Once Upon A Time Season 5 Discussion Thread -Spoilers

[JD]

Yeah, he was manipulating Gold into turning on the others.
Hades taking Hook off to his little chamber was definitely not very well thought out. I thought maybe he was purposefully setting him up to be rescued for some reason, but apparently it was just one of those situations where the writers just set up an easy rescue, even though the bad guy should have known better.
I did like the visit to Daniel's grave.
I wasn't quite sure what exactly was up with the horse. After the way they reacted I thought they were setting up something there, but then it just took off without any explanation. I understand it was there for Regina to use her powers on, but it seemed to me like there should have been more of an in story reason for it to be there. David was a stable boy, so I thought maybe it was somehow related to him.
I did like seeing Milah again, and them telling her about all of their crazy connections was funny. I never even thought about the fact that Emma was with both Milah's son, and her lover.
I liked the flashback story with Rumple making his first deal, and the end tied it nicely into the modern story.

 

[Arrrrgggh]

I thought the horse was the one whose heart Regina ripped out for one of the curses or something. I distinctly remember her killing a horse.

 

[Captain Shaw]

Pardon my foggy memory, but what happens if you fall in the green water?

And why did Hades cart Hook out into an isolated location to be slowly dipped in without any guards watching? Did he want them to rescue him like that?

I think you become a lost soul.

 

[Gryffindorian]

Last night's episode was better than last week's.

Liam's backstory was explored, but I'm not quite sure how absolution or salvation works in the Underworld. He was in fact responsible for the crew's demise during the storm. So all he had to do was acknowledge his past wrongdoings at the last minute, and voila, he was saved from the fiery pits of hell? Well then, there's hope for Rumple.

Since Henry found the magic quill, does this mean he's going to use it to get everyone back home to Storybrooke? The missing pages that Liam tore off from the book were apparently related to Hades' past; based on the preview of next week's episode, it appears he was romantically involved with Zelena at some point.

 

[Gryffindorian]

That was a bizarre attempt at a love story. I find it odd when they try to humanize two villains by making them capable of falling in love and showing affections, in this case, Hades and Zelena. I can understand Zelena wanting to bond with her baby because that's her own flesh and blood. But Hades falling for the Wicked Witch after riding a bike with her? He even stated it made his heart flutter.

Despite all that, I felt sorry for Zelena when she realized she couldn't take her baby without her magic posing a threat to the infant. It was even tragic for Hades to be rejected by his "true love" twice.

Now that Belle knows what Rumple was keeping from her, Hades no longer has leverage against him, but the discovery puts a strain on the couple's relationship.

 

[JD]

Yeah, the relationship between Hades and Zelena was kind of underwhelming. It was nice to learn a bit about his history and a little about his motivation when it comes to his brother. I did like the reveal that he created the Underbrooke specifically to give Zelena her own Storybrooke.
I was glad that Belle learned about Rumple being the Dark One again. It will be interesting to see what becomes of their relationship now. The stuff with Zelena and the baby did manage to make her a bit more sympathetic.

 

[JanewayRulz!]

Hades still has the ultimate leverage.. he has the contract for Rumple's 2nd born child.

I think Hades was just playing Zelena and she's just desperate enough to believe it. Why bring the child to Underbrook to "protect it" from the heroes? What exactly were they going to do, infect her with love?

By taking her to the underworld, she was also irretrievably removed from Zelena's reach.

No, he's playing her and she should remember that he's lusted for vengeance a lot longer than she has so its unlikely he's dropped that desire so easily.

I did like how Henry is writing the missing pages of the book unconsciously. Its like he's channeling the previous authors.

I also loved how Henry was able to reassure his grandparents that their son heard the lullaby they sang into the phone.

The other thing I liked about the ep was Regina once more confirming that those people she once considered her enemies are now her family of choice and not merely of circumstance.

 

[Arrrrgggh]

I'm not really digging this season (or half season, or whatever they're calling it).

I did like how Henry is writing the missing pages of the book unconsciously. Its like he's channeling the previous authors.

Really? When they introduced that, all I heard was the writers screaming "we don't know how to have Henry be the Author, let alone recreate things he has no way of knowing even though we've written him into that corner. Wait, I know, he does it while he's asleep. Boom, problem solved."

I also loved how Henry was able to reassure his grandparents that their son heard the lullaby they sang into the phone.

Except it's not actually Henry doing it. That implies he has any conscience control over it and is aware of what he's doing. Magic Effect #4821 reassured them, not Henry.

 

[Richard Baker]

The only thing I like about this half-season is Gold finally being honest with Belle that he is always going to be the way he is. She has tried to change him into something outside his character and he at first tried unsuccessfully to be that, then pretended he was but that did not work long either.
I liked it when he told her that he will always have a 'beast' and that part of him, whether of not she like it, was one of the things which attracted her to him.
Take it or leave it, this is the first time they have had an honest discussion about their relationship and it was a healthy change IMO.

I have no idea what Hades game is- opening a portal to grab the baby instead of Zelena does not make sense to me. Creating the whole UnderBrooke just for her as he states also does not make sense to me- if he wanted to make her feel more at home why not recreate a dark version of OZ?

I also cannot figure out why people who died and never lived in Storybrooke would be there. The only thing I can think of is that the true Underworld looks different to each person who is there- you live in a dark version of whatever home you knew. This does not work though since people like Charming's brother are interacting with Underbrooke in context, not wandering around inside their own world perception and he would not be the sheriff.

I get the feeling this story arc was not well thought out too far in advance and they are just pulling shit out of their hats as they go along...

 

[Gryffindorian]

Hades' motivation for taking Zelena's baby (if he really is in love with her) might be that they could live as a "family" in the underworld. He appeared sincere when he confessed his feelings for her, but he's the king of the underworld, so I don't blame Zelena for feeling the way she does.

 

[JD]

I'm not sure about his motiviation for taking the baby, but I do think he was honest about everything else.

I have no idea what Hades game is- opening a portal to grab the baby instead of Zelena does not make sense to me. Creating the whole UnderBrooke just for her as he states also does not make sense to me- if he wanted to make her feel more at home why not recreate a dark version of OZ?

It wasn't about making her comfortable, it was about giving her what her sister had. He was giving her her own version of Storybrooke since it was something Regina had in the living world. It is kind of a retcon since they said earlier that Storybrooke looked like Underbrooke because of the Dark Curse. Now that I think about that might have just been one of the heroes guessing, so it might not really be a contradiction.

 

[Richard Baker]

That makes sense...

 

[Mr Light]

Count me in for the thumbs down on Hades and Zelena romance

 

[Enterprise is Great]

Behind the scenes photos of the season finale...first look at Sam Witwer's character - http://www.spoilertv.com/2016/03/once-upon-time-episode-522-bts-photos.html

 

[JD]

Hmm, Sam Witwer's look is interesting. The style seems rather old fashioned, so I'm thinking he must have just showed up in our world.
The last episode was OK. I like Belle, so it's always nice to get an episode focused on her.
It's kind of ironic that she turned down the big hero, and ended up with the monster. Her being the one to push Gaston into the river of souls was an interesting twist. After all of the other happy endings people have been getting, I didn't expect it to actually end that way.
I'm glad Red is back, and based on the preview for next week we'll be Mulan too!

 

[Enterprise is Great]

I think that based on the clothing that Witwer is playing one of the Brothers Grimm. Hank Harris is also dressed the same way so he's the other brother Grimm. With Henry being the Author there probably be a connection between him and the Brothers Grimm.

 

[Gryffindorian]

I like the fact that Belle always sees the good in others. Her philosophy is "Don't judge anyone, especially if you don't know their side of the story," or something to that end. She demonstrated that when she first encountered the young ogre trapped in the hole, and again later when she met her future husband Rumple. In the end, she had to choose between Gaston and Rumple, and naturally she saved the life of her unborn baby's father.

 

[Gryffindorian]

That was a beautiful episode. I'm gushing with PRIDE. The last time we saw Ruby, she was on a quest with Mulan to find the former's pack. I suspected then that Red was the second gay character to be featured on the show, but I never expected she would fall in love with Dorothy, whom she awakened from a sleeping curse with a true love's kiss. This makes Red the first bi character and Dorothy the third LGBT to be featured on a family-friendly show. Kudos to ABC.

 

[Mr Light]

OMG. I just got it. "Friends of Dorothy".

Man. Poor Mulan. Always the bridesmaid...

I was also (pleasantly) surprised how much LGBT content they showed on an 8pm Disney show. I expected a single chaste kiss. On the other hand, it'd be a lot more brave to show two men making out than two women.

 

[DigificWriter]

I firmly believe we will see Mulan find her "other half", and I actually think it's bolder of the writers to not go the expected route of making Mulan a part of the show's first LGBT relationship just because her sexuality had already been established.

They never specified that she would be, BTW.

It's also extremely hypocritical for people to accept it when heterosexual characters fall in love "just like that" within the course of a fairytale story but complain when the same thing happens with two homosexual characters (even if said characters had never previously been shown to have homosexual 'leanings').