Everyone probably grew up reading fairy tales such as Snow White, Peter Pan, Cinderella and so many others, but did you ever wonder what would happen if they came to the modern world. From 2011 until 2018 with a short lived spin off on ABC, Once Upon a Time took the stories we all know and love and twisted it, possibly showing that the hero and villain may not be who you think they are and the difficult journey. Spoilers ahead as usual. I DO NOT OWN THE PICTURE.
In season 1 we are introduced to the world of Storybrooke, a small forgotten town in Maine. Henry Mills (Jared S. Gilmore) finds Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison) a bail bonds collector and Henry’s biological mother who gave him up after serving time in jail. Henry has a book titled Once Upon a Time where he believes the residents of Storybrooke are actually characters from the book. However, according to Henry they do not remember because they have been cursed by the town mayor, and Henry’s adoptive mother, Regina Mills (Lana Parrilla) whom he believes is The Evil Queen. Henry is convinced Emma is the only one who can break the curse because she is the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, in the town he believes they are Mary Margret Blanchard (Ginnifer Goodwin) a meek school teacher and David Nolan (Josh Dallas) a married man who has been in a coma for a very long time until he finally wakes up when Mary Margret reads to him. Emma doesn’t really believe Henry, but after growing attached to him as well as a few other residents sticks around, much to Regina’s dismay as well as Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle) who Henry believes is the evil Rumpelstiltskin. Of course Henry is right as we divulge into the past lives of the characters, finding out why Regina cast the curse to hurt everybody, how Snow and Charming met and even how Rumple found love with a woman named Belle (Emile de Ravin). Other characters we meet alternate versions of are as Jiminy Cricket, Pinocchio, Red Riding Hood, Granny, the seven dwarfs, Mad Hatter and so many more.
In season 2, the curse is broken and magic has come back thanks to Rumple, but problems continue. Residents remember who they were in the past, and struggle to become just who they truly meant to be, having been frozen in time for nearly 28 years. Meanwhile other characters are introduced including Killian Jones aka Captain Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) a villain who has a score to settle with Rumple and develops a flirtatious relationship with Emma, Cora aka the Queen of Hearts (Barbara Hershey) Regina’s mother who is just as if not more evil and Neal Cassidy (Michael Raymond-James) Rumple’s long lost son, Emma’s former lover and Henry’s father (yeah try and work that family tree). Other people also come to Storybrooke trying to destroy magic, while at the end many of the main characters have to travel away in order to save Henry.
In season 3 the main characters travel to many magical places after villains emerge such as Peter Pan (Robbie Key) who has a history with Rumple among others as well as Zelena aka The Wicked Witch of the West (Rebecca Mader) trying to make Storybrooke their own, and in Zelena’s case as well as gain revenge against Regina, her long lost sister. At some point Emma and Henry leave Storybrooke after another curse is cast; forcing residents to return to the Enchanted Forest with no memories of Storybrooke only to return after Killian, who has fallen for Emma and she as well, to reach out and get help for Zelena’s evil plans. Other characters make their debut including Robin Hood (Sean Maguire) and his merry men who falls in love with Regina and she does as well, Ariel, Tinker Bell and so many others.
In season 4 things get colder as Elsa, Anna and Kristoff are introduced as a women identified as The Snow Queen makes her plans known for Storybrooke and Emma. Later on Rumple, having been forced out of Storybrooke by his wife Belle, returns along with other villains: Maleficent, Cruella DeVil and Ursula trying to get their own happy endings searching for the Author, the only one who can make it possible. However the darkness in Rumple is too much to contain and one of the heroes may be forced to make a sacrifice.
In season 5 with one of the heroes forced to become dark the gang travels to Camelot in order to get the darkness out. It does work, but at a huge cost, forcing the gang to then travel to the Underworld (essentially hell) in order to save a friend. We reunite with some people we have met over the seasons as well as meet Hades (Greg Germann) who wants to keep our heroes in hell while he takes over Storybrooke. Many characters do get a happy ending, but some do not even make it that far as another realm opens up bringing in long forgotten charterers.
In season 6 characters who stories have long since been forgotten try and make names for themselves. We also get a glimpse at a world where Emma is not the savior. Meanwhile a prophecy about Emma made long before she was born may come to fruition when the most evil villain of all The Black Fairy arrives for The Final Battle which may result in the end of the light magic. There is also a musical episode I enjoyed very much.
In season 7 things have changed as a now adult Henry (Andrew J. West) along with Regina, Hook and Rumple are cursed in a town called Hyperion Heights with no memories and no powers. The only person who seems to be awake is Lucy, Henry’s daughter with another version of Cinderella. We also meet other version of characters we love such as Alice, Robin Hood, Tiana, Lady Tremaine, Dr. Facilier and more.
I know I may have given some stuff away, but this is actually a hard show to explain because there is not only so much information but there are so many with history, other versions of characters; basically take what you know about fairy tales and throw it out the window. It can be confusing, but oh man was it a good watch. Admittedly some episodes were better than others, but every single person I thought did an amazing job. It would be hard to single out just one character I liked, or loved to hate, more than others. If you have not watched this show, catch up on Netflix. I promise it will not disappoint you.
Films or Television Worth Watching 