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We're back with a more traditional tale, in this week's exploration of Hansel (Quinn Lord), Gretel (Karley Scott Collins) and their Storybrooke identities, Nicholas and Ava Zimmer. But while the Enchanted Forest backstory is full of whimsical high camp, it is in Storybrooke, where this episode's strength lies.
Enchanted Forest: As in the traditional version, Hansel and Gretel are the Woodcutter's children, but there's no miserly mother trying to push them out of the picture, and their father both has a backbone and adores them. One day, while he's chopping down a tree, he sends the children to search for kindling. Before they head off, the Woodcutter gives Gretel his compass, so that she and Hansel will be able to find their way back to him.
The children soon encounter the Evil Queen and her goons (and Queenie is deliciously evil this week). She captures the kids, but promises she will find their father for them, after they do her bidding. She leads them to the house of the Blind Witch (Emma Caulfield) and tells them to sneak in, after dark, find a leather satchel, and bring it to her. She warns them that they must not eat anything while they're inside.
As they are breaking into the Blind Witch's gingerbread house, Hansel grabs a finger full of frosting, but Gretel, remembering Queenie's warning, smacks his wrist and tells him not to eat. The cottage is so filled with treats, I think I gained five pounds watching this scene. Gretel is focused. She goes right to the hearth and swipes the satchel. Hansel, being too dumb to live, swipes a cupcake. The moment he takes a bite, the witch awakens. Taking a deep breath, she rises. Between her and her fireplace are a pile of bones and skulls. Hansel and Gretel try to run out, but the door and windows magically lock. The witch sighs with delight. "I smell dinner."
Once she has the children locked in a cage, the witch prepares her oven. Gretel tells Hansel that when the witch takes him out of the cage, he should steal the cage key and toss it to her. Hansel wimps out, so since the witch is blind, Gretel takes his place. When she's out of the cage and on the way to the oven, she tosses Hansel the key. He lets himself out, and runs up the stairs to grab a staff off the landing, but trips on his way back down. The witch turns to him. "Gravy or butter? Gravy or BUTTER?" She throws Gretel to the floor near Hansel. "How shall I baste you?" Chilling -- at least until I start thinking, "Who bastes with gravy?"
Hansel gets to his feet and swings the staff at the witch, but she magics it out of his hand and back to its spot on the landing. The witch grabs Hansel and settles on butter. (Good, because again, who bastes with gravy?) Gretel follows them. The children manage to grab the witch, throw her into the oven, lock it, and run out of the house. They have no trouble unlocking the door, so it seems weird they didn't try to unlock it the first time. And hey, wait. The witch was able to magically lock her doors and windows, and magically take the staff from Hansel's hand and send it flying back up the stairs, but she can't magically open her oven lock? That makes little sense. She can either use her power on locks, or she can't. If you need her to be locked in an oven, then she can't use her power on locks and you need to come up with another way to trap the children in the house. If she can use her power on locks, then Queenie should have done what comes , as soon as Hansel and Gretel shut in the witch. (I mean, the witch is blind, I can accept it might take her a moment to get out of the oven.)
Back in her castle, Queenie watches all this through a magic mirror. She throws a fireball at the mirror, it travels through it, into a mirror in the witch's house, and straight into the oven. The witch screams. Queenie smiles. "I would have gone with gravy." Great line delivery, but you make the gravy after the meat is cooked. Ugh. Okay. I'll let this go. (What? They couldn't have written drippings?)
The children bring the satchel to Queenie, at her castle. It contains a perfectly red apple. Hansel can't believe they went through all that for an apple. Queenie says, "This is not just an apple. It's a weapon -- a weapon for a very particular and devious enemy." She then tells them their father abandoned them, and invites them to live in the castle with her. Hansel, still too dumb to live, looks mighty tempted, but when Gretel tells the queen she knows their father wouldn't leave them and says they'd never want to live with someone as horrible as Queenie, even if he did, Hansel agrees with his sister. Queenie is outraged. She casts a spell that strands the children in the forest.
The Queen's men bring the Woodcutter to her. He wants his children. She wants answers. "I offered your children everything -- whatever their hearts desired, and they still chose uncertainty, because of their blind faith in you. Tell me why? Why would your children refuse me?" Her eyes are full of tears. The Woodcutter says, "Because we're a family and family always finds one another." She orders her guards to release him. The Woodcutter is surprised. Queenie's tears have been replaced with a sneer. "You can all be together -- as a family -- as soon as you can find one other." From the looks of it, as the camera zooms out, above the wandering children, that won't be any time too soon.
Storybrooke: Henry meets Ava and Nicholas Zimmer at the pharmacy. They are shoplifting and stash their goods in Henry's backpack (without his knowledge). Ava asks Henry if he wants to hang out with them. He's a bit taken with her and quickly agrees. Mr. Clarke (Sneezy) catches the trio on their way out the door, searches Henry's backpack, finds the stolen items (among them is an Apollo bar, Lost fans) and calls the Mayor and the Sheriff.
Regina believes Henry when he explains he is innocent. She leaves Emma to deal with Ava and Nicholas. It isn't long before Emma figures out that the children are stealing in order to survive. Their mother died a few years ago. They never knew their father. Anyhow, Regina contacts Social Services. The Maine group homes are all full, so she tells Emma to transport them to Boston. Having been "in the system" herself, this pushes all of Emma's buttons, and she promises the children they won't be separated.
Emma tracks down Ava and Nick's biological father, with a little help from Mr. Gold (who may not know everything, but certainly knows more than he should). The dad, Michael Tillman (Nicholas Lea), runs a mechanic's shop, in town. He never knew the children existed, but he doesn't want them. By episode's end, Emma is putting them into her cruiser for the drive to Boston. When Henry reminds her that bad things happen when people try to leave Storybrooke, Emma says the bad thing has already happened.
Just at the town line, the car stalls (it appears to happen as a result of the curse, but later, the dialogue implies Emma fakes the stall). Emma pulls it to the side of the road and calls for help. Tillman arrives in a Franklin's Towing and Salvage truck. Once he sees the children and after listening to Emma talks about Henry, he can't turn his back on them.
At episode's end, Emma and Henry are bonding over some pumpkin pie (I'll hit the "Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater" theory in the recap) when a mysterious stranger rides into town -- even though strangers never come to Storybrooke. Ever.
Low points: Aside from inconsistent use of the witch's powers, Hansel is the low point. I don't think it's the actor's fault. He handled what little he was given. The character was written to be nearly useless. I would have liked to see a blond actor in the role, too. Shouldn't Hansel and Gretel should look like Hummels? This Hansel looked like my friend, Sully (not that there's anything wrong with that, Sull).
High points: Every Enchanted Forest scene with the Evil Queen (and her wickedly wonderful wardrobe) is a delight, and Lana Parrilla is a treasure. That I can still have sympathy for Queenie/Regina, despite her evil ways (particularly what she did to the Huntsman/Graham) is all thanks to Parrilla. Ms. Caulfield acquits herself of her role quite well, too. It's not her fault that her truly creepy character's powers are poorly written. It seems unlikely, but I'm hoping there's some way we can see her on the show again. I wish she could have a Storybrooke identity, but if the Blind Witch died in that oven, probably not. There was another (I think, older) blind hag of some kind present when Regina first tried to cast the Dark Curse, and failed. Hmm, maybe there is a little hope? Anyhow, speaking of Storybrooke, the moments between Emma and Henry, and Mary Margaret and Emma (especially when Emma confesses that Henry says they're mother and daughter), make my heart ache in the best way. They're also an effective palate cleanser, between campy Enchanted Forest courses. The Storybrooke story, and Emma's consistent growth, ground the show and give it heart.
I'll be back with the full recap, ASAP. In the meantime, please grade the episode at the top of the page and then join us in the forum, but don't eat anything.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!We're back with a more traditional tale, in this week's exploration of Hansel (Quinn Lord), Gretel (Karley Scott Collins) and their Storybrooke identities, Nicholas and Ava Zimmer. But while the Enchanted Forest backstory is full of whimsical high camp, it is in Storybrooke where this episode's strength lies.
We open in Storybrooke. Henry is flipping through a Wolverine vs. Hulk comic, when a pretty blonde girl approaches and asks what he's reading. He surprised she's talking to him and stumbles over his answer. Ava says she thinks she's seen him at school. Henry is all smiles until a boy walks up to them. "Come on, Ava. Let's go." When Ava introduces this interloper as her brother, Nicholas, Henry is all smiles again. Nicholas is eager to leave, but Ava invites Henry to come hang out with them. When the get to the pharmacy doors, they're stopped by the druggist, Mr. Clark (Sneezy). He demands to search Henry's bag. Henry soon realizes Ava and Nicholas were using him to smuggle their shoplifted booty out of the store. "That's why you were talking to me, so your brother could put that stuff in there." Poor baby.
Enchanted Forest. The Woodcutter (Nicholas Lee) is chopping down a tree when his daughter, Gretel (Ava) joins him. He sends her and Hansel (Nicholas) to gather some kindling. Before they leave, he places his compass around Gretel's neck. "So you don't get lost. A family always needs to find one other. I love you. Be safe." The show has made an interesting choice here, in defanging the Hansel and Gretel story. In the traditional tale, the family is too poor to feed the children. The mother persuades the father to lead the children deep into the forest and then leave them. I'm a little disappointed that Once Upon A Time chose not to go there. This show is certainly sweet enough as it is. I'd like to see it go dark, more often.
When Hansel and Gretel return to the spot where they left their father, he is not there. They hear a struggle and run toward the sound, which leads to them stumbling out onto the Evil Queen's Road, where they are stopped by the guards leading her carriage. Gretel stumbles and breaks the glass covering the compass face. The knights grab the children. Queenie exits her carriage and glares. "What are you doing in my forest?"
Storybrooke, Mr. Clark's Store: The nasal-voiced Mr. Clark tells Regina Henry was shoplifting. When Henry denies his involvement, with a wordless, nervous nod, Clark tells Regina to have a look at the evidence. On the counter are things like shampoo, toothpaste, toilet paper, cans of soup and some candy, including an Apollo bar (for the Lost fans). Regina tells Clark, "My son doesn't eat candy and he knows not to steal. It was obviously those two." She heads toward the door with Henry, when who should walk in, but Emma. Regina assumes that Emma is there to interfere in her mothering of Henry, but she's there in her official capacity, as sheriff. Satisfied with that answer, Regina takes Henry and leaves, ordering Emma to take care of the "miscreants."
Clark snuffles that he called the number the kids gave him, but it was disconnected. Ava: "Our parents couldn't pay the bill." Emma then takes a look at how many household items are among the shoplifted goods. "You guys were just trying to help out, huh?" Ava nods and begs Emma not to arrest them. "It will just make things worse for our parents."
Enchanted Forest: Similarly, Gretel begs Queenie's pardon. Queenie looks fierce here, by the way. She's wearing a jaunty black hat, over her deliciously big, full hair that is pulled to one side. She also wears a black leather caplet over what I can only describe as 2/3rds of a gown. The bodice and skirt are purple and black, and the skirt is quite full, but it only covers her sides and rear. Don't get too excited though, she's wearing black pants underneath. Well, go ahead and get excited if you want -- they are black leather pants. Evil dresses to impress.
Queenie talks quietly to the children, but can't quite hide the sneer in her voice. "Two helpless children, lost and alone -- a family torn asunder. Such a sad and moving story." She turns from them. "Guards. Seize them!" Gretel orders Hansel to run, and uses her slingshot to fend off the guards, long enough to give her a chance to run, too. As they get into the woods, they run into a black puff of smoke. Queenie materializes. "Muahaha. Running from me is foolish." She cackles as she casts a spell that causes tree roots to rise up and grab the children by their legs. She proclaims the children both foolish and brave. She says she will find their father, and they are going to do something to her. This must be the most glorious role to play, and Ms. Parrilla really makes it sing.
Storybrooke: Emma drives up to a house and asks the kids if it's the right one. Ava begs her not to bring them to the door, claiming her parents would be mortified. Emma tells them about her super power (lie detection) and asks if, money problems aside, everything is okay at home. Ava lies that it's great. Emma acts like she believes her. When the kids climb the stairs to the house which is clearly not theirs, Emma drives off. The kids wait 'til she's gone and then run through yards and climb fences. Finally, they enter the basement of a dilapidated, boarded up house. They have all the stolen goods from the pharmacy, but they're in white, plastic bags. That old softie Emma must have paid for them. When they hear a noise the children go upstairs to find Emma waiting. "Why'd you guys lie to me? Where are your parents?" Ava: "We don't have any." Commercial.
Mary Margaret's Hovel: Emma brings the kids to Mary Margaret's house. While the children eat, Mary says that while she's seen them around the school, she didn't know their circumstances. No one did. Emma says their last name is Zimmer and their mother died a few years ago. "No one seems to know her or remember her." When Mary realizes Emma hasn't reported the children to Social Services, she tries to encourage her to do so, but Emma grew up in foster care and is no fan. I'd like to apologize to those foster families out there who provide loving homes for children. I cringe whenever Emma brings up her past. There are good foster families and bad ones, just like there are good biological families and bad ones. Anyhow, Emma wants to hunt down the children's father. "They don't know him. He might not know they exist." She is afraid if the kids enter the system, they'll be split up. When Ava overhears this, she cries and begs Emma not to let that happen. Emma says she won't. Which... yikes, you don't have that much control, girlie. Or do you...
Town Hall: Emma meets Mr. "K" Krzyszkowski at town hall. She's looking for the Zimmer twins' birth certificates. As she's filling out the request forms in triplicate, Mr. K says they've recently been removed. Emma: "By who?" I'll give you one guess.
Regina's Office: Regina tells Emma she has contacted Social Services. She's not impressed with Emma's desire to find the children's father and says they'll be put into the foster system. Emma: "Storybrooke has a foster system?" No, of course not, silly. Regina has contacted the state. And then the plot becomes unnecessary convoluted. Regina: "Maine's group homes, unfortunately are filled, but they put us in touch with two homes in Boston -- a boys' home and a girls'." It would be highly unlikely that children even could be legally transferred from the custody of one state to another. Now, maybe Boston was chosen as the location here, because the writers wanted to give Emma one more reason to empathize with the Zimmer twins, but she's already there. There's no need to take people out of the story with a detail like that, particularly since [SPOILER] the children never actually go to Boston. They should have just written "Portland" or "Augusta" and been done with it. I mean sheeesh, Google a map of Maine, for cry-yi-yi. Anyhow, Regina orders Emma to drive the kids to Boston. "You wanted to be sheriff. This is what sheriffs do [...] You're taking them." Look on the bright side, Emma. Regina is also what the last sheriff "did." What's a couple of hours on I-95? When Emma say she promised them she wouldn't let them be split up, Regina enjoys telling Emma she shouldn't make promises she can't keep.
Enchanted Forest: Queenie leads Hansel and Gretel to the house of the Blind Witch (Emma Caulfield) and tells them to sneak in, after dark, find a black leather satchel, and bring it to her. Gretel asks why Queenie can't do it, herself. Queenie: "The house is protected by magic. I can't enter, but luckily, the spell doesn't work on children." Gretel asks Queenie if she will, in turn, find their father. Queenie: "Oh, indeed I will." She warns them though that the witch's house is unique, and that they must not eat anything while they're inside. Commercial.
Storybrooke: Henry arrives at Emma's office with his Once Upon A Time book and points out that Zimmer twins are Hansel and Gretel. All he knows about their father is that he abandoned them. Emma cracks that he could be in Laos, by now. Henry insists the father must still be in town. "No one leaves Storybrooke. No one comes here. It's just the way it is." When Emma points out that she came there, Henry reminds her why. "That's because you're special. You're the first stranger here, ever."
Henry sits up on Emma's desk and asks if she can tell him about his father. "I told you about your parents. Now, you're even living with your mom." Emma starts to remind him Mary Margaret isn't her mom, but stops herself. When he asks again, Emma finally tells him that she had just gotten out of the foster system, and got a job waitressing at a 24 hour diner. Henry's dad was training to be a fire fighter. He'd come in every night. He always complained they didn't sell pumpkin pie, but he always came back the night. Henry: "Did you get married?" Emma says it was nothing like that. "We just hung out a few times outside of work. And then life happened. His got better. Mine got worse. Got into some trouble." Henry: "You went to jail." Emma says that before she went to jail, she found out she was pregnant. She tried to contact his father but couldn't. "I found out that he died saving a family from a burning apartment building. So, while you think I'm the savior, Henry, he was. Your father was a real hero." Henry asks if she has any mementos of his father. She does not. It's then, though, that she gets an idea on how to locate the twins' dad.
Sidebar: Quite a few people in the forums are speculating as to whether or not Henry's father could be Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater. That was the first thought that entered my mind when Emma mentioned the pumpkin pie detail. Just thought I'd mention.
Mary Margaret's Hovel: Emma comes home and shows the kids her baby blanket, explaining that it's the only thing she has from her parents. Most of the kids she grew up with in the system held onto mementos from their family. Ava: "I might have something, but if I give it to you, you'll make sure we stay together, right?" When Emma agrees, Ava hands over the compass, and asks if Emma ever found her own parents. Emma: "Not yet, but I'm going to find yours." Emma's lines are written (and delivered) just right in this scene. She chooses her words to show the children that she considers herself a kindred spirit. Both this scene, and the one prior, with Henry, helped win me over to this episode (which, where the Enchanted Forest story is concerned, just wasn't my cup of hot chocolate with cinnamon). All the emotions ring true, this week, especially in Storybrooke.
Enchanted Forest: As the children are breaking into the Blind Witch's gingerbread house, Hansel swipes a finger full of frosting. He raises it to his mouth, but Gretel, remembering Queenie's warning, swats his hand down and mouths, "No," at him. They sneak inside to find a cottage is so filled with treats, any person would be tempted, especially Hansel, the dim. They try to confirm that the witch is sleeping and Gretel reminds her brother not to take even a lick of anything, then goes to the hearth and swipes the satchel. Hansel, being too dumb to live, swipes a cupcake. The moment he takes a bite, the witch awakens. Taking a deep breath, she rises. Between her and her fireplace are a pile of bones and skulls. Hansel and Gretel try to run out, but the door and windows magically lock. The witch sighs with delight. "I smell dinner."
Storybrooke: Emma visits Mr. Gold at his shop. He tries to charm her, but she's not having any and gets right to the point. She's looking for information on the compass. Gold goes on and on about it, and then reveals the compass was purchased at his shop. My word processing program informs me that "purchased" is too complex and I should simplify, but I have faith in you, Gentle Readers. I think even Hansel the dim can suss out purchased.
Emma asks if Gold remembers who bought it. He says that while he is good with names, he can't remember. He says he keeps extensive records though, and pulls an index card from a card catalogue. He holds it before Emma as though it were bait. Emma: "What's your price?" Mr. Gold smiles. "Forgiveness." Emma eyes him. "How about tolerance?" Gold says that's a start and consults the index card. He tells her the compass was purchased by a Mr. Michael Tillman. "Just a name, but I generally find that's all one needs. Good luck with your investigation." When Emma leaves the shop, the camera pans down to the index card. It's completely blank!
Garage: Tillman, a mechanic, is at work in his garage when Emma finds him and hands him information about and pictures of Ava and Nick. He says their mother Dorrie was just a one night stand. They met while camping. He says it's impossible. He can't have twins. Emma insists he does and informs him they're going to be shipped off to group homes in Boston, unless he takes responsibility for these kids who have been living alone since their mother died. He says he can barely manage his garage. He can't take on two kids. He asks Emma why she's so sure they're his. Emma: "Besides the timing?" She holds out the compass. "Have you ever seen this." Emma tells him she knows this is a lot, and shares her journey with Henry.
Michael says he heard about her situation with the Mayor's kid, but staying in town is different from taking Henry in. Emma's voice rises. "I don't have my kid, because I don't have a choice. You do. Those kids did not ask to be brought into this world. You brought them into this world. [...] If you choose not to take them, you are going to have to answer for that every day of your life." This is important, I think. Until now, Emma has mostly claimed she is staying in town to make sure Henry is okay. Now, she is publicly acknowledging that if she could, she would have Henry. She adds that eventually, they will find him, and he will have to answer right to them. Tillman seems moved, but not swayed. He hands the compass back and claims that he doesn't know anything about being a dad, and can't give them a good home.
Emma calls Mary Margaret and asks her to meet her outside, where she explains that Tillman doesn't want the kids. Mary tells Emma she has to tell the kids. Emma can't make herself admit that the hope she gave them was false. Mary says the truth, while painful, can be cathartic and points out that Henry took the news great about his biological dad. Emma scowls. "I didn't tell him the truth. Henry's father was no hero, and trust me, he does not need to know the real story." Yeah, because he (already) had a wife, couldn't keep her, put her in a pumpkin shell and then went out and hooked up with 18-year-old waitresses. Just sayin'... Emma proposes hiding the kids 'til they find a family who will take them in. Mary points out the absurdity of that. Of course it's then that Mayor Mills shows up and reminds Emma that the Zimmer twins are supposed to be in Boston, "Tonight."
Enchanted Forest, Blind Witch's House: Hansel and Gretel are now locked in a cage. They watch as the witch prepares her oven. She then reaches in the cage and grabs Hansel's arms. "Yes, what a nice, tender succulent roast you'll make." Caulfield is truly creepy, here. When the witch returns to her prep work, Gretel tells Hansel that when the witch takes him out of the cage, he should steal the cage key and toss it to her. Hansel wimps out. The witch returns to the cage bars and asks, "Gravy or butter? What shall it be?" She reaches for Hansel, but Gretel puffs up her cheeks so as to fools the blind witch, even though I think her face is chubbier than her brother's face, to begin with. Anyhow, Gretel takes Hansel's place. When she's out of the cage and on the way to the oven, she tosses Hansel the key. He lets himself out, and runs up the stairs to grab a staff off the landing, but trips on his way back down. The witch turns to him. "Gravy or butter? Gravy or BUTTER?" She throws Gretel to the floor near Hansel. "How shall I baste you?" Chilling -- at least until I start thinking, "Who bastes with gravy?"
If any of this sounds familiar, it's because I covered the Enchanted Forest story in too much detail in the recaplet, so I'm largely plagiarizing from myself, here. No sense reinventing the wheel. Hansel gets to his feet and swings the staff at the witch, but she magics it out of his hand and back to its spot on the landing. The witch grabs Hansel and settles on butter. Gretel follows them. The children manage to grab the witch, throw her into the oven, lock it and run out of the house. They have no trouble unlocking the door, so it seems weird they didn't try to unlock it the first time. And hey, wait. The witch was able to magically lock her doors and windows, and magically take the staff from Hansel's hand and send it flying back up the stairs, but she can't magically open her oven lock? That makes little sense. She can either use her power on locks, or she can't. If you need her to be locked in an oven, then she can't use her power on locks and you need to come up with another way to trap the children in the house. If she can use her power on locks, then Queenie should have done what comes , as soon as Hansel and Gretel shut in the witch. (I mean, the witch is blind, I can accept it might take her a moment to get out of the oven.)
Back in her castle, Queenie watches all this through a magic mirror. She throws a fireball at the mirror, it travels through it, into a mirror in the witch's house and straight into the oven. The witch screams. Queenie smiles. "I would have gone with gravy." Great line delivery, but you make the gravy after the meat is cooked. Ugh. Okay. I'll let this go. (What? They couldn't have written drippings?)
Queen's Castle: When Hansel and Gretel arrive at the castle, Gretel confirms they were successful, but were almost made into dinner. Queenie says, "How barbaric," and then demands her satchel. She tells Gretel she has a strong heart and that she reminds her a lot of herself at that age. Were I Gretel, I'd sue for defamation of character. When the Queen removes her treasured item from the satchel, he cannot believe they went through all that for an apple. Queenie says, "This is not just an apple. It's a weapon -- a weapon for a very particular and devious enemy. One who is still under the illusion... that she's safe." Gretel reminds Queenie that they did what she asked, so now she must find their father, as promised. Oh Gretel, you need to take Finer Points of the Deal, 101 from Rumpy. Queenie: "Of course -- to reunite your family, so you can live happily ever after. You were left alone in the woods. You deserve better than a father who would abandon you." Gretel chokes back the tears. "But he's all we have."
Queenie proposes that they could have more. She is impressed with the children. "You aren't the first boy or girl that I've sent into that sticky sweet house, but you are the first to emerge." Oh so evil. Gretel, for heaven's sake, remember the pile of bones! Child-sized bones. Queenie invites them to live in the castle with her. Hansel, still too dumb to live, looks mighty tempted, but when Gretel tells the queen she knows their father wouldn't leave them and says they'd never want to live with someone as terrible as Queenie, even if he did, Hansel agrees with his sister. Gretel says they'll find Dad with or without the Queen's help. Queenie is outraged. She casts a spell on the children. Smoke envelops and swirls around them. We cut to...
Storybrooke, Night: Regina and Henry watch from a distance as Emma encourages the Zimmer twins to get in her cruiser. She starts to tell them it's going to be okay, but she can't make herself finish the lie. Instead, she returns the compass to Ava and tells the kids she's sorry, but they have to go. Regina smiles when Emma slams the car door out of frustration. "Let's go, Henry." He breaks free from her arm and runs to Emma. He pleads with her not to take them, saying they can't leave Storybrooke. "Something bad will happen." Emma looks at her boy. "Something bad has already happened." Henry watches in concern as Emma and the Zimmer twins drive away. Regina watches in delight. Commercial.
Ava and Nicholas look at each other, as Emma observes them from the rearview mirror. Soon the car starts bucking. Emma pulls it over to the side of the road. "You've got to be kidding me." Ava asks what's wrong. Emma says the engine stalled and makes a phone call. Ava: "Who are you calling?" Emma: "Help."
Queenie's Castle: With her magic mirror, Queenie watches Snow White (still in her highwayman regalia) walk through the forest with her new companions, and sneers. "Now she's cavorting with dwarves? When did that happen?" When her guard announces the requested prisoner is there, Queenie shuts off the mirror with a waggle of her fingers and says, "Bring him in." It is the Woodcutter. He pleads with her to release him, noting that his children are in the forest from which she took him. They're alone and could be in great danger. Queenie saunters up to him. "I know all about your children. That compass you gave sweet, little Gretel. Well, it didn't help them find you, did it?" The Woodcutter demands to know where they are. Queenie says, "Gone. I told them you abandoned them, leaving nothing but a compass to find their way." She notes, though, that she's not there to answer his questions. "You're here to answer mine. I offered your children everything -- whatever their hearts desired, and they still chose uncertainty, because of their blind faith in you. Tell me why, hmmm? Why did your children refuse me?" The Woodcutter says, "Because we're a family, and family always finds one another. Regina looks perplexed and hurt. I think she had a hole in heart, long before she ripped out her daddy's. She orders her guard to release the Woodcutter. "You can all be together -- as a family -- as soon as you can find one other." Cut to the forest. Hansel and Gretel awaken on the ground. Getting to their feet, Gretel can't believe the Queen let them go. Hansel is scared, but Greta takes out the compass, and tells him everything will be fine. They hold hands as the camera zooms out, above the wandering children.
Storybrooke: Emma is outside the cruiser, leaning against it. Inside, Gretel notices her compass going crazy. She shows it to Nicholas. Just as the compass needles settles on a point right behind the kids, a truck from Franklin's Towing and Salvage arrives from that direction. It's driven by Michael Tillman. Getting out of the truck, he sees the children through the rear window. "Those are them?" Emma says they are. "And the car? It's fine?" Emma says she just wanted him to see the kids, once. She then explains that she didn't think she could get involved with Henry, either. She'd given him up for adoption to give him a better life. "When I saw he didn't have it, I couldn't leave. And I was just as scared -- more, probably. But once I saw him, got to know him, I couldn't go back." Michael is staring at his children the whole while. Finally, he walks to the back of the car. He turns and asks Emma if she's taking them to Boston. Emma: "I don't have to." He looks back to the children, then turns to Emma. "No. You don't." When he walks over to the rear door, Ava rolls down the window. Michael kneels down so he's eye level with his children. Emma cries.
Mary Margaret's Hovel: When Emma gets home, she finds Mary folding laundry. She tells her that Michael changed his mind. Emma wonders what it would be like to find her parents. Mary encourages her to not to give up. Emma says, "If they wanted to know me, they wouldn't have made it so hard to look." Mary suggests there might be an explanation Emma hasn't considered. Emma says if so, then it's got to be even crazier than Henry's theory. Mary asks what that is. Emma: "Well, my parents put me in a magical wardrobe and sent me to this world to save them." Mary is charmed. "Who does he think they are?" Emma: "Well, you [...] well, Snow White." Mary: "Snow White has a kid?" Emma: "Well, apparently that book you gave him -- not exactly the stories in the most traditional sense." Mary: "I have a kid. You think I'd remember that." Emma: "Yeah, you'd think."
Mary's expression and voice are playful as she takes a good look at Emma. "Well, you do kind of have my chin." Emma excuses herself to go get some air. Mary asks if she should wait on dinner. Emma tells her not to. Before Emma is out the door, Mary spies Emma's baby blanket. When she remarks on how pretty it is, Emma just says, "Thanks. Goodnight." Once Mary is alone, she picks up the blanket for a closer look. She sees Emma's name stitched on it, presses it to her face and inhales. For a second, it looks like she is about to remember. She shakes it off, puts the blanket down and walks away.
Emma is sitting in her cruiser, reviewing her own file. It contains an article about a seven year old boy finding a baby on the side of the road. There's a picture of him, too. When Henry walks up to the car, Emma shuts the file. Henry's brought some pumpkin pie. "I thought you'd like some. It was pumpkin, right?" Emma says it was. When she gets out of the car, she says, "Henry, about your father..." Henry smiles up at her. "Yeah?" When Emma looks at him, her expression softens. "I'm glad I told you." Henry, "Yeah, me too." They hug and then Emma grabs the pie. Henry says, "What you did, with Ava and Nicholas -- you really are changing things." More so than even you suspect, Henry. Just wait.
Mother and son are interrupted by the sound of a motorcycle driving toward them. The biker stops. (Lost fans, I believe his license plate bears the number 23). The man (Eion Bailey) gets off the bike, removes his helmet and crosses the street to where Emma and Henry are standing. He says hi and asks if this is Storybrooke. When they say it is, the stranger then asks where he can get a room. Henry: "Uh...you're staying?" The Stranger says, "That's the plan. Just looking for a bed." Emma points him toward Granny's Bed & Breakfast. The Stranger thanks her and returns to his bike. Emma calls out, "Hey, I didn't catch your name." Stranger: "That's because I didn't give it." When he drives off, Emma turns to Henry. "I thought you said strangers don't come to Storybrooke." Henry, his eyes still wide with surprise, says, "They don't."
Who do you think the Stranger is? My favorite speculation I've read so far, is that he is Rumpelstiltskin's son, all grown up. The more I think on that idea, the more I like it. The Stranger didn't give his name, after all. Being estranged from his son might explain why Mr. Gold is on Team Savior. I don't expect we'll find out too soon, but I'm interested to see how this turns out.
The lovely and talented Lulu Bates will be covering the new episode. I've had a death in the family (and I'm afraid this recap reads like it, my apologies) so I'm taking a week off. Please come back and read her recaplet on Monday morning. In the meantime, please grade the episode at the top of the page and then join us in the forum, but whatever you do, don't eat anything.