Once Upon a Time 2-2: We Are Both

I love this show. Really, I feel the need to say this again. I LOVE THIS SHOW!!! And if you aren’t watching it, go catch up now. You really need to get into it.

Okay, okay, I’ve calmed down a little now. Maybe I can write a coherent recap that isn’t all babblings of a fan boy. Or I will at least try. No promises, okay?

Let’s start the recap with the Fairy Tale portion of our story. And I mean the Fairy Tale of old. In fact, we get an interesting piece of Regina’s back story.

We’d seen how Regina lost the love of her life and was forced to marry the king, Snow’s father, by Regina’s own mother. But how did she start to use magic? And how did she turn evil? All that in tonight’s Fairy Tale flashback.

Our first shot is of Regina fleeing on a horse. But she hasn’t gone too far when the branches of a tree reach out and snag her off the horse. Turns out that Cora, her mother, has enchanted them to make sure Regina doesn’t flee before the wedding. She still doesn’t want to go through with it, but no one will listen to her. Cora is still insisting this is the best thing for her, and Regina’s father just thinks it is cold feet.

In an interesting scene, Regina pictures chocking Snow because she couldn’t keep Regina’s secret. But it is all fantasy, and Regina is back to her normal, nice self.

But Regina’s dad slips up that Cora got all her magic from a book, only he can’t remember who Cora got the book from. That night, the night before her wedding, Regina goes and steals it. I’ll give you three guesses as to who owns the book, and the first two don’t count.

Back in her room, Regina summons Rumplestiltskin. Rumplestiltskin goes on about how he’s known Regina since she was a girl and how they will have much dealings together in the future. He gives her a gift, a portal that will send Cora to another land – a specific annoying little land. All Regina has to do is give her a little push. But Regina isn’t sure about it because she doesn’t want to become like Cora, and she sees Cora’s magic as one reason Cora is so mean.

But on the morning of her wedding, as Cora is blabbering on about how Regina can gain the power in the kingdom, Regina has enough. Sensing something is up, Cora binds Regina under a spell, but in anger, Regina breaks free enough to shove Cora into the portal, a magic mirror that immediately breaks after Cora goes through. And that’s what happened to Cora.

Meanwhile, Regina tries to return the book to Rumplestiltskin, but he tells her to keep it and he will teach her how to use magic. “Will I become like Cora?” “That depends on you.” I think we know the answer to that one.

So now, let’s hop over to Storybrooke. They actually start the episode with the seven dwarves getting the answer to a question that has been on my mind. Can the characters leave Storybrooke now? They draw straws, and Sneezy is the one chosen to cross the line. He does, and is held by some blue power that makes him convulse.

Next, we switch to downtown, which is trying to clean up from the wraith. And let me tell you, it’s a complete mess. Granny’s is closed so they can set up emergency relief and try to reunite loved ones. Speaking of which, Geppetto is desperately looking for Pinocchio. And we got a glimpse of Pinocchio. He’s still a wooden man, but his eyes did blink. So he’s alive, but not a real man.

Anyway, the dwarves arrive on the scene to relay their bad news. Everyone is indeed still trapped in the town. And if anyone tries to leave, they lose their memories of life before Storybrooke. Yep, Sneezy only remembers the life he’s been living for the past 28 years. That sets everyone off in a tizzy, and Charming is barely able to calm them down. He says he has a plan, and he will tell them about it in two hours.

The first part of his plan, however is to confront Regina. He demands to know if the hat can still create a portal now that it’s been destroyed. She says no, and she also claims to not remember where she got it.

Regina, meanwhile, is upset that her magic isn’t coming back, so she sets off to Mr. Gold’s shop to find her book. At first, he refuses to give it to her, but when Regina threatens to reveal a secret, suddenly he is able to conjure the book.

And the secret? The Enchanted Forest (maybe I should stop calling it Fairy Tale) is still there. It almost sounds like Mr. Gold is the reason they didn’t go back when the curse was broken.

When next we see Mr. Gold, he is packing some maps, obviously about to set off on a journey. My guess, he is going to search for his son. The entire reason he’s done everything he’s done for the last 40? 50? years, including manipulating Regina like he did, was to find his son. Okay, so that’s my theory, the episode did not say it. And how will Regina feel when she finds out she was used by him. (We’ll just have to see if any of this plays out like I think it will right now.)

Anyway, Charming shows up wanting a spell that will help him find the owner of the hat. He and Henry have identified it as having belonged to the Mad Hatter, but they don’t know who that might be in Storybrooke. (And that was a great scene because Charming only remembered it because of David’s memories.) He gets a spell from Mr. Gold that, if poured on the hat, will lead Charming to the owner. As payment, he and Mr. Gold have agreed to stay out of each other’s way.

Back in her garden, Regina opens the book, blows on it, and inhales the magic mist. As she sits there, the black apples on her tree begin to turn to red. Her magic is back.

Two hours are up, and Charming is late to his own meeting. As the citizens start to get restless, Regina shows up. After throwing a few of them around and catching Granny’s arrow and setting it on fire, she demands that Henry return home with her, something she makes sure will last by setting a spell on the house, including the magic branches that once held her prisoner. She says that Henry can have all the visitors he wants, but he says he doesn’t want any.

So where is Charming? He’s pouring the potion on the hat. And it takes off, leading him to Jefferson, he was trapped in his car when the wraith came through town. He claims to know nothing about how to get to other dimensions without the hat, but Charming doesn’t believe him. Jefferson takes off with Charming right behind him.

But then he is stopped by Red. Since Charming skipped the meeting, the citizens in the town have panicked, deciding it is better to forget the Enchanted Forest than be trapped by the curse and their memories of life before it. Charming and Red race to the edge of town, and Charming gives a speech about how it is better to have all their memories than to live a lie. Not only that, but he likes having his memories of David because it helps him remember who he is and who he doesn’t want to be. It was a very impressive speech, especially for someone who admits that speeches were more of Snow’s thing. The citizens agree because they turn around and head back to town.

And then Charming goes to confront Regina about Henry. But Regina has had a change of heart and tells Henry he is to go live with Charming. “I love you. It’s been a long time since I have loved anyone, but I do remember that trapping them is not how you earn love, and I want to earn your love.” That’s basically what she said. While Henry is getting his things, Charming asks for the truth from Regina and learns the Enchanted Forest is still there.

After they leave, Regina almost throws the magic book in the fire, but at the last minute, she puts it in a cabinet and locks the door.

Our last shot of Storybrooke is the town reopening and rebuilding, but some of the businesses are changing, like the new cobbler in town. The six dwarves are off to find some fairy dust, I’m assuming they are hoping this will return Sneezy’s memories of being Sneezy. Mr. Gold is last seen at the border of town very upset by still being trapped. And Henry whispers to Geppetto where his boy has been staying, but he arrives to find no one in the room. Obviously, Pinocchio has gotten up and left, so he’s at least recovered that much.

Wondering what is happening to Emma and Snow? They get the last scene of the episode. They are bound and dragged to the settlement by Mulan and Aurora. They try to escape, but Mulan throws a weapon at them that knocks out Snow. The two are thrown in “the hole,” which is really a prison. While Emma is trying to wake Snow up, we find out a third person is in the cell with them. I knew who it was, yet I still yelled when it was revealed. Yes, that third person is Cora.

So, questions. Boy do I have new questions. Just how long ago was it that Rumplestiltskin lost his son? If the boy is even still alive, how old is he now? I’m betting that wasn’t him we saw at the beginning of last week, but who knows.

Where did Cora go all those years ago? She hasn’t aged at all. If she really went to some other land, why is she back in the Enchanted Forest? Or are we really in the Enchanted Forest? Could we be in another land all together? That might explain Mulan, but Aurora is certainly a fairy tale character.

Will Sneezy get his memory back? I sure hope so.

What I loved about this was how it showed us Regina turning toward the dark side in the past while she tries to turn over a new leaf in the present. I actually felt sorry for her and liked her in those last few minutes. I seriously hope she is redeeming herself. I love to hate her, but she has always been a real enough character I could see her turning to goodness. I have a feeling she will be very weak and this won’t last long, but I can certainly hope.

Once again, there was a lot packed into that show. Were there important moments I missed? Theories we should be considering? Hit me up in the comments and we’ll discuss.