Once Upon a Time 5x02 Thoughts
Oct. 10th, 2015 11:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iariaThe Price
Meh. I didn't enjoy it. Almost nothing about this episode worked for me.
Things I liked:
+ Emma calling out Regina: "That's your problem Regina you're always looking for someone else to blame." Yes! Thank you. I enjoyed that whole confrontation. I also liked Regina's explanation for why she put herself forward as the Saviour, to protect Emma, and Emma thanking her.
+ Charming family - Emma's "Henry you didn't fail me. Everyone else did.", Emma/Snow's small moment before the ball was lovely, and Charming giving Henry girl advice. They were all small little moments that I wished we could have had more of.
+ Hook/Belle bonding.
Things I didn't:
+ Regina as the Saviour. The idea could maayybe be interesting but... nah. I just don't like it. Emma is the Saviour and it's who she has always been. Regina's rocky path to redemption has been great, if uneven and occasionally badly handled, but I feel like 'the Saviour' is something integral to who Emma is. This should be about returning Emma to being the Saviour (or helping her inner Saviour overcome the Dark One) not attempting to switch their roles in the story. It pushing Regina further along her path to redemption, great! Pushing Regina into the role of Saviour? Too far.
+ Percival and how that whole situation played out. If the show is going to bring up some of the horrible things Regina did as the Evil Queen they can't just brush it under the rug immediately after. Percival's actions may have been wrong but they were certainly understandable. It really bothered me that no one was bothered by his death - not Charming for killing a presumably otherwise good man who only wanted revenge nor Arthur who is Percival's liege lord.
+ Dark Emma keeping secret why she cast the curse and what happened. I hated the amnesia reveal last episode and I hate it here. Down with unnecessary secret keeping!
+ We get Emma reaching out to Henry which was lovely but it was only once and was a very short scene that rapidly became more about Regina. I loved Henry's support of Regina but, damn it, I want more Emma/Henry. Theirs is the relationship that started this series and with Emma as the Dark One Henry should be far more obviously worried and involved in trying to save her. Where is Henry trying to get to Emma emotionally to help her come back? When she reached out why wouldn't he reach back? Why isn't he declaring his belief in her or his desire to help her? I hate how they're playing him with regards to this situation.
+ Wait, so you can get around the whole "bring someone back/give up a life"* hard rule if only enough people join hands in love and belief? Seriously? *Also Robin was dead?
+ All the interactions between the Camelot people and the Enchanted Forest gang felt off. Why were Snow and the rest keeping their identities a secret? That's the only reason I can think for why Snow was introduced as Lady Mary Margaret. I mean they were the rulers of the Enchanted Forest! You'd think that someone at court would recognise them. I just found it all very weird.
+ I have a hard time believing that Regina didn't know how to dance.
+ Emma's hair looked much worse here than I thought it did in the last episode. Her clothes still look great.
Meh. I didn't enjoy it. Almost nothing about this episode worked for me.
Things I liked:
+ Emma calling out Regina: "That's your problem Regina you're always looking for someone else to blame." Yes! Thank you. I enjoyed that whole confrontation. I also liked Regina's explanation for why she put herself forward as the Saviour, to protect Emma, and Emma thanking her.
+ Charming family - Emma's "Henry you didn't fail me. Everyone else did.", Emma/Snow's small moment before the ball was lovely, and Charming giving Henry girl advice. They were all small little moments that I wished we could have had more of.
+ Hook/Belle bonding.
Things I didn't:
+ Regina as the Saviour. The idea could maayybe be interesting but... nah. I just don't like it. Emma is the Saviour and it's who she has always been. Regina's rocky path to redemption has been great, if uneven and occasionally badly handled, but I feel like 'the Saviour' is something integral to who Emma is. This should be about returning Emma to being the Saviour (or helping her inner Saviour overcome the Dark One) not attempting to switch their roles in the story. It pushing Regina further along her path to redemption, great! Pushing Regina into the role of Saviour? Too far.
+ Percival and how that whole situation played out. If the show is going to bring up some of the horrible things Regina did as the Evil Queen they can't just brush it under the rug immediately after. Percival's actions may have been wrong but they were certainly understandable. It really bothered me that no one was bothered by his death - not Charming for killing a presumably otherwise good man who only wanted revenge nor Arthur who is Percival's liege lord.
+ Dark Emma keeping secret why she cast the curse and what happened. I hated the amnesia reveal last episode and I hate it here. Down with unnecessary secret keeping!
+ We get Emma reaching out to Henry which was lovely but it was only once and was a very short scene that rapidly became more about Regina. I loved Henry's support of Regina but, damn it, I want more Emma/Henry. Theirs is the relationship that started this series and with Emma as the Dark One Henry should be far more obviously worried and involved in trying to save her. Where is Henry trying to get to Emma emotionally to help her come back? When she reached out why wouldn't he reach back? Why isn't he declaring his belief in her or his desire to help her? I hate how they're playing him with regards to this situation.
+ Wait, so you can get around the whole "bring someone back/give up a life"* hard rule if only enough people join hands in love and belief? Seriously? *Also Robin was dead?
+ All the interactions between the Camelot people and the Enchanted Forest gang felt off. Why were Snow and the rest keeping their identities a secret? That's the only reason I can think for why Snow was introduced as Lady Mary Margaret. I mean they were the rulers of the Enchanted Forest! You'd think that someone at court would recognise them. I just found it all very weird.
+ I have a hard time believing that Regina didn't know how to dance.
+ Emma's hair looked much worse here than I thought it did in the last episode. Her clothes still look great.
