Episode Report Card Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Once Upon A Time
By Demian | Season 3 | Episode 3 | Aired on 10.18.2000
Cut to the Supernatural Home of Family Dysfunction, where Kate is coloring in a childishly-executed drawing of claw-fingered, bald-headed trolls in a cave. One appears to be strangling a fish, for whatever that's worth. Bastard Stepdad ushers Prue and Phoebe into the bedroom. They've ostensibly dropped by to return Kate's torn jacket, but Prue is also toting the Lily drawings. Once they're left alone with Kate, Prue tries to get the sullen moppet to open up about her troubles, showing her a particular drawing of Lily with a crayoned smudge in the corner that supposedly represents a troll. If this really is Prue's attempt at an artistic rendering, I can already tell that Kate is a better artist, and Prue might want to look into a career other than photography. Having thus gained Kate's trust, the sisters listen as Kate explains her situation. She doesn't know that much, because "Thistle" is hard to understand, as fairies don't speak in the same manner as people. Girl, do not get me started. I'm thisclose to bagging the recap so I can flip over to PBS and brush up on my quotes from The Women. Kate explains that Thistle is a fairy princess, whose parents are the king and queen of the enchanted kingdom. The trolls kidnapped her in an attempt to overthrow the royal fairy family, but Kate rescued Thistle from troll bondage. Now the trolls are after Kate. Prue and Phoebe ask if they can be introduced to Thistle, who has been spending her free time in the jewelry box Kate insists on having beside her at all times. Why didn't Kate just return her? Better yet, why didn't Thistle just fly on home after Kate rescued her from the cave? Are Thistle's parents going through a messy divorce, too? Do fairies get divorced?
Jesus Christ. Am I really sitting here questioning the motives of TV fairies? My parents are going to read this thing. Blah.
Anyway, Kate notes that adults can't see fairies, Phoebe insists that she and her sister are quite in touch with their respective inner children, and Kate moves the box to the Tween of the windowsill to open it. Kate apparently checks the sill for trolls, then unlocks the box and flips the top open. From Phoebe and Prue's perspective, there's nothing there. Kate notes this and snippily shuts the box, pouting, "You can't help if you can't see her." Thistle apparently calls out an instruction from inside the box, and Kate relays the information. If the Ps really believe in fairies, Thistle has a blunt that will help them see her. Okay, it's not a spliff, but just wait. Kate reaches into the box, pulls out a handful of fairy dust, and flings it into the Ps' faces. Piper and Phoebe immediately look like they've each blown a huge hit off of a bong, and start giggling. Kate smugly notes that she thinks the fairy dust worked, and sets the box back down on the sill. Prue bounces up and down in excitement as she blurts, "I want to see the fairy!" Kate lifts the lid to reveal a tiny girl in a trailing pink gown with fluttering, glowing wings. Thistle hovers up out of the box to hang in the air in front of the gaping Ps, and for Thistle's sake, I hope the munchies don't kick in any time soon. As Kate snickers delightedly in the background, we cut to commercial.