Once Upon a Time: Season Two, an Overview (Part 1)
In honor of season three of Once Upon a Time starting on September 29th (for 11 whole weeks!), I thought I would discuss the hot mess that was season two. Why was it such a hot mess? Oh, dear. It was a mess of characters acting out of character, back sliding for no reason, plot holes, story lines that were started and forgotten, underused characters, overused guest characters, badly written characters and plots, and writers rewriting history and character motivations every five episodes or so.
Below you will find the episode titles and what of importance - if anything of importance - happens in the episode. They are listed as:
Watch It - you should watch it because it actually moves plots forward or because it is just a good and solid episode.
Fast Forward It - watch it for your favorite characters or because there is a cool scene here or there or there are bits that move the plot forward.
Skip It - you never need to watch it. It adds nothing.
Watch It, But Be Prepared - you probably should watch it because of story. However, it's not a great episode and is probably full of holes.
First - an overview of the season via the fine folks at Wikipedia: Following the curse being broken by Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison), the purple smoke that brought magic to Storybrooke by Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle), clears and the residents reunite as their fairytale selves. In the fairytale world, Princess Aurora (Sarah Bolger) is awakened by her betrothed Prince Phillip (Julian Morris), but Phillip and his warrior companion Mulan (Jamie Chung) must face the deadly wraith. Emma, Snow White/Mary Margaret (Ginnifer Goodwin) , and Prince Charming/David (Josh Dallas) try to stop the wraith from taking Regina's soul. However, Emma and Mary Margaret are sent through the Mad Hatter's hat and are transported to part of the fairytale land whose inhabitants were spared from the curse. The two later form a bond with Aurora and Mulan, who agree to assist them in finding a way back to Storybrooke. On their journey, they meet Cora (Barbara Hershey), the mother of The Evil Queen/Regina (Lana Parrilla). She forms an alliance with Captain Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) to also find a way to travel to Storybrooke.
In Storybrooke meanwhile, Regina promises to not use magic to become a better person to her adopted son, Henry Mills (Jared S. Gilmore). David becomes the town's sheriff, whilst simultaneously trying to find a way to be reunited with Snow and Emma. He eventually puts himself under a sleeping curse to communicate with Mary Margaret in her dreams. He is later awoken by true love's kiss when Mary Margaret and Emma return from the Enchanted Forest through a magical portal. However, Cora and Hook follow them and successfully arrive in Storybrooke in an effort to ruin Regina's life, and to kill Rumplestiltskin. Cora imitates Regina to frame her for Dr. Archie Hopper (Raphael Sbarge)'s false murder. After being outcast by the town's people, Regina meets with her mother again and together, they plan to get Henry back.
Emma's backstory growing up is revealed, presenting her as a teenage criminal who begins a relationship with fellow law-breaker Neal Cassidy (Michael Raymond-James). The two plan to flee to Tallahassee, though Neal is later persuaded by August Booth (Eion Bailey) to turn Emma into the police to protect Emma's destiny as the savior of Storybrooke. Emma later gives birth to their presumed son Henry in prison.
After Cora gives Mr. Gold an enchanted globe that reveals his son Baelfire is in Manhattan, he enlists Emma and Henry to accompany him on his mission. When Emma finds him however, she finds that he is actually Neal, Henry's father. He bonds with Henry and reluctantly reunites with his father when Captain Hook stabs Mr. Gold with his poisoned hook. The group travel back to Storybrooke to find a cure for Gold. Meanwhile, Mary Margaret vows to kill Cora after it is revealed that she killed her mother when Snow was a child. Regina and Cora obtain The Dark One's dagger in attempt to kill their enemies through the use of Rumplestiltskin, to leave Regina innocent in Henry's eyes. As the two attempt to get to Mr. Gold who returns to Storybrooke, Mary Margaret finds that the only way to save him is to kill Cora by burning the very same candle that Cora used to poison her mother. In a moment of weakness, Mary Margaret tricks Regina into restoring Cora's heart, killing her. Mary Margaret finds it hard to deal with what she has done and begs for Regina to kill her. Instead, Regina rips her heart out and shows her that it is blackening, before re-inserting it.
The seven dwarves learn that if someone steps out of Storybrooke they lose their entire memory of who they actually are. Mr. Gold later finds a spell that allows him to cross the line, but when Belle sees him off, Hook shoots her making her cross the border and forget her memories. Before Mr. Gold can retaliate, a car from outside Storybrooke crashes into Hook. The driver is later revealed to be Greg Mendell, an older version of Owen Flynn, a boy Regina befriended at the very beginning of the curse in 1983. He was split from his father after Regina had him arrested, after he realized the magic within the town. Greg communicates with an unknown female, later shown to be Tamara, Neal's fiancée. She is invited to Storybrooke by Neal, though in a secret relationship with Greg. She mortally wounds August, though he is later restored to a boy puppet Pinocchio.
The backstory of Baelfire (Rumplestiltskin's son) after his father abandons him to travel through a portal alone is also revealed. A young Baelfire finds himself back in 19th century London and is taken in by the Darling family befriending their daughter Wendy. He protects the family by sacrificing himself to be taken by a mysterious being The Shadow to Neverland. After Bae escapes, Captain Hook welcomes him aboard the Jolly Roger and forms a bond with him learning that he is Rumplestilskin's son. However, after Bae finds out that Hook split apart his family, Hook gives him to the Lost Boys, who pass him onto an unwanted collection of other boys. The wanted boy in the picture is in fact Henry.
With the aid of Hook, Regina attempts to put a plan in motion that will help transport herself and Henry back to the Enchanted Forest. Her plan revolves around a fail-safe that was planted within the curse, which if triggered could wipe Storybrooke off the map and kill all of its inhabitants. Regina tricks Hook, though it is revealed that Hook was double-crossing her in collaboration with Greg and Tamara, the latter two kidnap her. Against Neal's protests, Emma believes that Tamara had something to do with Regina's disappearance. She is later proven to be correct when Mary Margaret and David find Regina being tortured by the pair. Tamara then shoots Neal, sending him through a portal to the remaining part of the Enchanted Forest, after revealing to Emma that he still loves her. Greg and Tamara begin the trigger to destroy the town, though it is stopped by Regina and Emma. However, Greg and Tamara then kidnap Henry and take him to Neverland. Emma, Mary Margaret, David, Regina and Mr. Gold join Hook on his ship with his magic bean to follow them to Neverland and save Henry.
Cast: (check out how little they used some of these talented folks:)
Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White/Mary Margaret Blanchard (21 episodes)
Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan (21 episodes)
Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills (22 episodes)
Lana Parrilla as The Evil Queen/Regina Mills (20 episodes)
Josh Dallas as Prince Charming/David Nolan (22 episodes)
Emilie de Ravin as Belle/Lacey (15 episodes)
Colin O'Donoghue as Captain Killian "Captain Hook" Jones (15 episodes)[6]
Meghan Ory as Red Riding Hood/Ruby (12 episodes)
Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold (19 episodes)
Michael Raymond-James as Baelfire/Neal Cassidy (11 episodes)
Barbara Hershey as Cora/Queen of Hearts (10 episodes)
Jamie Chung as Mulan (10 episodes)
Sarah Bolger as Princess Aurora (9 episodes)
Beverley Elliott as Widow Lucas/Granny (10 episodes)
Lee Arenberg as Grumpy/Leroy (12 episodes)
David Anders as Dr. Victor Frankenstein/Dr. Whale (5 episodes)
Ethan Embry as Owen Flynn/Greg Mendell (10 episodes)
Sonequa Martin-Green as Tamara (6 episodes)
Raphael Sbarge as Jiminy Cricket/Dr. Archie Hopper (7 episodes)
Keegan Connor Tracy as The Blue Fairy/Mother Superior (8 episodes)
Sebastian Stan as The Mad Hatter/Jefferson (3 episodes)
Jorge Garcia as Anton (3 episodes)
Episodes:
01. "Broken" - We start off where we left off. Reunions all around and it is discovered that Regina can't use magic. Rumple sends a wraith after Regina. Emma saves Regina, only for her and MM to be forced through the portal of the Mad Hatter's hat. Meanwhile, we get "flashbacks" of Prince Phillip and Mulan awakening Aurora in the fairy tale forest. We learn that part of the land was protected from the Curse - they were frozen in time until Emma started the ball rolling way back in the Pilot. Watch It: It really gets you excited for the season and introduces us to the best new characters of S2: Mulan, Phillip, and Aurora.
02. "We Are Both" - Regina goes to Mr. Gold to get her magic back. She does and than realizes that she can't use magic to make Henry want to stay with her. She leaves him in Charming's care (which the Charmings will use for the rest of the season. Legally his mom? Who cares!) Mary Margaret and Emma who are held captive by Aurora and Mulan, as they believe they killed Prince Phillip. The seven dwarves learn that if someone steps out of Storybrooke they lose their entire memory of who they actually are. Meanwhile, we learn from flashbacks that Regina called on Rumplestiltskin to show her how to free herself from her mother's controlling nature.She pushed Cora into a mirror to a land unknown (It's Wonderland). Her driving plot is than changed: "killing" Cora is something she loved and she wants to learn more about magic from Rumplestiltskin. Watch It - there are some great moments and the start of a bromance between Charming and Red. Sadly, the bromance doesn't last. I would honestly say this is the last episode where you can see hints of all the cool stuff they originally had planned for the season.
03. "Lady of the Lake" - Sir Lancelot is cool. The flashbacks are pointless. Lancelot has actually been dead for years and Cora has been impersonating him. Jefferson is reunited with his daughter, and isn't seen again - unless in flashback. The wardrobe that sent Emma to our world is destroyed, but Cora plans to use parts of it to reunite with Regina. Skip It - it's a slow episode with pointless flashbacks, a lackluster Storybrooke story, and that's it.
04. "The Crocodile" - In Storybrooke, Belle tells Rumple to stop with the magic or risk losing her. She wanders town and finds the library and befriends Red. She gets kidnapped by her father, who is shocked to find out that she loves Rumple. Red, Gold, and Charming go looking for Belle. They find out that Belle has been sent to the mines, to go over the town line and lose her memories of the Enchanted Forest. Belle is saved by Rumple (thanks to magic), though she tells him they need a break. Rumple gifts her the town library. We learn in flashbacks that Milah left Rumple and Bae for Hook. Milah meets Rumple years later and when asked why she left him - left her son - she says she never loved Rumple. Hook and Rumple fight, and Rumple does dark (way too dark, honestly) by cutting off one of Hook's hand and than kills Milah by taking her heart. Watch It - It does give important back story. And it was great to see more of Belle and explore some of her relationships. Plus, some cool parallels between Milah and Belle - a recurring theme
05. "The Doctor" - Regina starts therapy with Archie (A story line that more or less gets dropped after this episode.) in order to try and figure out how she can get back into Henry's good graces. Later that night, Regina sees her old fiancee, Daniel, while driving home. She goes to Dr. Whale, whom she finds attacked. Dr. Whale confesses that he has done his experiments and has brought Daniel back from the dead, but he is a monster. In a filler storyline, Charming decides to teach Henry to ride horses. Over Daniel nearly hurts Henry, Regina removes "kills" Daniel. In flashbacks we get yet another reason for Regina going evil - she had planned to use magic to bring Daniel back, but when it failed (and Dr. Whale "failed"), she went evil. (Like she went evil after she found out Snow told Cora about Daniel and when she went evil after finding out "killing" Cora gave her a cheap thrill.) Meanwhile, in the Enchanted Forest, the ladies find Hook. He explains Cora's plan and tells them about a compass that could help. A compass up a beanstalk. Watch It, But Be Prepared/Fast Forward - This is one of those episodes that tries to let us know what drove Regina to becoming the Evil Queen. The show just cannot come up with a reason for this woman to go after Snow for 28+ years. So, they keep trying to write how she was a magic addict or manipulated by a bunch of men or Cora or. . .something.
06. "Tallahassee" - Emma and Hook climb the beanstalk. Hook flirts a lot and starts on his road to cross betrayals and generally being sleezy. The giant, Anton, turns out to be okay and the last of his kind. He gives Emma the compass. Meanwhile, we found out how Emma met and fell in love with Neal Cassidy aka Bae. They decide to settle down in Tallahassee. But, before they can Neal thinks they need to fence some old watches that he stole. Later, August shows up (boo!) and convinces Neal to leave Emma, so she can go break the Curse. In jail, Emma finds out she is carrying Neal's child - the boy who will become Henry. Fast Forward It - The Flashbacks are amazing, but the Enchanted Forest stuff isn't.
07. "Child of the Moon" - Leroy/Grumpy finds diamonds in the mines, which can be used to make fairy dust. Because of the wolf issue, Granny has locked Red in the freezer, but it turns out she escaped during the night. David and Granny go in search of Red and they find someone murdered. Spencer aka King George (who you won't see again for the rest of the season, so his whole story line of wanting revenge on Charming is forgotten and framing Red was pointless) threatens Charming, and demands that Red be punished for the murders.However, it turns out Spencer has been murdering people to frame Red. Spencer throws Jefferson's hat into a fire - making it impossible for MM and Emma to return home. In pointless flashbacks, Red meets her mother and it's all pointless and dumb. In the Enchanted Forest, Aurora awakes from a nightmare, having seen Henry. She tells Mary Margaret and Emma about it being Henry. Skip It - the stuff in Storybrooke is pointless, because it never goes anywhere after this. The flashbacks are horrible. The only important thing is that, since they were both under a sleeping curse, Henry and Aurora can see one another in their dreams. Honestly, this was the WORST episode of season two.
08. "Into the Deep" - Cora finds Hook and decides not to take him with her. Which means he won't get his revenge on "the crocodile" that took his hand and his co-called true love. Charming decides that the firey room is too dangerous, so he'll go in Henry's place to meet Aurora and ask her about MM and Emma, etc. Cora kidnaps Aurora, which means MM has to go into the firey room in Aurora's place. The ladies find out that the way to defeat Cora is hidden in Rumple's old cell. Because he wants Emma to trust him, Hook sets Aurora free, only for him to take Aurora's heart to convince Cora to take him to Storybrooke when she goes. Cora uses Aurora's heart to trick the ladies into believing that Aurora's fine and to find out where they are going. David gets stuck in the Netherworld when Snow isn't able to kiss him to break the curse. Watch It, But Be Prepared/Fast Forward - Hook starts his trend of betraying someone at least once an episode. The Snowing reunion is nice, but really not important. Poor Aurora - at least she is badass and we learn Prince Phillip may be able to be brought back. That is more or less it.
09. "Queen of Hearts" - In flashbacks, we learn that Regina sent Hook to Wonderland to bring Cora back, who was the Queen of Hearts, to have her killed. When Hook brings back a "dead" Cora, Regina is upset and says that love is weakness. Cora is now the only person Regina loves, and she cannot bring that weakness to the new land. Cora and Hook are kept save via a spell that freezes the lands that Aurora's kingdom is in. In Storybrooke, Regina and Rumple decide to destroy anyone who comes through the portal in the forest, even if it is the good guys. In the Enchanted Forest, Mulan gets Aurora's heart back and the two set off to retrieve Prince Phillip's soul. Meanwhile, MM and Emma fight Cora and Hook as a portal to Storybrooke opens. Cora tries to take MM's heart, but Emma stops her. We learn that love isn't weakness, it's strength, as Cora cannot take Emma's heart and she actually defeats Cora with her own brand of "baby of true love" magic. Regina stops the portal from destroying the people coming through, just in time for Emma and MM to come through it. MM breaks Prince Charmings' curse. Cora and Hook arrive in Storybrooke after the regenerative waters get the bean to work again. Fast Forward - There is some important stuff, what with Emma and MM returning home. Regina using her magic for good and use learning that love can defeat "bad magic". And Aurora getting her heart back;she and Mulan off to save Phillip. But. . .the flashbacks are just explaining how everything stayed frozen and Cora got back and why Cora and Hook are working together. That could have been said in dialogue. Fast forward the flashbacks and the Storybrooke stuff. Maybe watch the Enchanted Forest stuff, if that story interested you.
There you have it. These were the first nine episodes of season two. The episodes that I foolishly thought were setting up for big and impressive stories in the later part of the season. Episode nine aired on December 2, 2012, and we than had a month break before episode ten. I remember being excited for what was to come and being utterly let down by the rest of the season.
Later this week (or early next week) I'll give my thoughts on episodes ten - sixteen.
Below you will find the episode titles and what of importance - if anything of importance - happens in the episode. They are listed as:
Watch It - you should watch it because it actually moves plots forward or because it is just a good and solid episode.
Fast Forward It - watch it for your favorite characters or because there is a cool scene here or there or there are bits that move the plot forward.
Skip It - you never need to watch it. It adds nothing.
Watch It, But Be Prepared - you probably should watch it because of story. However, it's not a great episode and is probably full of holes.
First - an overview of the season via the fine folks at Wikipedia: Following the curse being broken by Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison), the purple smoke that brought magic to Storybrooke by Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle), clears and the residents reunite as their fairytale selves. In the fairytale world, Princess Aurora (Sarah Bolger) is awakened by her betrothed Prince Phillip (Julian Morris), but Phillip and his warrior companion Mulan (Jamie Chung) must face the deadly wraith. Emma, Snow White/Mary Margaret (Ginnifer Goodwin) , and Prince Charming/David (Josh Dallas) try to stop the wraith from taking Regina's soul. However, Emma and Mary Margaret are sent through the Mad Hatter's hat and are transported to part of the fairytale land whose inhabitants were spared from the curse. The two later form a bond with Aurora and Mulan, who agree to assist them in finding a way back to Storybrooke. On their journey, they meet Cora (Barbara Hershey), the mother of The Evil Queen/Regina (Lana Parrilla). She forms an alliance with Captain Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) to also find a way to travel to Storybrooke.
In Storybrooke meanwhile, Regina promises to not use magic to become a better person to her adopted son, Henry Mills (Jared S. Gilmore). David becomes the town's sheriff, whilst simultaneously trying to find a way to be reunited with Snow and Emma. He eventually puts himself under a sleeping curse to communicate with Mary Margaret in her dreams. He is later awoken by true love's kiss when Mary Margaret and Emma return from the Enchanted Forest through a magical portal. However, Cora and Hook follow them and successfully arrive in Storybrooke in an effort to ruin Regina's life, and to kill Rumplestiltskin. Cora imitates Regina to frame her for Dr. Archie Hopper (Raphael Sbarge)'s false murder. After being outcast by the town's people, Regina meets with her mother again and together, they plan to get Henry back.
Emma's backstory growing up is revealed, presenting her as a teenage criminal who begins a relationship with fellow law-breaker Neal Cassidy (Michael Raymond-James). The two plan to flee to Tallahassee, though Neal is later persuaded by August Booth (Eion Bailey) to turn Emma into the police to protect Emma's destiny as the savior of Storybrooke. Emma later gives birth to their presumed son Henry in prison.
After Cora gives Mr. Gold an enchanted globe that reveals his son Baelfire is in Manhattan, he enlists Emma and Henry to accompany him on his mission. When Emma finds him however, she finds that he is actually Neal, Henry's father. He bonds with Henry and reluctantly reunites with his father when Captain Hook stabs Mr. Gold with his poisoned hook. The group travel back to Storybrooke to find a cure for Gold. Meanwhile, Mary Margaret vows to kill Cora after it is revealed that she killed her mother when Snow was a child. Regina and Cora obtain The Dark One's dagger in attempt to kill their enemies through the use of Rumplestiltskin, to leave Regina innocent in Henry's eyes. As the two attempt to get to Mr. Gold who returns to Storybrooke, Mary Margaret finds that the only way to save him is to kill Cora by burning the very same candle that Cora used to poison her mother. In a moment of weakness, Mary Margaret tricks Regina into restoring Cora's heart, killing her. Mary Margaret finds it hard to deal with what she has done and begs for Regina to kill her. Instead, Regina rips her heart out and shows her that it is blackening, before re-inserting it.
The seven dwarves learn that if someone steps out of Storybrooke they lose their entire memory of who they actually are. Mr. Gold later finds a spell that allows him to cross the line, but when Belle sees him off, Hook shoots her making her cross the border and forget her memories. Before Mr. Gold can retaliate, a car from outside Storybrooke crashes into Hook. The driver is later revealed to be Greg Mendell, an older version of Owen Flynn, a boy Regina befriended at the very beginning of the curse in 1983. He was split from his father after Regina had him arrested, after he realized the magic within the town. Greg communicates with an unknown female, later shown to be Tamara, Neal's fiancée. She is invited to Storybrooke by Neal, though in a secret relationship with Greg. She mortally wounds August, though he is later restored to a boy puppet Pinocchio.
The backstory of Baelfire (Rumplestiltskin's son) after his father abandons him to travel through a portal alone is also revealed. A young Baelfire finds himself back in 19th century London and is taken in by the Darling family befriending their daughter Wendy. He protects the family by sacrificing himself to be taken by a mysterious being The Shadow to Neverland. After Bae escapes, Captain Hook welcomes him aboard the Jolly Roger and forms a bond with him learning that he is Rumplestilskin's son. However, after Bae finds out that Hook split apart his family, Hook gives him to the Lost Boys, who pass him onto an unwanted collection of other boys. The wanted boy in the picture is in fact Henry.
With the aid of Hook, Regina attempts to put a plan in motion that will help transport herself and Henry back to the Enchanted Forest. Her plan revolves around a fail-safe that was planted within the curse, which if triggered could wipe Storybrooke off the map and kill all of its inhabitants. Regina tricks Hook, though it is revealed that Hook was double-crossing her in collaboration with Greg and Tamara, the latter two kidnap her. Against Neal's protests, Emma believes that Tamara had something to do with Regina's disappearance. She is later proven to be correct when Mary Margaret and David find Regina being tortured by the pair. Tamara then shoots Neal, sending him through a portal to the remaining part of the Enchanted Forest, after revealing to Emma that he still loves her. Greg and Tamara begin the trigger to destroy the town, though it is stopped by Regina and Emma. However, Greg and Tamara then kidnap Henry and take him to Neverland. Emma, Mary Margaret, David, Regina and Mr. Gold join Hook on his ship with his magic bean to follow them to Neverland and save Henry.
Cast: (check out how little they used some of these talented folks:)
Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White/Mary Margaret Blanchard (21 episodes)
Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan (21 episodes)
Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills (22 episodes)
Lana Parrilla as The Evil Queen/Regina Mills (20 episodes)
Josh Dallas as Prince Charming/David Nolan (22 episodes)
Emilie de Ravin as Belle/Lacey (15 episodes)
Colin O'Donoghue as Captain Killian "Captain Hook" Jones (15 episodes)[6]
Meghan Ory as Red Riding Hood/Ruby (12 episodes)
Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold (19 episodes)
Michael Raymond-James as Baelfire/Neal Cassidy (11 episodes)
Barbara Hershey as Cora/Queen of Hearts (10 episodes)
Jamie Chung as Mulan (10 episodes)
Sarah Bolger as Princess Aurora (9 episodes)
Beverley Elliott as Widow Lucas/Granny (10 episodes)
Lee Arenberg as Grumpy/Leroy (12 episodes)
David Anders as Dr. Victor Frankenstein/Dr. Whale (5 episodes)
Ethan Embry as Owen Flynn/Greg Mendell (10 episodes)
Sonequa Martin-Green as Tamara (6 episodes)
Raphael Sbarge as Jiminy Cricket/Dr. Archie Hopper (7 episodes)
Keegan Connor Tracy as The Blue Fairy/Mother Superior (8 episodes)
Sebastian Stan as The Mad Hatter/Jefferson (3 episodes)
Jorge Garcia as Anton (3 episodes)
Episodes:
01. "Broken" - We start off where we left off. Reunions all around and it is discovered that Regina can't use magic. Rumple sends a wraith after Regina. Emma saves Regina, only for her and MM to be forced through the portal of the Mad Hatter's hat. Meanwhile, we get "flashbacks" of Prince Phillip and Mulan awakening Aurora in the fairy tale forest. We learn that part of the land was protected from the Curse - they were frozen in time until Emma started the ball rolling way back in the Pilot. Watch It: It really gets you excited for the season and introduces us to the best new characters of S2: Mulan, Phillip, and Aurora.
02. "We Are Both" - Regina goes to Mr. Gold to get her magic back. She does and than realizes that she can't use magic to make Henry want to stay with her. She leaves him in Charming's care (which the Charmings will use for the rest of the season. Legally his mom? Who cares!) Mary Margaret and Emma who are held captive by Aurora and Mulan, as they believe they killed Prince Phillip. The seven dwarves learn that if someone steps out of Storybrooke they lose their entire memory of who they actually are. Meanwhile, we learn from flashbacks that Regina called on Rumplestiltskin to show her how to free herself from her mother's controlling nature.She pushed Cora into a mirror to a land unknown (It's Wonderland). Her driving plot is than changed: "killing" Cora is something she loved and she wants to learn more about magic from Rumplestiltskin. Watch It - there are some great moments and the start of a bromance between Charming and Red. Sadly, the bromance doesn't last. I would honestly say this is the last episode where you can see hints of all the cool stuff they originally had planned for the season.
03. "Lady of the Lake" - Sir Lancelot is cool. The flashbacks are pointless. Lancelot has actually been dead for years and Cora has been impersonating him. Jefferson is reunited with his daughter, and isn't seen again - unless in flashback. The wardrobe that sent Emma to our world is destroyed, but Cora plans to use parts of it to reunite with Regina. Skip It - it's a slow episode with pointless flashbacks, a lackluster Storybrooke story, and that's it.
04. "The Crocodile" - In Storybrooke, Belle tells Rumple to stop with the magic or risk losing her. She wanders town and finds the library and befriends Red. She gets kidnapped by her father, who is shocked to find out that she loves Rumple. Red, Gold, and Charming go looking for Belle. They find out that Belle has been sent to the mines, to go over the town line and lose her memories of the Enchanted Forest. Belle is saved by Rumple (thanks to magic), though she tells him they need a break. Rumple gifts her the town library. We learn in flashbacks that Milah left Rumple and Bae for Hook. Milah meets Rumple years later and when asked why she left him - left her son - she says she never loved Rumple. Hook and Rumple fight, and Rumple does dark (way too dark, honestly) by cutting off one of Hook's hand and than kills Milah by taking her heart. Watch It - It does give important back story. And it was great to see more of Belle and explore some of her relationships. Plus, some cool parallels between Milah and Belle - a recurring theme
05. "The Doctor" - Regina starts therapy with Archie (A story line that more or less gets dropped after this episode.) in order to try and figure out how she can get back into Henry's good graces. Later that night, Regina sees her old fiancee, Daniel, while driving home. She goes to Dr. Whale, whom she finds attacked. Dr. Whale confesses that he has done his experiments and has brought Daniel back from the dead, but he is a monster. In a filler storyline, Charming decides to teach Henry to ride horses. Over Daniel nearly hurts Henry, Regina removes "kills" Daniel. In flashbacks we get yet another reason for Regina going evil - she had planned to use magic to bring Daniel back, but when it failed (and Dr. Whale "failed"), she went evil. (Like she went evil after she found out Snow told Cora about Daniel and when she went evil after finding out "killing" Cora gave her a cheap thrill.) Meanwhile, in the Enchanted Forest, the ladies find Hook. He explains Cora's plan and tells them about a compass that could help. A compass up a beanstalk. Watch It, But Be Prepared/Fast Forward - This is one of those episodes that tries to let us know what drove Regina to becoming the Evil Queen. The show just cannot come up with a reason for this woman to go after Snow for 28+ years. So, they keep trying to write how she was a magic addict or manipulated by a bunch of men or Cora or. . .something.
06. "Tallahassee" - Emma and Hook climb the beanstalk. Hook flirts a lot and starts on his road to cross betrayals and generally being sleezy. The giant, Anton, turns out to be okay and the last of his kind. He gives Emma the compass. Meanwhile, we found out how Emma met and fell in love with Neal Cassidy aka Bae. They decide to settle down in Tallahassee. But, before they can Neal thinks they need to fence some old watches that he stole. Later, August shows up (boo!) and convinces Neal to leave Emma, so she can go break the Curse. In jail, Emma finds out she is carrying Neal's child - the boy who will become Henry. Fast Forward It - The Flashbacks are amazing, but the Enchanted Forest stuff isn't.
07. "Child of the Moon" - Leroy/Grumpy finds diamonds in the mines, which can be used to make fairy dust. Because of the wolf issue, Granny has locked Red in the freezer, but it turns out she escaped during the night. David and Granny go in search of Red and they find someone murdered. Spencer aka King George (who you won't see again for the rest of the season, so his whole story line of wanting revenge on Charming is forgotten and framing Red was pointless) threatens Charming, and demands that Red be punished for the murders.However, it turns out Spencer has been murdering people to frame Red. Spencer throws Jefferson's hat into a fire - making it impossible for MM and Emma to return home. In pointless flashbacks, Red meets her mother and it's all pointless and dumb. In the Enchanted Forest, Aurora awakes from a nightmare, having seen Henry. She tells Mary Margaret and Emma about it being Henry. Skip It - the stuff in Storybrooke is pointless, because it never goes anywhere after this. The flashbacks are horrible. The only important thing is that, since they were both under a sleeping curse, Henry and Aurora can see one another in their dreams. Honestly, this was the WORST episode of season two.
08. "Into the Deep" - Cora finds Hook and decides not to take him with her. Which means he won't get his revenge on "the crocodile" that took his hand and his co-called true love. Charming decides that the firey room is too dangerous, so he'll go in Henry's place to meet Aurora and ask her about MM and Emma, etc. Cora kidnaps Aurora, which means MM has to go into the firey room in Aurora's place. The ladies find out that the way to defeat Cora is hidden in Rumple's old cell. Because he wants Emma to trust him, Hook sets Aurora free, only for him to take Aurora's heart to convince Cora to take him to Storybrooke when she goes. Cora uses Aurora's heart to trick the ladies into believing that Aurora's fine and to find out where they are going. David gets stuck in the Netherworld when Snow isn't able to kiss him to break the curse. Watch It, But Be Prepared/Fast Forward - Hook starts his trend of betraying someone at least once an episode. The Snowing reunion is nice, but really not important. Poor Aurora - at least she is badass and we learn Prince Phillip may be able to be brought back. That is more or less it.
09. "Queen of Hearts" - In flashbacks, we learn that Regina sent Hook to Wonderland to bring Cora back, who was the Queen of Hearts, to have her killed. When Hook brings back a "dead" Cora, Regina is upset and says that love is weakness. Cora is now the only person Regina loves, and she cannot bring that weakness to the new land. Cora and Hook are kept save via a spell that freezes the lands that Aurora's kingdom is in. In Storybrooke, Regina and Rumple decide to destroy anyone who comes through the portal in the forest, even if it is the good guys. In the Enchanted Forest, Mulan gets Aurora's heart back and the two set off to retrieve Prince Phillip's soul. Meanwhile, MM and Emma fight Cora and Hook as a portal to Storybrooke opens. Cora tries to take MM's heart, but Emma stops her. We learn that love isn't weakness, it's strength, as Cora cannot take Emma's heart and she actually defeats Cora with her own brand of "baby of true love" magic. Regina stops the portal from destroying the people coming through, just in time for Emma and MM to come through it. MM breaks Prince Charmings' curse. Cora and Hook arrive in Storybrooke after the regenerative waters get the bean to work again. Fast Forward - There is some important stuff, what with Emma and MM returning home. Regina using her magic for good and use learning that love can defeat "bad magic". And Aurora getting her heart back;she and Mulan off to save Phillip. But. . .the flashbacks are just explaining how everything stayed frozen and Cora got back and why Cora and Hook are working together. That could have been said in dialogue. Fast forward the flashbacks and the Storybrooke stuff. Maybe watch the Enchanted Forest stuff, if that story interested you.
There you have it. These were the first nine episodes of season two. The episodes that I foolishly thought were setting up for big and impressive stories in the later part of the season. Episode nine aired on December 2, 2012, and we than had a month break before episode ten. I remember being excited for what was to come and being utterly let down by the rest of the season.
Later this week (or early next week) I'll give my thoughts on episodes ten - sixteen.