Tag Archives: recaps and reactions

Grading the Season Finales 2014: Castle

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I just wanted to say thank you to all of you who’ve read and commented on my Castle posts this season. It’s been a fun ride, and I can’t wait to discuss Season Seven with all of you in the fall!

Source: tvline.com

Source: tvline.com

Title For Better or Worse (6.23)

Written By Andrew Marlowe and Terri Miller

What Happens? Three days before their wedding, a wrench gets thrown into Castle and Beckett’s plans when it’s revealed that Beckett is actually a married woman—and not married to Castle. I turns out that a drunken visit to a Vegas wedding chapel when she was at Stanford ended in a marriage that she thought wasn’t legally binding to Rogan O’Leary, a con artist and criminal.

As Castle stays behind to continue with wedding preparations, Beckett heads to a small town in New York to get Rogan to sign the divorce papers. He won’t do it until she helps him break into his ex-girlfriend’s car to help him get his belongings back after their breakup. After Beckett fulfills her part of the deal, she goes back to O’Leary’s place, only to watch him get kidnapped. After Beckett relays the story to Castle, he agrees to join her to wrap up this problem as soon as possible.

It’s not only the kidnapping of O’Leary that throws a wrench into Castle and Beckett’s wedding plans. Ryan’s tuxedo doesn’t fit, their rooftop venue was destroyed in a fire, and Beckett’s dress was ruined when a pipe burst in her apartment building. Beckett worries that these are all signs that this wedding isn’t meant to happen, but Castle reassures her that all great love stories face obstacles. In order to get the fairytale ending, you have to keep pushing through the bad times.

As Castle and Beckett investigate O’Leary’s disappearance, they come into contact with a biker gang, a stripper, and a reverend who are all connected to Beckett’s newly-discovered husband. It turns out that O’Leary has photos of the stripper with the reverend but also with a mafia hit man who has been on the run from law enforcement for years. The hit man is behind the kidnapping, and he seems intent on wiping out O’Leary as well as Castle and Beckett, until they run into the biker gang again. After learning of the reward on the hit man and knowing they have strength in numbers, the gang removes the hit man from the situation, leaving O’Leary free to sign the divorce papers, which leaves Beckett free to marry Castle.

Despite all of complications, Martha and Alexis move the ceremony to their Hamptons house, and Lanie gets Beckett an even better dress to wear: her mother’s. But as Castle drives to the house after getting their paperwork filed, he’s followed by a dangerous-looking SUV. After he fails to show up when he was supposed to, Beckett gets a call and races to an unknown location in her wedding dress. After she gets out of her car, she sees Castle’s car, which has gone over a cliff and has burst into flames.

Game-Changing Moment For much of this season, it seemed Castle was leading up to a wedding that wasn’t exactly like the one that was planned but was still a happy and hopeful occasion. And while I had some doubts about whether or not the wedding would actually happen in this episode (I thought the lack of huge promotion and the lack of snippets of the wedding ceremony itself in promos was a bad sign), I certainly did not expect such a dramatic way to end the season. It doesn’t get much more game-changing than appearing to kill of your show’s title character. And while we know that won’t be the case, this is going to impact the show in a huge way—no matter who was in that SUV. (My guess: 3XK or someone connected to him.) It added another obstacle to Castle and Beckett’s love story, it prolonged the lead-up to the wedding (presumably so there would be viewers tuning in for the wedding this week and then tuning in again when it actually happens—I’m guessing around the midpoint of next season), and it gave us a moment that we’ll be talking about all summer. Whether or not that talk will be all positive is a different story, but if the job of that plot twist was to shake things up after a season of happy wedding planning, then its mission was accomplished.

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Grading the Season Finales 2014: Once Upon a Time

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Since this is the end of this season of Once Upon a Time, I just wanted to thank all of you for reading these reviews every week and for sharing your thoughts so enthusiastically in the comments. It’s been a true pleasure reviewing this show this season, and no small part of that has come from those of you who read and comment on these posts.
COLIN O'DONOGHUE, JENNIFER MORRISON

Title Snow Drifts/There’s No Place Like Home (3.21/3.22)

Written By David H. Goodman & Robert Hull/Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz

What Happens? After Hook inadvertently hints to Henry (and Regina by proxy) that Emma is thinking of going back to New York, Emma tells Hook that she runs away because she believes that home is a place you miss, and she’ll keep running until she finds a place she misses. She believes she can’t relate to her parents or to life in Storybrooke because, to her, they’re still fairytale characters, and she’ll never feel like the princess she was supposed to be.

As Emma and Hook talk, they notice a light coming from Zelena’s time portal, which was activated by her death, a death Rumplestiltskin fixes to look like a suicide. When Emma is sucked into the portal, Hook dives in after her. They land in the Enchanted Forest, and a wanted poster for Snow White (and a close encounter with the Evil Queen) reveals to them exactly where in the past they landed.

When Emma breaks a twig and accidentally disrupts her parents’ first meeting, she and Hook seek out Rumplestiltskin’s help to set things right. After a tense first meeting with the Dark One (since he and Hook were still mortal enemies at this point), he agrees to help them because Emma tells him they need to survive so he can get back to his son.

Emma and Hook realize that they need to get Snow to still steal Charming’s ring, since that was the key to their love story. To do that, Hook offers Snow passage on his ship in exchange for the ring (as Emma occupies Hook from the past). Snow decides to steal the ring during Charming and Abigail’s engagement party, which Hook and Emma crash in magical disguises (courtesy of Rumplestiltskin). As “Prince Charles and Princess Leia” dance, Snow breaks into the castle, only to be caught by Charming in a similar way to their original first meeting.

When it’s discovered that Snow lost the ring in her escape, things look bleak for Emma and Hook, but they look bleaker when Regina captures Emma for helping Snow White. As Emma bonds with a woman in her cell, Hook and Charming (with some help from his patented net trap) enlist Snow’s help to break into the castle to find her. Emma escapes by picking the locks as Neal taught her (which we’re shown through flashbacks), and she takes the unnamed woman with her. But as Hook and Charming reach them, the realize Snow left them to try to kill Regina, which she’s unable to do. Instead, they watch from afar in horror as Regina appears to burn Snow at the stake.

However, Emma’s existence proves Snow to still be alive, and they discover she used her dark fairy dust to turn herself into a bug and escape. Emma is elated to see her mother alive, but Snow seems unmoved by Emma’s reaction, since she’s simply Princess Leia to her mother. As Snow and Charming move on to other parts of their adventures, Emma is able to watch her parents fall in love.

When Emma and Hook return to Rumplestiltskin looking for a way home, they find he doesn’t have one for them; he only has a forgetting potion for himself. Instead, he locks them in his vault with a wand that can open the portal only with Emma’s magic, which she no longer has. But Emma’s encounter with her mother helped open her eyes to the fact that she misses her parents; she misses them in a way that she knows can only come from knowing they’re her home. Her desire to go home to Storybrooke reawakens her magic, allowing her to open the portal, which Hook takes the woman they saved through first. Rumplestilstkin won’t let Emma leave before she tells him what happens to Bae, and she’s forced to tell him of his death. But he chooses to let her go after she begs him to let his death not be in vain, and he takes the potion.

Back in Storyrbooke, Emma reunites with her parents, telling them she’s finally home (and calling them mom and dad). Later, she goes out to find Hook, ready to thank him for bringing her back from New York. When he reveals that he gave up the Jolly Roger for a way to get back to her, she finally lets herself believe in his love, and they kiss.

Happy endings seem to be prevalent in the episode’s final moments, with Rumplestiltskin marrying Belle (despite her not knowing what he really did to Zelena) and Regina happily kissing Robin. But the woman Emma and Hook brought back turns out to be Robin’s wife, Marian, leaving Regina heartbroken. As Regina tells Emma she hopes she didn’t bring anything else back, a look at the portal reveals that a stowaway from Rumplestiltskin’s vault made the journey too: Princess (or Queen) Elsa has arrived with her freezing powers at the ready.

Game-Changing Moment Emma had no idea how much she changed the game by deciding to do the honorable thing—the Charming Family thing—in bringing back the woman she shared a cell with in Regina’s dungeon. By bringing Marian back to Storybrooke, Emma unknowingly gave Regina a whole new set of conflicts—both internal and external—to be worked through next season. Regina was understandably angry in the moment, but how will she deal with her emotions going forward? It’s that question that will really keep me thinking all summer.

But of course, Emma also brought back someone else, and that’s the real game-changer on a plot level. Will Elsa freeze Storyrbooke? Will the group have to travel to Arendelle? Is she going to be a villain or something closer to her role in Frozen? No matter the answers to these questions, what’s certain is that the show is heading in a new direction once again, and that new direction is going to generate plenty of hiatus buzz.

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Game of Thrones Moment of the Week: “First of His Name”

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The Moment: Cersei and Oberyn talk about their daughters

Setting the Scene: Cersei visits Oberyn to talk about her daughter Myrcella, who has been sent to Dorne. As they talk, she learns about his eight daughters, and they discuss the way neither of them could save the ones they loved, despite all the power they’re believed to possess.

Why It’s Awesome: “First of His Name” was quite possibly my favorite episode of this Game of Thrones season so far. And I think much of my love for this episode comes from the performances we were treated to throughout. This was especially true in the scenes in King’s Landing, where little plot movement happened (beyond Tommen being crowned king), but I was reminded that this part of the cast is so talented that I would watch most of them talk to each other about nothing of plot importance for a whole episode because they would still manage to give it weight.

In an episode anchored by great acting, no one was better than Lena Headey. From her opening scene with Natalie Dormer to her conversation with Charles Dance, I found her to be the perfect scene partner in “First of His Name.” But my favorite moment of Headey’s came opposite another actor who seems to be an excellent partner for anyone he shares a scene with: Pedro Pascal. Both Headey and Pascal bring so much weight to even the most seemingly innocuous pieces of dialogue. In this scene, there is such understated tension between both of them but also an odd but beautiful kind of understanding that comes from both of their roles as parents to daughters in a world that is often too cruel to little girls—a fact both of them know very well.

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Grading the Season Finales 2014: The Mindy Project

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danny and mindy

Title Danny and Mindy (2.22)

Written By Mindy Kaling

What Happens? When Mindy believes she’s having an email romance straight out of You’ve Got Mail with the cute stranger she saw on the subway, she breaks things off with Charlie to pursue “Andy,” who is actually Danny, desperately trying to be the kind of romantic man he thinks Mindy wants in an attempt to win her back. On her way to meet “Andy” at the top of the Empire State Building, Mindy makes a stop at Danny’s apartment (to get gum out of her hair). While Danny frantically tries to keep her from seeing him dressed up to meet her, Mindy reveals that she’s happy the two of them decided to call off their relationship because she remembered Danny saying that guys don’t break up with girls they really want to be with.

Thinking Mindy has no interest in him anymore, Danny doesn’t show up at the Empire State Building, so Mindy waits hours there for “Andy,” catching a cold. Danny brings her soup to help her recover, and the two of them begin spending more time together, seeing New York through each other’s eyes. However, a chance encounter with the guy Mindy thought was “Andy” forces Danny to confess that he lied to her and ultimately stood her up. When Mindy asks why he pretended to be someone else, he tells her it’s because he loves her. Mindy says doesn’t believe him because he was so quick to run away the last time they tried a relationship. When Danny begs her to meet him that night at the top of the Empire State Building, Mindy replies that accepting his offer would make her “the stupidest person alive.”

Later that night, the entire Shulman and Associates crew finds Mindy still working instead of meeting with Danny. They all try various ways to convince her that Danny really does love her. But the only one to get through to her is Peter, who shows her a memory box Danny keeps in his desk, which now holds a pair of her earrings. Mindy then goes to the Empire State Building but finds out she’ll have to walk up the stairs the whole way thanks to a broken elevator.

Mindy’s late arrival and slow ascent had Danny convinced she wasn’t coming, so his coworkers find him eating pizza instead of waiting for her. They tell him that Mindy really is on her way, so he begins a mad dash through the New York City streets to reach her (including getting hit by a car). Once at the top of the building, Danny finds Mindy sprawled out on the ground, exhausted from her trek up the stairs. He tells her he loves her and is “all in” in terms of their relationship. They decide to go on their first real date, end up arguing about the number and names of their future children, and seal the moment with a kiss.

Game-Changing Moment The Mindy Project started as a show about a woman obsessed with romantic comedies whose own love life was the antithesis of a Meg Ryan movie—aka a disaster. For two seasons, we watched Mindy Lahiri cycle through an endless parade of attractive hookups, boyfriends, and fiancés. Even her first attempt at a relationship with Danny was short-lived. But “Danny and Mindy” fundamentally shifted the show’s direction with three little words, “I’m all in.” Danny knows what those words really mean, and he knows what a huge step this is for him to say those words (and Mindy knows it, too). This is a character who—even in marriage—had trouble investing all of himself in a relationship. But Mindy wants something real, and she deserves nothing less. So with three words, Mindy’s string of short-term relationships might finally be over, ushering in a new era for the show—an era of telling the story of what happens after the characters in a romantic comedy get together with a kiss at the top of the Empire State Building. Mindy and Danny were already talking about kids by the end of this scene, so we know these aren’t just empty words. There’s a chance that The Mindy Project could be finally ready to go all in on telling not just a “will they/won’t they” story but a “they did, now what?” story. I am eager to see what comes next and hopeful that it will be handled with care, which is exactly what a good game-changing moment is supposed to make a viewer feel.

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TV Time: Castle 6.22

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PENNY JOHNSON JERALD, STANA KATIC, NATHAN FILLION, TAMALA JONES

Title Veritas

Two-Sentence Summary When Beckett is framed for the murder of Vulcan Simmons, she knows the final showdown with Senator Bracken is looming. With her career and her life on the line, she finds assistance in her quest to finally bring Bracken to justice from two unlikely sources: her mother and Captain Montgomery.

Favorite Line “It’s over.” (Beckett)

My Thoughts It’s over. With two simple words, the world of Castle changed forever. For months now, I’ve been writing about how I wanted to see the end of the Bracken storyline and the culmination of the Johanna Beckett arc this season. It felt like it was time; it would give Beckett closure before marrying Castle; and the combination of that arc ending and the wedding would lead the show into a new era. I wanted it, but I don’t think I even knew how much I wanted it until I watched it happen last night. And the crazy thing is, as I watched Beckett put the man who murdered her mother in handcuffs, I wasn’t thinking about how good this was for the plot or for the show in general. I was thinking of how good this was for Kate Beckett. I wanted this moment for her. And what a moment it was.

I often write about how much I like emotional moments and character development that feel earned. It certainly doesn’t get more earned than this moment. For over six seasons, we watched Kate Beckett continue to come to terms with her mother’s murder. We saw what that murder did to her; we saw the damage firsthand. We were shown rather than just told about how it affected her to such a degree that it consumed her. We went down the rabbit hole with her every time she battled the pain of first not knowing who the killer was and then knowing but not being able to bring him to justice. We saw the scars her mother’s death left behind, and then we saw the new scars that formed as Beckett herself almost died because of that same man. We saw her battle PTSD because of this; we saw her work every day to overcome the demons brought on by both her mother’s death and her shooting. For six years, we were in the emotional trenches right alongside this character, so when the moment finally came for her to arrest the man who caused her so much pain, we completely understood how much this meant to this character.

I’m sure “Veritas” was an episode that could be enjoyed by casual Castle fans, but, really, this was an episode for the diehards. This was for those of us who first fell in love with Kate Beckett when she told Castle why she wore her mother’s ring and her father’s watch. This was for those of us who cried with her when she had to shoot Dick Coonan and lose another lead in her mom’s case. This was for those of us who sat with open mouths and broken hearts after she was shot. And this was for those of us who cried again when she finally decided that her own life and her own happiness was worth more than vengeance.

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TV Time: Once Upon a Time 3.20

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JOSH DALLAS, GINNIFER GOODWIN

Title Kansas

Two-Sentence Summary Through flashbacks to Zelena’s life in Oz, we see her initially embrace a new family with a group of sister witches, but her envy takes over once again after Dorothy’s arrival causes her to believe she has no choice but to be evil. The choice between good and evil comes into play in the present as Regina chooses to believe she can be good again, which allows her to wield light magic and defeat Zelena (because Emma lost her magic saving Hook’s life), but Regina’s decision to spare Zelena’s life falls on deaf ears for Rumplestiltskin, who kills her with his dagger.

Favorite Lines
Regina: Heroes don’t kill.
Zelena: So now you’re a hero?
Regina: Today I am.

My Thoughts Once Upon a Time is a show about choices in a world—the world of fairytales—that so often seems to be about fate and destiny. You have to choose to love someone (and they have to choose to love you too) for true love’s kiss to work. Dark magic comes from a series of dark choices, and light magic comes from choosing to use magic for good and selfless reasons. Evil is not born; it’s made. And now we know that the same can be said for goodness, for heroism. The reason Zelena never felt like a sympathetic character to me was because she chose time and again to give in to her envy instead of choosing to move on. And the reason Regina’s arc this season has been such a joy to watch is because it was about a woman choosing to be better than who she was, choosing to believe in the goodness Snow White has always seen in her, and choosing to accept that she can both love and be loved—and draw powerful magic from that love. Choosing to be your best self isn’t the stuff traditional fairytales spend a lot of time discussing, but it’s the kind of human drama that makes Once Upon a Time so compelling.

Zelena’s flashbacks didn’t do much to make her a more interesting character, but at this point I’m not sure anything would. She was basically a glorified plot device to bring about character development for many of the show’s main characters and to jumpstart the adventure of the season finale, so she never had the depth I wanted her to have. However, I appreciated the comparison between Zelena believing she had to be evil and Regina choosing to believe she could be good. Both Regina and Zelena were faced with another woman whose presence as a “savior” and champion of goodness presented them with a choice: Accept that there must always be one good person and one evil person, or decide to change that story and fight alongside the one you’re supposed to fight against. Zelena believed she had no choice but to be evil, but Regina knew better. There’s always a choice, and she chose to change her path, as we saw her sister continue down her road to darkness.

I appreciated the little twist on the most unbelievable part Oz mythology: the melting of the Wicked Witch. Both Wicked and Once Upon a Time turned the melting into a way to show just how clever the Wicked Witch is, and that made me happy to see. And I loved watching Zelena in all her campy, evil glory after Glinda thought she was talking to the Wizard. I may not have cared about Zelena’s backstory beyond its parallels with Regina (and Emma’s in terms of the “abandoned little girl deals with being abandoned” angle), but that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy watching Rebecca Mader have so much obvious fun with the role.

Ultimately, what seemed to be an episode about Regina and Zelena was actually an episode that focused on the parallel arcs of Emma and Regina. Once Upon a Time has always had fun playing with the idea of these two women as two sides of the same coin, and it was more apparent than ever in “Kansas.” Their character arcs in this half of Season Three have been building to almost the same point: the realization that they don’t have to be defined by their past; they can choose to stop running from happiness and embrace the best versions of themselves, including the idea that people beyond just their son can love them. It was fascinating to watch Regina’s arc reach such a triumphant high point in an episode where Emma’s arc hit what may be an all-time low. We saw Regina at her most self-aware in an episode that saw Emma at her most delusional. We saw Regina at her most accepting of herself and others in an episode that saw Emma at her most dismissive. And we saw Regina at her strongest in terms of harnessing the power of love in an episode where we saw Emma at her weakest—both in terms of her magical powers and her belief in love.

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TV Time: New Girl 3.22

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new girl dance

Title Dance

Two-Sentence Summary Jess channels all of her frustrations about her breakup with Nick into making the dance at the school where she teaches the best it can be, which naturally means it turns into a complete disaster. Not helping matters is the fact that Schmidt, Nick, and Winston turn out to be the three worst chaperones ever.

Favorite Line “Nobody’s getting pregnant tonight! That’s the same thing I say on my dates.” (Winston)

My Thoughts This was actually the most fun I’ve had watching New Girl since the episodes prior to Nick and Jess breaking up. I laughed a lot, I loved the way the whole ensemble was in the same place, and I enjoyed seeing the characters in a different setting than usual. “Dance” may not have done a lot to further any of the season’s overall arcs, but I still enjoyed it—despite still having some reservations with certain aspects of the show.

Since I’m in a bit of a time crunch today, I’m going to break my thoughts on this episode into a little list of Five Things I Took Away from “Dance.”

1.) This was Cece’s best episode. I crave Jess and Cece scenes like I crave good chocolate. I know New Girl is primarily about the relationships between Jess and the men she lives with, but her friendship with Cece has always been something that humanizes and grounds Jess as a character more than any other relationship on the show, even the one she shared with Nick. Zooey Deschanel and Hannah Simone have such a genuine, warm chemistry, and I always feel like there’s a deep sense of shared history between them that drives all of their interactions. It was so nice to see Cece at her warmest and most supportive in this episode because Jess needed her more than ever. Simone played Cece’s gentle but constant support perfectly because it felt real. And Jess and Cece’s botched “good cop/bad cop” moment was one of my favorite parts of the episode.

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Game of Thrones Moment of the Week: “Oathkeeper”

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I sincerely apologize to any of you who were looking for my post about last week’s episode. I found some of the elements of that episode (and the way they were explained by the director) too difficult for me to write about, especially because I interpreted Jaime and Cersei’s interactions in that episode in a way that was different from how the director seemed for it to be intended (as I think many did). I have decided to pretend that the moment existed as it did in the book (since that seems to be the intention of those involved). If you’re still looking for an excellent analysis of last week’s episode, I can direct you to frequent NGN contributor Heather’s take on it.

The Moment: Jaime sends Brienne on her quest

Setting the Scene: After Cersei tells Jaime she wants Sansa Stark dead, he tasks Brienne with keeping his oath to the late Catelyn Stark to find Sansa and keep her safe. To help Brienne on her journey, Jaime gives her a new suit of armor, a squire (Pod), and the Valyrian steel sword given to him by his father, which Brienne names Oathkeeper.

Why It’s Awesome: Last week’s controversial episode of Game of Thrones reminded us that there are very few healthy relationships between men and women in Westeros, and usually those relationships are based solely on power (hence the prevalence of rape on this show—including the horribly gratuitous scenes at Craster’s Keep in this episode). But “Oathkeeper” served as a moving reminder that there is at least one relationship between a man and a woman in this world that is based on true, mutual respect, and that’s the relationship between Jaime and Brienne.

The scene where Jaime gives Brienne Oathkeeper has been one of my favorite scenes in the entire A Song of Ice and Fire book series since the moment I read it last year. I didn’t think it was possible that Game of Thrones could actually make me love it more. But I guess I underestimated the power of very pointed and specific changes made to enhance the emotional impact of the scene, as well as the performances of Gwendoline Christie and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau.

The whole tone of the scene was much warmer than it was in the books, and it was infused with a very real sense of equality between them. That changed the tone of the scene somewhat from the hesitancy in the book, but I think that actually served the show well. The depth of emotion between these two characters has always felt even more intense on the show than in the books, and I think that comes from how good Coster-Waldau and Christie are at conveying a host of emotions simply through their eyes.

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TV Time: Castle 6.21

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STANA KATIC, NATHAN FILLION, YANI GELLMAN

Title Law and Boarder

Two-Sentence Summary The murder of an extreme sports athlete leads Castle and Beckett to a cold case and a cover-up concerning the death of a young boy. As the investigation goes on, Ryan and Esposito fight over who should be Castle’s best man, and Castle and Beckett squabble over her beating him in Scrabble.

Favorite Lines
Beckett: I think catching killers is pretty extreme. And then there’s marrying you.
Castle: Ah yes, I admit I am extreme—extremely handsome.
Beckett: With a high degree of difficulty.

My Thoughts This was another fun, relatively light episode of Castle, following a pattern this show seems to have of calms before the storm that occurs around each season’s finale. While this episode’s case wasn’t terribly interesting, it continued some important thematic trends leading to what looks like another showdown with Bracken next week. And for the first time in a while, I found myself thoroughly entertained by this episode’s wedding subplot, mainly because it incorporated more characters than just Castle and Beckett.

Let’s start with this episode’s case to get the most boring part out of the way. Sometimes Castle hits unique cases like this one out of the park, but this one fell flat for me. Maybe it’s because I don’t care about extreme sports, or maybe it’s because I called who the killer would be the first time we saw him. (He just seemed too smug, and the killer is usually introduced early on—but never as the first suspect.) There seemed to be too many twists for me to wrap my head around: jealous competitors, the Albanian mob, and the brutal death of a child. Part of me is relieved that the end of the season is upon us because that means the cases will actually carry meaning again. This case seemed like one that’s reached for when you’re running out of ideas, but maybe I’m just not that into skateboards and motocross.

The good thing about the case, however, was the way it built on the parallels that have been accumulating this season and even further back about Beckett and Bracken. This was another case that ultimately ended up being about an old murder and a desire for justice. I still feel like this showdown between Beckett and Bracken will be their last (No spoilers in the comments if you know any other details, please!), and the way this murder was ultimately unraveled did nothing to deter me from that line of thinking.

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TV Time: Once Upon a Time 3.19

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ouat 319

Title A Curious Thing

Two-Sentence Summary Henry’s storybook proves to be the key to getting his memories back, just in time for Zelena to threaten his life because of Hook’s choice not to kiss Emma, but Emma’s light magic proves to be stronger than Zelena’s once again, as does Regina’s love for her son, which breaks the curse placed on the memories of Storybrooke’s residents. With their memories returned, Snow and Charming remember that Snow cast the curse in order to return to Emma by sacrificing Charming’s heart, but Snow’s faith in their love proved strong enough to enable them to share a heart and bring her husband back to life.

Favorite Lines
Charming: Why do women keep their shoeboxes?
Snow: Because after true love, there is no more powerful magic than footwear. It has to be protected.

My Thoughts I love Once Upon a Time. It can be ridiculous, illogical, and a bit too plot-driven at times (all of which can be criticisms of “A Curious Thing”). But its heart—pun totally intended—is always in the right place. This is a show that is first and foremost about love. In an increasingly cynical world, I’m so happy to be a fan of a show that isn’t afraid to say that love has a power unlike any other force imaginable. That’s what “A Curious Thing” was all about—love’s ability to make the impossible possible. From Snow and Charming to Regina and Henry, this episode was a reiteration of the show’s foundational principle: Love is strength.

Just like last week’s character development and subtle dark humor were a dead giveaway that “Bleeding Through” was at least partly a Jane Espenson-written episode, “A Curious Thing” had Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz’s trademarks all over it. It made sense that the show’s creators would take the helm in an episode that harkened back so strongly to the first season of the show. And it made sense that they would write an episode that was so firmly devoted to the show’s central themes of love, belief, and family—and the collision of fairytales and harsh reality in the character of Emma Swan.

The episode began with an excellent—and, let’s be honest, hot—way to ease into the intense thematic developments to come. After seeing the way Regina and Robin’s relationship played out before the curse was cast, I was a little disappointed that they ended up not being drawn together because of a romance between them in the lost year. It seemed the attraction was definitely there, but I actually think Regina having her heart was a huge hindrance to that relationship developing. Regina’s heart has known so much loss, pain, and darkness. Removing it has allowed her to move on from the pain she has carried in her heart since Daniel died. It allowed her to feel with her soul instead, and we know from Tinker Bell’s words that Robin is Regina’s soul mate. Not having her heart seemed to help Regina’s soul find its mate without the fear she still held in her heart about finding a second chance at happiness.

Because that’s what Regina and Robin are to one another—a second chance to love, a second chance to be happy. And Regina was so wonderfully happy in this first scene. Lana Parrilla has a thousand-watt smile, and I loved seeing it used without restraint at multiple times in this episode. Regina held on to bitterness, grief, and hatred for so long that it gives me endless joy to see her truly taking this chance to be happy. Watching Regina kiss Robin with a beautiful smile on her face reminded me that Once Upon a Time is so good at showing this basic truth: Love should bring out the best in a person.

Regina and Robin’s relationship development was very closely related to what Regina witnessed between Snow and Charming in the flashback portions of this episode. And I don’t just mean the obvious foreshadowing in Robin’s line about Regina using his heart to feel. I think witnessing true love at its most true had a profound impact on Regina. With or without her memories, it was clear that this was no longer something she sneered at, but something she actually believed in.

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