Once Upon a Time - Red Handed

So I have to say, I've been waiting for this episode for quite some time.  Red and Granny are among the last of the major characters introduced in the pilot's War Council scene, and they've been present in almost every episode since then.  It's almost unfair that they've been held back until now.  I've recently spent some time researching the Little Red Riding Hood story for a project in my Theater class, and of all the different versions I read/saw this episode has to be one of the most interesting.  Now I'm one who prefers the original, darker versions to the present day "Disney'd" ones and I feel that this episode does quite well in honoring the original while keeping true to the overall feel of the show.

Why is it that Grannies are almost always either frail and weak or fierce, independent types?  Red's Granny firmly rests in the later category (much like my own).  The scene where Snow "introduces" herself to Red is by far the funniest part of the episode.  It also establishes that Snow isn't as comfortable roughing-it as she is later on in earlier episodes...  That seems almost oxymoronic,  I did call the whole werewolf aspect early in the episode though I, like Snow and Red, thought the boyfriend was the wolf.  I did begin to harbor doubts about it when Red approached him about it, something just felt off about it.  A major OMG moment for me was when Granny told Snow she was tracking Red by scent.  My expression was the same as Snow's.  This story isn't over, they still have to "save" Granny so she can be at the War Council.

In Storybrooke, the investigation into Kathryn's disappearance continues while the tension between Ruby and Granny comes to a head.  I don't really have much to say about Ruby in this other than her short time with Emma helped her to be more mature and secure in her self.  The actress who plays Ruby is very beautiful, which in a cast with several incredibly beautiful women can be forgotton.  but the scene where Ruby and Granny come to terms is when she looks her best.

I wonder why David is having those episodes when he hasn't since he first woke up, unless of course he's been having them just not on camera.  When he, Emma, and Dr. Whale were talking and Regina interrupted I was really confused.  I didn't get why Regina was "protecting" David when the phone records she supplied helped to incriminate him.  The end of the episode cleared that up though, it's not David she wants to frame.  It's Snow White Mary Margaret...

First Picture - http://i865.photobucket.com/albums/ab212/nmn129/Recap%20Images/Episode-1-15-Red-Handed-Promotional-Photos-once-upon-a-time-29334654-595-397.jpg

Second Picture - http://ia.media-imdb.com/images/M/MV5BMTM3ODAxODg2MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTE0MDE1Nw@@._V1._SX640_SY427_.jpg

Once Upon a Time - Dreamy

I really hadn't expected an episode like this.  I don't know why not, one of the examples the show creators always gave for possible stories was "the story of how Grumpy became grumpy."

http://onceuponatime.sqpn.com/files/2012/03/dreamy_nova.jpg

I was happy to see Amy Acker as the fairy Nova/Sister Astrid, I've liked her work since I saw her as the quirky Winifred "Fred" Burkle on Angel and wish she did more, but alas...  I do find it strange that the dwarves hatch from eggs.  I wouldn't say it was a bad Idea but it is certainly... different.  I liked that the dwarves received their names from magic pick-axes, it just makes sense.  I also liked that the diamonds the dwarves mine are ground into the magic dust the fairies use; it explains two mysteries in one fell swoop.

Overall I was kinda "eh" about the episode, it had parts I liked but it didn't quite hook me like other episodes have.  The relationship between Dreamy and Nova felt a bit rushed, both in starting and ending.  Why did Dreamy give up without more of a fight?  He was different from other dwarves, maybe he could love.  I did love how Dreamy's pick-ax broke, as that shows that "Dreamy" is dead, since the pick-axes are bound to their respective dwarf.  "Grumpy" couldn't use "Dreamy's" pick-ax.  This story isn't over though, Grumpy still needs to get to the jail cell where he meets Snow, but that will probably be a future season.

http://static-l3.blogcritics.org/12/03/05/177257/O4.jpg?t=20120305144824

In Storybrooke the same sort of thing happens between Leroy and Astrid.  She spills some glittery stuff on him and he falls in "love," with a nun...  Mr. Gold's refusal to help the nuns is explained a bit by the fact that most, if not all, of the nuns are/were fairies, but that begs the question why doesn't Rumple like fairies?  We have already seen him kill one in the Cinderella episode.

One of the gems in the episode is the scene were Leroy goes up to a roof and Mary Margaret follows him thinking he is going to jump.  When she says so he replies with something to the effect of, "What? I'm not going to jump.  That's crazy!"  He then cuts off the electricity so the people have to buy candles.  The Miner's Day Celebration also echoes the symbiotic relationship between the Dwarves (miners) who mine the diamonds and then grind them into dust for the Fairies (nuns).

It pains me that Emma is beginning to doubt her super power, because Sydney got those records from Regina so they could be faked.

Once Upon a Time - What Happened to Frederick

Last week I mentioned how I wasn’t really a fan of the Snow White/Mary Margaret/Prince Charming/David plot line, well I finally figured out why.  David is an idiot.  If I was involved with a woman that beautiful, I would do what we agreed on.  Otherwise I would probably lose her, like David lost Mary Margaret.  (For the moment at least, they are obviously getting back together eventually).

The other three characters (yes I’m counting fairy tale counterparts as different characters, ‘cause they are) are actually quite enjoyable.  The conversations between Mary Margaret and Emma are among the best of the show.  I loved the following exchange from last night’s episode.

                Emma: “… I’m not your mother.”

                Mary Margaret: “No, but according to Henry, I’m yours.”

Prince Charming is also honest about his feelings, well more than most guys at least, and can actually make up his mind.  (If you can’t tell, I find David mildly annoying… make that highly annoying).

I’ve felt sorry for Kathryn for a while now since we haven’t seen anything good happen to her, so I was happy to find out about Frederick.  In case you didn’t notice he showed up in Storybrooke as the guy she bumped into at the school.  When that happened I knew that he was someone.  I worried for Kathryn the second time she went to Regina, her expression did not bode well for the Boston-bound daughter of Midas.  I’m looking forward to the next episode since it will carry on directly from her disappearance.  What I want to know is why Storybrooke-Frederick was on that road…

What I really enjoyed was the Emma and Mysterious Stranger sub-plot.  We finally have a name, August.  When he had first showed up I thought he might be Henry’s father but that proved unfounded.  I think I prefer this match-up over the Emma/Graham one, which just felt… rushed.  August also seems like a more interesting character, I want to know what he was doing with the Book.  I like the theory that he “wrote” it, but I don’t know if he was repairing the Book or altering it.

My pet theory is that August is the Storybrooke version of Rumplestiltskin’s son.  We know Rumple Knows, which could be explained by the fact that Rumple made the Dark Curse, which is likely but not confirmed.  He could have made it so that it would “exclude” himself, and his blood.  That would explain August Knowing, which I highly suspect.

This episode also lends some support to the theory that Storybrooke is somehow “on top of” the Fairy Tale world.  The well’s underground lake could be the Siren’s Lake.  I don’t quite believe it, yet.  I’ll need some more evidence. 

Once Upon a Time - Skin Deep

When I first found out Once was going to do a Beauty and the Beast episode I was ecstatic. Beauty has always been one of my favorite Disney, second only to The Sword in the Stone, likely due to the fact it was my older sister’s favorite (we usually ended up watching what she wanted to…). Then I found out Rumplestiltskin was going to be the “Beast.” I was hesitant at first, but I gradually warmed to the idea because of my intense respect for Mr. Carlyle’s acting.

I enjoyed the different take on the tale as old as time. They were able to maintain the spirit of the story while incorporating it into the larger mythos of the show. While I think the story, even in its original form, is basically Stockholm Syndrome (where prisoners form an emotional connection to their captors) it is a romanticized version. This episode toned down on the romanticism without making it excessively dark. There is a definite chemistry between Emilie de Ravin and Robert Carlyle and Belle brings a human side of Rumplestiltskin that we really haven’t seen.

In Storybrooke we see the dark side of Mr. Gold, which we come to understand through the Fairy Tale side of things. Love can make people do crazy things, and when that person is already a bit (okay a lot) unstable they do even crazier things. Like abducting the father of the woman you love because you blame him for her “death.” I liked how Regina was able to get Mr. Gold to admit knowledge of the Fairy Tale world with the “Chip”-ed tea cup. I have suspected he Knew since their conversation in Episode Two, but there wasn’t a doubt in my mind after the blank card in the Hansel and Gretel episode.

The Snow White and Prince Charming sub-plot was, to me, rather underwhelming. I know they are the “main” story but I don’t quite connect to them the same way as Rumplestiltskin/Gold and Regina (I like the bad guys, what can I say). Next week is yet another SW/PC episode (doesn’t it feel like we just had one?).

Oh and did anyone notice the Game of Thorns reference on the flower truck?