Ok- My full D23 recap is up! If you’d like to read about the entire weekend, go to my Disney blog:
http://diariesofadisneydreamer.blogspot.com/
Here are the OuaT related excerpts:
Day 2
The Once Upon a Time panel was to be in the same room as the Frozen panel, but we had to clear out first, so we looped back around into the holding area. There was still about an hour wait, but we were among the first there and so would get good seats. It wasn’t so bad being able to chat with people around us. Lisa headed downstairs to get us our next stagepasses this time, although she had to wait a while before they opened the line for the later panels. Of course, I was bouncing in my seat excited for this panel- had been waiting all weekend for it! As they seated us, they handed out little pins of Henry’s storybook which I was way too excited about.
This time Lisa was the one who arrived after we were seated. I was starting to worry she wouldn’t get in. It was a pretty popular panel! They had an unusual pattern of filling the rows, so I didn’t get to sit right up front this time- drat! We sat next to a pair of sisters, one of whom had one of those really neat balljointed dolls. She had me pose with her since I was dressed up. The panel itself was a lot of fun even though none of the cast was there. It was a moderator interviewing the show runners, Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis. They talked about both the original show heading into its 3rd season as well as the new Wonderland spin off. First, we were treated to the same 19 minute Wonderland preview that they had shown at Comic Con last month. It was my first real look at the new series beyond the promo. It actually begins in Storybrooke with a few quick shots from the beginning of season 2 when the wraith was causing chaos. While I’m most excited for season 3 of the original show, seeing this presentation definitely perked my interest in the spin off! It looks fascinating- a completely new take on Wonderland than we have seen before with Alice in love with a genie from Agrabah named Cyrus. Why is a genie in Wonderland I’d like to know! The new show has a different feel than the original. I can’t quite put my finger on what it is. It might be due to Wonderland and Alice’s world being so different from anything we’ve seen on OuaT- our world or the Enchanted Forest. We only got the briefest glimpse of Wonderland before.
The panel itself didn’t reveal a whole lot of new information since Comic Con was less than a month earlier, and I had read and watched every interview I could find, but there were still a few juicy tidbits. Again, there are plenty of recaps out there, so I’m just going over highlights. We learned that we will learn Hook’s backstory and how he became a pirate. We already knew Ariel is coming but now they’ve confirmed Eric as well. They also strongly hinted that Regina will play the role of Ursula, although it’s not confirmed. Both Ariel and Tink will have surprising connections to main characters. After the moderator was finished with questions, they opened the floor and guests were allowed to line up at the two mics in the aisles to ask questions. I couldn’t think of anything to ask that didn’t fall into the “there’s no way they are going to spoil that” category
However, what I was most excited about was the premiere of a sneak peek clip for season 3! It did not disappoint! It was a scene in present day Neverland with Rumpelstiltskin looking like an intriguing mix of both the imp and Mr. Gold. He had normal skin and hair, but wore Rumple’s leather, making for one rather sexy looking character I must say. He stood by himself in the jungle and called out for someone to come out from hiding. Here we saw Felix, the ominous lost one from the end of season 2. Rumple and Felix have an exchange indicating that they know each other and that Peter and Rumple were enemies in the past and will continue to be if Rumple has come for Henry. Then Felix tosses a little cornhusk doll at Rumple which causes him to break down in tears. Many other fans have interpreted this to mean Rumple was once a lost boy, but I disagree. I think Rumple went there as the Dark One- that he found out that his son was there at some point but then lost him again. I keep getting into debates about this so I really need to see the whole episode before I go crazy! Well, there’s a month and a half left to go!
I had hoped to actually meet Adam and Eddie. I headed for the edge of the stage after the panel where they were scribbling autographs, but I wasn’t assertive enough, and they were shuffled off without even glancing up and noticing my costume. Oh well- next time. I did run into some fellow Oncers including @TheZachVan, reporter from the Once Upon a Fan fansite. We had a great time chatting and sharing our mutual excitement for the new season! While we were in the hall, Adam and Eddy popped out again and walked right by us- this time I waved and Eddy saw me and waved back. Not as good as a meet and greet, but it was a nice consolation to at least get acknowledged.
We parted ways with our new friends with promises to get together in the future, but for now it was time to grab food and get into another line. First Lisa and I took the opportunity to get a picture of us together in front of the Jolly Roger since she was dressed as Emma. Meanwhile, the Emma character walk around spotted her and complimented her on the jacket- ha ha.
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For now, I headed straight for that ship- something I had been dying to do since day one! I knew to expect a long wait as the line was wrapped all the way around, but chatting with the people around me made it not so bad. There were tv screens on one side of the ship that repeatedly looped the promo for the 3rd season which didn’t have any new footage. I kept hearing the dialogue clips over and over- “Where did they take him?” “Neverland!” “Someone we all should fear!” etc. Finally, it was my turn to enter. I knew the experience didn’t have that much to it, but I was positively giddy! The room was quite dark and quite small. We were led in by character walk arounds portraying Charming, Emma, and Regina. Charming shook my hand as I entered. A lite display case held items from the show- the chipped cup, Regina’s spellbook, Hook’s hook, and the golden egg that held the true love magic. A few other items were in front of the screen at the end- Gold’s cane, Emma’s red jacket and Charming’s sword. I kept trying to get a few shots on my camera and my phone for my Oncer friends online, but it was hard to get a good shot since I didn’t want to blind everyone with the flash.
Charming explained to all of us that they needed daring recruits for a dangerous mission and asked if we would help. Emma said that we were going to rescue her son, and Regina cut in with “He’s my son!” It was perfect! They then directed us to the screen in the back of the ship, and we watched another promo for the 3rd season. One wall in the cabin was filled with little glowing heart boxes- Regina’s wall of hearts right out of the series. Emma told us that Regina had removed a heart from one of the boxes and put a treasure in it. She asked if anyone wanted to unlock the box. I was still trying to grab pics. She handed the key to a man in the group. He unlocked it to reveal a velvet bag full of trinkets, and Emma told us to take one piece on our way out and be sure to join them Sundays on ABC. We each got a pin- I got the magic globe this time.
Finally, we entered the museum! I had no interest in the Teen Beach Movie costumes that flanked the entryway, but I made a beeline for the next display. I think I actually squealed with joy when I spotted Rumpelstiltskin’s dagger in the case (“It’s the dagger!!”) along with Emma’s blanket, Anton’s magic bean necklace, Regina’s apple, and Henry’s book. One of my friends joked that I couldn’t take it home with me- ha ha. The gorgeous costumes stood nearby- Red’s dress and cape, Charming and Snow’s wedding attire, the Huntsman’s outfit, Jefferson’s ensemble, and the Queen of Hearts gown and mask. I could barely get myself to move on to the next area.
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By this point, things were winding down. There wasn’t much left to do or time to do it in. I couldn’t resist stopping at the Jolly Roger one more time. They had already closed off the line, but I heard someone working it mention that Snow and Hook would come out for pictures after the last group. My patience was rewarded, and I got a great photo with them. As I approached them, I mentioned that I absolutely love the show. Snow White said something like, “That’s what we love to hear!” After the picture as I was leaving, Snow said, much to my amusement, “Seeya on Sundays!”