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Welcome to the mess that I like to think of as my recaplet of "Going Home." This midseason finale includes flashbacks to a few different times, places, and stories. Rather than relate them in the order in which they appear in "Going Home," I'm summarizing them in what I believe to be chronological order.
Long ago, Hook and Smee set foot on Neverland. Hook and Tink meet. They share some backstory as well as some rum. Hook tells Tink that he'd risk his life for two things: love and revenge. Since he's lost one, if he loses the other while exacting revenge, it will be worth it.
In the Enchanted Past, Belle interrupts Rumpelstiltskin while he's remembering Baelfire. They have a conversation that seems to me to be a continuity error, but I have to go back over my old recaps to be sure, so let's not clutter the page with it now.
Somewhat later in the Enchanted Past, an expectant Snow and Charming are in Emma's nursery. Blue blahs about the curse and the wardrobe. She says eventually their story will be made known to Emma and she will save them. Poor Snow. All she ever wanted was to raise their child together. "That was our happy ending and now it's gone." After some comfort from Charming, Snow decides to choose to hope. Charming tells her they can find another, unexpected future. Staring at the glass unicorn baby mobile, she wills herself to believe.
Phoenix, 11 years ago. Emma gives birth and won't hold the baby. After a nurse whispers to him that Emma is giving the child up for adoption, the doctor tells her she can change her mind. Emma says, "No, I can't be a mother."
Storybrooke, October, 2011. Henry's looking at a family tree assignment. Mary Margaret asks why he didn't turn in his homework and if there's a problem. Henry feels unloved and as if he doesn't belong. Mary Margaret insists he does belong and is loved. She gives him her Once Upon A Time book. She says one day, she just found it in her bedroom closet -- like magic. She swears there is hope inside, and our lives always get better if we hold onto hope. Henry starts flipping through the book as she walks away. When he looks up at her, he sees no Miss Mary Margaret Blanchard, but Princess Snow White.
Now, in present-day Storybrooke, Felix and Panry (Pan in Henry's body) take all the curse supplies to the well. Felix doesn't even realize that he's got the most important ingredient of all -- the heart of the thing Pan loves best, and it's beating right inside tall, fair, and lanky's chest. Felix realizes his fate, too late. Panry rips out his heart, crushes it, and lets the dust fall into the well, with all the other curse ingredients. For the record, he says he never loved his own son.
Meanwhile, at the cemetery, Gold tells Operation Cobra Rescue there is one way to stop the curse, but it can only be done by the person who used the scroll. i.e. Regina, and it will come at a steep price. Before that, they need to find the wand of the Black Fairy (she turned to the dark side years ago, so Blue confiscated her wand and exiled her) and restore Henry to his own body.
Charming, Hook, Neal, and Tink set off for the convent on wand patrol. Unfortunately, Pan's Shadow has been spying and follows them. While Team Wand Retrieval tries to talk the mourning Sisters into giving up the wand, the Shadow attacks. The Sisters flee. Eventually, Tink believes in herself and gets the Pixie Dust to work. She is able to fly and trap the Shadow, which she destroys with fire. Once the Shadow has been vanquished, Blue returns to life. She praises Tink and will restore the fairy's wings.
Over at Gold's Shop, he has been preparing Hen (Henry in Pan's body). Once they have the Elder Black Fairy's wand, they can use it to switch Pan and Henry back into their own bodies. Since Panry currently has the scroll, it should be in Henry's possession, once he's restored to his own skin. Gold then takes the magic suppression cuff (from Greg and Tamara) and puts it on Hen's wrist. Once Tink and co. return with the wand, Gold puts Hen to sleep. Pan's body convulses as Henry's essence leaves it and Pan's returns. Everyone clears out to look for real Henry, leaving Gold a few minutes with his father. Since Pan created the cuff, it doesn't work on him. He magics it onto Rumpy's wrist, and kicks him around. Pan's words are worse than the physical abuse. I'll give you the whole, gory story in the recap. Suffice it to say he does admit that he isn't just going to wipe the minds of the ones Rumpy loves; he's going to kill them.
After Pan leaves, Gold struggles to get the cuff off, but it's no use. He appears ready to cut off his hand (which, since he once healed Whale's severed arm, is less extreme than it may seem).
Out on the streets, Granny takes the lead on finding Henry. "I've got his scent." For a second, I forgot Granny is a wolf, so her line made me sillier than it should have. Henry, back in his own skin, runs out of library and gives the scroll to Regina. Nearly as soon as she touches it, she collapses on the street. Once she awakens, she explains that when she touched the scroll, she saw what had to be done. Henry asks if she's okay. Regina says, "The important thing is -- you will be."
Pan appears, magics the scroll out of Regina's hand and says, "No he won't." As Hook tries to warn everyone what Pan has done, Pan freezes them all with a wave of his hand. Rumpy arrives on the scene with two hands and no magic. That doesn't mean he is without a secret weapon though. Without any magic at all, he summons his own shadow, which returns his dagger to him. He grabs Pan, and shoves the blade into Pan's back (and I think perhaps it goes into Rump's chest). Pan morphs into Rumpy's adult father, who tries one last manipulation, but Rumpy holds firm. He kisses his monstrous father, and they both disappear in a puff of black smock. The curse scroll falls to the ground.
Regina explains that breaking the curse will make it as if Storybrooke never existed. Everyone will be returned to their old land. Henry cannot go with them though. That is the price Regina has to pay. Because Henry was born here, breaking the curse won't bring him back there. Since Emma is the savior and she escaped the curse the first time, she can leave with Henry. There is a lot of resistance to this idea, but Snow and Charming encourage Emma and finally she agrees.
As the curse approaches, there are big, tearful goodbyes between everyone at the town line (and a promising exchange between Hook and Emma). Regina takes Emma aside and says as the curse washes over Storybrooke, it will take away Emma and Henry's Storybrooke memories. To soften this blow, Regina gives Emma a parting gift. Since she and Henry are staying in this world, but Storybrooke will be erased, she can give them the gift of good memories and a good life together. They will have always been together. While their past won't be real, their future will.
Once Emma and Henry get in the car, Regina takes out the scroll and undoes the curse. Her purple magic overcomes Pan's green. Everything it touches disappears. Henry and Emma drive off into a new life, smiling at one another. The past is gone. We flash back to...
Phoenix, 11 years ago. Emma has just given birth. Holding baby Henry, the doctor tells Emma she can change her mind. She hesitates, then says, "Wait. Let me hold him." The doctor smiles as Emma takes her son in her arms. She smiles and coos through her tears. We flash forward to the...
Present. Emma and Henry continue to drive. There's nothing in the rear view mirror. No family. No friends. No lovers. No villains. No fairies. We flash forward to...
New York City. One year later. Emma's alarm goes off at 8:15. "Charley's Girl" plays, as Emma scrambles eggs and Henry waters their plants. She serves the eggs with pancakes and hot chocolate. Henry says, "Mom, you forgot something." Emma says, "Right. Cinnamon." There's a knock on the door that approaches banging. When it continues, Emma shuts off the radio and answers the door. It's Hook, but of course Emma doesn't recognize him. He reports her family is in trouble, and kisses her in hopes of restoring her memory. No such luck. Emma knees him in the crotch, warns him that she's going to call the cops, then slams the door in his face.
I'll be back with the recap, ASAP. In the meantime, please grade the episode up top, and then join us on the boards, where we're yelling at Emma to open the damned door.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!We open in Storybrooke, at night. There are no scenes from episodes, which immediately signals this episode is going to be a detail-filled beast to recap. I'm going to need until March 9, 2014 to recover. Felix and Panry (Pan in Henry's body) walk through the woods. Felix crows about Panry outwitting Regina in less than a day. Panry says Regina's love for Henry makes her weak.
Once they reach the well, Panry announces that's where they'll cast the curse. Felix hands the ingredients over to Panry. Unless there's a heart in that bag, Felix, you'd better guard your own. Felix asks if this curse will kill all the Storybrookers. Panry says, "Worse. They'll be slaves to this new land we're making, with no idea who they once were. Death is final, Felix. Their suffering will be eternal." Panry drops ingredients into the well. We cut to the...
Cemetery. Snow and Emma ask about this new curse of Pan's. Gold says while the last curse was created to service Regina's wishes, "...this will be done per Pan's desire. I would count on something hellish." When Regina tells the gang that the curse was built to be unstoppable, Gold corrects her. "It is possible to stop it [...] by using the scroll, itself. It can only be undone by the person who used the scroll. That's you, Regina." Yeah, I think we've all got that, Gold. Thanks. Let's cut back to your little bastard of a father.
As Panry continues to drop curse ingredients into the well, he tells Felix that Regina's curse will be "child's play" compared to his own. Felix smiles. "I knew you'd win. Peter Pan never fails." Oh Felix, if I wasn't so ready to watch you die, I'd be telling you to run.
Back in the cemetery, Regina asks Gold what she will have to do. He says, "You must destroy the scroll. Both your curse and his shall be ended, but know this: there will be a price. A steep one." Gold suggests that rather than chasing after Panry, they should bring Pan to them, with a spell that will return Pan and Henry to their own bodies. We cut back to the...
Well. Felix asks Panry if they're missing something. Panry says they are. "The heart of the thing I love most." Felix figures he means Rumpelstiltskin. Panry says, "No. No. I never loved Rumpel." Felix is a little slow on the uptake, so he asks Panry,"Who you do you love?" Panry says, "Love can mean many things, Felix. It doesn't just come from romance, or family. It can also come from loyalty. Friendship."
Even though it's the middle of the night, dawn breaks across Felix's face. Panry adds, "Only one person has always believed in Pan." Felix swallows hard. "That's me." Panry cocks his head. "Don't be afraid. Be flattered." Felix screams, "No, no, no, no, no!" Panry plunges his greedy little hand inside Felix's chest. We hear the squish and the sploosh. Panry pulls the heart out. Why is it not blacker than Snow White's, Show? Felix collapses as Panry squeezes his heart into dust. The dust wafts down into the well.
Sidebar: Parker Croft, I hated your Felix, as I was supposed to. You, young man, did a wonderful job playing a creepy character. Thank you for your performance. I thoroughly enjoyed it and am sure I am not alone. Bravo.
Cemetery. Hen (Henry in Pan's body) exposits that once he's back in his own skin, he'll have possession of the scroll. When Regina is worried that Gold isn't powerful enough to cast that sort of spell, he says he can do it with the right tool. Tink takes the Exposition Fairy's wand and says, "The Black Fairy's wand. One of the most powerful fairies that every existed. Well-versed in dark magic. The Blue Fairy exiled her, but before she did, she took her wand." Of course she did. How was Blue not killed long ago?
Gold figures the late, great Blue hid it at the convent. Charming is ready to lead the expedition. Hook gives a brotherly nod to an invitation not yet issued. Tink wants to go along too, to pay her respects to Blue. That's pretty big of Tink, don't you think? Gold says it's settled. The rest of them will retreat to his shop and prepare Hen for the spell. Neal heads off with Charming, Tink, and Hook, even though no one invited him anywhere. (Poor Neal. I've got to stop taking cheap shots at him, but it's fun easy.) Unbeknownst to anyone, Pan's Shadow has been lurking in the trees and has heard every word.
We cut back to the well. Henry is still dumping Felix's heart ash into it. Once he's done, his curse bubbles up from the bottom in plumes of thick green smoke. The title card features Emma's yellow VW bug. Toot toot. Hey. Beep beep.
Enchanted Past. After the title card, we open in Emma's nursery. Oh Emma isn't there of course, because she doesn't get to have nice things. Well, she's there, but she's safely ensconced in her mother's womb. Blue is visiting the Charmings. Snow asks Blue what if this cockamamie wardrobe plan doesn't work. Note: at this point in the timeline, a pregnant Snow plans to enter the wardrobe alone (or so she thinks, but we know Pinocchio will use the wardrobe, too). There was a lot of confusion about the point of this scene, at least on our boards. What she's asking Blue is: what will happen if the wardrobe doesn't whisk them to safety, and she and Emma, like everyone else, have their memories wiped? Are we all clear on that, now? Heaven knows I like to rant when things are messed up. This isn't one of those times.
If the wardrobe fails them, then Blue says the Queen's curse will transport them (all) to a new land. They will lose their memories, "...and become a slave to [the Queen's] darkest desires, so we have to have faith that your child will find a way to save us." Snow asks, "If we don't know we are, and we can't tell her that she's the savior, how will she know what to do?" Blue tells her that one day, when the time is right, their story will reveal itself to Snow's daughter. "You have to trust me." Snow wonders what Blue means by their story. Blue says, "I don't know yet, but I do know that it will happen." Snow wants to know how Blue is so sure. Blue says that's because she has what Snow needs: hope. "Good luck, Snow. Have faith."
Charming and Snow watch the fairy depart. Once she's gone, Snow says, "That's easy to say, when you have magic wings and a wand." I can't even argue with that. Charming says their only choice is to choose to believe Blue. Snow wanders across the room until she is right in front of the glass unicorn baby mobile. Her voice drops. "This was supposed to be hers. We had such plans." When Charming encourages his wife to have hope, she says, "This curse has destroyed every dream this family ever had." Right? And it hasn't even been cast, yet.
Charming tells Snow they don't know what the future holds for them. When Snow asks how he knows if it holds any good, Charming tells her, "...the unknown isn't always bad. Life is full of twists and turns you never see coming. This curse? It's just a turn." All Snow ever wanted for them to raise their child together. "That was our happy ending, and now it's gone." Charming says that while the future they've imagined is gone, that doesn't mean they won't find another, unexpected one. Finally, Snow decides to choose hope. "I can believe." Sheesh, between the two of them, no wonder Henry was cursed with the heart of the truest believer. We flash forward to the...
Present. Gold's Shop. Snow is fondling the same blue unicorn she did, once upon a time. When she sees her grown daughter on the other side of the mobile, Snow tells Emma the mobile hung above her crib, or was supposed to. She says giving her up was the hardest thing she ever had to do. Emma knows more about this than she cares to. She had to do the same for Henry, to give him his best chance. Mother and daughter wonder what it would have been like to raise their children. Emma says things would have been so different for her -- a normal life in Boston, or wherever, with Henry. It just was not meant to be.
Emma checks on Hen and asks if he's doing okay. He's just ready to be himself, again. So say we all. Well, so say all of us with souls. The more evil among us want Robbie Kay to remain in the Henry role. Since I have a deadline, I will refrain from listing the 4,815,162,342 ways in which that would be wrong. Gold tells his grandson that as soon as they have the wand, all will be as it should. We cut to the...
Convent Chapel. The Blue Fairy lies in state. Why does the casket have no lid, Show? That's just goofy. Since she's wearing a skirt, poor Keegan Connor Tracy has to cross her ankles to preserve her modesty. There are three nameless Sisters paying their respects when Tink, Neal, Hook and Charm arrive and ask for the wand. The Sisters refuse, since the Black Fairy's wand is a bit of a taboo item. Tink has no time for this. "Yeah, it's a terrible, terrible thing, but what's coming is worse. Where is it?" I hope we get to keep Tink, forever. I love her. Before the Sisters can answer, the Shadow starts smashing at the stained glass windows. It wants the wand. Charming shouts at the Sisters to run. They scurry away.
The Shadow enters the chapel through an open window. Hook tells the team to take cover in the pews. Neal readies his not-a-star-map coconut shadow trap thing. At some point (not yet, but I forgot to note where, sorry) he says this time, they need to do more than trap the Shadow. Commercial.
We return to Neverland, long ago. Hook and Smee trek through the jungle. Smee is spooked and wants to head back to the ship. Hook refuses to go, until he's found a way off the island. He says he's dawdled on Neverland for far too long. Now that he knows about the dagger, his purpose is renewed. Smee is still complaining when something knocks him out. As Hook turns toward the action, Tink holds a knife to Hook's throat. "Aren't you a little old to be a Lost Boy?" Hook grimaces and rolls his eyes. "I'm not part of Pan's brigade, and I can assure you I'm anything but a boy."
Tink demands to know who he is and why he's there. Hook tells her he's the captain of the Jolly Roger and is looking for magic to get home. Tink says she's fresh out. They have a you're a fairy/you're a pirate exchange. Why are we wasting time on this right now, Show? We get it. During Hook's [however much] time on Neverland, he and Tink met. And yes, they have chemistry and rum. Really we're just here to set up Hook and Tink's exchange in their upcoming Storybrooke scene. Hook tells Tink about the Dark One, etc. and then says, "I'd risk my life for two things: love and revenge. I lost the first. And if I die for my vengeance, then that's enough satisfaction for me." We flash forward to the...
Storybrooke Convent Chapel. Hook volunteers to draw the Shadow's ire. If it's the only way to save them all from Pan's curse, it's a risk he's willing to take. Tink echoes his Neverland words back to him. She thought he'd only risk his life for love or revenge. Hook says, "One other important thing -- me." He hops the pew. Don't break your leg again, Colin!
Hook approaches the front of the sanctuary. Why are there two fire bowls in this church, you ask. What kind of church is this, anyhow? The Contrivance Fairy says, "Patience, dears." Hook smiles as he taunts the Shadow. "Is that the best you've got?" In answer, the Shadow picks Hook up and rolls him down the aisle like a bowling ball. Charming grabs Hook by the arm and drags him back into the pew, because he too knows the humiliation of Face-meet-Floor encounters.
As the Shadow continues to menace the gang, Tink asks Neal if he can trap it. Charming says it is too high, they've got to get closer. Not to mention, Charming, why would the Shadow be attracted to the anemic flame from a candle, when there are two big flaming firebowls, right there? Neal says he can't fly up there, then realizes one among them can. "Tink." While she doesn't have her wings, she has Pixie Dust.
Tink says the Pixie Dust doesn't work. Charming reminds her she made it work before. The men believe in her. Now, she must believe in herself. Tink walks up the aisle and opens up the vial. The Pixie Dust glows and sparkles with magic. She huffs its vapors and smiles. Neal hands her the Shadow trap. Tink magically lights the candle then flies toward the Shadow. She nabs it, closes the trap, wafts back down 'til her feet are planted on the floor, then tosses the Shadow trap in one of the convenient fire bowls. The Contrivance Fairy takes a bow. The Shadow hisses and shrieks as it is destroyed in the flame.
The men approach their hero. Neal and Charming keep walking, because while this is a great episode, some of the blocking in it is painfully awkward, and Hook and Tink need a private word. Hook says, "Look who's still a fairy." Tink: "Look who's still a pirate." After she's sure he's all right, she says, "For the record, I know why you risked your life back there, and it wasn't for yourself, or revenge. It was for Emma." From his "busted" expression it's clear Hook left his poker face back on the Jolly Roger.
A woman says, "Well done, Green." Tink and the gang turn to see Blue alive and kicking. She confirms she was gone, but when Tink destroyed the Shadow, her own shadow was returned and she was revived. Does that mean Greg...Owen...GROAN just woke up alone on Neverland? I suppose it could, but for now I'm deciding against it. because as far as we know, Owen is an ordinary human and his corpse had already begun to decompose. Dear Eddy and Adam, please don't bring him back as a zombie. Let sleeping GROANs lie.
Blue says, "You finally believed in yourself, Tinker Bell. Welcome back." Tink can't believe she's a fairy again, considering she broke all of Blue's rules. Blue looks chastened as she allows that she might have been too strict. "You deserved your wings. You have earned them back many times over." Okay, so Tink saves Henry, and his extended, distended family, all the Lost Boys, and Hook, and that's not enough to earn back her wings. It takes saving Blue's bony behind and bodacious ta-tas to seal the deal. Are we all quite clear on this? Tink is much more moved than I, even before Blue produces the Black Fairy's wand out of thin air. She hands it to Neal and says, "Go. Save us all."
Tink and her team return to Gold's shop. Charming says, "She's back. The Blue Fairy. She gave us the wand." Nobody even reacts to the fact that someone who was just dead is once again alive. Bad form, writers. Now that they have the wand, Gold says they need only one more item, before they can return Henry's spirit to his own skin. He takes out the magic suppression cuff and says it's one of the few useful thing he managed to pilfer from Greg and Tamara. You and the show, Gold. Hell, even Neal barely reacts to the mention of Tamara's name.
Gold explains the cuff renders anyone with magic, "...utterly powerless." Looking up at Hook, Regina says, "I haven't forgotten about all that, by the way." Duck, Hook. Duck. Gold puts the cuff on Hen and says he wants to make sure that when Pan wakes up in his own skin, his powers will be blocked. He tells Hen he'll now cast the spell. Hen will go into a deep sleep, and wake up in his own body. Regina tells Hen, "And then you hang onto that scroll, and you come find us as fast as you can." Hen tells his family that when he gave his heart to Pan, he thought he was being a hero. He turns to Emma and says, "I'm sorry." Charming says Hen doesn't need to be sorry, Pan does. I think Henry should be a little sorry. I think it would be better if they told him they understand he thought he was doing the right thing, and he's forgiven for not listening to them, rather than this "nothing to be sorry for" business, but no one listens to me.
It's finally spell time. Hen focuses on the wand until he falls asleep. Once he's under Gold touches the wand to the boy's forehead. There's a flash of light. Hen convulses as Henry's spirit leaves Pan's body. Once it's done, Regina says, "It worked." Emma says, "Let's go find our son." Everyone heads out of the shop except Gold. Belle asks if he's coming. He says he doesn't think so. He and his father have some unfinished family business. Commercial.
We return to Storybrooke, October, 2011. Henry looks at his blank family tree assignment. He slips it in his folder, which he slides under his Tron lunchbox. Mary Margaret finds him asks why he didn't turn in his homework -- again -- and if there's a problem. Yeah, Mary Margaret. His family tree isn't a tree. As Michael Raymond-James says, it's an effing wreath. We will politely ignore that Jared Gilmore has matured too much in the past two and a half years to be playing himself in this flashback. Similarly, we will politely ignore that the show can no longer effectively hide Ginnifer Goodwin's pregnancy. The show is cursed to use human actors who have physical realities of their own. Earlier, when Charming was going on about twists and turns and that the unexpected could still end happily, I wondered how much of that was the writers deciding to approach the changes in these two with a positive attitude. If so, good on you, Show.
Henry doesn't answer Mary Margaret. He doesn't even look at her. She says, "Oh Henry," and takes a seat to him. "Things really will change if you just believe it. Life is unpredictable." Henry's voice sounds hostile as he asks if her life is unpredictable. It seems to him as if, "...everything's pretty much the same around here, except me. My birth mom didn't love me. Regina says she does, but she doesn't. I--I don't belong here."
Mary Margaret tells him he does belong and is loved. The she gets an idea. She takes out the Once Upon A Time book and says she found it this morning, when she was cleaning out her bedroom closet. And yes, she says she cleans her closet weekly, so it's clear she's still under the curse, because who the hell would clean their closet weekly? If you're that damned tidy, the closet shouldn't even need cleaning, but I digress.
So Mary has cleaned that closet thousands of times, and yet she never before noticed the book. Today, it was just there, like magic. Henry says, "That's not possible." Mary Margaret says, "Well, of course not, but it happened. This book somehow arrived. Was it given to me? Did I forget about it? I don't know, but there it was. And do you know what I saw when I looked inside? Hope." Henry says it just looks like fairy tales to him. Mary Margaret asks, "And what exactly do you think fairy tales are? They are a reminder that our lives will get better if just we hold onto hope. Your happy ending may not be what you expect, but that is what will make it so special."
Henry asks if he can borrow the book. Mary tells him he can have it. "Believing in the possibility of a happy ending is a powerful thing. I think you could use it." She picks up her bag, rises, and touches her unknown grandson on his shoulder. "I'll see you in class." As she walks off, Henry turns the page to an illustration of Snow and Charming on their wedding day. He calls out, "Miss Blanchard." Mary says, "Yes?" When Henry looks up at her he see Princess Snow white in her wedding finery. He blinks, and she's just Miss Blanchard again, so he says, "Thank you." Mary smiles. "You're very welcome." Henry turns his attention back to the book. Turning the page, he sees an illustration of Snow White holding her newborn daughter. A tag on the baby's receiving blanket reads, "Emma." Henry says the name aloud. We flash forward to the...
Present. Using her lycanthropic sniffer, Granny has picked up Henry's scent. Ruby should be here, I know. Again, the curse of real actors strikes. As Granny, Hook, Belle, Neal, Emma, Regina, Snow and Charming run down the middle of the street, Henry rushes out of library. "It's me. It's me. It worked." Emma and Regina hug him. He indulges for a moment, but then it gets a little awkward for him. "Mom, Mom, I just saw you guys. You guys just saw me." Finally they let go. Regina says, "But we didn't see you." Henry gives Emma the scroll. She hands it to Regina and says, "It's up to you, now." Regina turns it over in her gloved hand. There's a bright flash and then she falls to the ground, unconscious. We cut to...
Gold's Shop. Pan wakes to Gold saying, "Hello, Papa." Pan thought he would have killed him in his sleep. Me, too! When Pan sits up, he notices the cuff on his wrist, and notes that Gold has taken away his magic. Gold says he wanted to talk to Pan. "I wanted you to see me and think about what you've done."
Pan mocks the idea of seeing his son and thinking about what might have been. "Is that what you want? Because I do. I remember looking at you. The littlest babe -- helpless and all mine. Those big, big eyes, just full of tears. Pulling at me. Pulling away my name, my money, my time. Pulling away any hope of making my life into something better for myself. This pink, naked, squirming little larva, that wanted to eat my dreams alive and never stop. What are you now -- a couple hundred? Can't I be free of you?" Gold says, "Oh, you will be, in death." and that's a good thing, because this guy needs killing, Rump.
Pan says, "Then one last lesson, son. Never make a cage you can't get out of." He rips the cuff off his arm. Since he created it, it doesn't work on him. He magics the cuff onto Gold's left wrist. Gold looks down at it and starts to shake. As he backs up, Pan rises and says, "Down boy," then magically thrusts Gold across the room and into a set of shelves. As Gold tries to get up, Pan says, "Let's see how you do without magic," then kicks him.
Gasping, Gold says, "I've come to far for this. For them." Pan says, "For your son? It's too late." Unlike the other Storybrookers, Pan is going to kill the people Gold loves -- because Gold loves them. "You won't do a thing to stop me. Do you know why? Because without magic, you're right back to where you started -- the village coward." When Pan leaves, Gold lets out a little cry. He struggles to remove the cuff, to no avail. Commercial.
We return to the Enchanted Past. Rumpelstiltskin lights a candle. "Too many years to count, Bae, but I've counted every one." Belle enters and realizes he's busy. He tells her to leave. As she sets down some flowers, he growls, "Go away." Realizing the moment is ruined, he licks his fingers, extinguishes the candle, and sets it under the table. Belle sees Baelfire's cloak on the table and realizes the extent to which she is intruding. "I'm so sorry. It was a remembrance, wasn't it? How old would he be?" Rumpy says, "He's not dead. He's just lost." He pets Bae's cloak and says, "Today's his birthday." He says they should be together, celebrating. "We had a chance to be happy, together, but I was afraid." When Belle says maybe it's not too late, Rumpy says, "I hope not." He lets go of the cloak and walks past Belle. "Now, my ending shall not be a happy one." SPOILER ALERT, Rumpy, sheeesh. We flash forward to the...
Present. Storybrooke. Gold struggles with the cuff, 'til he notices the sword on the floor. He picks it up. Oh my word. He's gonna cut off his hand. That is badass.
Out on the street, Emma keeps calling Regina's name until she wakes and says, "Emma." The SwanQueen shippers go wild. Snow asks what happened when Regina touched the scroll. Regina says she saw what needed to be done. Henry asks if she'll be okay. Regina says, "The important thing is, you will be." As she touches her son's face with one hand, the scroll disappears from the other. Pan says, "No he won't." Hook says, "He has the..." And I love Hook, but was that not the goofiest line reading? Anyhow, Pan raises a hand freezes them all, then finishes Hook's line for him: "...Curse. That I do." We cut back to...
Gold's Shop. Gold kneels to a table and lays his left hand upon it. With his right hand, he raises the sword in the air. He's about to swing when he hesitates. We cut back to the...
Street. Pan mocks his captive audience, then hones in on Neal and Belle. "You both look so adorable. It's hard to tell which one to kill first. No it isn't." He focuses on his grandson. "You. You first." Gold comes up behind Pan and lays his still attached hand on Pan's left shoulder. He's still wearing the magic suppression cuff. He growls as he pulls Pan back. "Stay away from them."
Pan says, "How about this. The worm has teeth. Are you here to pwotect your woved ones?" Gold says he won't let Pan touch either of them. I have a job to finish and I have to do whatever it takes. No loopholes." While every else is still frozen it's clear from little things -- blinks, swallows, that they're conscious of the scene playing out before them. Gold says, "And what needs to be done has a price -- a price I'm finally willing to pay." He turns to his son. "I used the curse to find you, Bae, to tell you I made a mistake, to make sure you had a chance at happiness." Pan makes an Oh this guy face. Stuff it, Pan. Rumpelstiltskin is about to break our hearts.
Once Pan and I have piped down, Gold continues. "That happiness is possible, just not with me. I accept that." Pan mocks his son's pretty words, but Gold is undeterred. "I love you, Bae." He turns his attention to the other love of his life and says, "I love you Belle. You made me stronger."
Pan looks at his son's cuffed wrist and realizes he is still without magic. Gold says, "Oh, but I don't need it. You see, you may have lost your shadow, but there's one thing you're forgetting." Pan asks what that is. Gold says, "So did I. I sent it away with something to hide." When he raises his right hand, his shadow appears. It places the Dark One's dagger in Gold's hand then slips back inside Gold's body with a flash of blue. He grabs Pan into a hostile hug. Pan can't seem to break free, which makes no sense, because he seems to have been as magical in Storybrooke as he was on Neverland. I am chalking his helplessness up to the fact that Gold has his shadow back, but I fully admit I'm just rationalizing, because the rest of this is so damned good.
Gold tells Pan, "You see, the only way for you to die, is if we both die, and now -- now... I'm ready." He plunges the dagger into Pan's back. Pan screams. I clap. Belle and Neal take in the whole tragic tale. As Pan cries out, Gold wheezes and the two shake. Black smoke rises up out of them. When it clears, Gold is standing there with his arms around not Pan, but his old, adult father. Gold says, "Hello, Papa." Papa Stiltskin says, "Rumpel, please? You can stop this. Remove the dagger. We can start over. We can have a happy ending." Papa Stiltskin, you might have been more convincing if you weren't laughing in your son's face as you were trying to manipulate him.
Gold's voice is weak, yet high and lilting as he says, "Ah, but I'm a villain. And villains don't get happy endings." At that, he digs the knife in deeper. As it passes through Pan's body into Gold's there is a gold flash of magic. As the magic spreads and surrounds them, Gold brushes back his father's hair. He looks like he's either going to make out with Papa Stiltskin, or possibly suck his blood, but I watch too many vampire shows, so pay that last bit no mind. Before the magical glow overcomes them, Gold kisses his father's cheek. The light blazes out from the dagger, then disappears. All that is left is the scroll. It falls to the ground.
Sidebar: Some people were confused as to what all that was about. First of all, keep in mind Gold's then seemingly out of place line in "Save Henry." When he caught Pan trying to take Henry's shadow, and opened Pandora's Box, Gold said, "Blood magic works both ways, father." Now, remember, the Dark One's curse works like this: whoever controls the magical dagger controls the Dark One. If you stab the Dark One with his own magical dagger, he dies and you become the new Dark One. Since Pan is magical and immortal, he can't be killed with a regular weapon. When Gold shoves the magical blade through Pan's body first, and then into his own, it as if Pan is the person stabbing Dark One, because the blade is coming from Pan's body, to Gold's. However, since Gold is still wearing the magic suppression cuff, the Dark One's powers cannot flow from Gold into Pan/Papa Stiltskin. The Dark One's curse ends because of this. The curse is blocked from traveling to Pan, so it dies as its last host (Gold) dies. It evaporates in a poof of paradox.
Orange magic washes over the gang, and they are unfrozen. Belle buckles at the waist. Snow covers her own mouth with her hands. Emma looks at Neal. With his head hanging low, he shuffles toward the scroll. The weight of her grief drives Belle to the ground. No one goes to her. What the hell is with the blocking in this episode? Okay, a moment of this is fine to show us how alone Neal and Belle both feel, but it becomes damned awkward that no one goes to them. It makes the other characters look harder and colder than they are. I know they're in shock too, and I know there's a lot to do, but the scene at the church, and the Neverland flashback could have been cut for some frigging human emotion here (and at the news of Blue's resurrection). Okay. Moving on. Or not. Commercial.
After the break, Belle is still on the ground, sobbing. Neal blinks back the tears. When Regina picks up the scroll, Mary Margaret asks if she's okay. Hello, what about Belle and Neal, people? Regina says she's fine and since she doesn't pass out this time, I guess she's right. Emma approaches Neal from behind, lays her hands on his arms and says, "I'm so sorry." Still no one goes to Belle. Neal says, "My father... did what he had to do." He forces himself to smile. "He saved us." Even Hook is dumbfounded by Gold's heroism. Regina looks at the last spot where Gold stood. Once Upon A Time, he taught her how to be a villain. Now he's taught her how to be a hero.
Neal says, "Regina, don't let him die for nothing." When she doesn't respond, he repeats her name. Regina says, "What?" Hook says, "We're here for a reason, love. Pan?" Regina says, "He's dead." Hook says Pan's curse remains. "Can you stop it, or should we all start preparing our souls, 'cause mine's going to take some time." You and me both, Killian. We cut to the...
Woods. The thick green smoke of Pan's curse flows out of the well and through the forest. Back in town, Grumpy runs down the street shouting, "It's here. The curse! It's here! It's coming from all sides. There's no escape." Now, when he says it's coming from all sides, that makes me think that it's closing in on them from the town's borders, but that's not what is happening. It's flowing out of the well in all directions. I just mention that for those of you who are, as I am, stupidly pedantic about this stuff. You normal people can roll your eyes at us and move on.
Neal puts his arm around Henry. Charming asks Regina if they can still stop it. She's still out of it, so he too has to repeat her name before she can respond, "Yes." As Regina musters her courage, Emma asks what their price is to undo the curse. Regina says, "It's not our price. It's mine. [...] It's what I felt when I first held it. I have to say goodbye to the thing I love most." Emma realizes she means Henry. He leaves his father for his mothers. Emma puts her arm around their boy and strokes his hair.
Regina says, "I can never see him again. I have no choice. I have to undo what I started." She has to undo the curse that created Storybrooke. "It doesn't belong here and neither do any of us." Charming states the obvious. Regina confirms the town will wink out of existence as though it were never here, "...and everyone will go back to where they're from -- prevented from ever returning." Emma says, "You'll go back to the Enchanted Forest." She really is Daddy's girl, isn't she? Regina is notably patient with these slowpokes. "All of us, except Henry. He will stay here because he was born here."
Emma can't hide the alarm in her voice. "Alone?" Regina says, "No, you will take him, because you're the savior. You were created to break the curse, and once again, you can escape it." Emma says, "I don't want to." She grabs Henry tight as she adds, "We'll both go back with everyone." Regina says that isn't an option. "I can't be with him. If I don't pay the price, none of this will work."
Thunder claps. Snow says, "Emma, you have to go." Emma: "I just found you." Snow says, "And now it's time for you to leave us again. For your best chance. For his." Emma looks around. "No. No. I'm... not... done. I'm the savior, right? I'm supposed to bring back all the happy endings." Snow tells her happy endings aren't always what we think they will be. "Look around you. You've touched the lives of everyone here." The camera pans to Hook's stricken face, then to Neal's. Poor Emma says, "But we're a family." Snow says, "Yes, and we always will be. You gave us that." Charming adds, "You and Henry can be a family, and you can get your wish. You can be like everyone else. You can be happy. Snow slaps on the smile of false bravado. "It's time to believe in yourself, Emma. It's time for you to find hope." Oh man.
Thank goodness Regina lightens the mood (that's not a typo). "I've known you for some time, and all I've wanted was for you to get the hell out of my life, so I could be with my son. But really, what I want is for Henry to be happy. We have no choice. You have to go." Hook looks down. Snow looks at her daughter. Emma stares into space. "Okay." Meanwhile, I'm worried those cars a block away are going to wipe out the entire main cast. Commercial.
We return to Phoenix, 11 years ago. Emma screams in pain. The lights flicker and short out. Henry is born. The doctor announces, "It's a boy, Emma." He seems concerned by her refusal to even look at her baby, until a nurse whispers that Emma is putting the child up for adoption. The doctor tells her, "Just so you know, you can change your mind." Sobbing, Emma says, "No, I can't be a mother. We cut to the...
Storybrooke Town Line. The rest of the Dwarfs have joined the crew, as have Blue and Archie, even though the only vehicle in sight is Emma's little bug. Really, couldn't Neal have hot-wired his father's Caddy, and Charming grabbed the truck? Did these people take the time to walk all that way? I can see the curse in the background, for crying out loud.
It's hugs all around. Emma who has been talking to Belle (so yay, someone finally remembered the poor thing exists and just lost her love) goes to Charming and Snow. They wrap her in their arms. Henry joins in for a Charming clan hug, before moving on to address Regina. He says this isn't fair and is all his fault. "If I hadn't gone to get Emma. If I just lived under the curse with you, none of this ever would have happened. I thought I was alone. I thought you didn't love me, but I was wrong." Regina says she was wrong, too. "It wasn't your fault. It's mine. I cast a curse out of vengeance. And I'm--I'm a villain. You heard Mr. Gold. Villains don't get happy endings. Henry's is choked up as he says, "You're not a villain. You're my mom." The two hug.
Emma lets go of Snow and Charming, although her hand lingers in her father's grasp as long as it can, as approaches Neal. When she is face to face with him, she says, "Neal, I'm sorry." Neal, shakes his head. "Don't be." He nods toward Henry and says, "You've gotta get our boy the hell out of here." Emma says, "And you've got to go back there." Neal says, "Yeah, I do." As they hug, he looks over Emma's shoulder at their son. When they let go of each other, Neal says, "Hey, this isn't over. I'll see both of you again." Oh wow, poor Neal. Poor everyone.
Emma walks right past her parents to highlight how weird the blocking continues to be. Hook hastens to her side and breathes her name. Emma turns to face him. Working up the courage to say what he really wants to say, he cocks an eyebrow at her Yellow VW Bug. "That's quite a vessel you captain there, Swan." Did his dialogue just make CaptainSwan canonical? I think it might have. Emma tries to chuckle, but her grin melts before it's fully formed. When their eyes meet, Hook says, "There's not a day will go by that I won't think of you." The corner of Emma's lips turn up. Her gaze never falters. "Good." Hook's eyes light up. Emma gaze travels from them, to his lips, and back again. And in that moment it is clear, at least to this recapper, they have an understanding.
Awkwardly, Hook backs away, until he's rejoined the crowd. I'm happy to report that Archie has his arm around poor Belle. Regina goes to Emma and says there's something she hasn't told her. Emma sounds exhausted when she asks, "What, now?" Regina says when the curse washes over them, it will send them all back. "Nothing will be left behind, including your memories. It's just what the curse does. Storybrooke will no longer exist. It won't ever have existed, so these last years will be gone from both your memories, and we just go back to being stories again." Emma asks what will happen to herself and Henry. Regina doesn't know. Emma says that's not much of a happy ending. Regina says it isn't but she can give them one. She can't preserve their memories, but she can do what she did to everyone else, and give Henry and Emma new memories. Uh oh.
Emma is with me. "You cursed them and they were miserable." Regina says they didn't have to be miserable. That was just the Evil Queen bonus bonanza, Emma. Regina takes Emma's hand and makes like one of Aurora's good fairies. "My gift to you is good memories and a good life for you," she turns back to Henry. Neal has his arm around the boy, but lets go when Regina gestures at their son. When Henry joins them, Regina continues: "...and Henry. You'll have never given him up." Emma gasps. The tears she has been struggling to keep at bay are ready to spill. Regina is teary too, but it is a day that ends in Y. "You'll have always been together." Imagine if someone could erase the action you most regret. Imagine.
Emma says, "You would do that?" Regina says, "When I stop Pan's curse and you cross that town line, you will have the life you always wanted." Emma sounds like a little girl when she says, "But it won't be real." Regina says, "Your past won't, but your future will. Now go. There isn't much time left and the curse will be here, any minute." Henry hugs Regina. She kisses his forehead. Emma looks at her parents. Snow lets go of her husband's hand and walks to their daughter. Why doesn't he follow? What is up with the blocking? Ugh. Anyhow Snow takes Emma's face in her hand and kisses her baby on the forehead. She smiles a brave smile. Tears spill down Emma's cheeks. She nods and then Emma and Henry get in the car.
Hook looks gutted as he watches the scene. Charming nods bravely, but his face crumples. Snow stares after her daughter and grandson. Neal, who is a bit behind her, watches the rest of his family leave him. Regina looks down at the scroll. Pan's green curse closes. Regina peels the curse apart from the scroll, then tears it out at the end. The parchment and the scroll glow with purple magic. Henry turns back and watches through the rear windshield.
Regina crumples up the now activated scroll and presses the whole wad between her gloved hands until they crackle with glowing, purple magic. She turns away from the car to face the crowd -- to face Pan's curse. Once she raises her hands, purple magic flows from them and forms its own cloud of smoke. As the purple smoke hits the green, thunder claps. Emma puts the car in gear and drives off. The purple smoke overwhelms the green. Hook, Charming, Snow, and Regina are the only figures still visible. The Yellow VW Bug crosses the town line. The purple magic cannot. From the other side of the line, the Storybrooke side of the road looks empty. The orange line the Dwarfs painted across the road is all that is left, when Henry looks back, he is not sure why.
Back on the other side of the line, we see only Regina, who watches Emma drives Henry off into his new life. We cut to Emma's rearview mirror, in which we can see her eyes. She looks lost in thought, until she turns toward Henry. Even though we can't see her lips, her eyes are clearly smiling.
In Downtown Storybrooke, the purple smoke that marks the undoing of the Dark Curse rolls through town, over and past the clock tower, covering everything in sight. Inside Henry's abandoned bedroom, we watch as it approaches. Finally, the smoke billows in his open window. The Once Upon A Time book lies on Henry's unmade bed. The smoke surrounds it before it consumes it.
Back on the road out of a town which no longer exists, Henry turns to Emma and smiles. We flash back to...
Phoenix, 11 years ago. The doctor holds baby Henry and tells Emma she can change her mind. As she listens to her son's cries, Emma turns to face him. "Wait. Let me hold him." Emma takes the baby in her arms and into her heart. It is not real, and yet it is. Now they too are both. As Emma delights in her newborn, the baby coos. We flash forward to the...
Present. Emma looks at her big boy, sitting in the passenger seat. We cut to a final shot of the town line. It vanishes. Fade to black. We flash forward to...
One year later. New York City. Emma's alarm sounds at 8:15AM. Charley's Girl plays as Emma scrambles some eggs and makes pancakes. Meanwhile, Henry waters some plants which immediately make me nervous, because they look like the potted verge that surrounded us in Neverland. Their apartment is huge and gorgeous. As Henry sits down to breakfast, Emma sets down their cups of hot chocolate, topped with whipped cream. Henry and I both say, "Mom, you forgot something." Emma says, "Right. Cinnamon." When she gives it to him, Henry sprinkles some on his cocoa. There's a quick cut, so I can't tell if Emma puts any cinnamon on her cocoa or not. Still, mother and son clink their mugs and drink up.
Their happy, quiet, normal breakfast is interrupted by a insistent knock on door. Henry asks if someone is coming over. Emma says, "No." As the knocking turns to banging, Emma tells Henry to wait there. She shuts off the radio and opens the door. On the other side of it waits Hook. I feel bad for the SwanThief fans, because that use of "Charley's Girl" was a cruel bait and switch. For those of us still dealing with our Lost PTSD, I'll note Emma's apartment number is 311. "Going Home" is season 3, episode 11.
As Emma takes in the appearance of this stranger with an obvious leather fetish, Hook's eyes sparkle with delight. He whispers, "Swan." As he walks toward her, he adds, "At last." Don't cue up the Etta James just yet, Hook. Emma holds up a hand. "Whoa. Do I know you?" Hook says, "Look, I need your help. Something's happened. Something terrible. Your family is in trouble."
Emma's voice is stern. "My family's right here. Who are you?" Hook says, "An old friend. Look, I know you can't remember me, but I can make you." Putting his hand behind her head, he pulls her toward him and kisses her. Emma immediately knees him in the groin and pushes him back. Hook stumbles backward until he hits the wall, groaning all the way. Emma asks him what the hell he's doing. Hook: "A long shot. I had to try. I was hoping you felt as I did." Don't take it so hard, Hook. Charming wasn't able to restore Snow's memories with a kiss, and Gold wasn't able to restore Belle's. Emma threatens to call the cops. Hook persists. "Look, I know this seems crazy, but you have to listen to me. You have to remem.." Emma slams the door in his face.
Back inside, Henry asks, "Who was that?" Emma says, "No idea. Someone must have left the door open downstairs. C'mon, let's eat." Fade to black for real. Fade to black until March 9, 2014. How are we supposed to wait so long? Argh!
There seems to be a lot of confusion about Regina's undoing of the Dark Curse. Specifically, people argue that Neal, Hook, Tink, and Ariel should have been able to leave Storybrooke, too. Had the episode been written that way, I could understand how they would have been able to leave Storybrooke, because the curse didn't bring any of them to Storybrooke, in the first place. Since the episode wasn't written that way, what follows is my understanding of the undoing.
Regina cast the first Dark Curse. Emma broke it. Pan used the same scroll to cast a new version. Because Regina first cast the curse, with the scroll in her possession and a great sacrifice (giving up Henry), she is able to undo the Dark Curse, entirely. Undoing it negates the version cast by Pan. Because the first Dark Curse originally brought people from magical worlds to the curse-created town of Storybrooke, the magic that undoes the curse carries anyone from the magical worlds back to where they're from. That's why the curse will carry away Neal, Hook, Tink, and Ariel (and I'm imagine Ariel wants to stay with Eric, anyhow).
Emma is only exempt because she is the Savior. Henry is exempt because he was conceived and born in this world. Cinderella's baby will return to the Enchanted Forest because she was conceived there. This is consistent with what the writers said, when at the end of season 2, Tamara and Greg were going to trigger the failsafe to undo the curse. Also, as I understand what Regina said, only Henry and Emma will lose their memories. When the rest of the Storybrookers return to the Enchanted Forest (etc.) they will still remember Storybrooke and what happened there.
Do you think Gold is really gone for good? I can't believe they'd write him out, because he's such a popular character and Rump/Belle is such a popular couple. On the other hand, it could be that Robert Carlyle feels done or wants to confine himself to flashbacks. On the third hand (don't judge), maybe he'll be back. I love Carlyle, so while I mostly want him back, I really love how his story concluded. It feels rich and right. I can imagine ways to bring him back that won't mess with it, but part of me thinks it should just stay that way. Still, I'll be happy to see him again, in whatever form What about you?
I'll be back when the show returns on March 9, 2014. In the meantime, please grade the episode up top, and then join us on the boards, where we're yelling at Emma to open the damned door. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.