Episode Report Card Cindy McLennan: A | 186 USERS: A YOU GRADE IT PANgs
By Cindy McLennan | Season 3 | Episode 6 | Aired on 11.03.2013
Hook leads Emma, Snow, and Charming to the heart of the Echo Cave. Neal is in his cage, on a rock pillar. All that's between him and rescue is about 100 feet of gaping canyon. As he wakes, his eyes focus on Emma. He sits upright, reaches through the bars and yells, "Emma." Charming starts talking about how they can't use rope because there's nothing to tie it to. That's actually pretty dumb. Neal could tie it to the cage. I mean, that approach would be doomed to failure, because Hook has already told us the rules of rescue, but it's technically incorrect as well. Hell, Neal could tie the rope around his neck torso, provided the team could throw it that far.
When Emma asks what they do, Hook manages to keep his temper better than I ever could, and reminds them he's already told them. Now it's the moment of truth. Hook goes first. And truthfully, I covered these Echo Cave scenes in such detail in the recaplet, that I'm going to plagiarize myself, which, since I'm acknowledging it, really means I'm just using that work as my source. See how easy that is, Rand Paul?
Hook confesses he kissed Emma. Charming reacts as you'd expect. Snow hushes him, because now is not the time to protectively parent their age equivalent daughter. Emma tells Hook that since she already told Snow about the kiss, it probably doesn't count as a secret. Hook understands, but says that's not the real secret. The real secret is that he never thought he'd be capable of letting go of his first love, Milah, and never thought he'd find someone else. "That is, until I met you." A rock bridge juts out from Neal's rock pillar and begins to cross the divide. Its emergence shakes Emma, as does Hook's confession. Oh Hook, you big leather clad, eye-lined, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty sap.
David wants to confess next, but Snow has an urgent need to go first so she can break our hearts and remind us of how good this show can be when it is at its best. She tells David that she loves Emma and is proud of her, and is so happy they have her back, but she's had a secret she hasn't been able to admit. Emma is all grown up, and Snow isn't okay with the fact that they missed everything with her -- her first smile, her first words, her first steps. "What we have with her is unique, but it's not what I wanted." Ouch, and yes. Yes. I mean, it hurts Emma, but she gets it too. When you have a baby with your true love, you want to raise that baby and revel in every moment. When that baby is taken from you and you only meet her once she's a 28-year-old woman and a mother in her own right, you damned well feel ripped off. I'm sure Emma feels ripped off about missing Henry's infancy and early childhood, and about not having a childhood with her own parents too. Oh, my heart. What a confession. Anyhow, Snow adds that when they get back to Storybrooke (it is telling that Snow hasn't let go of the idea of staying), she wants to have another baby. As you'd expect the rock bridge extends closer to Team Operation Cobra Rescue.