Dreamcatcher

Continuing on from the last episode, the Camelot scenes reveal that Emma & Regina had found a way to free Merlin & the former was aware of her parents being under the influence of the Sands of Avalon through a dreamcatcher. After looking through Merlin's memories to when he turned into a tree after the Dark One used a tear of his mourning his lost love, they figure out they should do it again for the spell. However, after Regina's tear fails after moving on with Robin, Henry manages to save the day after he's upset over Violet rejecting him while they were on a date despite his efforts to be himself after her father belittles him. After freeing Merlin & managing to stop Arthur, he agrees to save Emma from her darkness, but only if she's truely willing to let go of her powers. In Storybrooke, Henry decides that a dance in town should lift everyone's spirits after they discover Griff missing with no magic bean, However, Violet's upset as her beloved horse Nicodemus goes missing, so Henry decides to find him for her with the help of Emma and ends up winning Sir Morgan over. But while that's going on, Emma enlists Merida to train Rumple into becoming a hero, although with his limp & lack of belief in himself, Merida takes extreme measures & taunts him with the beloved chipped cup, which thankfully works as he had found something (or rather, somebody) worth fighting for. But in a sad twist of fate, after Regina & the lot break into her house & discover Excalibur and a dreamcatcher containing Violet's memories, it's revealed Emma ripped her heart out in Camelot and told her to break Henry's heart so they could use his tear to free Merlin. Obviously, Regina's angry at Emma and decides to confront her, but then she slips up that they freed Merlin in Camelot despite her still being the Dark One.

Thankfully, this episode is definitely an improvement over the last one. I absolutely loved seeing more development of the plot & the fast pace of the reveal that they did in fact free Merlin from the tree. The method of it was interesting along with the incorporation of the dreamcatchers playing a much bigger role compared to 2x10 & actually being used wisely this time round. While, yes, it mostly revolved around Emma & Regina with how their relationship is changing, I actually liked that we saw more of this from Henry's perspective both past and present, showing very ironic parallels of his budding relationship with Violet. While Henry still isn't that interesting & there were a few cliches like Sir Morgan being the ever popular disapproving/overprotective father trope & the whole 'I must break his heart' situation courtesy of Emma, at least he's growing more of a character & is finally being given a chance to grow up now he's hitting puberty. But another thing I must say is while I liked how he & Violet improved in Storybrooke, I thought the whole subplot with Henry & Emma looking for Nicodemus wasn't that interesting & honestly, was a bit confused with why they focused more on that than the group finding Excalibur (and Belle using her smarts). And Emma being revealed to rip Violet's heart out, while a pretty cruel thing to do, I wouldn't really describe that as...'evil', per se. Unlike other times, I do understand why she did it & she did promise to give her her heart back afterwards, but everyone else is acting like it was the worst thing in the world! Anyway, yes, it was a horrible horrible thing to do to both Violet & her own son, but I'm just saying that she could have done much worse & Regina was right to confront Emma over it. As for Rumple & Merida's subplot, I actually wish we could've seen more of it! I enjoyed seeing her more...unorthodox methods in trying to train him despite his setbacks with his limp & low self esteem. But using Chip...a pretty excellent motivator, yes, but we just got lucky she didn't smash it!

So overall, I definitely enjoyed this episode thanks to the emotional core, great plot progression, more light-hearted yet epic tone & nice acting (especially from Lana and Eliott Knight as the smokin' hot Merlin). Sure, there were a few cliches, but they can easily be overlooked because it was still pretty enjoyable to watch regardless!

Pretty creepy...I wonder if this is the first incarnation of the Dark One.

'You destroyed her. The only woman I ever loved.' Poor Merlin! Guess that partly explains his hatred for the Dark One...

AH! That explains a lot! Nice callback to 2x11.

Haha! 'Are you sure giving Arthur the dagger is the best way to help Emma?' 'We trust him.' 'Implicitly.' 'Did you learn those big words in shepherd school?'

Well, at least Emma's smart enough to figure out Arthur had cast a spell on them! Bit curious as to why Arthur wants to kill Merlin with Excalibur though...

Interesting idea setting up a festival to raise everyone's spirits during this time of crisis! Haha! 'Girlfriend? What girlfriend?' 'She's not my girlfriend!' 'Who's not your girlfriend?!' 'I think this dance is exactly what we need!' 'Henry, who's this girlfriend?' 'Well, if you need dating tips lad, I know my way around women.' 'Over your dead body!'

Funny seeing Cruella's car for sale...

Aww, bless Belle being so worried about Rumple!

AWW!!! 'Please! I need to see Belle.' Come on, Emma! Let him see his love after being stuck in a coma & not having his powers!

'Every time I used magic, I told myself it was for my son. To protect him.' 'How noble.' 'And despite my best intentions, I still lost him.' 'I'm more powerful than you ever were.' 'That doesn't matter. The more you try to justify what you're doing, the more you push them away. Now take it from me. You will always lose the ones you love the most.' Good on him for being aware of the truth behind his actions!

You bitch, Emma!

That's a LOT of dreamcatchers...I wonder what she's upset about.

Interesting idea of how to free Merlin with another tear of lost love.

Bless Henry & Violet bonding over their deceased parents.

Of course Sir Morgan has to be the disapproving father trope!

Pretty sweet of Henry to help Violet find Nicodemus.

So he's asking his Dark One mother to help him find a horse...not so sure it's gonna convince her to be good again, but nice effort!

Poor lad being forced to sword fight with his limp & holding a cane!

Pretty sweet seeing them act like the good old days of Operation Cobra AKA when Hook wasn't around & that Neal was the one who taught Henry the Only You technique!

Aww, gotta feel bad for him! Rule number one with dating Henry: BE YOURSELF!

Poor Regina! Please don't remind of that bitch of a mother she had to put up with!

Thank God Belle's there to remind them she'd let Henry into her house otherwise they'd be there all day!

AWW! That is freaking adorable!

Aww, she looks lovely!

Product placement!

Not really the best date movies, Henry...

Merida...don't tell me you're gonna do what I think you plan on doing...

Bit of a coincidence they happened to find Nicodemus at a pumpkin patch...

Well, at least they've found Excalibur!

Hmm,

Uh...why didn't it work?

Aww, poor Henry! At least his tear has managed to help them!

Really, Arthur? You actually think you can take on the Dark One & ex-Evil Queen?

Now THAT is epic!

*Wolf whistles*

Hmm, very fun looking carnival!

At least they now know the connection between the sword & dagger!

Bit ironic now that Sir Morgan approves of Henry...

AWW!

DO NOT MESS WITH CHIP, MERIDA!

Why would Emma have a dreamcatcher containing Violet's memories...?

What the hell, Emma?!

Poor Henry!

At least the Sands of Avalon have been undone.

Haha! 'Merlin? 'Yes.' 'You're Merlin?' 'Expecting someone...?' 'Older'. 'Ah, yes. And being a tree? Good for the skin!'

Thank you Regina for confronting her!

It's is true, they've been through a lot together, but none of what she's said so far can justify her actions! Well, at least she revealed they freed Merlin despite still being the Dark One...

Sad parallel with the Pilot!