One day, the evil queen and Snow White's step-mother cast upon the land a terrible curse that brought most of the residence of Fairytale Land to the modern world in a created illusion of a town called Storybrooke in the state of Maine. Here, the fairytale characters did not remember who they were, except for the evil Queen Regina who had become mayor. All of the town's occupants had their new lives written for them for twenty-eight years. How would this curse be broken, you ask? How else, but by none other then the pure product of True Love.
Once Upon A Time is a TV series that began its first season in October of 2011 by writers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz who also created Lost and Tron; Legacy. It follows the story of Snow White and Prince Charming's daughter, Emma, who was sent to the real world for her own protection no more then a few minutes after she was born. There, she grew up alone, fell in love, was deceived, and had a child of her own who she gave up for adoption. The series beginning takes place 28 years after Emma arrives in the real world and she is pulled to a town called Storybrooke by her eleven year old son, Henry, who came to look for his real mother. Little did she know that this would begin the explanation of her past, her future and where she truly belongs in the world.
In typical Lost fashion, the series takes place with flashbacks connecting the dots for everyone. While it shows the current time and the storylines of all the characters in Storybrooke, it also goes back in random but organized order to show how everything came to pass and how characters began relationships back in Fairytale Land.
Season one's plot is all about Emma coming to Storybrooke to return Henry Mills, the son she put up for adoption, back home with his mother Regina Mills after he ran away to go find his real mother, believing that she was some sort of savior from his fairytale book that he got from his teacher. He had it in his head that the residence of Storybrooke were fairytale creatures sent to that world by none other then his adoptive mother. While there, events take place that make Emma stay and grow closer to her son, causing friction between her and Regina. At the end of the series the curse is broken and all of the residence regain their memory of their former life while still holding the memories they were given by the curse.
Season two's plot revolves around the after effects of the curse being removed. New characters are introduced, other's are taken away from us and some remain on the border. It is discovered that if anyone leaves the boundaries of Storybrooke into the real world that their fairytale life will be erased from their memory forever and permanently and they will forever be the person the curse put them as. This unfortunately happened to more then one character in the season. This season also offers the realization that there is more then one realm in Fairytale land, also including a world where there is no magic but science in its place, Wonderland, and even Neverland. There is also threat from the outside world now that Storybrooke is no longer hidden from the real world. Near the end of the season their secret is at risk of exposure as someone from the past comes back to make good on a promise. The season ends with some of the main characters heading to Neverland to get back one of their own taken by those from the real world.
Season three will be airing in October of 2013 with the next chapter to this Fairytale story. The following that this how has gotten in only two seasons has allowed the creators to make a spin-off series based in the same timeline as OUAT but this one takes place in Wonderland, many years after the original story of Alice in Wonderland takes place and revolves around Alice, a genie she loved, and other characters. This too will have flashbacks of how they were effected by the curse and have crossover episodes with OUAT. The number of episodes the first and/or only season of Once Upon A Time In Wonderland will have is still unknown.
I absolutely love this show and personally thought it took far to long for season two to come on Netflix, but knowing that season three hasn't even started yet makes me feel better and a bit more caught up to all the fascination with the show.
Characters that have been seen include;
The Evil Queen, Snow White, Prince Charming, Jepetto, Pinochio, The Blue Fairy, Jiminy Cricket, Pongo, Mulan, Princess Aurora, Captain Hook, Granny and Little Red Riding Hood, Malifacent, Lancelot, The Huntsman, The Mad Hatter, Belle, Cinderella, Smee, The eight dwarves (you read right and yes I know there are seven), Dr. Frankenstein, Jack and the Giant, and so many, many more! Even a few made up to create a history for the other characters such as Cora, The Evil Queen's mother.
One of my favorite things is the twists put on normal fairytale stories. I won't reveal them all, nor will I tell you all that happens in the series, but some of the twists are;
*Little Red Riding Hood, or Ruby, has a furry secret.
*Regina the Evil Queen's history is revealed and how she became Snow White's mother.
*Snow White actually becomes a pretty big bad ass in the Fairytale realm.
*The Mad Hatter has a pretty special hat.
*Belle from Beauty and the Beast was locked away like a crazy person.
*Captain Hook has a far more intriguing history then one would ever think, not to mention the crocodile who took his hand.
*And the Beast from Beauty and the Beast, is actually a fairytale character we do not hear much about.. Rumplestiltskin. Yes, you read that right. Good ol' "guess my name, give me your first born, straw into gold" Rumplestiltskin.
Actually, on that note, I have to say that my completely favorite part of this show is how much they connect a character who I have only heard one story about-- and not a very liked one.. with the entire world of Fairytale Land. I mean really, this character has, in my opinion, the biggest part of all. His history is connected with everyone, and all to complete a good-hearted yet tragic goal. To find his son. Which he does eventually, but it isn't what he thinks and even that connects him to more people then he thought possible. Really, this whole series would not have happened if it wasn't for Rumple. Not to mention, Robert Carlyle, who plays Rumple and some people might remember as the unlikeable character on Stargate: Universe, has given me a new love for the word 'deary'.
The other actors and actresses, I might add, play their parts very well. Ginnifer Goodwin plays an endearing and yet strong-willed Snow White who will do anything to protect her family. Josh Dallas plays a strong Prince Charming and perfect soul mate to the beautiful Snow. Lana Parrilla make's your spine tingle as the Evil Queen Regina, Jennifer Morrison plays the part of a closed-hearted daughter of True Love all to well and Jared Gilmore plays the loveable and faithful Henry Milles to perfection. There are some characters who I think could have been played or casted better, or just don't play the part well, in my opinion anyway, such as Sarah Bolger as Princess Aurora from the tale Sleeping Beauty and Emilie de Raven as the 'I see the good in the beast' Belle from the tale Beauty and the Beast but I will let you judge them and their counterparts for yourself. I really don't find them as appealing in the show as I do in the fairytales or their Disney re-makes. Speaking of Lost earlier, there are actually a couple actors from that very show playing parts in this beloved tale of Good vs. Evil.
I still, however, highly recommend this show for the fantasy and science fiction lovers out there. Not to mention for those who enjoyed Lost and like a good drama series that makes you think, "You have got to be kidding me" or "Wait.. what? That's how that happened!?". I know I saw those often and I am sure you will too! The costumes are amazing, the special effects are outstanding and the choice of actors to characters and the stories they play are heart stopping. I personally can not wait until the third season and I hope eventually to see Wonderland come on Netflix as well!
But until then..
...they might live Happily Ever After,
The End.
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