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Enchanted Forest: Our story is set during Regina's youth. She's the daughter of landed gentry and in love with her family's stablehand, Daniel (Noah Bean). Her mother, Cora (Barbara Hershey), is a/the miller's daughter and a social climbing witch (literally). King Leopold and a young Snow White (Bailee Madison) are traveling through the area. Cora arranges for Snow's horse to go out of control. Regina saves the little girl's life. Leopold proposes marriage to the one woman who has shown concern for his motherless daughter. Cora accepts on Regina's behalf.
Since Cora is so ruthless and powerful, Regina and Daniel decide to run away and get married. Snow catches them kissing in the barn. At first, she's devastated because she was really looking forward to having Regina as her step-mother, but Regina explains true love to her and wins the child over. She asks Snow to keep her secret. Snow promises she will.
Cora manipulates Snow into spilling the beans. Snow knows what it's like to lose one's mother, so Cora works that angle. Snow is certain that if Cora learns Regina and Daniel are in love, she'll back their union. Snow is certainly wrong. Instead, Cora rips out Daniel's heart and squeezes it into dust, much like we saw Storybrooke Regina do to Sheriff Graham MacHottie. (And no, Horowitz and Kitsis, I still haven't forgiven you for that.)
As Regina is preparing for her wedding to King Leopold, she learns Snow is the one who tipped off Cora. She lies to the child that Daniel ran away, and pretends she will be a loving step-mother, but a great hatred is born. Yes, it's crazy that Regina blames this child for Daniel's death, but at least now we know the source of her loathing. The episode goes to great lengths to shore up the theme that evil isn't born, but made. Let me tell you though, Regina is simply deranged. Sure, her mother "made" her that way. Seriously though, Queenie, your misplaced hatred of Snow is insane.
Storybrooke: Mary's Margaret's situation looks worse than ever. King George Charles Widmore is the D.A. in Storybrooke. On advice of counsel, Mary allows him to interview her before the trial. He is relentless and riles up Mary to the point where she admits that of course she wanted Kathryn gone.
Emma is spinning her wheels, trying to find evidence that Regina has framed Mary. August helps her look at the case from a new perspective. They go back to the t(r)oll bridge, where Emma finds a piece of a shovel. With Henry's help, they break into the Mayoral garage. Lo and behold, there's a broken shovel, and the shard is a perfect fit.
Emma gets a warrant to search Regina's garage, but by the time she gets there, the broken shovel has been replaced with a brand new one. Emma turns on August, assuming he set her up. Later, Emma learns that Sidney bugged her office. I am so disheartened -- not by this episode, but by the fact that Emma has been duped by Sidney all this time. I was really holding out hope that she was onto him, and playing along for fun and profit.
By episode's end, Emma finds August at Granny's diner and apologizes. Their conversation is interrupted by Ruby's scream. They rush to the scene and find Kathryn -- disoriented but alive!
I don't even know if there are Emmy awards for casting coups, but there should be, because Bailee Madison is perfect as a young Snow White. I'm half convinced the OUAT's casting director went back in time, grabbed a 12 year old Ginnifer Goodwin, brought her to the present day and magicked up a new identity for her. It's not just her physical resemblance to Goodwin that's uncanny. It's speech, mannerisms -- the whole package. I do know there are Emmy awards for costuming, and if OUAT doesn't win, it will only be because there are dark forces at work. How gorgeous was pre-evil Regina's Enchanted Forest wardrobe? And that wedding gown? Oof.
"The Stable Boy" has me more than half convinced that August (who I still think is our story teller/narrator) is Pinocchio, especially once he had that "shin splits" episode, when he and Emma were at the t(r)oll bridge. His continued insistence that he doesn't lie pushes me further in that direction. While he's no Sheriff Graham, I've taken quite a shine to him. I think Emma might feel the same way.
This is a strong, enjoyable episode. I'm looking forward to digging into it in the recap. The Storybrooke scene between Parrilla and Goodwin leaves me breathless. I remain disappointed by the fact that Sidney had Emma fooled this whole time. Her so-called super-power aside, Emma should be too street-smart to be taken in like that. It's in the past though, so I'll trying to leave it there. Maybe.
I'll be back with the whole story, in the full recap. In the meantime, please grade the episode at the top of the page and then come on over to the forum, where everything is your mother's fault.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!Storybrooke, Mayor's Office. Flashback. Regina, clutching a ring, is lost in thought until Mr. Gold arrives. He wants her to make his legal problems (from when he beat Mr. French to a pulp) disappear. In exchange, he'll help her torment her mortal enemy, Mary Margaret Blanchard. He points out that if something were to happen to Kathryn Mary would be blamed. Regina salivates at the idea of Mary's ruination but says a trial could be messy. Gold suggests that once Mary is locked up Regina can plant her jail cell skeleton key in the cell. Mary will use it to break out and flee.
Gold: We all know what happens to people who attempt to leave town.
Regina: Give me one good reason why should I trust you.
Gold: I always honor my agreements.
Audience: Yes, but he's all about the letter of the law, not the spirit, Regina. You really shouldn't trust him because.... Oh, wait. You're evil. Never mind us. Trust Gold!
Enchanted Forest. Regina is probably in her twenties here. I've seen people suggest she's as young as 16, because women used to be married off when they were but girls. That's in our world history, folks. Lana Parrilla is a gorgeous, youthful woman in her thirties. In these flashback scenes, I can accept her Regina as a twenty-something, but teens? Come on. The thing is I don't need to see her as a teen, because again, on this show, the fairy tale reality is not our world's Middle Ages. While there might be some similarities everything does not need to map, and in fact does not map, so I do not have to pretend Parrilla is playing someone half her age. Sorry to digress so early. Let's get on with the show.
Anyhow, young Regina rides her horse. Her father, Henry, cheers her on as she makes her jumps. When she is done, doting daddy raves about how beautifully she rides. Regina's mother Cora (Barbara Hershey) is another story. She's disgusted that her daughter "rides like a man" and without a saddle. Mother says Regina is becoming an old maid. No one will want to marry her. Daniel (Noah Bean), this episode's titular stable "boy" (also played by an actor in his thirties, whom I will accept as a character in his 20s), offers a saddle to Regina. She cuts him off mid-sentence, says she's done riding for the day, and tells him never to interrupt her and her mother, again. Dejected, Daniel leads the horse away.
Alone with her parents, Regina complains that her mother is always criticizing her. Mommy Meanest insists she's not criticizing just helping. Regina starts to walk off. Cora snaps, "Don't you walk away from me," and then uses her magic (and surely evil) powers to suspend Regina in mid-air. Daddy Henry sneers and looks as if he's going to grab Cora, but then he seems to remember his wife is a witch. Cora sort of flies Regina over to her. Regina complains that she hates when her mother uses magic. Cora laughs. She doesn't like insolence. She'll stop using magic when Regina starts being obedient. Regina asks why she can't just be herself. Cora says, "Because you can be so much more." Confession: I truly enjoyed watching this episode, but writing it up, it's making me angry. Yes, mothers are evil, controlling witches who rear their daughters to also be evil, controlling witches. Wait, isn't that a John Mayer song? Bleeeeech. I have to get past this feeling, because I know the show isn't saying all mothers (or women) are like this. Snow White's mother was probably a lovely woman. Snow herself is, and will be a great mother, once she realizes she is one. This is just hitting me the wrong way, today.
When Regina cries that she'll be good, Cora releases her. Regina runs off to the stables where she finds Daniel. She apologizes for snapping at him. He flirts that she'll have to find a way to make it up to him, and they kiss.
Storybrooke. David finds Emma downtown and asks how Mary Margaret is. Emma is cold to him, and makes it clear she knows he doubted Mary's innocence. He blames this horrible and confusing situation for putting his giant foot in his mouth, but he wants Mary to know he believes in her. He'd like to visit her, but Emma says Mary's not up for that. She doesn't need encouragement from him; she needs a miracle.
Regina enters the Sheriff's Station. The evil oozes off of her, slithers through the cell bars and startles Mary awake. Regina taunts that only the guilty sleep in prison. My inner-pedant shouts out that Mary isn't in prison. She's in a jail cell. Mary tries her best to ignore Regina's barbs but Regina isn't done. She tells Mary she should confess to the murder and spare everyone the mess and expense of a trial. Mary insists she didn't kill Kathryn and asks why no one believes her. Regina recites the list of evidence against Mary, and says that confession or not, Mary will soon be leaving Storybrooke. Regina has a deeper understanding of what that means, and revels in it. Mary asks what she ever did to make Regina hate her so. We return to the...
Enchanted Forest. Regina rides out to meet a waiting Daniel. He proposes a sunset picnic at Firefly Hill but Regina has to be home in an hour for tea. She's clearly parroting her mother when she says, "A lady never misses tea time." Daniel, tired of stealing kisses and moments, says it's time to tell Regina's parents about their love. Regina says it's not her parents that are the problem -- just her mother. I fight to keep my gorge from rising. Daniel understands Regina's family are landed gentry, while he's just a stable hand, but he points out that Cora started life as a miller's daughter (oh hi there, Rumpelstiltskin). Regina explains that Cora is all about upward social mobility. Again, Daniel insists they tell Cora. What can she do to them? Regina reminds Daniel of her mother's magical powers. Daniel counters that true love is the most powerful magic of all and can overcome anything.
Just then, a young girl rides by on a horse that is out of control. She screams for help. Regina mounts her horse, catches up to the girl and pulls her off the wild beast. Thanks to the casting coup of this and any other century, it's immediately clear this little girl is a young Snow White. She's played by 12-year-old Bailee Madison, who may look and act more like a 12-year-old Ginny Goodwin than the real Ginny Goodwin looked and acted at that age. I could spend the rest of this recap just raving about Bailee, but you've seen the episode, so I'd just be preaching to the choir.
Safe and sound, Snow thanks Regina for saving her life. Regina is truly sweet and concerned about the child. When Snow swears she'll never ride again, Regina tells her that's nonsense. The way to conquer fear is to face it. She must get back on that horse as soon as possible. Regina introduces herself. Snow, enchanted by her beautiful, kind heroine, does likewise and hugs Regina.
Storybrooke, Sheriff's Station. Gold wants Mary Margaret to give a pre-trial interview to the D.A. Emma is wisely against this. Gold persists in arguing that perception is everything. Mary is no killer, and surely the D.A. will see how sweet and kind she is. Giving this interview will engender trust with the jury. They're interrupted by Sidney who brings Emma a vase of tulips. Her superpower clearly still on the fritz, because she accepts Sidney's explanation that he just wants to brighten the place up. Kitsis and Horowitz explain why Emma's been less able to detect lies, lately. It's because she's emotionally invested. I accept their explanation. I just don't like it. It's on YouTube, if you want to see it for yourself.
Alone in her office, Emma asks Sidney if he's found anything on Regina. He hasn't, but says he'll keep looking until he does. By the time Emma returns to Gold and Mary Margaret, Mary has decided she will talk to the D.A. She has nothing to hide. Just then, District Attorney Albert Spencer (played by Alan Dale, who is King George in the Enchanted Forest) enters and praises Mary's decision. Regina is with him, which should be all the clue-sticking Emma and Mary need, to wake up and smell the fetid stench wafting off this interview idea, but no.
In a supply/interview room, Gold and Mary sit on one side of the table. Spencer is across from them. Regina and Emma observe through a window. Mary's answers, at first, are soft, truthful, and reasonable, but because Spencer is Charles Fricking Widmore in another reality (or three), it doesn't take him long to twist Mary's words, hurl scathing accusations and work Mary Margaret into a complete tizzy. Gold plays at his role as counsel well enough and tries to end the interview, but Mary's composure, like Elvis, has left the building. She's soon shouting that of course she wanted Kathryn "gone." The D.A.'s satisfied smirk pales to Regina's.
Enchanted Forest, Regina's Family Manor. Regina is admiring herself and her lovely blue riding coat, in the mirror. Cora finds her and tells her that her outfit just won't do and then magics her daughter into a beautiful pale blue gown. The king is paying them a visit, to thank Regina for saving Snow White's life. When Daddy Henry leads King Leopold to the women they curtsy. I just had a flashback to practicing curtsying, when I was a kid. No, it's nothing my mother made me do. I was just that kid, okay?
Leopold tells Regina that he should be bowing to her. There is no way to repay her for saving Snow's life. He says it's an honor to meet her and bows before her. Cora prompts Regina to respond that the honor is hers. Leopold tells Regina she is lucky to have a mother who looks out for her. Cora smiles at the compliment. While I was writing the recaplet, I was so blown away by Bailee Madison as young Snow that I failed to give Barbara Hershey's performance the attention it deserves. She is a perfect fit as Cora.
The King tells Regina that while Snow has many things a mother isn't one of them. They lost her years ago. Since then, he's scoured the land looking for a wife but has been unable to find one with sincere interest in his daughter -- until now. He nods to the servant standing behind him. The servant is holding a pillow that bears a giant engagement ring. Regina's eyes pop open. She looks uncertainly to her mother, then turns her attention back to Leopold, who gets down on one knee and asks Regina if she'll marry him. Cora answers for her daughter. "Yes."
Night. A tearful Regina yells for Daniel as she runs to the barn. When she finds him, she throws herself into his arms. He holds her for a moment then pulls back to look at her. She asks him to marry him. At first, he thinks she's told her mother about their love but she explains about King Leopold's proposal and that Cora accepted it. She says the only way out is to run. Daniel generously points out that she'll be giving up so much. Life with a stable boy is a far cry from living as a queen. Being queen means nothing to Regina. All she cares about is him. Daniel says if they're to marry, they should do "this" properly. He removes a brass ring from his saddle slides it on her finger and says, "Here." Regina smiles through her tears and they kiss. They're interrupted by Snow, who throws her saddle on the ground.
Regina: Snow, dear, what are you doing?
Snow (visibly upset): You said to get back on the horse... What are you doing with him?
Regina says she can explain but heart-broken Snow runs off. Regina chases after the child calling her name. She finally catches up when Snow falls. Regina rushes to the crying girl's side and asks if she's okay. Snow says she isn't. She doesn't understand how Regina could be kissing that man in the stable, since she's supposed to marry Snow's daddy and be her new mommy. Bailee Madison isn't just mimicking Ginny Goodwin. She is channeling her. Talk about magic.
Regina tells Snow that King Leopold is a kind and fair man but she doesn't love him. Snow asks why not. Regina says love doesn't work that way. True love is magic -- not just any magic, the most powerful magic of all. It creates happiness. Snow realizes Regina loves Daniel. Regina replies, "With all my heart." Enchanted, Snow beams as she says then Regina must marry her true love. She offers to tell her father. Regina stops her. Snow insists Leopold will understand. Regina understands he might but she knows Cora will not. The only way their love can survive is if they run away together. She asks Snow to keep her secret.
Regina: You must keep it a secret. Can you do that?
Snow: I think so.
Regina: I need you to be certain. You can never speak of this, and above all, you mustn't tell my mother. Will you do that for me?
Snow: Yes. I promise.
Recapper: Oh Regina, 12 -year-old girls can't keep secrets. This may be your undoing but it's also your own damned fault.
Storybrooke waterfront. August finds Emma is sitting on a bench, reading Henry's Once Upon A Time book. They discuss Mary's case. Emma's doubting her instincts and "superpower." August compares her predicament to a case of writer's block. When he's blocked he rereads what he's written and sometimes finds a little nugget of inspiration left behind. Emma's afraid this means starting over. August clarifies that when he starts writing he has one idea. He'll get another idea in the middle and things are different. Emma says the perspective changes. August asks what the investigation was first about. Emma says it was about a missing person. August recaps that it became a murder investigation then a cover-up. If she knew that back then she might have approached things differently. Emma rises and starts to leave. She's returning to the scene of the crime. Since Emma hasn't slept in days, August insists on driving. I'm really enjoying these two together. I don't know if I feel a romantic vibe, but I like what I'm seeing.
TRoll Bridge. Emma leads August down the bank toward the spot where Ruby found the heart in the jewelry box. About halfway down, August steps over a large rock. He winces. There's a funny noise, and maybe a little puff of smoke (magical smoke) near his leg. Emma notices he's in pain and offers to take a look at his leg. He refuses and insists it's just a shin-splint. I know shin-splints are a real medical condition but the first time I watched this, my mind went straight to Pinocchio. Reading our episode thread and other OUAT discussions made it clear I'm not alone in this. August tells Emma he knows this must be hard on her because aside from Henry, Mary Margaret seems to be the closest thing to family that Emma has. Keep planting those seeds, August!
While poking around in the sand Emma finds a shard from a shovel. She says it must have broken off when it hit a rock. Emma says if they can find the shovel, they can prove Mary didn't bury the heart, which would prove her innocent. August smiles as he says he figured Emma must know to whom the shovel belongs. He hands the shard back to Emma, who smiles in delight.
Mayoral Mansion, Night. Regina peeks into Henry's room. He feigns sleep. Once she's gone, he gets up and makes sure she's in the shower. Using the walkie-talkie he says, "The eagle is in the nest, and the package is secure." Hee. Emma radios back she left her code book at home, so Henry simples it up. Regina is getting in the shower and the keys are under the mat. It doesn't take Emma long to find the broken shovel, right in Regina's garage. August comes over as she holds the shard up to the broken blade. Emma smiles. "We've got her."
Enchanted Forest, Regina's Family Manor. Alone in her home with young Snow, Cora pretends to be warm and loving. She proposes that Snow serve as flower girl at King Leopold and Regina's wedding. When Cora says Regina will make a fine mother for Snow, you can tell the little girl doesn't want to lie, but she doesn't want to break her promise either, so she simply says Regina is kind to her. Cora notices how close Snow and Regina have become. She asks why Regina has pulled away from her. Snow doesn't understand so Cora lays it on thick about her love of and motherly devotion to her Regina. Cora tells Snow she knows Regina is unhappy and asks if, perhaps, she's confided in Snow. Cora finally finds the magical manipulative words to start worming her way into little motherless Snow's heart and confidence: "I would do anything to make her happy." Snow tilts her head and takes a good look at Cora's bereft expression. She asks Cora if she'd really do anything. Cora assures her she will.
Gah, this is a talky-meat scene but I want to show how thoroughly manipulated Snow is by the time she breaks her promise and spills Regina's secret to Cora. Cora tells Snow that Leopold told her how much Snow's mother loved her.
Cora: Losing her must have been so hard.
Snow: It was.
Cora: Hearing him I realized he might as well have been talking about me and Regina. I don't want us to lose each other. If only I could show her how I feel -- that no matter what, all I want is her happiness.
Snow (rising to her feet): Then don't make her get married.
Cora: I'm sorry?
Snow: She doesn't love my father. She loves someone else. She made me promise not to tell but she'll lose you. She can't lose her mother. No one should.
Cora: Oh sweet Snow, it's all right. She won't lose me. You can tell me. You must tell me.
Storybrooke, Day. Emma arrives at Regina's home. The camera operator services Lost fans with a tight shot of the house number: 108. When Regina opens the door Emma gives her a warrant to search the premises and tells her to unlock the garage. Regina asks what the grounds are. Emma shows her the shovel shard and then claims she got an anonymous call placing Regina near the TRoll Bridge, the day Ruby found the heart. After some pissing back and forth, Regina opens the garage for Emma. She walks right to where the old, broken shovel once stood but in its place is a new one. Emma asks Regina where "it" is. Regina is all where is what?
Emma: You knew I was coming.
Regina: How on earth would I know that?
Audience: Because clearly Sidney planted a bug in that vase of tulips, dumbass.
Emma: Mary Margaret is a good person. She doesn't deserve this.
Regina: Miss Blanchard is a liar and a murderer. No matter what accusations you throw my way that won't change. She's going to pay for what she's done. That woman has destroyed the last life she is ever going to destroy.
Emma pounds on August's door at Granny's B&B. She asks how he could do "this" to her and to Mary Margaret. August tells her to slow down and explain. Emma tells him about the missing shovel, and says Regina knew she was coming for it. August was the only other person who knew about it. August says he would hope she'd have enough faith to know he'd never betray her. Emma asks how she can know he's not lying about this and everything. August's voice is low when he says he's not a liar. Emma sighs and says that's exactly what a liar would say.
Meanwhile, Regina finds Mary Margaret crying in the jail. This is the most powerful scene in an all-around strong episode. If you're reading this before seeing the episode, stop reading here and go find the episode on ABC, or iTunes, or YouTube. There should be a new Emmy category: best two person scene in a drama -- it's just that stunning. Regina asks Mary if she's having a bad day. She wanted to see Mary while she can. The trial starts tomorrow. It won't be a long one. Mary will be sent out of Storybrooke and Regina will never have to see her again so she wants to enjoy it while she can. Poor Mary is so baffled. Regina says something about justice. Mary says this isn't justice -- it's watching an innocent suffer. Regina goes on about how Mary has always seen herself as an innocent. She spits the word innocent, again. Her hatred is so strong it feels nearly corporeal.
Mary proclaims she is innocent. She clings to the cell bars and gets her face as close to her tormentor as she can. Tears stream down her cheeks as Mary cries that she doesn't know what this is about, or what she ever did to Regina, but whatever it is, she's truly sorry. Regina says the apology is not accepted. Sobbing, Mary begs Regina not to do this to her. She doesn't deserve it. She did not kill Kathryn. Regina reaches her hand into the cell and wipes away Mary's tears and says, "Oh, I know." Mary recoils. Regina grabs her by the cheeks and says, "But you do deserve this." She swoops out of the jail room, leaving a frightened and baffled Mary, to stare after her and try to make sense out of nothing at all.
Enchanted Forest, Barn, Night. Just as Regina and Daniel are about to make their escape, Cora appears and magically throws them across the barn, enters the space and the doors magically close behind her. When Regina tries to explain, Cora berates her for thinking she could sneak out of Cora's house without her noticing. Regina asks her mother to listen. She wants to be with Daniel. Cora says Regina doesn't know what she wants.
Cora: I didn't make the sacrifices I did in life, to get you to the cusp of greatness, so that you could end up the wife of stable boy.
Regina: It's my life!
Cora: Oh hoo hoo. You foolish girl. It's mine. After what I had to do -- the deals I had to make to get us out of poverty, to get us this life, and you just want to toss it away?
Daniel tells Regina to be strong. She in turn tells Cora that her magic can't keep them apart because she loves Daniel. Daniel tells Cora that he loves Regina. Cora replies that she loves Regina, too. Regina says were that true Cora wouldn't be trying to keep them apart. Cora says that if Regina loved her she wouldn't try to run away. Regina insists they're going but Cora holds up her hand. Magic wafts off it as she says they're not. Regina asks if the plan is to keep them there forever because that's what she'll have to do. Pretending to relent, Cora asks if this is Regina's decision -- and if it will make her happy. Regina says it already has. Cora nods and wonders who she is to stop them. Regina hugs her mother than thanks her.
Cora smiles at Daniel and approaches him. She lays a hand on his shoulder and says if they're going to have a life together she needs to impart an important lesson. To be a parent you always have to do what's best for your children. Daniel thanks Cora and tells her that's what she's doing now. Cora agrees, and then plunges her hand into his chest. She rips out his heart. Regina screams. The heart is crystalline, as was my poor departed Graham's. It glows in Cora's hand. Regina screams out, "Mother!" and runs to Daniel. As she holds her dying lover in her arms, her mother crushes his heart to dust. Weeping, Regina asks her mother why she's done this. Cora tells Regina, "This is your happy ending." She tells Regina that she knows best. Love is weakness. It feels real at the start, but it's an illusion that fades and leaves you with nothing. But power -- true power endures and you don't have to rely on anyone to get what you want. "I've saved you, my love." Regina turns on her mother and tells her she's ruined everything. "I loved him. I loved him." Cora shouts, "Enough." She orders Regina to clean herself up and wipe away her tears, because now she's going to be queen.
Snow finds Regina being fitted for her wedding gown. Of all the breathtaking costumes in this episode, this gown takes it to another level, entirely. When Snow proclaims Regina is the fairest of them all, Regina smiles and thanks the girl, but her voice is dead -- her expression blank. Snow says something about Regina marrying Daniel. When Regina is all, "What?" Snow gushes about how she just knew Cora would let Regina marry Daniel once she realized they were in love. "You have such a wonderful mother. She would do anything for your happiness." Regina looks like she's been punched in the gut. She steps down from a platform and faces the child. "Snow, did you tell her about me and Daniel?" When Snow says she did, Regina says, "But I told you very specifically not to." Snow is near tears as she apologizes and adds, "I just didn't want you to lose your mother, like I lost mine."
Regina turns away and tries to compose herself. When Snow asks if she's mad, Regina's evil queen switch turns on. She changes her expression before she turns back to the girl. Her voice is soft as she says, "No, I'm not mad at all. You were just trying to help me. However, I'm not marrying Daniel. This dress is for your father." When Snow says she thought Regina was in love, Regina lies that she thought so too, but it wasn't real. Daniel was only an infatuation and he's run away. She says love can come in the most unexpected places. She claims she and Leopold have something even more special, because it's not just about the two of them, but about all them. She is going to be Snow's stepmother and claims she couldn't be happier. Cora comes to get Snow and tells her it's time to pack. Snow says they'll both love her father's kingdom. Snow smiles as she leaves the room. Regina's eyes are brimming with tears, but she doesn't cry, probably because she's trying to keep that vein in her forehead from bursting out, wrapping itself around the child's neck and strangling her to death.
Once the woman are alone, Cora compliments Regina on how well she played it, with Snow. When Cora says she's so proud of Regina, a lightbulb goes off over her head. She realizes that her mother engineered the whole thing, right down to Snow's first, dangerous horse ride. Cora denies her involvement, but c'mon. As Regina walks away she says, "I should have let her die on that horse."
Sidebar: So, Regina is simply insane. I mean, her mother is a horrible, evil, controlling, conniving witch, so it makes sense. But Regina knows that! She knows just how her mother is. She knows her mother played little motherless Snow White like a fiddle. She saw Cora rip out Daniel's heart and crush it into dust. And yet? She's got this eternal hatred for a well-meaning mistake made by a little girl who worshipped her. I hope no one expects me to find her sympathetic, from here on out. She's too crazy for that. Were her ire directed at her mother, I could be more understanding, but Regina is just a vengeful fool who doesn't even recognize the true target of her wrath.
Storybrooke. Regina stands by a window, clutching that little brass ring. With tears in her eyes she says, "We got her, Daniel. We got her."
Uniformed court bailiffs lead Mary Margaret out of her Storybrooke cell, as Emma looks on. She tries to talk to Mary, but Mary ignores her as she's led away. Alone with Gold, Emma gives him what for. He told her he could fix this so that Regina wouldn't win. Gold points out she hasn't won yet. When Emma says she's going to, and Mary's going to pay, Gold tells her that it's not over. She needs to have faith; there's still time for him to work a little magic. Emma wanders into her office and throws the vase across the room. It shatters to reveal the listening device Emma should have known was there all along.
Emma catches up with August outside Granny's and apologizes for doubting him. She shows him the bug, and explains it was from Sidney. She says she should have seen it. August tells her not to beat herself up. Sometimes it's hard to see what's right in front of us, but he can tell she's trying. They're interrupted by a scream from Ruby. They find her on the side of the building. She hyperventilates and says "she" is in the alley. Emma and August rush to the scene. There's a woman lying on the ground. Emma turns her over. It's a scared, confused, conscious Kathryn! Way to work that magic, Mr. Gold.
Well, we're off for a couple of weeks. Good Passover and Happy Easter to all who celebrate. 'Til time, please grade the episode at the top of the page and then come on over to the forum, where everything is your mother's fault.