Ok, I’m late to the party, and most of you folks already highlighted most of the ups and downs.
This wasn’t a terrible episode, and despite the slower pacing, it didn’t drag, but rather gave the characters some space to breathe.
Liked:
I was actually really surprised — and kind of impressed, folklore wise — with what they did with Rumple and Belle. Since I’m rarely impressed with the show anymore, this was actually exciting. They seem to be subverting the original BB story through the idea that one can’t expect one’s partner to change on one’s behalf. This is an interesting way to read against the grain of the standard romance trope. Not that I think they’re that versed in folkloric variants of Beauty and the Beast, but there’s a Russian 19th century version that addresses a very similar thing head on: in the story, the beast is totally insecure that the merchant’s daughter actually will like his human side, after falling in love with the beastly aspect.
Snow and Charming weren’t actually tediously doltish.
The Emma/Hook storm in a teacup tedium wasn’t front and central. What a delightful change.
Flashback Zelena was a bit campy, but UW Zelena was, I think for the first time, almost sympathetic.
Mixed:
I was, and still am, predisposed to strongly dislike the Hades/Zelena pairing, simply on the principle that oh my god enough with the ships. But it wasn’t terrible — though really, it was mostly the acting. They floated it in a really impressive way, but the writing itself with the utterly bizarre story of the scarecrow’s brain, bicycle ride, and assorted weirdness was over the top silly. Interesting parallel, though, between Zelena and Rumple. “No one can love me.” Well, then. But… Hades: “I was trying to rescue her from those miserable heroes.” LOL. So… Zelena’s the new Persephone?
Disliked:
So, it seems to be foreshadowed that Hades is going to try to use Baby Rumbelle to do the time travel thing. This, of course, will fail. There is no way that OUAT will actually use a sacrificial baby. Though 9 months is a long time to wait, so maybe instead he’ll try to snatch baby Neal (who has experience with this sort of thing).
That is some preservatives-loaded formula they got going there. Seriously. How long has that thing been sitting in Zelena’s coat pocket?
Hook getting on Henry’s case. Seriously? Though I must say, I wonder how much Henry’s dialogue was “meta” (Oh, everyone’s an author now).
And that’s all I got.