Once Upon a Time, 2.19: Laceyby Wolfen MoonsgetReviews may contain information that could be considered 'spoilers'. Readers should proceed at their own risk. Network
Credits Grade: 9 When Gold tries to help Belle remember who she is, Regina decides to take matters into her own hands. In the past, in the enchanted forest, Belle defends a famous archer while trying to appeal to Rumple's better nature.I loved the mirroring of Belle and Rumple's past and present lives, how similar yet opposite they were! I especially loved watching Belle trying to get through to Rumple in the past; the present day story is well-told but terribly depressing (which is fine, so long as it's temporary). Alas, the special fairytale guest is terribly underused, entirely a plot device; hopefully this character will be better-developed later. I have a theory about that -- so on with the spoilery talk! My theory: that Robin Hood is the one who taught Snow archery. Either that, or the Enchanted Forest is full of magical bows whose arrows never miss their mark. That kind of takes the fun out of it, though, doesn't it? That it's magic rather than skill? Then again, it gave Rumple the option to be able to use the bow without the convenience of him apparently just knowing how. And given that Snow practices shooting, maybe not all the bows are like that. But if her bow is like that, it puts an interesting new spin on that target practice incident in the woods -- she must have unconsciously wished to find someone to talk to, and so the arrow hit August by her design, rather than just by Fate's. The Sheriff of Nottingham, disgusting as he was, was a bit more interesting and entertaining than Robin Hood, with a nice little nugget of vulnerability when he complained about what Robin did to him. (Gee, kind of like in a certain film version of the story of Robin Hood, huh?) Of course, both characters were largely plot just devices that led to some fun demonstrations of Rumple's ability and personality. Perhaps I like the sheriff scene better because Rumple was protective of Belle in it. I like how he was used again in Storybrooke as Kieth, only with Lacey wanting him this time, and Rumple pulled the same tongue-stealing trick on him! Interestingly, the sheriff seemed a nicer guy in Storybrooke. I wonder if we will learn that he really wasn't that evil in Sherwood, that his complaints against Robin were actually at least somewhat legitimate. Speaking of Belle, I quite appreciate seeing more of her relationship with Rumple in the Enchanted Forest, how it evolved. It's like how Beauty and the Beast: Enchanted Christmas fleshed out the original animated film: it makes what we saw before seem less rushed. I also like that they worked in him giving her a library twice now, once in each realm -- and yet this time it might not be a gift. Loved his line after she said there were more books in there than she could read in a lifetime, about how he hoped she could clean them faster than she can read them -- but was that a genuine snide remark, or was he just trying to hide the fondness he's gaining for her? It was interesting to see Rumple complain about Belle's reading giving her poisonous thoughts -- it's like they melded the Beast and Gaston, from the animated film, into one person! I'm wondering if "Lacey" really is Belle's Storybrooke alter ego. The dwarf that crossed the line didn't need to "remember" his Storybrooke self -- it was what remained after he lost his Enchanted Forest memory. Why did Belle get a more thorough amnesia? I assumed she didn't really have a Storybrooke alter ego because of being locked up in the asylum. So perhaps Lacey is completely a construct created by Regina, and somehow imprinted onto the matchbook for The Rabbit Hole? I mean, since Belle was in the tower in the Enchanted Forest, it only makes sense she went straight into the asylum; she would have no reason for the club to trigger a Lacey memory, unless when she was in the asylum she had a Lacey memory of life before the asylum plugged in. Either way, if Regina is right about her not being her Enchanted Forest self at all (as Lacey herself basically says when she states emphatically that she's not Belle), that might explain why true love's kiss didn't restore her -- is it true love if there's no sliver of that self in her, like there was for Snow and David? Or I there's a false self in there? Is there maybe a core self that is not made of her memories, regardless of place, that encourages her to take back control of her life every time he tries to control her? Not just in the Enchanted Forest, but in how, when he tried to order for her, she ordered something else, and when he poured the wine, she poured more? Or how, once she determined he was not the man she'd heard he was, she slipped out to see someone else rather than continue her date with him? Perhaps it's that core that led to all her parallel dialogue, like when she talked in each place about how you can't know someone until you know their heart, or how he wasn't who she thought, and she was glad. (I find the contradictions in her sentiments, how she knows people but then he didn't turn out to be who she thought, annoying.) If she really did have some sort of amnesia (other than the cross-the-line-and-forget-your-Enchanted-Forest-self variety) and now truly remembers her Storybrooke self, has Regina tampered with the memory somehow, eliminating the good part and leaving only the dark? If so, as sad as I am for RumpBelle, it's good comeuppance for Rumple: he willfully manipulated Regina in horrible ways to make her a monster, and now she seems intent on doing the same to him. I wonder to what end? Is she going to somehow make him good again after he's committed some terrible deed, so he can suffer? As it is, he seemed pretty happy at the end. And who can blame him? He doesn't have to struggle to be the way Belle wanted him to be; he can give in to his darker impulses, like the ones that had him wanting to hurt any guy that came near her, or the impulses he had to make her love him. It was delicious irony that he tried so hard at first to be the man her old self would have wanted, when she now wants the opposite. It's sad, too, because until she gave her approval of his darker instincts, he seemed to want to be good, for himself as much as anyone else. I'd say he's finally loved by Belle for who he is, but that's not precisely true: it's that the Dark One in him is finally loved, and she's not really Belle anyway -- not all of her, and maybe not really any of her. Oddly, I do actually hope that this dark version of her really is part of her; it suggests that, if she ever gets her light part back, she and Rumple will be nicely balanced. She's not too goody-goody for him, and that would reinforce the notion that she can ultimately handle him however he is at any given moment. I like that, for a while, their roles were reversed as to how they were in the forest, with her being the cruel one and him the gentle one trying to convince her that she's better than that. It gave him a chance to be the one who sees something in her, for a change. I like that it wasn't a desire to please Belle that dissuaded him from killing Robin, but rather her reminding him about how he didn't want to leave Bael fatherless, and so doesn't want to do that to another child. She didn't change him, just helped him remember himself. I like that their relationship became, at least for a while, about him helping her remember herself instead of her just helping him remember his pre-Dark One-self -- it evened the playing field between them and reinforces the idea that they are partners. On the other hand, it's interesting that Belle's penchant for seeing the best in him seems to be a super-power akin to Emma's purported ability to tell when someone is lying (and perhaps is why Lacey was turned off by him at first). It's also interesting in that, in giving in to the dark, Rumple seems to have utterly forgotten about Baelfire. Or maybe it's that Bael hasn't given him much incentive to keep trying to be good. His decision makes for a tragic irony. If he had chosen to stay good anyway, the prophecy could arguably said to be fulfilled -- him changed through Henry helping to reunite him with Bael and give him another reason to be good. The Dark One would have been thwarted in favour of the real Rumple. Instead, if he stays as evil as he is now (or gets worse), Henry may have to fulfill the prophecy by more fatal means. Other thoughts .... The dream sequence almost fooled me for a minute, but Henry actually wanting a magic wand, after wanting to destroy magic before, is what first clued me in. It's too bad -- it was such a sweet family scene for a minute there. And I appreciate that Gold seemed disturbed by his dream, so there's at least a part of him that doesn't relish the idea of killing Henry. I wonder: was Henry being turned to china in the dream meant to be a nod to the china doll in the somewhat-recently-released Oz the Great and Powerful? The scene with Henry and Neal play fighting was adorable --I just wish David had been having fun with them. It's about time Regina found out about Henry and Baelfire. I find it odd that she would accuse Gold of knowing when he was under the effects of the curse. I also wonder how he managed to procure Henry -- if the town doesn't exist to outsiders, how was he able to call anyone? Was it because Regina wanted it and the spell made happen whatever would make her happy, even though it also brought about her undoing? Or can Fate override a curse? I actually like the idea that somewhere, deep down, the curse is still working to bring Regna what she wants: a family that loves her and that she can love in return. (Or else and end to herself because nothing in existence can every truly make her happy.) I like that, in talking to Gold about how Bael and the others would never accept him, Regina's arguably talking about herself as well. It's nicely paralleled by Rumple telling Belle that people who steal magic are always up to no good -- from his perspective, it's true because he stole at least one of the fairy wands in the first place by killing the fairy who owned it! How was Belle still "seriously injured" after being healed? Did Gold not get to finish the healing / was only able to heal her part-way? The sense of finality about returning to the Enchanted Forest via the beans is really starting to bug me. Why should any of them for one second act like they must choose one life or the other with all those beans, as if they can only ever open one portal? And what about Henry and Neal? Regardless of what we know, do they think Tamara would just leave her home behind forever? Or that Neal would leave her, or Henry would leave his father with no hope of seeing each other again? Well, I'm glad they at least gave Snow a decent reason for changing her mind about where they should live (so she can heal her heart), and now have her on the same page with David. Loved the bit where Rumple proclaimed Robin's fate, saying that people stealing from him gets them skinned alive, and that everyone knows it. Belle: "Actually, no, they don't." Rumple: "Well, they will after they discover the body!" I don't know if she started seeing the potential for good in him right away, but if she did, then I like that the fact that she can see the good in him doesn't stop her from doing what she can to help others he would hurt, not leaving their well-being simply up to her trust. I guess she realises that just because someone has good in them doesn't mean that they can always find it when they need it. Rumple telling Belle that it would be here and her rags to clean up Robin's blood after he killed him, and the next scene being of a barman wiping up the counter near Lacey with a rag, was a nice segue. I loved David trying to help Gold! While they weren't exactly animosity-free, David did seem to warm up to Gold, and it was nice to see Gold allow himself to be vulnerable, even gentle around a potential enemy. I also appreciated David pointing out that Gold convinced Snow to murder someone (even if Snow ultimately made the choice, Gold was the one who presented a compelling case; she probably never would have done it on her own), as well as Gold pointing out in turn that Cora would have killed them all -- both are valid points. While normally I would say when you want something done, you should pull the metaphorical trigger yourself, that simply wasn't an option then, and as they were all in danger, nit just Gold, Snow had a right to act as well. At any rate, I'm left wondering if David agreed to help because of Gold's offer of owing him a favour, or because he felt sorry for him, or a mix. Loved seeing Emma be compassionate towards Regina, wanting the woman to repair her bond with Henry, despite all she's done. Granted, if Regina could do that, she would be a better person and safer to be around, but it seemed like more than that. When Belle went to the bathroom, I had a feeling she was going to sneak out just like Henry did. Emma based the fact that Neal should have known Henry would do that because Henry is Neal's son, so it makes the fact that she pulled that move after Emma's proclamation a bit strange; are we to insinuate that Belle is related to them? Interesting that they had Marian be pregnant. I wonder if their child will turn out to be someone of note .... Written: May 12, 2013
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