Overall, I’m in a generous mood, so 6.5/10. Last week was a 6/10 for me.
Liked:
– Most of all, I liked our new Dream Team – Henry, Hook, and Regina. The sole purpose of the episode was to unite these characters in the past. Up until they were united, I kept thinking the episode was a bit convoluted.
– Henry. I’m liking this older version of Henry more and more. In this episode, I thought I could see traces of young Henry coming through in his performance. (perhaps that just wishful thinking on my part)
Disliked:
– Emma. It’s hurts me to say this bc i love Emma’s character so much. I even felt that J-Mo was out of sorts delivering some of her lines in this episode, as if she didn’t quite agree with what was written for her character.
– Lady Tremaine. I have a feeling I might eat these words eventually, but she’s the weakest villain i’ve seen yet on Once. I really hope i end up eating those words.
– Rumple. The story i’m seeing for Rumple doesn’t really show any of the character’s growth. Of course, it can be argued that the character had little to no growth in the first 6 seasons, always making the same mistakes, but making him a crooked cop… sigh… I don’t know. It just sort of feels like after moving his family to Canada, the wonderfully talented Robert Carlyle couldn’t quit the show as easily as the rest of the original cast. Whether or not Once has a future after this season, I don’t see Bobby going much further.
– Jacinda. I don’t know what it is. I actually like the actress as Cinderella, but i’m hating her as Jacinda. Maybe that’s the point. Her accent didn’t bother me in the first episode, but it seemed more forced in this episode. Also, is it just me, or does she cry too much?
– Ballet Recital. Okay, I don’t want to judge the work of young actresses, but all the editing in the world couldn’t save that ballet recital. I’d be less critical if i thought we might see lucy doing ballet in a future episode, but i got the impression it was just for this episode. Ballet will never be mentioned again. Also, the whole conflict around the ballet seemed forced. But really! Who would’ve paid $500 dollars to sit through that? If that’s the best Lady Tremaine can do, she really is the weakest villain yet.