Once Upon A Time Recap: "Selfless, Brave, and True"

Ah, nothing like coming back from a nice relaxing weekend to do a bit of blogging. And nothing says "The Missing Linc" more than a OUAT recap! So let's get into this week's episode: "Selfless, Brave, and True". As always, if you don't want to be spoiled like last month's bananas, you might want to avoid this post for the time being.

It seems that, according to Kitsiss and Horowitz, there's nothing like quite Phuket to run away to whilst having an existential crisis. I'm sure there's a deleted scene where August runs into Jack Shephard.

That's Chinese for "I'm Turning Into Wood"

At 8:15 am (that's 8:15 pm Storybrooke time, when Emma first enters town and time starts to move forward again) August wakes up to discover that his leg has turned back to wood. Still not quite the hero we see him become at the end of Season 1, he tries to find a way to heal himself and is led to a man known as the Dragon. But someone else is waiting for him. It looks like Neal's fiance`, Tamara, has a past that she hasn't shared with her future husband.

"Well if you think THIS is a wild story..."

Tamara, on a mission to find magic in this world, has tracked August and tricked him into getting a vial full of magic from the Dragon. The all-knowing, mysterious healer is fully aware of who Pinocchio is and where he comes from, but Tamara kills the Dragon (with a taser that I'm guessing was set to "Sith Lighting") before we find out more about him.

Is it at all wrong that I immediately thought "Mushu from Mulan"?

After a harrowing chase through the streets of Hong Kong, Tamara absconds with the vial, leaving August to further suffer the affects of being turned back into wood. However, she's not done with him yet. Following August to New York, she discovers that there is a town called Storybrooke, and that yet another man hails from the land of magic. Using the old "oops, clumsy me!" routine, she bumps into Neal and starts a relationship with him, biding her time until she can get her hands on an entire town's worth of magic.

And that brings the Stiltskin Family Love Success Rate to.....0%.

Back in Storybrooke, Snow White needs to clear her head and goes out to shoot some arrows, one of which finds its way directly into Pinocchio's leg. He cannot face the shame of returning to Storybrooke in his wooden state, despite Snow's insistence that there are people there who care about him. A visit from Tamara, who promises him a bit of healing potion in return for his exile, causes August to turn tail and run, until he discovers that she has been lying. Before he can warn his friends, Tamara once again sets her taser to 11 and fries August to a crisp (if you listen carefully, you can hear him whimper "Don't tase me, bro!"). But fear not, August fans! Because his last act was to attempt to warn Emma and Co., he was deemed selfless, brave, and true by the Blue Fairy and turned back into a hunky, dreamy....

....Oh. Never mind.

Unable to remember what he was going to tell them, Pinocchio walks off with Geppetto and the Blue Fairy, ready to give being a good little boy one more try. Meanwhile, Greg Mendell, aka Owen, has just had an encounter with Regina who warns him not to continue his search for his father. At the end of the episode, he receives a knock at the door. And the person on the other side is none other than: HER!

Behold: HER!

So, it aaall comes out! Tamara is in league with Owen, but what are their true intentions? Are they simply out to find his father? To gain access to magic? Or maybe they're just working together to accomplish their respective goals. It looks like the biggest threat to Storybrooke didn't come from Cora, but will instead come from our world. As we enter the home stretch to the finale, we'll find out more about their true plans in just....wait....what?.... THREE WEEKS?!

"Son of a..."

'Til then, dearies!

-Joe

Once Upon A Time: The Miller's Daughter Recap

Best...episode...of the season! This recap is very close to just being the word "wow" over and over again! It was so good I half expect them to go on another four week break! The writers really turned what was becoming a predictable storyline on its head, spun it around, then punted it over the fence. Tons of misdirection and suspense, as well as a few revelations, and some of the best acting of the series made this one fantastic episode.

Warning! Unless you're Rumplestiltskin and can see the future, you might want to avoid the rest of the recap. There be spoilers!

Power versus love has been a theme of the show since its inception. We've seen each character make that choice over and over again, but never has it been so on display as this episode. When it came to Cora, the choice was clear. In order to prevent the humiliation she endured at the hands of Snow's mother, she would make everyone bow to her whim. And nothing, not even true love, would stand in her way.

She could be the queen of my heart any day!

Young Cora was sublimely played by Rose McGowan. Unlike Regina, Cora never seemed to be a perfectly innocent youth who was corrupted after a devastating loss. Rather, she knew her place in the world, hated those who kept her there, and wanted nothing more than to see them suffer. But she couldn't do it alone. She needed help from someone with the power to make her darkest desires come true.

You rang, dearie?

What followed was probably one of the most deliciously evil pairings of the entire show. Rumple and Cora's romance was a match made in...well...not heaven. The scene where he teaches her to spin straw into gold using her bloodlust was played with a sensuality not often seen on the show. You could almost feel their evil souls feeding off of each other.

And, of course, I'm sure we all took in a collective gasp when Rumple amended their contract so that Cora wouldn't give him just any old first born...it would be their child! Something fans had long suspected was unfolding right before our eyes! Could Regina actually be Rumplestilskin's daughter??!!

The answer was...shockingly!....amazingly!....incredibly!..............NO!

"So here's the deal. I help you spin straw into gold, and you help me make the audience's head spin."

Cora, after ripping out her own heart (a fan hunch finally confirmed!), once again chose power over love. She had used the King for the throne, and she had used Rumple for his power. I have to say that I'm glad Regina isn't his daughter, the family tree was getting a little too twisted. It was a bold direction for the writers to take. And so, the ramifications of Cora's act would reverberate several years later, in a land far away from their own.

Back in Storybrooke, it was cool to see a dying Rumple act like a general preparing for war. Even as the poison raced to his heart, he was able to set up the defenses in his shop. Ever the teacher, he showed Emma how to properly use the magic within her, something that I'm sure will come into play as the season draws to a close. And, ever the trickster, he convinced Snow White to do something she swore she'd never do.

Watch "Red Widow"?

Ginnifer Goodwin, I think, was at her absolute best as she convinced Regina to take her mother's heart and put it back into her body. She displayed a coldness and wicked cleverness that we hadn't seen in Mary Margaret before. Again, it was another fantastic twist by the writers. I mean, it's Snow White right? She wouldn't do anything this cold-hearted? Right? She didn't even do it to save her own mother so surely she wouldn't cut Cora down to save Mr. Gold? Right??!!

And then she lit the candle, held it over the heart, and whispered the name....Cora.

"Hm...did I leave the stove on?...or....ya know, my heart unprotected?"

And in that moment the Snow we knew was gone. While she tried to prevent Regina from doing her bidding, it was too late. She had been corrupted just as Cora had planned, tricked into committing the darkest of magic by the Dark One. How this will affect her and her family going forward remains to be seen.

One thing's for sure, Regina has one hell of a reason to hate her now. She finally got the mother she always wanted, only to have been deceived into killing her. And so The Evil Queen is back and badder than ever!

Before I conclude, can we just go head and start the petition for Robert Carlyle to win every award next season? His portrayal, both as Rumplestiltskin and Mr. Gold in this episode, was absolutely incredible. As Rumple, he was every bit the devilish imp we were introduced to in the pilot. All grins and high-lilting laughs covering up an malevolence and desire to do the most evil. As Gold, we saw a man who had come to terms with the choices he had made, and wanted to make things right. His phone call to Belle was heart breaking, and his final moments with Baelfire were very touching. There was a moment where I really thought he was going to die before Cora could kill him, thus releasing the power of the Dark One forever. I grew more and more nervous with each letter that disappeared from the dagger. 

Even sadder, I think, was to see him realize that Cora truly loved him, only to have her die in front of him due to his own machinations.

"I'm so happy. Good thing matters of love always work out for me!"

Well, dearies, this was really my favorite episode of the season and I cannot wait to see how it all plays out! What did you think? What can possibly happen next now that the story we thought we knew has been chucked out?

Til' next time!

-Joe

Evening Geekery: Doctor Who, Once Upon a Time, Pokemon, and the New Facebook

I probably won't be getting much of  chance to post anything this weekend so I thought I'd collect some of the cool bits I've seen online today:

1. Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Site
The good folks over at the BBC have created a special site commemorating Doctor Who's 50th Anniversary. The page is full of info on all the Doctors, monsters, and companions over the show's half century. There's also information on upcoming shows and events such as the super cool three-day event at ExCel in London. Definitely worth a look for any Whovian in the sesquicentennial spirit.

Eleven Doctors, 50 Years

2. Once Upon a Time Preview: Cora's Backstory

Next week's episode "The Miller's Daughter" gives us Cora's backstory. As Glinda says in the musical Wicked: "Are people born wicked? Or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?" It will be interesting to see how Cora eventually becomes the ruthless Queen of Hearts. Here's a clip that holds some of the key...including an appearance by a very notable character.

And another clip all but confirming that Rumple's family tree is about to gain another branch!

3. First Form Pokemon Dress Up Like Their Third Form Selves (Warning: Adorable Alert)
Artist Birdychu has done an incredible job with these pieces. First form Pokemon are drawn cosplaying as their final form selves. Squirtle dressed as Blastoise, Pikachu as Raichu, and so on. They're very well done and worth a look at the whole gallery...but here are my favorites:

4. See...And Then Hate...Then Come To Accept...Then Never Want to Let Go Of...The New Facebook

Based on user suggestions that they wanted to see more of their friends and less Facebook, the company will soon be releasing its mobile-inspired version that is leaner, smoother, and makes the newsfeed prominent while relegating everything else to a sidebar. I have to say, I really like it.

Don't you just HATE it?! And now LOVE it?!

You can read more about the changes here. 

That's it for now folks! It's been an incredible first week on the blogosphere and I just wanted to thank all of you for making that happen! Til' next time!

Allons-y!

-Joe

A Linc to Magic: Joe's Once Upon A Time Recap: "The Queen is Dead"

Well, dearies, it's time for what is sure to be a signature section of this blog. Let's not waste any time diving into this gasp-inducing, story-changing, plot-hinting episode! (Warning: There Be Spoilers!)

Let's talk about where this episode leaves us and work our way back. Regina and Cora now have Rumple's dagger, and thus the ability to control him once he returns to Storybrooke. The aforementioned Dark One is slowly dying via a poison hook through the heart and must be spirited away to Storybrooke in order to heal. Now, can anyone else see why this might present a problem?

If you said "Traffic on I-95", you'd be wrong. 

But before we leave "New York City" (because, seriously, who are they trying to fool?) we learn that Neal/Baelfire has a history with the good Captain Hook that doesn't appear too friendly. We also learn that when he was sucked through the portal as a boy he landed somewhere else first...somewhere that kept him young for centuries. Now, followers of mine on Facebook have heard me swear up and down that the mysterious man in the hospital is the Pan...but I'm going to have to renege on that one. Especially considering that Rumple is Hook's "crocodile", it makes perfect sense that his son would be the bane of Hook's existence in Neverland. Well played, Kitsiss and Horowitz.

Sense, brought to you by the writers of LOST.

And his fiance? Yeah. I'm going to bet that's Tiger Lily.

I've got to say that Cora's evil was on full display this episode. Her greed and lust for power makes her a far superior villain to her misunderstood daughter. Whereas Regina acted out of revenge and a broken heart (and eventually genuine love for Henry), Cora only cares about consolidating her rule. Cora makes everyone her pawn. She is very craftily moving the citizens of Storybrooke into just the position she wants them. And, like any good villain, she has been playing the long game, working behind the scenes to manipulate events according to her design.

"Once more the Witch will rule the Fantasy..."

The hunt for Rumple's dagger was a cool game of misdirection. I love that the clocktower is still playing a central role in the story (also, has no one bothered to clean up Malifecent yet?). Hiding the dagger on the clockface itself was very "National Treasure". The confrontation between Charming/Snow and Cora/Regina was a classic good guy/bad guy standoff. It reminded me vaguely of when Rita and Lord Zedd would appear in front of the Power Rangers....you knew stuff was about to go down!

And go down it did! Or...she did....poor Johanna.

Back in the Land that Was, I thought Bailee Madison as Young Snow was terrific yet again (kudos to the casting director on that one!) She's getting a little older now, though, so they better hurry up if they're going to do more storylines with her. Cora standing over the Queen's lifeless body reminded me a lot of Voldemort  hovering over Dumbledore's in triumph, or, more aptly, Palpatine at Qui-Gon's funeral at the end of The Phantom Menace. An initial victory heralding all the evil wins that were to come.

"Fear not, my love. These writers couldn't kill off a character forever if they used that meteor that fell on Russia."

And so the stage is once again set for a dynamic showdown. It seems like everyone has something to lose going into the finale in a few weeks. And just who is that mystery dude in the hospital if he's not Peter Pan? Feel free to sound off in the comment below.

Stay tuned, dearies!

-Joe