying Gravity'), and Jennifer's voice seemed too thin. Interesting that she keeps Emma in a deeper range when speaking; I wonder if that's why her singing voice felt so hesitant and "off" to me (I was convinced she was dubbed until I read this thread).

I don't want to comment on the plot, because....yeah. The retcons continue (although at least there was a reason why no remembered the song curse). Everyone Emma loves is frozen...except Henry...but curiously Zelena.  

The women's wedding attire: someone in the costume department is holding a grudge.

[tribeca]

17 hours ago, Nalan said:

You've never hated her, yet you were happy she wasn't invited?  Um . . . confusing.

She hasn't been a good friend to Emma lately.  Also could totally see her just forgive Rumple for his lies again.  I don't hate her but did not think she deserves an invitation to the wedding. JMHO

[LaChavalina]

16 minutes ago, Curio said:

Are the magical shears still around? I forget what happened to them. Why again can't Emma just snip her Savior fate away?

They'll show up again next week, to snip the show away from its "destiny" of reaching Season 7.

[Noneofyourbusiness]

5 hours ago, Rushmoras said:

I'm in the minority, but I didn't like the musical episode at all. The whole time they sang I was like: "Oh, come on!". Don't get me wrong, the songs were good and all, but.. why now, why on the semi-final episode? Who does that?

Well, I can see the logic in wanting a big event just before the finale. But I echo the criticism that, apart from Emma's, these songs expressed things that were already well known themes for the characters in question instead of things they were keeping inside like the songs in "Once More, with Feeling" did.

[Last Time Lord]

Well, it was no Once More With Feeling, but I still enjoyed the hell out of it. Zelena's song was the best by far, IMO.

Good on Grumpy for keeping up the trend of announcing when the curse is coming.

[Terrafamilia]

Best part.

Hook. Blow-gun. Rumple on the floor. Too bad it didn't hold.

Worst part.

Hook. Wedding. Too much make-up.

Missed chance.

During the confrontation between Emma and the BF in the mayor's office while Emma was being defiant and BF was blathering I had a sudden hope that Emma would strike out with an unexpected eye poke, followed quickly by a slamming of the BF's head into the table, a throw to the floor and a heel stomp to the neck. But, unfortunately, it's not one of those shows.

[Noneofyourbusiness]

1 hour ago, Last Time Lord said:

Zelena's song was the best by far, IMO.

Seconded.

[CCTC]

I just watched the complete episode (could only watch part of it yesterday).

I still enjoyed it, but one problem I do have with the arc is that the Black Fairy is just not that compelling of an evil.  I think partially because they have already had more than their fair share of magical witch like foes who are over the top and campy alternating with self-pity, leaving each scene in a pouty puff of smoke.  It probably does not help that I don't care for her story or her family.

You could tell Josh and Colin had the most experience singing.  I did think Bex and Ginny had nice voices, although Bex's might have been a bit too sweet for her character.  I did not think Jen had a particularly strong voice, but it was very pretty and had a haunting quality perfect for her song.  I don't think Lana will be on Broadway anytime soon, but for the most part it worked for her songs, although I think I would have made the songs shorter.

The dance was short, but I loved watching the interactions.  There really were some fun characters in Storybook, I wish they would have utilized them a bit more and had fewer of the stunt guest stars.

I noticed they kind of side-stepped the issue of a maid of honor.  

[Jul 68]

I love this quote from Ginny regarding her and Josh's number:

Quote

9. According to Goodwin, Snow was very attracted to her singing husband.

"My first choice was that when he comes in I get a little hot under the collar from he's singing," she said. "And I feel you can see me kind of blurry in one of the angles going ‘ohhhhh…' and they didn't feel that that worked for the storyline of the actual song so I was asked to keep on the track of ‘why are we singing?'"

Source: http://www.eonline.com/news/849137/once-upon-a-time-12-things-to-know-after-the-musical-episode

Warning, the remainder of the article is rather rage inducing A&E horse fritters.

[jhlipton]

13 hours ago, buffynut said:

As a Buffy fan, though, it wasn't as good as OMWF.

I blame the bunnies.  It's always the bunnies!

12 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

If the Black Fairy is this ultimate evil, why are we just NOW hearing about her?

She was being held back by the Court of Owls. [On Gotham, the Court of Owls is this super-powerful cabal that's been controlling the city for years, but we never saw before, even when they would have had to have shown up.]

4 hours ago, Noneofyourbusiness said:

Well, I can see the logic in wanting a big event just before the finale. But I echo the criticism that, apart from Emma's, these songs expressed things that were already well known themes for the characters in question instead of things they were keeping inside like the songs in "Once More, with Feeling" did.

It's the bunnies, I tell you!

ETA:

Quote

"We're well aware that we've done a curse occasionally in the past on the show," Horowitz said.

Yeah, occasionally, riiiiiiiiiiiight....

Edited May 9, 2017 by jhlipton

[koganei]

this is really a cool episode but again the storyline does not make sense.

these people never watched the past episodes

sad that the show is ending with all the main leads gone

one of the few shows that i have continued watching from its first 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I am usually the kind of person who sticks with a show until the bitter end, but for some reason in the last few years I've been letting go of shows that I only watch out of habit. This year I got a little more ruthless. After Christmas, I decided I wasn't going to keep watching The Flash. Then I found out they were doing a musical episode so I decided to watch until the musical. It was a fun episode but I haven't watched it since. Similarly, I decided I was done with Once Upon a Time and then saw that the next episode would have Ariel and Jasmine together so I stuck around a little longer. Three weeks ago, I was like yeah, I'm done with this show. Then I found out about the musical. I haven't bothered watching the two episodes I missed because I was pretty sure I could figure out what I had missed (nothing). I am powerless to resist a musical episode!

First, Emma, I know you love your mom but never agree to wear someone else's wedding dress until you've actually seen it. I love my parents but my mom's dress was so fug.

Snow is already pregnant in the flashback, so why is Charming sleeping in a different bedroom and then bursting in to see her? I know this is Disney and all, but two married people can sleep in the same bed! Or is this "Good night, Mr. Brady!"?

Love how Regina's magic is now so precise that she can hold up a hand and read the Black Fairy's spell and know that everything will go kaboom at EXACTLY 6pm. Did she run the magical equivalent of an IT diagnostic on the big black ball in the clock tower?

Meanwhile Henry's powers as the author are so strong that he can look at an as yet unseen picture of the blue fairy pointing her wand at Snow's uterus and instantly interpret that as "Emma's not alone. She was never alone."

The Black Fairy gives Emma a chance to say goodbye to everyone who's turned into a frozen Mr. Tumnus statue before she takes her heart and the only one she says goodbye to is Hook? Never mind her parents who she wished for all her life!

Wicked Always Wins was the best song, but I was a bit disappointed in the others. I liked Hook's song and I liked the Charmings' song, but I didn't LOVE any of the songs. The best visible choreography was for the pirate song. I saw rehearsal footage of the dancing at the wedding but the cameras were so zoomed in on the main characters for most of that number so we didn't really get to see the dancing very well. The weakest choreography was for Lana's song. I felt bad for her because she is clearly coordinated enough to be given a dance number but unfortunately the choreography she was given looked like a wannabe version of "Something to Sing About" from the Buffy musical (and 15 year old jazz moves are not the best for an evil queen).

I love musicals so I'm glad I watched. I am also a sap who loves weddings (even fictional ones) so that was a bonus! But I don't think that this episode was enough to entice me to finish watching the season. I used to love this show but it's just been limping along for me, so it's time for me to let it go.

Edited May 9, 2017 by ElectricBoogaloo

[Mitch]

First, the musical was less cringe worthy then I thought....and Snow and Charming sounded great, and I think Charming should pursue a career in musical theater rather then attempting to be a dramatic actor.. I did actually like the singing at the end which as others have said, should have ended the show next week. 

Now on to the glaring plot holes in the "regular show."  How does Zelena see what is going on in the EF and how does she just send "things," between realms, not to mention, why would she not want Regina defeated?  Why doesn't Regina kill all the people she can apparently just pop in on? Why is their singing not enough to chase her away..(the whole point of the episode wasn't it?)

The show runners and writers seriously want a "spin off" show when they can't even muster the energy or imagination or even pride of work to fix the plot holes in the episode? They are singing and dancing like idiots when a curse bomb is about to blow up 25 feet away? Sure lets have a wedding the afternoon the curse is going to go off..and lets not even try to do anything about it? They could have easily explained this away by having Rump switch Regina's time freeze thing with a placebo, without anyone knowing it. Why did Emma not go in or the kill on the Black Fairy when she had the chance...they should have shown Emma attacking her with her bad CGI magic waves and then the BF screaming in pain and have her then poof out. So at least they would have thought that they have beaten for a short time at least, and then they would think the curse is frozen so it gives them a little more leeway to have a party.   Speaking of, what kind of master villain sits around in front of a fire waiting for their enemy to decide what to do...and maybe plan something to fight them?What was she doing, reading a book and having a glass of wine while she waited?  Of course we have the typical..."Freeze everyone in place." If its that easy to freeze everyone, why not freeze Emma and pull her heart out...why not kill Emma's family and friends while they are frozen and Emma is gone, and kill them. And what kind of assurances does Emma have that after she is dead, the BF is not going to start a reign of terror?  There is no energy to their "confrontations,"on this show, which are the same season after season, after season, The "Final Battle" should be a blow out battle like on Buffy's final episode..but as is it will turn out to be standing in Main Street while a goofy magical device saves the day and there will be no energy or action. At least give the BF an army of Black Fairies who fly over the town clawing at people who are running in terror..something to make us think this is a big deal. 

And...."Sing, I would rather scratch my eyes out with rusted forks!"  LOL..ALL is forgiven Rump just for that one line.

Edited May 9, 2017 by Mitch

[KingOfHearts]

Quote

First, the musical was less cringe worthy then I thought...

The only song I found especially cringey was the sing-off between the Charmings and Regina.