Evolution of the Sleeping Curse

[Keb]

I’m working on a theory that there’s further history between Mal & Aurora that we have not yet seen, and it hinges on the idea that she was woken from the curse we just saw Mal put her under sometime in between 414 & 201. (Then would come the story we heard from Aurora on waking–the bit where she warns Phillip not to look for her and sacrifices herself to save her kingdom. Also, she’d be in a different dress.)

Anyway, we know from S2 that the sleeping curse has evolved over the years, and we know from S1 that it changed hands a few times.

So what I’m seeing is:

–414 oral backstory: Mal invented (a) sleeping curse, used it on Briar Rose, and Stefan broke the spell, some 20ish years before the flashbacks (which are 10-15 years pre Curse). Depressed, Mal discovered it could be mixed with some other potions and used as a drug.
–414 flashbacks: Mal uses the sleeping curse on Aurora via the spindle, which she either gives to Regina or Regina borrows. Regina uses the sleeping curse on Roman (Snow’s horse) in an early attempt to take away what Snow loves. She claims Roman will sleep for 100 years. (Later versions of the curse last “forever,” or so I believe.)
–102 oral backstory: At some point, Regina traded The Dark Curse to Mal for the Sleeping Curse.
–109 flashbacks: Regina sends Hansel and Gretel into the Blind Witch’s cottage to get the poisoned apple. At some point before this, she must have created and then lost the poisoned apple. It’s hard enough to do that she has to regain THAT apple (and later use it twice) rather than making a new one. (Snow has been on the run for some time at this point, met David, and is with the Dwarfs.)
–121 flashbacks: Regina convinces Snow to eat the apple, informing her it must be taken willingly. She does so to save David’s life and is put under the curse.
–101, 122 flashbacks: Rumple sends David to wake Snow from the sleeping curse.
–121 present: Regina trades her last bit of magic, including Daniel’s ring, to get the hat to work; Jefferson fetches the apple for her from immediately after Snow bit it. She makes an apple turnover, gives it to Emma, and Henry eats it, falling under the curse.
–122 present: Henry “dies,” Emma uses TLK to break the sleeping curse and the Dark Curse simultaneously. Rumple brings magic to Storybrooke, allowing further development of the sleeping curse later on.
–201 present: Phillip wakes Aurora with TLK.
–206 present: Henry & Aurora meet in the burning room, showing that the curse’s after effects include dream transport to the netherworld.
–207 present: Henry attempts to communicate with Aurora.
–208 present: David undergoes the sleeping curse. Gold points out that the apple was a development in the sleeping curse, but they do it the old-fashioned way: with the sharp spindle of a spinning wheel. He does not go immediately to the netherworld that curse victims return to in their sleep. He also does not wake up as expected, until Snow returns from the Enchanted Forest to rouse him with TLK in 209.
–313 flashback: Regina attempts to use a hairpin to apply the sleeping potion to herself, but Zelena gives her a reason not to sleep forever.

I don’t think we’ve seen much of the sleeping curse since then; the knock-out sleeping spell that gets used frequently is temporary and a different kind of magic.

But the development of it is interesting…and there are still some missing pieces of the story there that they could play with.

[TheWatcher]

Guess this is a good place to mention this:
One of the things I recall being established is that the sleeping curse must be taken willingly or else it wont work (as said by Regina.) And most times we have seen it being used (Snow, Charming, Henry, and Regina when she was attempting to use it on herself) the victims of the sleeping curse  took it on willingly. Even Aurora said she sacrificed herself so that implies she took it willingly too, right?

So tell me why on last nights episode, Maleficetn just stabs Aurora’s finger with the sleeping curse an forces it on her and it works. Same thing with the pony. Maybe the curse’s have evolved but the cursed apple that Regina gave to snow was from Maleficents recipe and as such it has to be taken willingly. But Aurora didn’t take it willingly. So I guess its just a case of Plot but still its bothering me.

"I could have the giant duck as my steed!" --Daniel Radcliffe
Keeper Of Tamara's Taser , Jafar's Staff, Kitsis’s Glasses , Ariel’s Tail, Dopey's Hat , Peter Pan’s Shadow, Outfit, & Pied Cloak,Red Queen's Castle, White Rabbit's Power To World Hop, Zelena's BroomStick, & ALL MAGIC

[Keb]

See, that’s why I’m convinced there HAS to be another episode, and this is an earlier version of the curse that only lasts a century.

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

[ry4christ]

That makes a lot of sense Keb. I don’t think they would do a retcon of the curse only lasting 100 years – it being an earlier, “weaker” version of it makes sense. I too hope we get another episode explaining all this 😀

[Phee]

So I guess its just a case of Plot but still its bothering me.

Honestly, I think it’s just a case of the writers not remembering the bit about it having to be taken willingly, or they just brushed it aside and hoped the viewers wouldn’t notice.

I also don’t think there’s any special curse evolution regarding the apple, I think it was just a thing tossed in there because you simply CAN’T have the Evil Queen put Snow White under a sleeping curse and NOT have her use an apple, because it’s the iconic THING.

[Keb]

Except that either Rumple or Regina specifically SAID something about it evolving. OH. And I forgot a bit–Regina was going to use it on herself in 312 before she met Zelena, wasn’t she?

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

[TheWatcher]

Except that either Rumple or Regina specifically SAID something about it evolving.

Yeah Rump said it during season 2, and Regina later said she learned to make her own version of it.

And I forgot a bit–Regina was going to use it on herself in 312 before she met Zelena, wasn’t she?

Yep

"I could have the giant duck as my steed!" --Daniel Radcliffe
Keeper Of Tamara's Taser , Jafar's Staff, Kitsis’s Glasses , Ariel’s Tail, Dopey's Hat , Peter Pan’s Shadow, Outfit, & Pied Cloak,Red Queen's Castle, White Rabbit's Power To World Hop, Zelena's BroomStick, & ALL MAGIC

[sharon]

yeah we had a whole discussion about this over on the “favorite and least favorite moments” thread.  I hope Keb’s idea is correct…

It can’t be an oversight on the writers’ part – there are too many interwoven parts from season 1 that break down. Regina eventually has to realize the sleeping curse is temporary (maybe that horse wakes up), asks Mal for a stronger version, trades her with the dark curse that Rumple gave her, tweaks it to use an apple instead, etc… we just haven’t seen the whole story.  Same thing with Aurora’s story – it doesn’t make sense right now … so I’m hoping we just haven’t seen the whole backstory yet.

[RumplesGirl]

Same thing with Aurora’s story – it doesn’t make sense right now … so I’m hoping we just haven’t seen the whole backstory yet.

I hope so (though looking at spoilers and titles I’m not sure when/how) but which part of the backstory because we know nothing about Mal and Briar Rose/Stefan and now Aurora and Mal are rather messed up.

Epi 15: Hook/Ursula; Epi 16: this is the one option really for some other exploration of the curse, but it seems more like it’s a Rumple story. Epi 17: Robin; Epi 18: Cruella; Epi 19: Mal and Lily’s story. Now they could do something here as well. Epi 20: Regina. Epi 21/22: probably multiple centrics

"He was a lot of things to me" "The only conclusion was love"

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