PANgs

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In the Enchanted Past, Snow is on the run from Regina's men, and has to jump off a cliff into the deep waters below. Ariel (JoAnna Garcia Swisher) saves her. As the princess and the mermaid get acquainted, Ariel reveals her love for the human Prince Eric (Gil McKinney). Snow accompanies Ariel to Eric's Ursula Ball and nudges the temporarily legged maid (I'll explain in the recap) toward her true love. Eric recognizes Ariel from his dreams, but forgets that it was she who once saved his life. Still, it's love at first (or second) sight, so he invites Ariel to leave with him tomorrow, to travel the world. Ariel is afraid to reveal that she's a mermaid. She makes her way to the water to beseech the possibly mythical goddess, Ursula, and who should answer her prayers, but Regina (in disguise).

Regina/Ursula gives Ariel a magical bracelet. Ariel finds Snow and puts it on her wrist. Snow grows a mermaid's tail and Ariel can now keep her legs. The thing is, even though Snow wants to escape Regina's wrath, she doesn't want to stop being a human woman. Regina arrives on scene. Ariel learns she was deceived. She stabs Regina in the neck with a stolen salad trident (explanation in recap), removes the bracelet from Snow and helps our fair princess escape. Later, when Ariel returns to Eric's palace, she tries to call out to him, only to find Regina has stolen her voice. Regina appears and rubs it in the girl's face, because she's Regina. Back at Knifingham Palace, however, the real Ursula appears in Regina's magic mirror, reaches through it, wraps Regina up in her tentacles, and warns her never again to impersonate her.

Now, in Neverland, Hook, thank the good Lord, immediately tells Charming and Snow that Neal is alive and on Neverland. Like Hook, Charming thinks they should protect Emma from this intel, at least until they can confirm it. When the men won't listen to Snow's caution to tell Emma, she seems to go along with them, but as soon as Emma realizes they're up to something, Snow blurts out the truth. Hurrah!

Regina is so not up for looking for Baelfire, so she sets off on her own, and finds Rumpy talking to Illusion Belle. Regina knows what she's looking at as soon as she sees it -- Pan! She magically throttles "Belle" until she collapses. Pan's shadow rises up from the ground and flies away. A couple of weeks ago, I floated the theory that Pan is somehow Rumpy's father. Nothing in this episode disabuses me of that notion, particularly the idea of how cruel it would be were that the truth.

Regina and Rumpy realize they need a way to contain/disable Pan that does not require Rumpy to sacrifice his life, because he just doesn't have that level of sacrifice in him. Using the conch Neal used to summon the giant squid, Regina summons Ariel. Mermaids, you see, can travel between the realms/worlds and Rumpy thinks he has something back in Storybrooke that will help them accomplish their goal. Regina restores Ariel's voice, gives her the magical bracelet which will provide her with legs, informs Ariel that Prince Eric lives where they want her to go, and asks her to help them.

Meanwhile, Emma, Hook, Charming, and Snow track the Lost Boys path to the Echo Caves. Hook explains that to find what you need in the Echo Caves, you must reveal your deepest secrets. Inside, they find Neal, but he's on a small rock pillar about a hundred feet across a gaping canyon and there's no obvious way to reach him.

Hook reminds everyone about the secret-telling strategy he only told them moments before, then goes first. He confesses that 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 be capable of finding someone else. "That is, until I met you." A rock bridge juts out from Neal's rock pillar and begins to cross the divide. Oh Hook, you big leather clad, eye-lined, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty sap.

David wants to confess , 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 having a childhood with her own parents too. Oh, my heart. What a confession. Anyhow, Snow adds then 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.

Now it's Charming's turn. He tells Snow he wants that for her too, but it can't happen with him. He confesses the Dreamshade poisoning, and the spring water cure that ties his life to Neverland. Snow's restrained anger and fear is a vision to behold. Someone give Ginnifer Goodwin this episode's MVP statuette. Okay?

Emma runs across the now complete bridge to Neal. He's still in the cage, so she starts whacking at it with her sword. Neal looks through the bars and tells her she knows what she has to do, and bless my soul, she does it. Emma confesses her deepest feelings. "When I heard you might be here, that you might still be alive, I knew I should be happy, but I wasn't." You and half the fandom, babe. "I was terrified. I didn't understand why, until now. From the moment I saw you in New York -- from the instant you stepped back in my life I knew... I knew I'd never stopped loving you. And before I even got a chance to take a breath, I lost you once more and all that pain I had pushed down for all those years, it just came rushing back. I didn't know if I could go through it again. I love you. I probably always will. But my secret… is that I was hoping this was a trick. I was hoping you were dead, because it would be easier for me to put you behind me, than to face all the pain we went through all over again." I'll wait a moment for you to play out your standing ovation.

Once Emma's confession is complete, the door to the cage dissolves. Neal reaches out of it and hugs Emma tight. Hook looks gutted. I haven't even been able to take my eyes off the three of them yet to look at Charming and Snow. Later, as the team makes its way through the jungle, Emma apologizes to Neal for her confession, but Neal won't hear of it. After everything he's done to her in the past, he never wants her to apologize to him about how she feels. And that's exactly how it should be, Nealfire. He's glad she told him. "I have a secret too, Emma. I'm never going to stop fighting for you. Never." Hook overhears the scene. He seems resigned. Cheer up, Hook. A pledge to never stop fighting only means a thing once the fighting has begun.

Emotional resonance, folks. That's the way to write the hell out of an episode. I'm not at all surprised to see "Ariel" was penned by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. I'm so proud of you tonight, Show. And you're remembering this is the story of Emma Swan. Not everything about this episode is perfect (I'll get to that in the recap), but the good parts are so great, they elevate the entire piece. This is the show that won my heart in season 1. I'm willing to overlook your sophomore slump, because in junior year, thus far, you're kicking ass and taking names. You know how I know? I cannot wait until Sunday night, and I wrote 1600+ words where only 350 are due.

I'll be back with the full recap ASAP. In the meantime, please grade the episode up top, and then join us on the boards, where we might have left Neal in the cage, a little bit longer.

Want more? The full recap starts right below!

We open Once Upon A Time, in the Enchanted Past. Snow is on the run from Regina's men. Will someone please tell me how to create a text macro for that phrase? I want one for Snow is on the run from Regina; Regina cries; and Emma's superpower fails. I use a MacBook Pro (with Pages word processing software).

Two soldiers chase Snow through the forest and to the edge of a cliff. Left with no other choice, Snow jumps into the water below. She doesn't hit her head or anything on the way down, but somehow, as soon as she plunges (feet first, mind you) into the water below, she is unconscious. How disappointing. I can understand if my fierce princess never learned to swim. I'm being generous there, as we first met her father, King Leopold, walking along the shore. I can't understand her not at least struggling to stay afloat. Does she have some weird water allergy that knocks her out as soon as she gets wet? How does she bathe? Oh, maybe that's why her long hair so often looks like a rat's nest.

Regardless of the cause of Snow's immediate drowning, it's Ariel (JoAnna Garcia Swisher) to the rescue. She drags Snow to the surface, where the princess regains consciousness instantly. I guess it is a weird water allergy. When Snow thanks Ariel, the mermaid says, "No problem. You might want to try diving in calmer waters, time." Um, Show, we saw a shot of the water, before Snow took her flying leap. There were a couple of small, small white caps, and now, it's pretty evident the water is not rough. Also, why does it suddenly look like they're in a moonlit sea? It was broad daylight when Snow jumped, just seconds ago. Is there an eclipse, or what? Visually, this entire scene fails. Anyhow, Snow notices Ariel's tail, although how she manages to do so in the dark is beyond me. Ariel confirms she's a "...mermaid. The name's Ariel." The title card shows Ariel, seated on a boulder, shaking her tail.

Now, in Neverland, Regina is trying to train Emma to tap into her magical abilities. Emma complains that she can't focus with Regina talking at her. Regina says it's also hard when it's windy, or raining. She shoots a look toward Charming and Snow and adds, "...or [when] someone's shooting arrows at you." Ha. "Yes. Concentration is hard. That's the point. Find your anger and use it to focus."

Emma wants to find a way without going dark. At that, Regina throws up her hands and tells Emma she's a pathetic waste of ability. Emma spits back that Regina is a monster. Regina pauses and sniffs. "Smell that?" Emma: "What?" Smirking, Regina gestures toward the campfire. "Smoke." Charming and Snow sit up straight at that. He whispers to his wife that this is a bad idea. And while Snow's arc this season involves her not knowing how to mother Emma, her answer tells me that her instincts are better than she knows. She tells Charming, "[Emma] has it in her. She should learn to use it. We just have to trust her." Of course it isn't Emma who Charming doesn't trust.

Hook emerges from the jungle and approaches Snow and Charming. Crouching down, he whispers to them that Pan told him Neal is alive and on the island. His decision to come clean, at least to part of the team, makes me as happy now as it did the first time I watched this scene. Last week, I was so afraid Hook would make the wrong choice, for whatever reason. Good form, Captain Jones. Good form, indeed.

Snow has her doubts. Charming wonders why Pan would tell Hook -- what's in it for Pan. Hook says he doesn't know. Snow spots evidence of a struggle. Once she examines the broken saplings and sees tracks, she's ready to tell Emma, but both men want to protect Emma from the potential pain if it's all a ruse. Snow says she's never lied to Emma. Hook says, "You're not lying. You're just keeping a secret until confirmation." Snow says, "Secrets always seem to keep us from the people we really care about." Charming you should listen to that, and I guess you do, but your response tells me you're hearing it all wrong. He says, "And sometimes secrets protect the people we love." We flash back to the...

Enchanted Past. Snow and Ariel swap stories. Confession: I've never seen Disney's The Little Mermaid. I did have either this record, or this one, though (maybe both). The movie was released at the wrong time in my life. I was too old to watch it and too young to have children of my own. Even though I've yet to see the film, I have a fond memory involving it. Once upon a time, my nephew watched it on VHS and loved it. At his fourth (?) birthday party, he had a Little Mermaid cake. While we were cutting it, the kids called out which pieces they wanted. Birthday boy Anthony yelled, "I want the sunglasses!" Knowing, as you do, that Disney's Ariel doesn't wear sunglasses, take a moment to picture how she usually looks, let it sink in, and enjoy the snicker. Anthony is a grown, married man, and a new father in his own right, now. He won't mind. Anyhow, Ariel tells Snow how she rescued a shipwrecked Prince Eric. He was unconscious, so they never spoke, but still it was love at first sight.

Ariel shakes out her goody bag, and explains that she steals collects things. Among her ill-gotten gains is an invitation to Prince Eric's Under the Sea ball, honoring Back to the Future the goddess, Ursula. Snow asks how Ariel plans to go, considering she has a tail and all. Since I pick on this show's use of CGI a lot, I have to say this bit is beautifully realized. Ariel hoists her tail out of the water and onto the seaweed covered rocks. It dissolves into a sea green puff of magic. Once the smoke clears, Ariel rises on her own two, brand new feet. And take a good look at Ms. JoAnna Garcia Swisher here, and then know she just had a baby, in May of this year. Now sure, it's six months later, but while I don't know OUAT's shooting schedule, this had to have been shot when she was about four months postpartum. That's good form of an entirely different order.

Snow asks her new friend how she did that. Ariel tells her, "Every year at the highest tide, the legend says that the sea goddess, Ursula, grants our kind with the ability to walk on dry land until high tide." Snow asks when that is. Ariel says, "Twelve hours. Enough time for dinner and dancing..." I've seen people quibble with the 12 hour thing, but the thing is, tides run slightly differently in different places. I know, because I've spent time when I should be writing, looking at this website. Atlantic high tides in the Maine city I checked are about 12.5 hours apart. Pacific high tides in the Washington State area I checked are a little less than 11.5 hours. Besides, these women are in a different world. Their tides can run however they want.

Snow suggests that Ariel ask Ursula for some more time. Ariel says, "No one's seen her in a thousand years. She's a bit of a myth." A myth who just turned your tail into legs, goober. Myth or not, Snow is grateful Ariel saved her life, so she's onboard for Operation Love at First Sight. Ariel thanks Snow and asks if she can keep a secret. Snow asks what it is. Ariel says, "I'm a mermaid," which is how Snow learns Ariel took the short ship to school. "Yeah, I got that." Ariel clarifies: "But Eric doesn't know that, so can we just maybe keep that under the sea, right now?" Snow suggests Eric ought to find out, eventually. Ariel: "Just let him fall for me first, okay?" That's actually a little bit of bad form, if you ask me, but our pure of heart princess is a sucker for a love story, so she agrees. We flash forward to...

Neverland. As the men prepare to set off on Operation Douchefire Recovery, Snow reminds them they'll need a good cover story. They say that's already done, but when Emma walks up and asks where they're going, Charming says, "To get water," while Hook is saying, "Firewood." Snow, bless her, blurts out: "Neal's alive." Emma reels. Awkward silence abounds. Commercial.

Over his fire, Rumpy closes his eyes and raises his hands. He's interrupted by Pan who reminds him it's not possible to see the future in a place where time stands still. Rumpy says while he can't see the future, he can make one happen. Peter laughs at the threat, and points out he's made Rumpy his favorite breakfast -- eggs in a basket. If Pan isn't Rumpy's father, the writers sure want me to think he is. I know my speculation sounds ridiculous to most people, but Pan lives in a place with magical healing water, and Neverland runs on belief. Maybe he abandoned Rumpy because he was running away from adulthood, ended up in Neverland and [magic whatever] he became a boy again. Now that he's a boy again, he's younger than he was when he sired Rumpy, and that's why, if Rumpy kills Pan, he too will die -- because they are in a place outside of time. If Pan is killed before he spawns Rumpy, then there's no Rumpy. Maybe. Of course, if that's the case, would that mean Rumpy never existed, hence no Neal and Henry, or is this "Whatever happened, happened" scenario, a la Lost? Wow, I haven't had a nosebleed like this in three or four years.

Pan needles Rumpy about losing his son again, and being unable to get to his grandson. As they go back and forth, Rumpy notes that by killing Pan, all their troubles end. Pan laughs. "We both know that's not going to happen, because the only way to do that is for you to die, too." He encourages Rumpy to leave the island. Even if he could save his son and grandson, they'll never be able to forgive him for all the bad things he's done. When Rumpy says Pan doesn't know that, Pan asks, "Have you forgiven your father?" Do you see what I mean? Pan says the silver lining is that Rumpy has Belle waiting for him. He can make a new start with Belle. "She looks fertile. Maybe a new child? You and I both know that's the only future for you, assuming you want to live." He tells Rumpy to enjoy the eggs, and leaves him stewing. We cut back to...

Camp Operation Cobra Rescue. Regina tries to talk Emma out of believing any of this Neal nonsense, while Snow argues why she thinks this isn't a trick. When Emma can't deny the evidence, Regina says, "Fine. You want to follow the evil munchkin's dirt road, be my guest." [That is my verse, hello. --Lumiere] As she starts off, Emma asks where she's going. Regina says, "To save our son." I'm glad to see that like Emma, she's started to think in terms of "our" rather than "my" son. Emma says they have to stick together. Regina laughs. "No we don't. You may be prepared to risk Henry's life over some heartbroken fool's errand, but I'm not. I'm tired of waiting around."

It's good Regina is gone, because her presence with the Charmings was making less and less sense. Emma turns to Snow and asks what if Regina is right. Snow says Emma owes it to Henry to find out if his father is alive and, "...you owe it to yourself." For the rest of this recap, I am pretending/assuming that Snow doesn't know the half of how Neal treated her then 17-year-old daughter. I've decided that based on last season, Snow just thinks "something" went wrong. All she's seen of Neal is a guy who came back, as soon as he learned he had a son. And from her perspective, all she's seen is that Emma has feelings for him. I have to think this, or for the rest of the episode I'm going to want to hurl my shoe at Snow White. The problem is, she lives in my TV and I can't afford a new one. We flash back to the...

Enchanted Past. Eric's Castle. Under the Sea Ball. No, I don't get what's going on with these costumes either. The ladies are all in short, albeit fancy dresses, while the men are in (various) period costume(s). Snow's ensemble is unusual, in that the top seems to be just a sleeveless white blouse, with a little flourish at the neckline, while the skirt is a fluffy pink confection. Ariel's dress looks like a pale blue bridal ball gown -- the skirt of which has been chopped off. I must say, though, I'm grateful for this different look, because it helps shore up what I was saying last week, about how the fairy tale worlds' pasts don't have to track to our world's history.

It's clear from the ladies' conversation that Snow somehow obtained the dresses she and Ariel are wearing. No, that hardly seems plausible to me either, since Snow is an outlaw on the run, but she's a fairy tale character, so I can accept there was some kindly fairy (or considering my opinion of the dresses -- a vengeful one) or dressmaker who helped them out. What I can't accept is that Snow didn't run a comb through her damned hair. Seriously, Show. She's a princess. She's supposed to have good hair. I accept it being a mess when she's on the run, but if she can get two fancy dresses, her hair shouldn't be straggly like that. We know it's a wig. Couldn't there be two Snow White wigs, and couldn't one of them be styled, or at least brushed, for times like these?

Snow leads Ariel to a table and quizzes her on flatware. When she holds up a fork, Ariel says, "Mini-trident? Salad-trident?" Snow corrects her. "Salad fork." Then she notices Ariel steal it, and adds, "Oh, it's really not that valuable." Ariel's attention is already on Prince Eric, who is standing on the floor up. Below him is a fountain, featuring a statue of Ursula. Snow nudges Ariel toward Eric. Since it is her first day with the new legs, Ariel stumbles. Eric clearly finds it charming. He helps her up and invites her to dance. Eric is fairly boring, but I don't think that's his fault. There's just not much story for him. He's nobody to us, and we're not going to (as of yet) spend any time with him. Suffice it to say that he has a memory of Ariel's face. He finally remembers why. He tells her of the shipwreck and says someone saved him. After, he had these recurring dreams of Ariel. She asks how that could be. Eric says, "Ursula is the one who saved me, and in doing so, she showed me a vision of my future. That's the face I saw. That's you."

Ariel says Ursula is just a myth. Eric isn't so sure. He asks Ariel what brings her to his neck of the woods. She says she wants to see the world. Eric says they hold that in common. He's leaving in the morning to explore the world and invites her to accompany him. Talk about forward! Ariel doesn't know how to answer, because well, would he want to see the world with a fish girl? I guess honesty still isn't an option. Eric says that in the morning, he will wait for her. "If you show up, I'll be filled with joy. If you don't, well, I'll be heartbroken, but I'll understand. It's so nice to meet you, Ariel." Their dance ends with a bow from him and an awkward curtsy.

As Eric goes off to greet his guests, Ariel rushes back to Snow, who has the misfortune to be standing right in front of a mirror. Guess who's watching the two, from the other side. Yes, it is our evil Queenie. You didn't think we'd get through a whole flashback without Regina, did you?

Back in Knifingham Palace, Regina grunts at the sight of Snow White. The two guards who chased Snow off the cliff are with her. The first one confirms the redhead is the woman who rescued Snow. Then the conversation goes bonkers. Regina says, "time you let someone fall to their death, make sure they're actually dead." Guard One says, "She looked dead." Wait. What? You just said you saw Ariel rescue Snow. I mean, sure, she looked dead underwater, but you could hardly tell that from up on the cliff. If you left while she was still submerged, I could understand your assumption, but as soon as Ariel brought Snow to the surface, our fair princess took a big gasp, and then she and Ariel fiddled about on the shore long enough to exchange backstories, and long enough for Ariel to change her tail into legs. Regina is as tired of his nonsense as I am, so she snaps his neck. I'm giving her a pass on that murder. Guard Two stutters out an offer to lead more guards after Snow. Regina says they've proven unequal to the task. She has a new idea. And we all know what that is. We flash forward to...

Neverland. Telescope in hand, Peter is standing in front of the two cages his Lost Boys have hoisted up above ground. He's watching Team Operation Cobra Rescue (minus Regina) trek through the jungle. "Look at them go. So determined to find their missing friend." Felix asks what they should do with Neal. Peter tells him to take Neal to the Echo Cave. "The game is about to get interesting." Commercial.

We open on Rumpy sitting with Belle. She encourages him to come home to Storybrooke where they can start a new family of their own. "That's what I want, with you." Rumpy reminds her she can't want anything, since she's imaginary. Belle insists she's really there. She caresses his cheek and invites him to take her hand, believe in their love and then they can return. Offering her hand, she asks him to take it and hold onto her. Before he can act, Belle begins to choke. Regina is the one doing the throttling. She knows that's not Belle. Rumpy is alarmed, but since he doesn't take serious action to stop Regina and save "Belle," I think he has a gut feeling of what's going on. He hasn't been talking to Belle, or even Imaginary Belle. He's been talking to Pan's shadow, appearing as Belle. Once "Belle" falls to the ground, the shadow rises and flies off. We cut to the...

Jungle. Walking along with Snow, Emma confesses she kissed Hook. Snow's clearly taken aback, but she keeps her cool as best she can. "Oh, well, why?" Emma stammers that she doesn't know. "It's been a while? I was feeling good? I don't know." Snow smiles and keeps her voice bright. "Did it mean anything?" Emma says, "It was just a kiss." Snow says, "I'm sure Neal will understand." At least half the audience screams, "Screw Neal, and screw you too, Snow." I don't say that last part, because remember, I've already decided Snow has no true clue about Emma's past with Neal. Emma's expression is all Ugh. She says, "...if he's still alive." Snow decides Emma doesn't want to open herself up to the hope that he's alive, but she says Emma should. Emma and the rest of us ask, "Why?" Snow says it's because Emma deserves a happy ending. She sure does, but is Neal it? Snow says, "Happy endings always start with hope." Well here you go, Snow: I hope that Emma's happy ending proves worthy of her. We flash back to the...

Enchanted Past. Ariel thinks this thing with Eric is all a mistake. She says she can't make Eric choose -- between his dream of world travel, I guess, and life with a mermaid. Snow says Ariel is afraid of his choice. Ariel says nothing about this is easy. Snow says, "Take my advice and do the hard thing." She counsels Ariel to be honest. Then at least she'll know she tried. Ariel says she needs time to think. Snow says she has three hours, and Snow will be there if Ariel needs her. We cut to the...

Beach. Ariel pleads her case to the ocean -- to Ursula. One moment she's calling the goddess a long dead myth. The she's acknowledging that long dead myth gave her legs. When the sea yields no answers, Ariel thanks Ursula for nothing, tosses a pebble in the water, and starts off. Ripples turn into waves, which turn into tentacles. And of course a blonde-wigged Regina is riding the whole monstrosity. I've seen a lot of people complain about this scene, but Lana Parrilla is so clearly enjoying herself, it makes me enjoy it. Seeming to adopt Sebastian's voice, she coos, "Hello, Ariel." Yes, I said I've never seen the film, but I don't live under a rock, and my kids had Disney song videos that featured some of these characters. Commercial.

Back on Neverland, Regina asks Rumpy if this is amateur hour. She points out she just saved his ass. "You were about to be Pan's lunch." When Rumpy asks why she cares, she says, "I care, because I've been camping with the Charmings for a week, and getting nowhere. If we're going to get Henry. I need you. I need Rumpelstiltskin." Rumpy says the problem is that he can only stop Pan by dying. Regina says, "You're not going to die at anyone's hands, but my own." Atta girl.

Given their power, Regina says "...we can find another way to handle one smug teenager." Rumpy reminds her that while she's never faced Pan, he has. "I know what killing him requires and that is my life." Regina suggests instead of killing Pan, they can find a way to contain him -- another fate. Rumpy suggests a fate worse than death. Regina lights up and asks him if there's a spell or curse they can enact. Rumpy says he has something back in his shop. Regina asks why he didn't bring it with him. Rumpy says, "Because I came here to kill him and die in the process." Regina laughs as if that would ever happen. She knows all about his survival instincts. Now they need to find a way back to the shop, get the magic they need, and the problem will be solved. Rumpy says, "Crossing realms. Is that all?" Regina's clearly thinking back as she answers, "Yes. That's all." We flash back to...

Prince Eric's Beach. Ursula tells Ariel not to listen to her mistaken friend and tell Eric the truth. Eric will never accept it, or her. She says she has a way for Ariel to keep her legs, walk on land, and be a part of Eric's world forever, without ever admitting she's a mermaid. "Would you be interested?" Ariel says, "Of course!" We cut to...

Eric's Dock. Dawn is breaking when Ariel finds Snow. She beams as she tells Snow she's found a way to spend her life with Eric on land, while Snow escapes her Evil Queen. She presents Snow with a bracelet and slips it on her wrist. Snow's legs become a mermaid tail. Snow's all for helping out a friend, but this is a little much. She can't quite believe that Ursula gave Ariel the bracelet, since Ursula is a myth. Ariel insists she's real, but then Regina shows up to reveal the truth. She mocks Snow as the catch of the day. Ariel is all, "Ursula." Snow says, "This isn't Ursula. This is Regina, the Evil Queen." We flash forward to...

Neverland. Team Operation Cobra Rescue reaches the Echo Cave. Hook gives the team the backstory. He lost half his crew inside. The only way to rescue someone trapped in there is to reveal a, "...darkest secret. Echo Cave derives its name from an old saying. 'The deeper the lie, the more truth in its echo'." I've been parsing that all week. I can't decide if it's sheer brilliance or balderdash. The cave demands you reveal a truth about yourself -- one you'd never reveal to anyone. Hook figures Pan wants them to rescue Neal, because in the process their secrets will destroy them. We flash back to...

Eric's Dock. Ariel whispers to Snow to take off the bracelet, but Regina laughs. "The wearer can't take it off. Oh, did I leave that detail out? For once, Snow. You won't be able to run away." Ariel can't believe Regina tricked her. "You went to a long dead octopus for advice, and you're going to blame me for your problems?" Snow tells Ariel to get out of there. Regina says for once they agree, but Ariel doesn't want to leave if Regina is going to hurt her friend. Regina says Snow will be hurt, either way. Ariel's choice is to run off to her love and escape, or stay and share Snow's fate. There will be no second chance. Snow insists Ariel leave and take her chance at happiness. Still, once she does, Snow looks disappointed.

Alone at last, Regina magically throttles Snow. Some fans are complaining that Regina has squandered all these chances to quickly kill Snow. In an episode where she just snapped a guard's neck, it's hard to ignore that. But more than wanting Snow dead, Regina wants Snow to suffer. She wants to drag it out. And maybe, just maybe, there's a little piece of her that's already realizing that watching Snow in agony is more satisfying to her than living a life free of her nemesis. Regardless, Ariel runs back to the scene and using the stolen Salad Trident fork, she stabs Regina in the neck. As Regina stumbles back in pain, Ariel rushes to Snow, takes off the bracelet and throws it in the ocean. Now that Snow has legs again and Ariel has her tail, she tells the princess to hold her breath and they dive into the water. This time, Snow's water allergy fails to trigger. Having removed the fork from her neck. Regina runs to the end of the pier, but with the women under water, there's not much she can do. That's actually pretty well supported in this season's premiere, when Emma jumps overboard, and Regina tells Snow she can't magic her out of the water, because she can't see her well enough. Regina growls us into commercial.

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 , 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.

Now it's Charming's turn. He tells Snow he wants that for her too, but it can't happen with him. He confesses the Dreamshade poisoning, and the spring water cure that ties his life to Neverland. Snow's restrained anger and fear is a vision to behold. Someone give Ginnifer Goodwin this episode's MVP statuette.

Emma runs across the now complete bridge to Neal. He's still in the cage, so she starts whacking at it with her sword -- which was once his. Neal looks through the bars and tells her she knows what she has to do, and bless my soul, she does it. Emma confesses her deepest feelings. "When I heard you might be here, that you might still be alive, I knew I should be happy, but I wasn't." You and half the fandom, babe. "I was terrified. I didn't understand why, until now. From the moment I saw you in New York -- from the instant you stepped back in my life I knew... I knew I'd never stopped loving you. And before I even got a chance to take a breath, I lost you once more and all that pain I had pushed down for all those years, it just came rushing back. I didn't know if I could go through it again. I love you. I probably always will. But my secret… is that I was hoping this was a trick. I was hoping you were dead, because it would be easier for me to put you behind me, than to face all the pain we went through all over again." I'll wait a moment for you to finish your standing ovation.

Once Emma's confession is complete, the door to the cage dissolves. Neal reaches out of it and hugs Emma tight. Hook looks gutted. Even nearly a week later, I haven't been able to take my eyes off the three of them yet to look at Charming and Snow. Commercial.

Emma leads Team Operation Cobra Rescue out of the cave. Once they're all outside, Neal thanks them for saving him. Hook says that's not necessary and adds, "...we found your star map, so the real question is -- do you know how to get off this island?" Neal says, "If we can find Henry, I can get us home." Hook says they should go get Tink and then retrieve Henry. He leads the way. Charming and Snow follow. Emma lingers for a moment with Neal. She asks if he's okay, and then says, "About what I said..." Neal tells her it's okay, but Emma says, "No, it's not. I wish I could change how I feel, more than anything, but I can't. I'm sorry." Neal says, "Don't be. After everything I've put you through, you don't ever have to apologize to me about how you feel. Hey, I'm glad you told me. I have a secret too, Emma. I'm never going to stop fighting for you. Never."

Hook is spying through the trees, with eyes downcast. Like I said in the recaplet, Killian, "never stop fighting" can only happen after one begins fighting. I haven't seen Neal do that yet. We cut to Snow, who is leading Charming through the jungle. When he tries to explain himself, she spits out a curt, "Not now." I feel you, Snow. I really do. I've been yelling at Charming for weeks about telling you the truth, but I don't think he reads the recaps. The thing is, you have to forgive him, and you have to believe, especially while you're in Neverland. You cannot let yourself fall victim to Pan's trap. We flash back to...

Eric's World. Snow crawls out of the water. Ariel apologizes and asks if she's okay. Snow says she's fine, and tells Ariel she needs to go find Eric and tell him the truth. Ariel thinks he's probably on the road, but Snow says she saw how he looked at Ariel, she thinks he's probably still waiting. She shouts at Ariel to go. We cut to...

Eric's Castle. He's looking out at the water, when a servant reports it's time to go. Eric says he needs just a little longer. He waits long enough that when Ariel swims up to the dock, he's still up on his balcony. Ariel tries to shout his name, but her voice is gone. Damn it, Regina. I know this is your work. Show yourself. Eric never sees Ariel. Dejected, he turns and walks away. Ariel is crying when Regina appears. Oh my word, did I just summon her? Queenie reminds Ariel she warned there would be no second chance, and crows about how she took the mermaid's voice. She says the only thing worse for Ariel than telling her prince how she feels, and him rejecting her, is never getting to tell him at all. "Time to swim back home, little mermaid." We cut to...

Knifingham Palace. As Regina enters her chamber, she's greeted with a, "Hello, Regina." It's coming from the mirror. In it, we can see the reflection of Eric's Ursula statue, which has come to life. Regina can't believe she's real. Ursula says, "time you claim to be me, you'll find out just how real I am." She reaches her tentacles through the mirror and wraps them around Regina, then adds, "Don't ever do that again." We flash forward to the...

Neverland Shore. Regina and Rumpy walk by the water until Regina finds a conch shell. Rumpy says, "If you think summoning a giant squid is the answer, I've already tried that." Regina grins. "Well, you've had fun, haven't you?" After saying she has no intention of ordering calamari (which, ha), Regina uses the conch to summon Ariel. Rumpy allows that mermaids can travel across realms, but says they can't be trusted. Regina says, "This one can. We have a history together." Rumpy cracks, "Well, that would explain the distasteful look on her face." Amen. Regina restores Ariel's voice and tells her if she helps them, she can give her what she wants. She magics the bracelet to Ariel and tells her she can give her legs. "But more importantly I can give you what you need most. The place I'm sending you -- among its residents -- is Prince Eric." Ariel asks, "What's the name of this place?" Regina smiles. "Storybrooke." Dun dun dun! I went on at length about this episode in the recaplet, so click the link at the top of page one, if you want to read more.

I'll be back with coverage of "Dark Hollow." I can't wait for it! In the meantime, please grade the episode up top, and then join us on the boards, where we might have left Neal in the cage a little bit longer.