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Late to the party. I thought this episode was overall quite good, with some meaty, open-ended themes. One of the things I used to love about OUAT is that it made me think, and not just entertained me. This hasn’t been the case for some time, but the last few episodes open up some really interesting questions.
Liked:
So, EdR is so amazing. I forgot how good she is — if only the show made actual use of her talent.
I normally dislike flashbacks, but this one brought up some interesting themes. Like, to what extent were the Ogre wars a kind of colonial/expansionist conflict? Sounds like the humans were encroaching on Ogre territory, and got more push back than they bargained for. And then, when there is essentially a case of martial law — that normal life is suspended in favor of the war effort — how does this change the micro-ethics of everyday life? Like, say, what does it mean for Belle’s father to offer his daughter in marriage to cement a political alliance to a guy that clearly has a manipulative, sadistic streak (or to be “blind” to it, despite the evidence). And what does it mean for Belle to accept? Also, it makes me wonder how this recasts Belle’s decision to go with Rumple in Skin Deep.
Rumple/Belle dynamic. This is pretty good writing, overall. There are both external and internal conflicts, and neither character is “de-fanged.” There is a kind of opposition between them, which doesn’t resolve into hand-wringing drama llama. It’s almost… *gasp* … a believable depiction of what that sort of relationship might be?
Hades’ coat is amazing. Also, I do enjoy Hades — so far, he makes for a really interesting villain, especially because he manages to walk the line between charming and actually threatening. That scene where he offered Belle a deal actually made me a bit anxious, and OUAT hasn’t managed that since S3.
Mixed:
The whole sub-quest with Emma, the prophetic dream, and the running about in the woods was OUAT-as-usual, as far as things go these days, but good grief does it pale in comparison to actually competent writing where the writing team isn’t just trying to cram too much plot into too little space, and allows itself to explore some more complicated themes. I know that this isn’t something everyone’s probably interested in sitting with, but for me, this is what makes this show more than just something I keep watching out of sheer spite for having invested too much time into it. I guess my biggest gripe is with Emma — that whole revelation “Oh no, I think I might have failed everyone and am feeling anxious about it” felt both forced and asinine. At the moment, Emma is written as if she has the emotional complexity of potato salad.
Dislike:
Hades’ blue hair. It’s distracting. Also, the fact that he always opens his mouth when the hair goes aflame makes me wonder whether the gas stove effect is somehow linked to him having to pop his ears.
I have no use for Hook’s snark. Why do they insist on giving him these ridiculously petulant lines? I’d be OK with Henry saying them — he’s a teenager, this is exactly the sort of dialogue one might expect. But Hook?
Confused:
Hades. The wilting flowers. The Gaston vs Rumple thing. The original thing with why he wanted Regina gone. Pretty much everything having to do with Hades’ motivations.
Suspicions:
I have a very bad feeling about Hades/Zelena. I think this is a red herring. But maybe OUAT has just made me paranoid.
[adrotate group="5"]Liked – That this episode actually brought up some interesting stuff regarding morals and dark and light and all that stuff, it was the most interesting and in depth the show has been in ages, and it actually made me think.
Dislike – Because of the show’s track record, I can’t bring myself to be bothered delving into all that moral ambiguity as much as I’d like to, because I’m pretty sure it’ll all be forgotten in an ep or two and will no longer be relevant to or consistent with the ongoing narrative of the show and development of the characters, so what’s the point.
*SIGH*
Love how EdR can change her expression so subtly in the space of turning around.
Also I think they did quite well concealing EdR’s pregnancy. There was only a couple of shots where it was slightly noticeable. At least it was more concealed than Ginny’s during the events of 3B. Snow looked heavily pregnant in that first episode when she wasn’t supposed to be at all.
All magic comes with a price!
Keeper of FelixLove how EdR can change her expression so subtly in the space of turning around.
Also I think they did quite well concealing EdR’s pregnancy. There was only a couple of shots where it was slightly noticeable. At least it was more concealed than Ginny’s during the events of 3B. Snow looked heavily pregnant in that first episode when she wasn’t supposed to be at all.
FYI …. Every woman and every pregnancy is manifested differently. Ginny carries her babies high and in front of her and seems put on more weight (she did this for both pregnancies)… something Ginny probably has little control over.
Even in the pictures I saw of EdR just before giving birth she did not look very pregnant. She carries her baby lower and did not seem to have added a lot. of weight.
Women have very little control over how their pregnancies manifest themselves. It has a lot to do with their physical structure, their DNA, how the baby implants in utero.
Liked – EdR: She actually impressed me with her acting, something she hasn’t done in a very long time. As always, Bobby Carlyle acted his socks off. They play well off of each other. The conflict between Belle and Rumple is interesting and finally being expored with more depth. Also, I thought Belle and Hades’ interaction was so creepy but well done. Even Gaston was a creepy sort of excellent villain–charming at first but devious and dangerous underneath.
Disliked – Snow White. Emma was finally talking some sense about feeling guilty for bringing Henry and everyone else to save Hook, and so she should! It was a really dumb and dangerous thing to do. I know Snow likes to give annoying little speeches about hope, but I thought it silly for her to assuage Emma’s guilt for bringing her son to the UW. While it was Snow’s choice to come to the UW, it was just plain dumb, and she and David clearly feel just as guilty for leaving their newborn son behind (as the last episode showed). Emma expressing regret about dragging Henry to the UW shouldn’t be glossed over because of “love” because it was a really poor parenting decision (as was the decision made by Regina, Robin, and the Charmings regarding their respective children). *cue Regina’s eye roll.*
I also thought it was dumb for Belle to arrive at the conclusion that “darkness always wins” just because she accidentally knocked Gaston into the River of Lost Souls. It wasn’t like she actually agreed to Hades’ deal or compromised her standards. It was really an accident, since clearly she wasn’t looking where she was going when she stumbled backwards into Gaston. It was an illogical conclusion to draw, and the fact that she was beating herself up about her moral failure (which it wasn’t) annoyed me. I just hope she doesn’t therefore let Rumple indulge his dark side just because she thinks she’s just as guilty of “murder” as he is for killing Gaston in the first place and then concealing it from her.
"That’s how you know you’ve really got a home. When you leave it, there’s this feeling that you can’t shake. You just miss it." Neal Cassidy
I really enjoyed this episode and I’m very much hoping for a “Let’s Rescue Our Exes!” tour of the River of Lost Souls.
Didn’t get to watch till today because I was at Disneyland and sundry other So Cal spots getting myself properly engaged. But it was worth waiting for.
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
So, something I forgot to mention, but after listening to the latest full podcast, it made me remember. Hook is seriously being a jerk now. I still stand by his snark in Our Decay simply because I think Henry was being dumb not letting the group know about his blackouts and how he didn’t even write what Hook was sarcastically commenting on. But this past week with Her Handsome Hero, there is literally no reason for Hook to be snarking on Regina. He’s being really ungrateful. I get the writers want to incorporate some snark with Hook because that’s always sort of been his way of humor and personality, but right now the story can’t call for that because he looks like he doesn’t even care that they are saving him now.
OUAT
I’m really impressed about the show. This is the sixth episode of this half season and the level is still very high.
Favorites:
1) I really liked Gaston. I liked how they made him different than Disney’s Gaston. He wasn’t a dumb womanizer. He was nice and sweet and genuinely interested in Belle. Except for the small torture thing but in his mind he was doing the right thing and we never really learnt who was right about the nature of ogres, him or Belle.
2) Belle and Rumple and the moral discussion were amazing but everybody already elaborated on that.
3) Zelena getting the dead flower and smiling. I love Zelena and Hades villain love it’s so refreshing and interesting and cute.
4) People in the underworld can go to a better place but they can also drown in the river of lost souls and when an episode starts you can’t really know which one will happen in that episode. It really raises the stakes.
4) Regina’s hair this episode was AMAZING. In the scene with Zelena at the diner there were these close ups on Regina and honestly I got distracted because she looked so good. She’s like a walking hair product commercial.
5) We got a little peek at the beginning of the second ogre war and we were left with a lot of interesting questions. What caused the war? Were it humans who hurt the ogres? Or did the ogres just invade the land? I hope we will get an answer one day.
Mixed:
I’m always happy to see Ruby. She’s my favorite character in the show. But seeing her means that it’s time of the One Gay Ep. The one episode with gay people. Because who needs actually having LGBT character that are a core part of the show when you can just have two girls kiss in one episode and then never talk about it again.
Least Favorites:
What the hell is Hades’s motivation? I’m so confused.
You know what I can't continue with the dead people brought back to life list I'm out of space in the signature and now we have an underworld arc this is to much I quit why do you bring so many people back to life OUAT WHHHYYYY
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