Once Upon A Time: “The Thing You Love the Most” and We Most Certainly Do!

Welcome back Once Upon A Time devotees,

We are catching up with my review of the second Episode of Once Upon a Time starts with a quick reminder of the Premier Episode. And we see once again the Clock Tower in the middle of Storybrooke finally moving passed 8:15 for the first time in years, and a boy named Henry smiling out his window.

As the sun rises on another day in the town, we hear cords from a familiar song; “Don’t be Shy” by Cat Stevens. It is awesome to hear a great artist like Cat Stevens (now known as Yusuf Islam) on a show like this for a new generation to hear.

In addition to my analysis of “The Thing You Love the Most”, we include the complete episode courtesy of ABC via Hulu. Enjoy!

The Thing You Love the Most:

We see Mary Margaret (Ginnifer Goodwin) looking out her window during breakfast and looking surprised as the Town Clock ticks by. Emma waking in her room at Granny’s (Beverly Elliott) Inn, with a glimpse of confusion on her face, as if for a few seconds she forgets where she is. This writer has that feeling sometimes. But onward we go.

The way the second episode opens is nice, the camera strolls through the town letting the viewer feel like a resident watching everyone go about their everyday business. We see the Sheriff (Jamie Dornan) in his patrol car, Henry’s (Jared Gilmore) shrink (Rapheal Sbarge), who we met in the last episode, the always creepy and well presented Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle) who we all know as Rumpelstiltskin!

As Emma (Jennifer Morrison) awakes with a troubled look on her face, we see Granny walking up towards her granddaughter, Ruby who is opening Granny’s Diner; The amount of red Ruby wears, and the fact that both her and Granny were seen in the first Episode, leads this writer, and I am sure, the viewers to know her as Red Riding Hood and again we see the Sheriff walking into the Diner.

This was all done in one shot, a very well timed shot. This writer is a fan of them as it lets her feel as if even behind the camera the scene is still moving.

Cut to Henry in his room, that smile and hope still on his cutie little face. His mother, the Mayor, down stairs reading The Book, rushing through the pages and pausing as she sees the drawing of the Evil Queen. She turns the page once again and we see that the last pages have been torn out.

The frustration on her face is very apparent. Walking in to Henry’s room and asking what happened to the “pages”, this scene feels like a recap really. But it is a nice one, reminding people about how Henry brought Emma to town, and how the Mayor wants her to leave, and thinks that she did. Also, the shock she shows when she hears the Clock ring out.

In the next scene, where we see her on the street looking up at the Clock and Henry’s “shrink” walking by, her annoyance at the fact it’s ticking shows so much! and when she sees Emma’s Car, the tone of her Voice as she answers him, you can see her mind whirling to form a plan.

The next scene we see Emma opening her Inn room door to a sweetly smiling Mayor. This smile makes Emma and the viewer wary of what the Mayor is doing there. After their last encounter one wouldn’t expect her to come smiling at the door with a Basket of Apples.

The way she describes the Apple tree and then hands Emma the apple, gives the viewer that distrustful feeling. Knowing who she really is and seeing her with Apples. When Emma tells the Mayor that she will be staying, she really tries hard to keep the frustration inside. The pause before speaking says it all.

To this writer, the scene feels like a fight for power, a subtle little fight over two controlling characters over who has the upper hand. It’s like a small little hint at the rest of the Episode.

“You have no idea what I’m capable of” is a nice switch back to the Fairy tale realm, but is also another hint that the Mayor knows who she is and or was!

On the Costume side of things, something this writer didn’t mention in her last review, the Evil queen’s Costume that we first see her in is well done. The head piece takes us back to the Disney film where the Evil Queen wore a Hood-like Cap. The subtle Red in the costume is nice, this writer thinks it’s a throw back to the Purple in the Disney Film, the Purple wouldn’t have shown on the screen with all the dark lighting in her scenes, but having at least some colour in there works (and shh, that is how you spell ‘Color’ in NZ lol)

In this scene we have a little recap, and we get to see where she goes when she transports away from the wedding. Her Dark Castle is just that, dark. But it has a little Homely touch with a Butler. A Butler that the queen has a liking towards that made this writer wonder who he was, as she is sure many viewers did as well. We also get the first glimpse at The Mirror.

The Dark Curse is mentioned in this scene, and the way The Mirror and the Butler react tells the viewers how bad it is, so that even if they have not seen the first episode, they know it is a bad one. When the queen yells at the Butler, and the way he is taken back by it hints at a relationship where the queen hardly ever yells at him. Interesting. Also we are introduced to a new but classic character.

The effects in the shot showing the Forbidden Fortress are fantastic. The forest alone is scary in its detail. The fortress itself is a near spitting image of the Castle from Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, minus a few towers. When we first see Maleficent she is different from the Disney Film, but she is still recognizable. The Subtle Horns, the shade of Purple in her beautiful costume and her Staff.

This writer loves how the two evil characters reminisce about past defeats by their good counterparts, but in a way that sounds like they are attacking each other, the way friends would. This scene is a good one, it shows another evil character, and also shows that in this realm, most of them are friends.

The scene also shares with the viewer more about the Dark Curse and how it is so evil and bad, that Maleficent won’t even use it and keeps it in her Staff for safe keeping. The writer likes how we get to see the evil queen’s Power in this scene. The battle between Maleficent and her is cool. The way that the queen uses Maleficent’s love for the Unicorn to win the battle shows how far gone she is in her journey to bring down Snow White.

Maleficent warns her all Power has a Price and tells her she will never be able to fill the Void the Curse will make.

In the next scene, we see the evil queen with other evil characters, circling around a fire on a cliff. This scene feels off to this writer. The Queen does not feel like a ‘Team’ person. We soon see that she just needs them to make the curse work, threatening them with her control over the Dark Trees. The failure of the Curse confused this writer, it made her think, how could the events that happened in the first episode come to be, if the Curse failed?

The Dark Gnome kinda deserved what he got by laughing at the queen, and the way that he somehow turns up in the Mayor’s Garden is a interesting way to connect the Fairy Tale realm with our world once again.

This scene we get to see the Mayor’s Apple Tree, the one which she told Emma about in the beginning. The Apples on that tree look so yummy every time she watches this episode, they make this writer want an Apple! We also get to meet another realm character, this time we meet The Mirror from the evil queen’s Castle. In our world, and this writer found this fitting, The Mirror is the editor of the local Newspaper; The Storybrooke Daily Mirror.

The way he acts around the Mayor, and the way the Mayor treats him, indicate that even in our world he works for her. He has been digging in to the past of Emma Swan and through this we find out some details of her past. She was in the ‘System’ for a while and even got in trouble for something when she was young. Mention of this made this writer think that maybe this information might come back later in the series. But then again it might be a passing comment.

We also find out that Emma had Henry when she was in Phoenix, making The Mirror, and the viewers, wonder how did he end up in Storybrooke. The way the Mayor deflects the question makes this writer even more interested in how he got to Storybrooke.

The scene in the Diner, with the Sheriff and Emma is cute, we see that Emma thinks the Sheriff sends her the Hot Chocolate with Cinnamon on top. This leads the viewers along the ‘Shipping’ route for these two which started in the first episode. We then find out that the sheriff didn’t send Emma the drink, it was Henry. Turns out he likes it as well. He uses the opportunity to get Emma to walk him to school and we learn about ‘Operation Cobra” This operation is all about identifying the Fairy tale characters suck in Storybrooke and naming it as they have, it will keep the queen and her Minions unsuspecting.

When Emma tries to eat the Apple that the Mayor gave her, Henry grabs it and throws it away. Never trust an Apple given to you from the evil Queen. This little scene is a nice recap of the Curse for people, we learn a bit about it and we also are reminded about the fact that Emma Swan is the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming.

The picture from the Storybook of Emma and her Father reminds us of how Emma came in to our world and how she was not part of the Curse, you can see shaded in the background the Wardrobe that transported her. Turns out Henry ripped the last few pages out of the book so that his Mother, the Mayor/evil queen, could not read them. Good going this writer thinks. What is the use of the bad guy knowing everything.

As we get to Henry’s school, we see Mary Margaret who is Henry’s teacher again. We learn a little bit about Henry in this scene, how he lost his smile. Also Emma gets a Hint of what Henry was taking about with the residents being unable to remember their pasts clearly; Mary Margaret cannot remember anyone else being Mayor of Storybrooke.

As Emma and Mary Margaret talk, Emma asks who Henry thinks Mary Margaret is. It is a point in the story, and it changes the relationship between them, for Henry thinks Mary Margaret is Snow White, Emma’s Mother.

The next scene, we get to meet Henry’s Shrink; Doctor Hopper

He tells us about how he thinks Henry’s using the Book to help deal with the world. He also tells us that even though Henry has only had the Book a month, the Mayor has been sending him to see the doctor long before then. Dr Hopper then gives Emma Henry’s File.

This kind of confused this writer, but she thought the doctor might have been giving it to Emma in good faith. Turns out, not really. Hopper then warns Emma not to damage Henry’s imagination, nor to mention ‘Crazy’ in front of him.

Knowing that the Mayor put Dr Hopper up to it and that she is framing Emma, the Sheriff arrives to arrest her at Granny’s Inn. In a move to try and alienate Henry from Emma, the Mayor tells him that she got arrested and is trying to take advantage of them. Henry confronts the Mayor on the lie and again she tries to convince Henry that everything she is trying to do is for him, and that she loves him.

In the next scene we see Emma getting her Mug shots taken, again. We hear about the frame up and how the the Mayor has her hands in everything.

Henry and Mary Margaret show up to bail Emma out of Jail, and Henry tells Emma that it was an awesome idea to “gather Intel” for Operation Cobra. Emma asks Mary Margaret why she is bailing her out and she replies “I trust You” Sinister smile in tow, Emma asks the sheriff to uncuff her, she has something to do.

The next scene is awesome, who hasn’t wanted to take a Chainsaw to someones prized Apple Tree as revenge? It also is another Power scene, with Emma coming out the Victor. The anger on the mayor’s face is huge.

Back in the Fairy tale realm, the Evil queen stands on the cliff where earlier we saw her Curse fail. The Butler walking up behind her. tells the queen that maybe, to make the Curse work, she needs to go to the person who gave it to her, which turns out to be Rumpelstiltskin which leads this writer to believe that he is stronger than he leads everyone to believe.

Rumpelstiltskin tells the queen about the curse, and that Snow White and Prince Charming came to see him about it. The way Robert Carlyle plays Rumpelstiltskin, very scene he is in he steals it!

The queen asks how she can make the Curse work, but Rumpelstiltskin asks for a price: Anything he asks of her she has to do, if he says Please. After she agrees, she tells her that she needs to Sacrifice a Heart. Telling him that she has already sacrificed her prized Horse, Rumpelstiltskin runs up and grabs the queen, telling her this is the curse to end all curses, she has to sacrifice some much more precious. The way Robert C acted in this scene, perfect for the character! He is such a great actor!

Rumpelstiltskin tells the queen that she has to sacrifice the Heart of the thing she loves the Most. The queen replies with a piece of information that intrigues this writer, and the viewer. Rumpy reminds her that there must be someone else who she loves just as dearly?

“You know what you Love, now go kill it” She loves Robert Carlyle, has this writer told you this?

Insert the obvious commercial break, and we are back in Storybrooke!

We see Emma opening her Inn room Door and hear Granny come up behind her, it turns out that the Mayor has made another move against her and reminded Granny about her “No felons” policy. While the Mayor is picking up her Apples, the sheriff tells her that if she keeps escalating matters with Emma, the only person who is going to get hurt is Henry. After hearing this, she rings Emma to invite her to her Office to make peace, while making a little snark remake about the fact that her car has been clamped.

This scene is so mean towards Emma. The Mayor, knowing that Henry comes to her Office once a week for dinner before his sessions with Dr Hopper, manipulates Emma in to calling him ‘Crazy’ while Henry stands behind listening. Emma calls her Soulless, and this writer is sure may viewers agree.

Back in the Fairy tale realm, we see the Queen walking quickly down a long corridor with The Mirror traveling through Mirrors asking her how the inquiry went. She doesn’t answer, letting the viewers know that the choice of having to kill something she loves above all else is a very hard one, even for the Evil.

She walks into where the Butler is lighting Candles and he asks her how it went. She tells him and we finally find out his relationship to the Queen; He is her Father.

The way she asks him what she should do, its like a little girl who has done something wrong, but doesn’t know who to fix it.

She tries to justify it to him, as if asking for his blessing. He tries to tell her that there is another way, she should forget about what Snow White did to her and start over.

“If the Price is a hole that will never be filled, Why do it?”

She just wants to be happy, that’s all. In tears, she hugs her father, but all is not right with this picture. She pulls away, admits she can be happy, but not in this realm. She then stabs her Father, killing the thing she loves the most. “I’m Sorry” whispers across her lips as a tear rolls down her cheek.

The next scene has us back in Storybrooke, at Mary Margaret’s apartment. And we see that she does Cross-stitch. This is awesome, as it adds to her character. Opening the door, she sees Emma. She has come to return the Bail money and to say thank you for helping her. Also, it turns out, she needs to talk to someone. The next shot shows that Mary Margaret also likes Cinnamon on her Chocolate. Interesting. Emma and Mary Margaret talk and we find out that Mary has the feeling that she knows Emma, leading the viewers to believe that somethings leak through the veil the Curse has put on the Town.

Emma wants to leave, for Henry’s sake. She feels like if she stays, the Mayor will keep moving against her and it will just make Henry worse. Mary Margaret thinks that the fact that she wants to leave is the reason she should stay. She wonders who will protect Henry if Emma will not?

The next scene we are back at Dr Hopper’s with Henry holding his “good luck charm” aka his Umbrella. Emma comes barging in, the last pages from the book in tow. She tells Henry that it was all apart of Operation Cobra, she was telling the Mayor what she needed to hear to put her off the trail. Emma tells Henry that the only way to keep the Book pages away from the Mayor is to burn them. Henry runs to hug her. You can see that Emma is not prepared for it and pauses before hugging him back.

“I knew you were here to Help me” Henry says into Emma’s stomach. This is so sweet, it makes the viewers feel like they are bonding like mother and son.

Back to the fairy tale realm we go, and this time we see the Evil queen in the costume we saw her in when she arrived at the Castle in the last episode. She is again on the Cliff where her first attempt at this Curse failed, but this time she has her Father’s Heart. The heart of the person she loves the most.

After finally letting the Curse loose on the realm, she walks across the cliff towards a tombstone, and places a Black Rose before it and says: “I love you Daddy” The audience then sees where she got the name Henry from. This is another instance where this writer believes that the Mayor knows who she is.

Skipping out of Dr Hopper’s office and smiling at each other like they know something everyone else doe s not, we see Henry and Emma walking down the man street of Storybrooke.

Cut to the Mayor (Regina) tending to her Tree that Emma skillfully attacked with a chainsaw earlier. Coming through an archway in her garden we see Mr. Gold appear. This writer wonders why he walks with a Cane, but I am sure the writers of the show will explain that later on; at least that’s what this writer hopes.

The Mayor seems to be happy, even after her tree was attacked. She thinks that her actions have made Emma leave town. Too bad that isn’t true.

Mr. Gold tells her that he just saw Emma and Henry strolling down the street “Thick as the thieves” He then gets his “Rumpy-On” and offers her help, for a Price. The mayor tells Gold that she is through making deals with him. Mr. Gold then hints that the Mayor has made more than one deal with him, another instance where this writer thinks the Mayor know how she is. Mr. Gold may even know the truth, this writer is not sure.

The way that Mr. Gold complements names, kind of creeps this writer out. He sounds like a hungry animal, licking his lips at the sound of food being made in front of him..

The two mention about Henry and how Gold was the one that found the boy for the Mayor. Gold asks how the mayor came about the name Henry…another reason why this writer thinks these two know the truth. The Mayor asks Gold where he got the Boy, accusing him that he wanted this whole thing to happen. Confronting him as he turns away, thinking that he knows who Emma Swan is, we get to see something interesting.

Mr.Gold asks her to move, she does not. Not until he says Please. Damn these reason for thinking that these two know the truth! They keep popping up!

This episode was great, though it did take along time for this writer to review it, if you follow me on Twitter you will know. It shows the story leading up to the Curse through the Evil Queen’s eyes. It also shows other Evil characters, which is awesome really, it paths the way for others, not just Maleficent.

The way the writers wrote the Evil Queen, how she wasn’t EVIL Evil, she just wanted to be Happy after having her life ripped away from her.
So far, as you’ll all agree, this series is great! Great writing, great effects and costumes. All in all, this writer secretly hopes for a second season, and hope you all do as well!

This writer can not wait to review the next episode when we learn how Snow White and Prince Charming met and what Regina is planning!

Thanks to Kenn for staging the images and video in my analysis and to you for reading my review of Once Upon A Time whiles  visiting our teams new dedicate sites at WormholeRiders News Agency!

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Warm Regards,

Jackie Chapman