This one looks like it will be fun to timeline.
Likes:
–Emma so pretty. I swear she’s prettier now in Camelot than ever before.
–The twist with Arthur using the sand on Gwen and his kingdom. It was creepy as heck watching Gwen’s shift, and a twist I didn’t quite see coming.
–Snowing turning on Arthur unexpectedly. After screaming at them not to do all the things they were doing it was good to see that come out to be their working together after all.
–Violet actually having a tiny reason to exist besides being Henry’s crush? Maybe?
–More Dark One lore.
–Callbacks to the gauntlet of plot deviceyness at least makes it slightly less pointless.
–Callback to Snow’s unicorn vision. Can…can the Charmings get used twice to cast a curse and still manage to live through it? (I mean, Regina said they can outlive a cockroach…and she’s not far off.)
–Hook helping Emma escape her visions…it was really sweet.
–Rumple pleading with Emma…so good to have him back in any form. The real one, too, not the vision in her head.
–Yay Merida-Lancelot broship!
–Yay Merida gets to do stuff!
Dislikes:
–No Belle. Grr. Made sense for her not to be there, but still grr.
–The avalon sand is awfully convenient. But it also looks like they’re down to the last bits of it. Has Arthur used that to solve every problem for the last five years then?
–Arthur was a stable boy, Violet’s family owns a stable. ARE THEY RELATED OR NOT? Come on guys, let us know who Violet is. It’s harder to be invested in her when she really feels thrown in as “Henry needs a love interest.” You don’t have to reveal the grand secrets about her–just make her someone we care about.
–Mostly I liked the Lance-Gwen-Arthur triangle development but the blame that the show seems to place on Arthur for not paying her enough attention and then the creepy bit where Gwen (under the spell) takes on the blame herself is…problematic for me. Your actions are your own, no matter what contributed to them. Given some of the other messages that the show has appeared to send about cheating and rape etc…I dunno, it makes for a problematic world view.
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing