‘Once Upon A Time’ 2.15 Episode Recap and Review: The Queen Is Dead

With every new episode of Once Upon A Time, a higher level of tension rises. With last week’s shocking revelation to carry us through the short break, it’s no surprise how anticipated this week’s episode turned out to be. Emma (Jennifer Morrison) is still stuck in Manhattan with her lost lover, Henry (Jared Gilmore), and Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle). Meanwhile, Snow (Ginnifer Goodwin) is left to deal with her past all while trying to choose between right and wrong.

The Enchanted Forest:

We are jolted back in time to when Snow White was a little girl, and her mother was still alive! We see how her mother’s wisdom molded Snow into the kind woman she is today. Her mother’s fate is obvious, but it still broke my heart when it happened! Snow gets her first taste of magic, when she summons upon the famous ‘blue fairy’ in hopes of changing her mother’s fate. Sadly, the only way to heal her mother is to take another life in return. Snow’s morals shine through, but at a cost. Her mother dies, and thus begins the mess that follows her for years to come.

Manhattan:

It seems that Henry isn’t going to let Emma’s lie go unnoticed. As the gang spends a bit of quality time together (mostly just Neil and Henry, with Emma and Gold lagging behind), an important issue arises. Will Neil come back to Storybrooke? Seeing as Neil despises all things magic, it seems like a bit of a stretch. Regardless, Emma does push the idea. Sadly, Neil brings up an interesting complication… He has a fiance! Ouch. Poor Emma! Yet even his fiance is unable to stop him from leaving when an unexpected attack from Hook leaves Gold in dire need of magical attention. Now, the gang is off to Storybrooke in hopes that they can save Gold, and hopefully prevent Cora from using her new weapon! Oh, and I must also applaud the awesome Peter Pan reference during this episode. I knew it!

Storybrooke:

It’s the anniversary of Snow’s mother’s death… As well as her birthday! Not only bad memories, but also horrible revelations come to surface. Snow finally figures out that Regina has not only been in contact with Cora, but that she also has plans to use Gold (and his dagger) against them. This prompts David and Snow to find the dagger first, but sadly things don’t turn out as planned. Regina and Cora find them, and devise a deal. The dagger in exchange for the life of Snow’s old carekeeper, Johanna. Seeing as Snow always does the right thing, she hands over the dagger… But seeing as Regina and Cora are evil, they still kill Johanna, despite their demands being met. During this whole confrontation, Snow realizes that Cora poisoned her mother years ago. Snow has finally reached her breaking point, deciding that she’s tired of playing nice. And by the end of it all, Snow has decided to kill Cora once and for all.

“The Queen Is Dead” definitely tugged at my heartstrings. It was a very well executed episode. Usually, there is so much going on in this show, the audience may forget how these insane events may be effecting the characters. It’s interesting to really see how much someone, especially such a strong-willed character, can take before breaking. It’s evident that next week’s episode is going to be absolutely mental. I can already say that I have high hopes!

Rating:
B+

Questions:

• Who will die next week?
• What are Cora’s real plans?
• How will Neil/Bae explain his current fiance situation?
• Has Snow given up on being ‘good’?