Source: tvline.com

Title Street Rats

Two-Sentence Summary After Jasmine reveals that Aladdin was also a Savior, Emma leads the charge to try to find him alive, with her family’s full knowledge of her visions and how Aladdin’s fate is tied to hers. When Aladdin is found, he gives Emma a pair of shears that can sever her fate and save her life by making her no longer the Savior.

Favorite Line “I have actual magic in my life—I have you. If I could go back, I wouldn’t change a thing.” (Emma, to Henry)

My Thoughts Honesty is power. We’re at our strongest when we’re honest with ourselves about who we are, and our relationships are at their strongest when we’re honest with those we love. Accepting the truth—both our own truth and the truth that lives in the hearts of those we love—is the key to developing into the best version of ourselves and creating strong and stable relationships.

Honesty seems to be turning into a major theme this season on Once Upon a Time. For as strange as the Evil Queen and Zelena’s spa day was (and it was incredibly strange), it brought up a central concept for this season: owning who you are and what you’ve done. Although the last thing I want is for Zelena to raise her daughter to only know her mother as the Wicked Witch, the Evil Queen brought up a good point about how she can’t hide that part of her identity from her daughter. She was right; Henry hated the fact that Regina lied to him and made him feel like he was crazy for so much of his life. It was only when she became honest with him about who she was and her struggle to be a better version of herself that he could find it in his heart to love and forgive her.

Zelena’s little girl should know who her mother was, but she should also know the better person her mother was trying to be. For as much as Zelena is the Wicked Witch, she is also the woman who wanted to be more than that not so long ago. She needs to be honest with herself about the fact that the good part of her is as much a part of her as the wicked part. And the only way she can do that is by getting away from the Evil Queen, who wants to bring out her worst self.

The Evil Queen was at her worst in this episode, encouraging Zelena to embrace her darkness (Poor Archie!), taking a page out of her mother’s playbook and taking the form of someone else in order to get information and create discord (Poor Archie again!), and killing an innocent because she wouldn’t help her. (Looks like I was wrong about the seer being Jafar in disguise.) But I must admit that I didn’t mind that she ended up being the plot device that led to Emma’s secret being out in the open. It was past time it happened, and if it took the Evil Queen masquerading as Archie to force Emma’s hand, then so be it.

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Source: spoilertv.com

Title Strange Case

Two-Sentence Summary When it seems Belle is in danger of being attacked by Hyde and the Evil Queen, Rumplestiltskin goes to drastic measures to try to keep her safe. However, flashbacks reveal that Hyde may not be the one everyone should be worried about.

Favorite Line “I don’t need your protection!” (Belle, to Rumplestiltskin)

My Thoughts Once Upon a Time has always asserted that no one is completely good or completely evil. “Villains” have the potential for goodness in them, just as “heroes” have the potential for darkness. “We are both,” as the show has said time and again, and, as such, it was hard for me to understand how the show’s version of story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde that was introduced in last season’s finale—which seemed to be about physically separating yourself into two halves—could fit into that ethos. It turned out that Jekyll and Hyde fit perfectly into Once Upon a Time’s vision of good and evil because neither half was exactly what they appeared to be. Hyde was not the singularly sociopathic monster we thought he was, and Jekyll was far from the meek, harmless man he appeared to be at first sight.

Ultimately, just like every other character on this show, Jekyll and Hyde were both, and no amount of magic or science could completely separate them. At first, I was annoyed with Mary’s obvious attraction to Hyde because the “every girl loves the bad boy” trope is not one I agree with or want to see on television—especially not on a television show kids watch. However, upon discovering just how inseparable Jekyll and Hyde really were, I came to believe that Mary’s attraction was to the fact that Hyde was brave and uninhibited, not that he was bad. She appreciated his passion and his ownership of that passion, which if Jekyll was brave enough to show to her when he was himself, she might have come to love in him as well. Mary was attracted to Hyde because he wasn’t afraid to be himself, while Jekyll felt he had to hide and eventually physically break with part of himself.

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Source: ABC/Eike Schroter

Title A Bitter Draught

Two-Sentence Summary When the Count of Monte Cristo shows up in Storybrooke, he tries to finish the job Regina gave him years ago—killing Snow and Charming. As the Count’s plan begins to unfold, Regina discovers that the Evil Queen is not only still alive, she’s planning a twisted game to prove to Regina that she still has darkness inside of her.

Favorite Line “I have a long road to travel before I can be someone I can be proud of. Despite the forgiveness of others, I must forgive myself, and I’m not there yet.” (Killian)

My Thoughts Sometimes thinking about the future is exciting, but sometimes it’s terrifying. Sometimes it feels easier to hide from a future that could end in pain, and sometimes it feels easier to ignore or push down the things we’re afraid of rather than facing them. Fear is a powerful motivating factor, but there is something more powerful: hope. As such, it seems fitting that this season of Once Upon a Time seems poised to address that universal conflict between fear and hope in a number of major storylines.

On the most obvious level, that conflict was addressed immediately upon finding out what the Land of Untold Stories really was. It was a land people escaped to when they were afraid of finding out how their stories would end. It was a place they ran to out of fear and hopelessness, thinking it was better to have no story than to have a story that could end badly.

That’s where Operation Cobra Part 2 came in. The original Operation Cobra was about restoring happy endings for people who’d forgotten their stories, but, as Henry so astutely pointed out at the end of this episode, the sequel is going to be a lot more complicated. From what we know so far, these people actively chose not to have a story; their lives weren’t put on pause by a force beyond their control. So it’s going to take more work to get them to believe in their own ability to have a story that ends happily. But if anyone can do it, it’s Henry. As the Truest Believer and the Author, he has the unique ability to help people believe their stories are worth living out. And not only do the citizens of the Land of Untold Stories need that hope, Henry’s mothers need it, too.

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Source: ew.com

Title Last Rites

Two-Sentence Summary As Emma and the other heroes try to defeat Hades in Storybrooke, Killian and Arthur team up to help them from the Underworld. When Hades activates the all-powerful Olympian Crystal, it proves to be a weapon of terrible consequence for the heroes as well as the Lord of the Underworld’s own undoing.

Favorite Lines
Arthur: No! No! No!
Killian: Denial, anger, grief…Can we just get to acceptance?

My Thoughts “Last Rites” was an emotional roller coaster. At times, the vast emotional swings from painful grief to soaring love highlighted the beautiful duality of life. Where there is life, there is also death. Where there is grief, there is also joy. Hope and heartbreak both exist in the world. And just as there is pain in knowing that moments of hope will eventually give way to heartbreak, there is also comfort in knowing that moments of heartbreak will one day give way to moments of hope.

At other times, though, the emotional twists and turns of this episode felt like they were giving me whiplash. The objective of this episode was clear: to juxtapose Emma getting the man she loves back from the dead with the death of the man Regina loves. It once again made me think of Emma and Regina as two sides of a coin, which has been a part of this show since the beginning. But I am growing tired of the fact that it feels like only one of these women can be happy or at peace at a given time. I know that they are the two central pieces of this story, and, as such, their stories must have conflict to create good drama. But just once, I’d love to see both women have a chance to be happy and feel like they’re in a good place at the same time—though I fear that probably won’t happen until the end of the series. As someone who loves both characters fiercely, it’s frustrating to see one of them set up for a period of stability and happiness only to realize that means the other will almost surely face a period of misery. But I’m the kind of person who would love for every character to be happy, and that’s why I don’t write TV dramas.

It was difficult to analyze this episode using my traditional format (and within the time constraints my life has put on my writing this week), so I chose to try something new here. “Last Rites” was filled with intense highs and lows, so here are my high and low points of this episode.

High: Zelena
Zelena has been the high point of this entire arc. I am so happy for the writers and for Rebecca Mader that a story they clearly put a lot of care and time into has paid off so well. Mader was once again fantastic in “Last Rites.” Her performance in the scene in which Zelena kills Hades was absolutely riveting. I was so proud of Zelena for coming to the realization that has always separated heroes from villains on this show: Love should be enough. Zelena didn’t want power or revenge anymore; she just wanted a normal life full of love. And that was so true to her character—a woman who just wanted a family, who just wanted to be enough for someone. And when she discovered that she still wasn’t enough for Hades, the pain Mader poured into that moment was tangible, but so was the sense of self-respect. I can only hope this character continues to grow and continues to be there for her sister, because I am so excited for the prospect of more Zelena, which is something I never thought I’d write.

Low: Maurice
I’m sure we all figured that Maurice wouldn’t be able to wake Belle from her sleeping curse, but I was shocked that he willingly chose to keep his daughter under that spell because of his hatred for Rumplestiltskin. I understand him wanting to keep Belle away from Rumplestiltskin, but a sleeping curse has been called a fate worse that death. We’ve seen the nightmarish red room and the flames, and that’s not something I’d want someone I loved to be subjected to for any amount of time. There were extenuating circumstances involved in keeping Belle under the curse (Emilie de Ravin’s maternity leave), but it still served to remind us that Belle needs to get away from the men in her life as soon as she wakes up.

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Source: ABC/Jack Rowand

Title Firebird

Two-Sentence Summary After the heroes help Hades rescue Zelena, they’re free to return home—except for Killian, who ventures with Emma into the depths of the Underworld to retrieve the ambrosia needed to come back to life. During this quest, Emma is reminded of the reasons she first donned her armor as she works to save the man who helped her shed it.

Favorite Line “If I helped take off that armor, don’t put it back on just because you’re gonna lose me.” (Killian, to Emma)

My Thoughts Love is strength. Those three words represent the very foundation upon which Once Upon a Time was built. And there is no love stronger in this show’s universe than True Love. “Firebird” was an episode that put the spotlight directly on the concept of True Love and the wonders it can work. However, even though this episode was about True Love, that doesn’t mean it was a happy hour of television. Because love is strength, but sometimes it’s the strength we need to let go.

“Firebird” was primarily focused on True Love as it exists between Emma and Killian. The way their story played out in this episode was the stuff of tragic, epic romance, worthy of its status as a truly original fairytale. However, the care taken to bring Emma and Killian’s love to the level it reached in this episode shed some real light on the flaws in the Zelena/Hades romance, which reached a new pinnacle as well.

Within the first few minutes of “Firebird,” Zelena and Hades shared True Love’s Kiss, which felt somewhat anticlimactic. In fact, I giggled a little bit when Killian spoke about True Love being something rare, because Emma had just witnessed a display of True Love that same day. And by the end of the episode, I was frustrated that their kiss worked to restart Hades’ heart. Can True Love really exist for someone like Hades? One could argue that Hades did every evil thing he did in this episode for Zelena, which means that he does truly love her. However, he wasn’t honest with her about his plans, which seems to go against everything we know about True Love. While I think it was interesting to show that True Love didn’t automatically make Hades a better man, it felt inconsistent with the rest of the show’s relationships.

Maybe I’m just bitter because I wanted to believe that Hades could grow into a better version of himself, and maybe I’m worried that Zelena’s character growth will disappear in the face of having to choose between him and her sister. (Although I actually think she’ll pick Regina if it comes down to that choice.) It felt good to know that my wariness about everything involving Hades except his feelings for Zelena was correct, but that didn’t mean I liked watching it all play out. I’m happy that Hades’ change of heart in this episode felt shallow for a reason and not just because it was rushed storytelling, but now all I want to do is get Zelena as far away from him as possible and tell Killian and Robin they were right to be skeptical.

The one thing I liked about Hades’ story in “Firebird” was the symbolism of True Love restarting a heart. So many characters on this show have had their hearts brought back to life by finding True Love. Regina learned to love again by loving Henry. Killian opened his heart to love instead of anger because of Emma. Charming brought love back into Snow’s heart after she took the potion to forget him. And in an episode that showed us who Emma was before Henry found her, it’s important to remember that this whole story started because a little boy’s love for his mother restarted the heart she willingly shut down after years of pain. True Love wakes people up; it starts hearts that have stopped. And that’s such a gorgeous metaphor for the way love can bring life back to hearts that have remained dormant for far too long.

Hearts were a central motif in this episode, with Emma’s taking center stage for most of “Firebird.” We saw it on display both literally and figuratively, and her desire to protect her heart played a prominent role in both the episode’s present-day story and its flashbacks.

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Source: abc.com

Title Sisters

Two-Sentence Summary When Regina enlists Cora to help stop Zelena and Hades’ blossoming romance, a major secret is revealed about a lost moment in the sisters’ shared past. Meanwhile, Charming finally comes face-to-face with James, and Rumplestiltskin reunites with a member of his family as he attempts to protect his child.

Favorite Line “You’re stronger than I ever was, and that’s a strength you got from the people you love—not from me.” (Cora, to Regina)

My Thoughts “Sisters” was a very focused hour of Once Upon a Time. It only had an A-story and a B-story, and both of them dealt with the same theme: the relationship between siblings. This was an episode that knew what it wanted to do (add important depth to the relationships between all three Mills women) and what it wanted to say (Love is strength, and only in accepting that can a person truly grow.), and that storytelling confidence from writers David H. Goodman and Brigitte Hales came through in every scene.

This episode’s main storyline (featuring Regina, Zelena, and Cora) was so strong that it could have stood on its own, and the depth and care it was given made the James/Charming showdown feel a little rushed in comparison. However, what that storyline lacked in depth, it made up for in intensity, and that’s all because of Josh Dallas’s performance. What could have been a silly gimmick actually felt tense. When Charming and James faced off, it felt like I was watching two distinct people who just happened to look alike, and that made the stakes feel higher than they would have felt in the hands of a lesser actor.

Dallas always seems to have fun playing James, but what struck me about his performance this time was how genuinely threatening James felt. When he pointed the gun at Robin, I was actually scared. James suddenly became a character to take very seriously rather than just a character playing out what could have been a stereotypical soap opera plot. So when his fight with his brother ended with him in the River of Lost Souls, it actually felt like it mattered because of the threat he posed. Emma was right—some people just can’t move on, and James was one of them. He was so consumed with jealousy that he never stopped to think about the fact that both he and Charming were hurt by what happened to them as babies. Instead of being able to move toward a place of understanding like Regina and Zelena are reaching, he sank deeper into his own darkness, stuck in his ways. So he now remains eternally stuck in that river, and Charming is left trying to process what he had to do.

However, unlike Belle and Rumplestiltskin (who also sent people into that river), Charming has a group of people who can help him as he deals with the repercussions of that fight. I loved seeing Emma lean on her father’s shoulder at the end, offering him comfort with that small gesture of support. And it seemed fitting that the person Charming ran into battle with was Killian, the man who’s become more like family to him than his own brother. This episode reminded us that families can help each other when no one else can, and Charming has a strong support system in his family, which surely factored into the monumental difference between him and his brother.

While the sibling rivalry between Charming and James played a part in this episode, it was a small part compared to the episode’s main event, which was a tale of two other siblings who were separated for most of their lives: Regina and Zelena. Once Upon a Time is at its strongest when it focuses on the complex female characters who have driven the story since the pilot, and “Sisters” was another amazing showcase for the variety of women and relationships between women that populate this world.

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