Ursula: A Villain?

[Slurpeez]

I think Ursula is a victim of bad writing. Show don’t tell. They used her back-story, which was lifted directly from The Little Mermaid, to make us see her origins that set her on a bad path, but what they failed to demonstrate was exactly what villainous acts she committed. Her story was too rushed, and like Lancelot, Rapunzel and Tamara, she was another POC whose story had tons of potential, but which didn’t quite deliver. I wish the writers could be more self-reflective. It’s only 3 episodes into 4b and already Ursula’s story is done? While we might see more of her (squid ink being needed as a plot device), I think she was unfortunately gotten rid of too soon while traditionally white villains like Cruella and Maleficent still are around, despite Mal’s character-centric episode having aired already. She probably will be around for awhile, seeing how the Charmings are the cause of the loss of her child.

[Josephine]

I think the whole point of including Ursula as a villain was ONLY to have a way to use “squid ink” to help bring down Rumple in the end. She has her story-of-the-week resolution and now she has a purpose to make a brief reappearance to help the good guys by giving them squid ink as thanks for her happy ending.

I actually like Cruella’s snark. But the girl has to eat a donut…or ten. She would NOT be filling out those corsets and dresses as much as she did in Dracula as BlondeNinjaLady (aka Lady Jayne. Hey I remembered her name). But she’s really the only highlight this season so far.

Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.

[RumplesGirl]

I can’t quite tell why they brought Ursula in if they were going to get rid of her this soon and this underdeveloped. Was it just to have three QoD? Was it for a Hook centric? What did she add to the story except being part of the QoD and flashing her tentacles around?

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

[MatthewPaul]

I can’t quite tell why they brought Ursula in if they were going to get rid of her this soon and this underdeveloped. Was it just to have three QoD? Was it for a Hook centric? What did she add to the story except being part of the QoD and flashing her tentacles around?

I feel a huge part of the problem has to do with how they set up the Little Mermaid mythology on the show. Not only was Ursula originally established as a Goddess, but they had to have Regina pose as Ursula, too. Therefore, Ariel never met either of the real Ursulas. You take away Ursula’s connection with Ariel, and you take away a large aspect of her character. What is Ursula’s purpose if she doesn’t have a score to settle with Triton and Ariel? As for Goddess Ursula, what business would she possibly have being a villain? However, the writers still couldn’t resist the idea of using Ursula as a villain, but they knew they were limited by what they could do with her thanks to the show’s established canon. So instead we get yet another Ursula, who is a sea witch named after the Goddess. Pretty sure the main reason they had Regina pretend to be Ursula in the first place was because they knew Lana expressed interest in playing Ursula. However, had it been the real Ursula interacting with Ariel in the first place, they would have had much more to go on. Yeah Ursula had a past with Hook, which makes sense because he’s a pirate, but which of the other regulars would it make sense for her to have a long history with? Ursula does have history with the Charmings, but only because she was tagging along with her BFFs at the time.

[TheWatcher]

Pretty sure the main reason they had Regina pretend to be Ursula in the first place was because they knew Lana expressed interest in playing Ursula.

This was always my thought. She literally asked them during a panel, I believe.

"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

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