Even thought Baelfire being Emma's ex wasn't a massive twist at this point it was a good episode. I think in Henry's mind lying = bad so I can see why he's upset. I liked how Cora's plan is becoming clear, and the mystery traveler is intriguing. At first I thought he might have been sent to Storybrooke purposefully but now I'm not so sure.
While I was disappointed that it was as "simple" as Neal being Bae as most had predicted, I still think the dialogue in his scenes (happily) indicates there's more to his story than that. Where has he been all these years? I think the most popular theory is Neverland and that he will turn out to be Peter Pan. But I'm still hoping/thinking he was in Wonderland and was in some way the White Rabbit. Why? First, the Hatters sign in his apartment. Second, the watches that he was trying to sell when he and Emma got into trouble. And finally all of his dialogue in this episode: "The clock is ticking" "You have three minutes." "Time's up." That dialogue was very specific and repetitive. So I'm still voting White Rabbit.
I liked the reveal. Emma and Neil have one interesting relationship. She blames him for leaving her high and dry + breaking her heart. He seems almost scared that supernatural elements are pulling him back in and pissed at her for not telling him about Henry. I liked that Bae returned because he knows what his father does to people that break deals. I still say that August is the worst "fairy godmother" ever. Emma calling her mom to ask what to do made me chuckle. I got an even bigger laugh when Charming was trying to sort out the family tree. I wonder if Hook will be sufficiently pissed at Regina and Cora to derail their plans? Burning Question of the Week - Are the Giant and the Dwarves farming like crazy?
And I think it still allows for my crazy theory: young Henry will actually turn out to be Regina's dad, Henry. *hums "I'm My Own Grandpa"*
Well, that was interesting. Rumpelstiltskin hobbled himself under the influence of the seer; so they are ameliorating his cowardice by showing that he was motivated by love and a desire to rise above his father's level. Another step toward rehabilitation. As with Regina, he is more than a Fairy Tale villain. He has layers and believable motivations. I like the idea that Bae is White Rabbit. He may turn out to be the key to defeating Cora.
Makes me think of that "How can you tell if you are a Redneck Jedi" joke. (Yes I can tell such jokes, since I am a "redneck".) VADER: Luke.... I am your Father... AND your Uncle. I forgot to add... How dare Baelfire complain that Emma never told him she was pregnant. HE LEFT HER! What was she supposed to do, send a postcard to Neal, thief very Ordinaire, c/o "General Delivery" every town in the USA to tell him he was now a Daddy? And what's the deal with Neal calling Pinocchio, Emma's "friend". Emma didn't meet him until Storybrook and had no idea that he interacted with Neal "way back when". Neal would have no idea (should have no idea) that these two ever met. And I'm sure that hearing... "Oh hey, while you are running away from your Daddy, maybe you'd like to know that you not only let me go to prison, but you had knocked me up and your SON was unlucky enough to be born in prison. THANK-YOU very much!" ... is just what a fugitive wants before he leaves his scorned lover once more "in the dust".
The visitor/car accident "victim" keeps talking and sending texts and pics to HER on his phone. And they keep showing us that, so HER has to be something pretty big.
Yeah, they would be so mysterious about "HER" if she didn't have some kind of a connection to Storybrooke or one of the characters. As for the episode, while a the whole Neal/Bae thing wasn't a surprise at this point, I thought the character work in the episode was enough to make it really enjoyable.
Then again, the writers did tease us for most of a season with a mysterious box that turned out to have a piece of paper in it saying "I know you're Baelfire".
Yeah, that was, umm... I would have even rather it said "I know who your father is..." to make it a little more ominous/mysterious. But hmmm... "HER"... who major haven't we seen yet? Can't be Maleficent or Evil Queen or Queen of Hearts as we've seen them all... maybe Ursula? Cruella? Madam Mim? Or maybe HER is a princess run amok? Ariel? Tiana? Jasmine? Rapunzel?
Or she's just his wife/girlfriend/sister/whatever so that he can be talking to someone about what he's seen, rather than to himself, which would be weird. Personally, I could do with a bit less of the "small world" syndrome happening in this show.
Small town in coastal Maine, of course they're all related! And I say that being from a small town in coastal Maine myself, before anyone decides to feign outrage At least it'll be funny with Henry trying to figure out what to call his Step-Great-Grandmother/Mother...
I have a feeling if that were the case they would have just come up with a name or wouldn't have made such a point of focusing on the caller ID saying "HER". There is a chance it's nothing, but I doubt it.
"Her" is doofus' elementary English indoctrination keeping hims from writing...SHE. Next, after we enjoy our H. Rider Haggard, we get some ERB. Instead of some unbelievable plot where Rumplestiltskin is supposed to kill Henry to get Baelfire's affections (that's not going to work, even with magic,) they should go for the obvious. New character Rotbart enchants Emma, so that she loses her memory, becoming merely a mundane E. Swan.
Except that half of the fun of the show, and its very premise, is the idea of throwing all these classic stories and characters into a blender: "Look! Sleeping Beauty and Mulan are teaming up to fight Captain Hook! And Snow White had a fling with Dr. Frankenstein!" Where Disney is concerned, it really is a small world after all . . . .
Yes, but it's silly to have people from outside Storybrooke and the Enchanted Forest constantly having connections to it. Emma is easy to swallow because that's a conceit we were given at the very beginning of the series. August/Pinnochio worked because they built a decent mystery around him, and the revelation of who he was and what he did answered a lot of questions. With Neal/Bae, I feel like we were left with a lot more questions and head-scratching. What should have felt like a payoff instead felt like a tease, and possibly a clunky setup for future storylines. Was his involvement with Emma coincidental or not? Why did he become an amoral bastard after having seen his own father go mad with power? Compared to the other big reveals on this show, I just think Bae's was handled very poorly. And now, we have this guy who was apparently just going to drive through Storybrooke without a second thought, talking to someone on the phone who may also have some connection to the place? It's just a bit much. How many refugees from the Enchanted Forest actually made it out pre-Curse?!