Once Upon a Time Review: Be Careful What You Wish For

This hour was strange in that it felt more like a 100^th or other milestone episode than a midseason finale. This was largely because of how full circle it was from the pilot, down to essentially reenacting the Evil Queen’s infamous royal crashing. However, this season as a whole has been very full circle, so it made sense for this be a sort of twist on the pilot episode. Plus, despite not feeling very finale-y in general, the ending did serve up a couple of intriguing questions for viewers to ponder over hiatus: One, how will this version of Robin Hood affect Regina? And two, why does Gideon want to kill Emma?

Before they got there, though, this was a big episode for Regina in particular, and as a result, Lana Parrilla had a lot of room to play, as she has this entire season. Her believably uncommitted version of Evil Queen Regina was particularly good: irritated by her own ponytail and so annoyed by Emma’s refusal to accept her thinly veiled encouragement that she accidentally pulverized Snow and Charming’s hearts. It made sense that Regina was the one to go after Emma in the wish realm both on a friendship level and given her intensely personal connection to the Queen who sent Emma there.

It was more than a little heartbreaking to see such a meek version of Emma, but I, like Regina, realized pretty quickly that she truly didn’t have a choice in her behavior. It also helped that Emma couldn’t help but raise a hero, despite not being one herself in the wish realm. I found it interesting that it was Henry potentially becoming a killer that woke Emma up rather than her parents’ deaths, but Henry is one of her true loves while, much as she loves them, her parents are not.

Afterward, I had a feeling it wouldn’t be as easy as “take the magic bean and head back to Storybrooke,” but I thought Rumple would prevent it from happening, not Robin Hood. I liked what we saw better because not only was it unexpected, I also totally understood why Regina couldn’t jump; it’s a lot harder to tell yourself it’s not real when the dead love of your life is standing in front of you. Plus, even if this isn’t the Robin that Regina loved in Storybrooke, it is a version of him and hopefully a way for her to get some much-deserved closure. It’s worth noting that this storyline feels very much like a response to fan outcry after Robin was killed so unceremoniously last season. It’s never a good idea to give fans everything they ask for, but I think this is a good move narratively as well.

The wish realm also didn’t feel completely realized, so I’m glad they’re sticking around for that reason. However, this show has done the “trapped in the Enchanted Forest” bit to death, and I’m not particularly eager to watch Emma and Regina hunt down a magic plant or mystical being that will return them to Storybrooke. I’m hoping that dealing with Robin Hood and other wish realm versions of the people they know back home will take precedent, at least as far as screen time goes.

Other thoughts on this episode:

Regina’s reactions to everyone in the wish realm were great, especially her excitement at seeing the dwarves and amusement at seeing Snow and Charming (You’re old!). I also loved that they played with the singing princess trope and that Emma was as horrified by her behavior as Regina was.

Jasmine and Aladdin were used very sporadically this arc, mostly because their story was only added to when it affected the main characters. I almost wish they had been held for midseason where they could have potentially appeared in multiple episodes in a row instead of random ones here or there. It’s really hard for a story with new characters to gain momentum when it unfolds in fits and spurts.

I was a little bummed that it was Gideon under the hood. Even as a huge fan of Emma and Regina’s friendship, I was weirdly hoping it would be Regina, just because it would have been interesting to see how they got there. Were they ordered to fight for some reason? Was Regina under some kind of spell? But I digress…

As mentioned, I’m curious to see what Gideon has against Emma or maybe just Saviors in general, and dealing with an extra emo adult son should add an interesting layer to Belle and Rumple’s already complicated relationship. At first, I was disappointed that Belle reached a truce of sorts with Rumple—and it took a lot of nerve for him to lecture her about keeping their son safe—but he was, unfortunately, right that they’ll have more luck by fighting together. Plus, it’s not like Belle made any promises about their relationship after they help Gideon.

What did you think of the midseason finale and the first half of the season in general? Let me know in the comments!