“A Tale of Two Sisters”
*Spoiler Alert*
Over nine million viewers tuned in for Once Upon A Time‘s dazzling premiere and it isn’t hard to guess why. People who lost interest with last season’s Wicked Witch – yawn – storyline checked back in, curious to see how characters from Disney’s highest grossing animated film of all time, Frozen, would play out in Storybrooke. Frozen is one fairytale they aren’t rewriting. For the most part, Disney classics have been re-imagined by the OUAT creative team, but not Frozen if anything this is more like a sequel.
Turning animated characters into real people can be tricky, but the casting department pulled it off. Elizabeth Lail plays the adorable, clumsy but charming redheaded sister Anna, who much like in the movie, puts her sister above everyone else. Picking up where the movie Frozen left off, Anna and Kristoff are now engaged living at the castle with Elsa. (Don’t worry Sven fans, the reindeer makes an appearance too!) Just before the wedding Elsa surprises her little sister with a special gift, their mother’s wedding dress. That discovery leads to her mother’s diary, which leads Elsa to believe her parents thought she was a monster and died on their voyage to “fix” her. Convinced Elsa has misinterpreted the diary, Anna sets sail for Misthaven, otherwise known as the Enchanted Forest.
In search of her sister, Elsa finds herself in the foreign land of Storybrooke. Like a beautiful slug princess Elsa leaves a trail of ice everywhere she goes. Though she’s not evil, when the locals threaten her she reacts by unleashing a giant abominable snowman. Might be exactly what I would do in that situation. No Olaf yet, but let’s hold onto hope for an appearance.
This was a heavily themed episode about lost loves. While Elsa fights her chaotic nature, struggling to be good while she searches for the only person she really loves, Regina wrestles with similar problems. Her true love is suddenly still married. Emma inadvertently stole Regina’s happy ending by saving Maid Marian and reuniting her with Robin Hood in present day Storybrooke. Marian who has missed out on all of Regina’s character development only sees her as the monster she once was. Poor Robin Hood, he’s still in love with Regina but honor dictates he uphold his vows. Maybe someone in Storybrooke knows a good divorce attorney?
Everyone’s worried Regina will slip back into her evil ways now that her heart’s been broken. Emma feels a special responsibility towards her. Sounds familiar doesn’t it? Anna also wants to keep Elsa’s horrendous powers in check. While Emma and Regina may not be sisters, they also share a close bond thanks to their son, Henry, who incidentally went unnoticed this episode.
“It’s time for villains to get their happy endings.” Regina is determined to rewrite history, all she has to do is find the person who wrote the book. She enlists the help of an imprisoned Sidney Glass (Breaking Bad’s “Gus Fring”, Giancarlo Esposito), banishing him once again to the mirror to do her bidding. His unrequited love for the Evil Queen remains.
Belle is happily married to the man she loves. No more dark magic, or so she thinks. She’s found a lovely, mansion like cottage in the woods, the perfect spot for newlyweds to celebrate. In a scene pulled straight from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Belle in her yellow ball gown and Mr. Gold in his blue suit waltz around the library to the tune of a “Tale as Old As Time.” But it’s not all rainbows and butterflies, Gold has a dark secret, he’s promised to avenge Neal’s death and from the looks of it he’s going to call on the Mickey Mouse Sorcerer’s apprentice hat à la Fantasia. Can’t wait to see what mischief this leads to!
The Emma and Hook romance is on! But Emma hasn’t quite told Henry about it, and until she does she’s putting their hook-up on hold. Patience is a virtue Hook has, but only when it comes to Emma. I enjoy this version of Captain Hook better than the original Disney.
Overall the characters seem to be foregoing previous character development, instead returning to their more ornery ways. Which makes the show that much better, because really, who wants to watch everyone behaving nicely?
Aurora Snow Says
Episode Rating:
[Rating:4.5/5]
