Episode Report Card Cindy McLennan: A | 6 USERS: A+ YOU GRADE IT The Shadow Knows
By Cindy McLennan | Season 2 | Episode 21 | Aired on 05.05.2013
Storybrooke. Cannery. Groan is trying to shock Regina to death. Did his weird, "That's scary, ain't it," completely take any of the rest of you out of the moment? Charming rides (well runs) to the rescue, shoots out the electro-shock device and orders Groan not to move, so Groan of course ignores him and runs. When David runs after him, Snow calls him back saying they can't leave Regina. Why can't David run after Groan while Snow tends to Regina? Well, because it doesn't serve the plot. David reaches Emma on the walkie and tells her to block all the exits.
Emma and Neal are already working on it. Neal hears David tell Emma that they found Regina with Groan, who will be heading Emma's way. At the mention of Groan, poor Emma is horrified at her supposed mistake, so Neal can't miss the opportunity to make her feel even worse. "So I was right? It wasn't Tamara." No, Neal, you were wrong, and now your fiancée has just clocked your Baby Mama over the head, knocked her out, and knocked the gun out of her hand. How does it feel to be you, you Dupefire? Tamara grabs Emma's gun and turns it on Neal. She tells him she has to keep magic out of this world, and he should understand that more than anyone else.
Neal would really rather talk about how their whole relationship has been a lie, so Tamara admits it has been thus, ever since she bumped into him and spilled her coffee. I hope you'll excuse me for, in this moment, loving Tamara just a little bit. Sure, she's one half of the two-headed obstacle, but I do like watching Neal get served. She patronizes him by telling him he's a good man, but she has an important job to do. Neal says, "You never loved me." Tamara says, "No." Neal: "I can't let you leave here, Tamara." I can't help but wonder if he'd have been willing to let her go, had her answer been, "Yes." Blah. Neal closes in on Tamara, so she calls his bluff and shoots him in his right side. Standing over him, Tamara puts the gun to his head and says she's sorry.
Emma rises, says, "You should be," and kicks the gun out of Tamara's hand. I'm not your action recapper, but the two women struggle. Emma gets the better of Tamara and gets in a nice body slam at the end, then runs back to retrieve her gun. Once it's in hand, Emma says, "It's over." Tamara says, "No, it's not," then casts down a magic bean. It spins into a glowing, crackling vortex. Tamara says, "Bye," and runs off. As the portal grows, Emma has to grab onto a nearby pipe, to keep from falling in. Neal rushes to the edge, reaches out and grabs her. Once her feet are on the floor, Emma says she has to get Neal to a hospital, but the portal widens further. They both start to fall in. Emma grabs onto a floorboard, while below her, Neal holds onto her hand. He knows she can't hold both of them, though. Emma insists she's not letting him go. He's been shot, and if he falls through the portal, he'll die no matter where he lands.