An Apple Red as Blood

This episode immediately follows 1x21 with Henry convincing Emma to stay in Storybrooke & to break the curse as her family needs her. Despite not wanting the responsibility & wanting custody of Henry, everyone rightfully calls Emma out on her actions & tell her to grow up & think about what's best for her son despite Regina being a huge pain in the ass most of the time! Meanwhile, Regina wants to find a way to get rid of Emma without breaking the curse as her death can also stop it. With the help of Jefferson, she manages to obtain the same poisoned apple that she used on Snow & decides to bake it into an apple turnover to get Emma to eat it without any suspicion. Coincidentally, Emma heads to Regina's house to tell her she's leaving Storybrooke, but wants to visit Henry, making this the perfect opportunity for Regina to give her the turnover. However, Henry is quick to realize Regina's actual motives & sacrifices himself by eating it after Emma tells him she's leaving & that she doesn't believe in the curse. In the Enchanted Forest, we finally get to see the iconic moment where Snow eats the poisoned apple as after a rescue mission to save Charming goes wrong, Regina offers a parlay for Snow & finally tells her the roots of her hatred (refer to 1x18). She gives Snow an ultimatum: eat the apple or Charming dies. Snow of course, decides to sacrifice herself for her true love as everyone believes she's dead when she's really asleep with her head filled with 'dreams formed of her own regrets'.
Being the penulitmate episode of the first season, I have to say it's actually pretty good. The pacing is pretty good for both the Storybrooke scenes & flashbacks, Snow White is actually pretty interesting as we see her perspective of the situation with Daniel, Regina & Cora in the confrontation, it was nice to see everyone joining & kicking ass (the fairies were still pretty ridiculous though) during the rescue mission for Charming, Ginnifer & Josh's chemistry was pretty solid & again, Lana's acting as both The Evil Queen & Regina was just perfect! And even if Henry can really get on my nerves, for once I was siding with him on the whole situation with Emma wanting to leave & it was rather nice to see Mary Margaret of all people telling her to grow up! Also, Jefferson appeared again, so it's already a thumbs up for me! The only issue I have is Emma herself. After so much of the season being cynical yet slowly warming up to the people & the town, she throws it back in their faces by abducting her kid & only going back thanks to him reminding her why she was there in the first place! I'm sorry, I just couldn't find any reason to root got her as she has enough evidence to prove that the curse is real! Other than that, I personally enjoyed this episode & the cliffhanger at the end was a rather nice way to segway into the season finale!

Hmm, looks like the townpeople have finally grown some balls & are finally standing up to Regina!

Why does Henry have rope...?

OK...what's going on?

EWW!

Oh, it's just a nightmare! 

That's not stupid almost killing them(!)

For once I agree with Henry, but he's just so annoying with how he's trying to convince her!

Nice to see you again King George!

Haha! 'My tree is dying!' 'Perhaps it's your fertilizer!' 

Please say this means Jefferson will be back if she put that card on Paige's bike!

Thank you Mary Margaret for calling Emma out on her rather stupid actions! 

Haha! 'Red, you've got someone on your chin!'

Nice to see everyone banding together to rescue Charming!

Well, that must explain the title of the episode!

Nice to see that 1x17 wasn't the only time we'd see Jefferson!

Love seeing Snow kick ass!

I'm so sorry, but this was so poorly executed & cringe-worthy, I was actually sniggering with how seriously they were taking it!

Nice to see that at least one person believes in August!

Thank you Archie for putting some sense into Emma & that Regina does in fact love Henry!

Just love Snow's cute way she says 'But I'm rescuing you!'

Am I the only one who had to google what 'parlay' meant?

'Keep a little knife between your tuffets!' Bit of an unusual euphemism!

So her ring from Daniel has magic...?

Must be satisfying for Regina now that Snow finally knows why she hates her! Though to be fair, Snow was only a kid that was easily manipulated!

Can't help but feel sorry for Regina!

Have to say Snow is a bit stupid actually believing Regina wouldn't kill Charming when she easily could after she ate the apple! Still, very sacrificial choice!

Interesting version of how Regina got Snow White to eat the poisoned apple!

Boy, that apple now looks very CGI-ish! 

AH! Rather smart way of disguising the apple!

OK, what kind of person would put an hot turnover straight from a cooling rack into a plastic box?

Interesting way to see if she's dead rather than checking her pulse!

OK, I understand you want what's best for Henry & that he can be very annoying with blabbing on about the curse, but surely every speck of evidence that's been given to you throughout the season is proof enough that the curse is in fact real & that Regina is lying!

See what you've done now Emma?! Yes, he may annoy me, but a kid possibly dying is just bleak & sad!

The Stranger

In this episode, we finally learn the identity of August. It turns out not only is he an adult Pinocchio (which was my other guess when it turned out he wasn't Baelfire), but also the seven year old boy that 'found' Emma as a baby that left her in the foster system due to it being cruel & a kid managing to steal money so that they can get out of there. Also, it turns out the reason why August is dying is because he's turning back into wood as he broke his promise of looking after Emma and being selfless, brave and true. Emma, not believing his story or the curse, pretty much tells August that she doesn't want the responsibilities of being the Saviour & decides to take Henry in the middle of the night away from Storybrooke. In the Enchanted Forest, it's also revealed that the wardrobe that sent Emma to our world would actually take two people instead of one, originally planning it so that Snow & Charming would go through. However, concerned with what could happen to his son, Gepetto makes a deal so that Pinocchio is given the first spot with the Blue Fairy lying that it can only take one to the others. And to make things worse, obviously Snow goes into labour like in the Pilot, but Gepetto reasons with the Blue Fairy that Emma needs a guardian, not a mother, and still puts Pinocchio in the wardrobe promising to take care of Emma.
Overall, I loved this episode! It was nice to see them finally reveal who August was and his backstory was really well done. And the fact that the wardrobe would really take two people instead of one was a nice twist, even if a tad predictable with the factor that August remembered everything from his land. I mean, what kid isn't selfish at one point in their life? If I had an issue, it would be the subplot with Regina & David as she tries to seduce him for no reason whatsoever & it goes nowhere. Also, Regina/David? Ew! And Emma all of a sudden kidnapping Henry was just too selfish & I felt that she was pretty stupid not thinking about the possible consequences of her actions (not just the established fact of bad things happening when people try to leave Storybrooke). Also, the fact that she still doesn't believe in the curse after tons & tons of evidence given to her proving it to be true & the fact that the audience knows it's true from the very start of the show just makes her come across as unlikeable. Anyway, I still really enjoy this episode for it's great writing, very well done flashbacks & making August a much more likeable & sympathetic character. Too bad he had to have his life retconned in season 2 which was unforgiveable!

Interesting design for a lock!

Hmm! So August added Pinocchio into the book! Perhaps his story?

OK, I would be lying if I didn't say that the effects look pretty good in this scene!

Thought so! And eek! That's gotta hurt!

I'm sorry, but Henry really annoys me in this scene with talking about the curse!

TRON REFERENCE! 

So it seems Gold now knows who August is!

How nice of Pinocchio to tie up his conscience into the clock! Then again, what kid doesn't misbehave at one point in their life? 

Honestly, I don't blame him for not wanting to help Emma get custody of Henry!

Why the hell isn't David angry at Regina despite all the hell she's caused to Mary Margaret?! 

So that's the same kind of tree used to make Pinocchio...?

OK, I can understand his concerns as a parent, but he really should consider the possible consequences!

Nice Beatles reference with their 'Magical Mystery Tour!'

Oh my God, could David be any more idiotic having dinner with her?! And looks like Regina's lasagne will be her trademark recipe!

Seriously Regina?! Stooping that low?!

SYMBOLISM!!!!!

So he seriously thinks a seven year old kid can look after a baby!?And surely 'lying for the people you love' can often cause more pain than good!

So that's where Emma was found!

Isn't that the same newspaper clipping Emma had in her files?

LOST REFERENCE!

So Emma can't see his leg...I'm sorry, but I'm really not liking her at this point because despite all the evidence proving he was the boy that 'found her' & the curse, she still doesn't believe in it!

Anyway, I salute August for at least trying!

Why is the show so set on portraying the foster system in a negative light?! 

Pretty sweet Marco has the whale despite not knowing the reality behind it!

This is probably one of the best scenes in the episode considering despite Marco not knowing who he is, at least August is still trying to atone for his mistakes!

This is our hero ladies and gentlemen! Kidnapping a kid!

3A vs 3B

Now after that previous post a few months ago of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland vs OUATIW, I decided the next one should be a little different! This one shall be comparing the first & second halves of season 3 & which one is the better one! And remember, this is all opinion based! I'm completely fine if you disagree with me, you're entitled to your own opinion!
Might as well start off with the story!
Story

The first half is much more of a character study as each of the group have to come to terms about who they really are & what they have to believe in whether it's magic, themselves, their loved ones & what they're capable of & to their credit it's pretty clever. But there are some issues. Especially the slow pacing! Heck, even Regina made fun of the fact that the group got to nowhere with saving Henry after 6 episodes! Also, the plot involving David being poisoned by Dreamshade & potentially having to stay on the island to survive was entirely unecessary besides being some sort of conflict for the Charmings which was very quickly resolved thanks to Rumple. Speaking of, I didn't like that the Charmings only wanted Rumple to benefit themselves as well as the Emma/Hook/Neal love triangle, but that's just nitpicking! If anything, Rumple's arc was the best. His arc involving fearing his father & the prophecy involving Henry being his undoing was wrapped up excellently as the undoing is revealed to be him accepting the fact that he is a villain, which is also an amazing addition to his very complex character arc. But unfortunately, the factors of the slow pacing, annoying love triangle & mostly pointless flashbacks do avoid it from being 'amazing'. The word I can describe it is 'great'. Hey! This is still much better than both halves of season 2 put together!
The second half of the season is much more action packed & plot orientated. But thankfully, unlike season 2, they don't cram in too many plots to deviate from the main plot, & the subplots (which are very limited in this case) actually connect well to the main one, specifically Neal's death, Mary Margaret's pregnancy & the events afterwards, or Rumple being taken prisoner by Zelena as he becomes her slave. I also loved how the characters actually think more logically this time round & take advantage of the situation and Emma finally using her powers. That's not to say there are flaws, specifically with Mary Margaret immediately trusting Zelena despite it being painfully obvious that she's the Wicked Witch & the whole stupid CaptainSwan 'love story' being shoved down our throats, but they can easily be glossed over. Oh yeah, and I love that Belle contributes much more to the plot unlike in season 2 & is actually treated equally with the others! Just wanted to put that out there!
Overall, the second half wins me over. While the first half is good in terms of character development, it did drag a bit too long & was quite repetetive. The second half though is more action packed, fast paced, & honestly, much more memorable & heartwarming! Point goes to 3B!
Winner: 3B
Villain

Now for this one I'm gonna switch it up & talk about 3B villain first!
OK, no should I say it,- ZELENA SUCKS! *insert BOOS* OH COME ON! Sorry, she was just intolerable for me! OK before I go into why, let's look at the good stuff! She does have a tragic backstory (despite not being very justifiable for her actions ) at times she is intimidating & makes us hate her & Rebecca Mader does a good job hamming it up when she needs to. But besides all that, she's just a spoilt brat! Her plan of going back in time is childish, the fact she whines all the time is stupid & seriously, why did she think Rumple would wanna be with her after tormenting him & his family including killing his son? And after that she just cries like a child! Sorry, I was glad she died in the hands of Rumple in 3x20! Also, it was pretty hard to take her seriously when literally everyone else didn't recognise that new lady with the giant emerald brooch & black cape & hat!

OH COME ON SHE'S NOT EVEN HIDING IT ANYMORE! CAN'T YOU GET A CLUE MARY MARGARET?!

Yeah, pretty obvious who I prefer now, isn't it? Pan is a much more sinister villain & is much more interesting to know about! Also, his reasoning for being evil is much more spiteful & selfish compared to chidlish jealousy from Zelena's part and he shows no remorse for any of the terrible things he does to people! Even taunting Rumple & pretty much saying that he never loved or wanted him! And his presence is actually intimidating & threatening despite the fact that he's a teenager, especially when it comes to his own son! Robbie's Kay performance is just flawless, even for his young age by giving him a very sinister prescence, as well as his looks being very uncanny to the Disney version of Peter Pan. Overall, Pan exceeded my expectations after all the hype in the season 2 finale while Zelena really disappointed me. She's not the worst Once Upon a Time villain I've seen (we'll get to that another time), but she's definitely on the weak side! Point goes to Pan!
Winner: Peter Pan

Since this is a 3 parter, I thought it would be best to look at the 2 primary settings of each half!
Setting

Both designs for both universes are rather creative & interesting to look at as they're mostly original, but they also manage to pay tribute to other versions of the lands from other Peter Pan & The Wizard of Ozadaptations But, honestly, the problem I have with both is we didn't get to see much of them! Oz is a huge universe with many different countries yet we only see the Heart of Oz, The Wizard's Chamber, Zelena's cottage, a well & a panning shot of the Emerald City (I'll admit, the CGI is pretty good & the designs do look pretty cool!) Neverland on the other hand is mostly just generic jungle with a Skull Rock & some treehouses. OK, I lie there since we did see the Echo Caves, Tinkerbell's hideout & Dark Hollow, but I didn't think any of them were as creative as they could've been due to the dark twist on the Peter Pan story. It doesn't really help that Neverland itself can easily remind people of the island from Lost! Oz on the other hand does manage to get creative & interesting, even if most of the influence comes from the 1939 film like the Yellow Brick Road & the landscape of the Emerald City. Also, I love the originality of the Heart of Oz as well as the Wizard's Room with that zany yet whimsical style you'd know from Oz. This one is a very difficult one for me as both have the same good & bad points, but since this is a 3 round one, I'm gonna go with 3B as the designs are much more creative & fun, and it also felt like Oz unlike Neverland which mostly consisted of a generic dark jungle.
Winner: 3B

And overall 3B wins! Sorry that there aren't as many sections as last time, but this was all I could come up with & I needed to make it an odd number! And honestly, although I prefer 3B over 3B mostly due to the much more engaging story, both arcs are still good in their own domain & are giant improvements over season 2!

Top 10 Rumbelle Kisses!

Since there has finally been 10 Rumbelle kisses in the show as of season 3 (nowhere near enough if you ask me), I thought I may as well rank them from the best!

10) The 2x04 kiss AKA Belle's dream kiss. Not much to say other than that it's pretty cute despite the fact 1) it didn't actually happen & 2) what happens afterwards...yeah! Probably the main reason why it's at the bottom for me is because it wasn't really significant in any way compared to the others & isn't that memorable.



9) The 2x12 kiss AKA the memory attempt kiss. Unlike the last one which had little to no significance & didn't actually happen, this one is quite the opposite as obviously, it's Gold attempting True Love's Kiss to get Belle's memory back, despite the fact that his love isn't reciporacated. And again, what happens afterwards with the screaming & (temporary) death of chip (Have never forgiven them for that!) is why it's not higher up on the list!

8) The 3x21 kiss AKA the casual one? Well, I love this one mostly because it's more of a casual one in comparison to the rest of this list (other than number 10 anyway), but still managed to be sweet & meaningful as they're discussing their wedding & how far they've gone as a couple. That's all I can say really if I can be honest!



7) 2x22 Kiss number 1 AKA Reunion kiss number 2. After I'm not joking, half a season of Belle being sidelined thanks to the stupid & poorly executed memory loss plot, it felt like a huge breath of fresh air when they finally came back in the finale despite the stupid deus ex machina mouthwash-I mean 'magic potion'. Anyway, I think what I love most about this is that despite Rumple being a complete asshole to people & her seemingly being aware of it, she just doesn't care cos she's back with her love again.

6) 2x22 kiss number 2 AKA the goodbye kiss! Yeah, honestly it was pretty hard to choose which kiss from 2x22 was better, but I ultimately went with this one due to the context & higher emotions in the scene as Rumple believes he's going to his death in Neverland while Belle has to stay in order to look after the town. I just love how much it shows their love for each other, not that the other ones already shown didn't prove otherwise! Anyway, I'm thankful this wasn't their final one because it would've really annoyed me after how much they've been through!


5) 3x10 Kiss AKA Reunion kiss number 3! Unlike the other reunion kiss where it was when it was possible they were gonna die, this one is at a moment where, well, they were talking about their future together in possibly one of the most romantic & sweet moments between them in the show so far. Oddly enough, I just love how Rumple has become more confident in their love as he has no trouble believing they will be together & is the one to lead the kiss with no problem whatsoever when he would normally be a bit shy & flustered.

4) The 2x01 kiss AKA Reunion kiss number 1 (Boy, there are tons of reunions with this couple)! Considering being split up for about 30 years & Gold thinking she was dead, this smooch was pretty much needed for both of them! And considering how badly their last kiss ended, this one just makes it that much more heartwarming to watch. I won't lie, this is pretty much the main reason why I watch 2x01 whenever I want to!

3) The 3x20 kiss AKA the proposal kiss! Do I really need to say why for this one? Considering it's easily the most passionate kiss between them so far, it's very fitting that it occurs after the famous proposal scene! I don't even know what else to say as just looking at it alone is evidence enough as to why it's in the top 3 kisses between them!


2) 1x12 kiss AKA their first kiss! You have no idea how hard it was to choose between this and the one I chose for number 1 (pretty obvious what it is now since they've had 10 onscreen kisses!) It's just so sweet considering it was pretty much what made them confess their love for each other & the factor that it was a True Love's Kiss, it already goes up to at least the top 3! The events afterwards including Rumple kicking her out were what avoided it from going to the top. Despite that, still a very iconic kiss for this couple, which is fitting since it was their first!

1) 3x22 kiss AKA the wedding kiss! This one is just perfect in every way! No interruptions, no conflict going on (well, from Belle's perspective anyway), nobody to judge them, it's just them expressing their love alone in a beautiful & intimate ceremony. It's actually very simple why this is my top one: it shows how far they've gone with their displays of affection compared to the start of their relationship. This one (well, the whole wedding scene actually) never fails to cry/get me teary eyed when I watch it & the emotional stakes are up to the max with them!

And that's all I've got so far for my Top 10 Rumbelle Kisses! With their marriage starting in season 4, I can't wait to see more great smooches between them as a married couple, until she discovers the truth about the dagger, maybe dump him, but get back together again! Hey, I wouldn't blame her for doing that once she finds out, but I still have faith in them! By the way, can't wait for the Rumbelle honeymoon and, just announced, Beauty and the Beast dance which I am so so excited for after so long of waiting for that iconic scene to be re-enacted by my favourite couple in the show!