Once Upon a Time 1.16: "Heart of Darkness"

This episode of Once Upon a Time took us back to the aftermath of Snow White's (Ginnifer Goodwin) failed attempt to stop Charming's (Josh Dallas) wedding to Abigail, leaving her so crushed and desperate she drinks Rumplestiltskin's potion, wiping out all memories of her lost love. Of course Snow COULDN'T WAIT FIVE MINUTES for Grumpy's (Lee Arenberg) news that Charming bolted from the altar...and OF COURSE making a deal with the wily Rumple doesn't come without some unexpected side effects -- namely, losing the true sense of one's very self.

But we'll get back to Snow's shenanigans in a moment. First we must discuss what is quite possibly the best opening of an episode of all time -- I speak of the impossible, amazingly deflected arrow. Now the impossible shot is a favorite cinematic device of mine, because who doesn't love a carefully orchestrated moment of computer generated awesomeness like that? But Once isn't content with the impossible shot, they have Charming DEFLECT IT WITH HIS SWORD. I could watch Charming be that amazing ALL DAY, I kid you not. :) Anyways, the shot in question is from Charming's evil faux father's lackeys (King George just will NOT SAY DIE!). Apparently Charming has still been hanging out with Red (Meghan Ory) -- good thing I like you, Red, just sayin'! -- so this is also after Red gets the little bomb dropped on her that she turns into a wolf and EATS PEOPLE. She seems to have come to terms with her dual nature, though, as she sends Charming on his way after Snow, buying him some time by transforming into a wolf and attacking the soldiers (which raises the question, is she somehow self-aware in her wolf state now? just wondering...). Like I said, AWESOME opening, right?! :)

Cut to Storybrooke, and Emma (Jennifer Morrison) is taking Mary Margaret's MUG SHOT!! Mary is such a prim schoolteacher type the idea of murder is, of course, patently ridiculous -- but Emma has to follow the evidence or else she'll face ousting on charges of favoritism, and of course that wouldn't be helpful. So the mug shot is setting up the idea of Mary Margaret's guilt as a ridiculous concept -- or IS IT?? Because back in Fairy Tale Land we're treated to a glimpse of Snow, looking every inch the fairest of them all, humming a classic song and appearing to bond with a bird. All is sweetness and light until she tries to whack the bird with her broom -- and people that is yet another reason why I love this show. Turn some of the traditional fairy tale tropes on their heads! :)

Enter Grumpy, who leads Snow right into a dwarf-initiated INTERVENTION headed by none other than Jiminy Cricket (Raphael Sbarge)! It has been way too long since we've seen much of Jiminy or his Storybrooke counterpart, so this is a nice development, even if Snow is having none of her friends' concern. The formerly kind-hearted princess is hell-bent on alienating everyone who would call themselves her friend -- and what's supposed to be an intervention helping her recognize that Rumple's potion fundamentally changed her turns into something else entirely as Snow decides that all of her problems will be solved if she kills the Evil Queen. Yikes!

Back at the Sheriff's office, Emma prepares to interview Mary Margaret officially and all, and this raises a couple of questions -- like what in her bounty-hunting background qualifies her to be Sheriff? (I miss Graham.) And two, I have not seen a tape recorder like that since the early '90s. Really that is the best technology that Storybrooke law enforcement has to work with?! *sadness* Regina (Lana Parrilla) helpfully decides to sit in on the interrogation (ha!). When Emma brings out the box that held the heart Ruby discovered, there's a nice little shock because it is really Mary Margaret's jewellery box! *GASP* Okay I can buy this, but how can she not have realized that her jewellery box has been missing since before or shortly after Kathryn's disappearance (of course we know why there's no signs of a break-in -- Regina's creepy skull keys!)?! Regina tries to act all empathetic and nice (gag), because after all a broken heart can make a person do "unspeakable things" (methinks she speaks from experience).

In FTL Snow is all gung-ho about her plot to ambush the Queen en route to her summer palace, and this chick means business since she hijacks a lost knight and threatens to lay into him with a PICK AXE if he doesn't answer her questions. After she knocks him unconscious, Grumpy shows up (so he's a tracker too?) and insists that they revisit the Rumple issue -- perhaps he has a potion that can reverse damage losing the memories of her love for Charming did to her personality. For the convenience of the plot, Snow agrees --

Meanwhile, Emma and Henry (Jared Gilmore) are searching the apartment for signs of a break-in that will back up Mary Margaret's story that her jewellery box was stolen. Instead they find a GIGANTIC KNIFE in a floor vent! Henry is bummed because it looks like is grandmother is going to take a murder rap, which sends him moping to the diner where August (Eion Bailey) attempts to cheer him up. HAVE I MENTIONED LATELY THAT I LOVE THE NAME AUGUST? He suggests the answers Henry seeks may be in his precious storybook, which shocks Henry because here is an ADULT PERSON APPEARING TO VALIDATE OPERATION COBRA! This show is getting really good at slowly parsing out information about the erstwhile Stranger, because while it is a huge deal that he would actually affirm the storybook-as-history concept, we still have no idea why or how he came by the knowledge (the suspense is killing me!). Anyways this cheers Henry right up so he dives into the storybook (I want to read this book cover-to-cover so badly). 

David gets a momentary flash of Charming's awesomeness when he storms into Regina's office, insistent that Mary Margaret couldn't have had anything to do with Kathryn's likely murder. I nearly gag as Regina attempts to be all comforting and reasonable, launching into the age-old debate on the origins of evil -- it "isn't born, it's made" (well I have news for you, Regina, I STILL DON'T CARE if you used to be nice because you are the SHREW THAT GROUND GRAHAM'S HEART TO DUST!). She then blathers on about how "evil doesn't always look evil," and because David's biggest Storybrooke downfall is being RIDDLED WITH SELF-DOUBT her carefully placed words hit home. David decides to go see Archie, hoping that some hypnosis sessions will help him remember what he's done during his blackout periods (more on that in a sec).

At the jail, Emma is saddled with the unenviable task of advising Mary Margaret to get a lawyer when *BOOM* Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle) walks in and offers his services -- OF COURSE HE'S A LAWYER TOO! Gah! I love this! Mary is getting pretty desperate so she agrees over Emma's objections. When she tells Gold she can't afford to pay him he surprisingly demurs, saying he'll take on the case for free because he's "invested in her future" (I AM DYING TO KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS!).

In FTL, Grumpy and Snow have finally made it to Rumple's digs, where he drops the unfortunate news that there's no potion available that can restore Snow's niceness (so he helpfully provides her with a magic bow so she can kill the Queen). This hearkens back to earlier talk in the season about the soul-crushing price of magic, something we've seen over and over, particularly in Regina's desperate attempts to hold onto Henry's affection. The only cure is of course true love (which hasn't been bottled -- yet). After Rumple insists that the bow represents his "investment" in Snow's future, she takes off to kill the Queen and Grumpy presumably overtaxed with all of this patience and forbearance that he's had to practice in her presence heads home.

Now this, people, this is where this episode becomes pure awesome. There's been more of a focus on Storybrooke David, and with that comes a whole lot of wishy-washyness so a person could be tempted to forget just how fantastic Charming is in FTL -- and he's on fire here. :) First he braves Rumple's wiles, consequences be damned of making a deal with the green one because HE HAS TO SAVE SNOW FROM HERSELF. In an interesting twist, all Rumple demands as payment for a map to Snow's sniper location is Charming's cloak, from which he later removes a stray hair -- and combining that with the earlier hair he extracted from Snow as payment for the forgetful potion, the man has bottled true love. The question of course remains what the heck will he do with it?!

Fast forward a few hours (?) and Charming sneaks up on Snow and kisses her, sure that true love's kiss will magically restore her memories. Sadly that idea tanks and it appears Snow might succeed with her assassination attempt, but Jiminy (who really gets around) has freed the Prince and given him a valuable piece of advice -- Snow didn't only lose her memories of their love, she lost all memory of who she is at a very fundamental level. So just when we think Snow's arrow may hit its mark, Charming jumps in its path and at this point I'm ready to scream YES!!! Because if he's not fighting with a sword or horse, taking an arrow in the shoulder for his one true love is the next best thing. :) When Charming tells Snow he'd rather die for her than see her heart filled with darkness (shout-out to Joseph Conrad!), I absolutely melted into a puddle of goo. As Charming, Dallas is in the running for best film prince portrayal of all time. ALL TIME!

Charming's faith, his willingness to sacrifice his life for Snow's, that is the true love magic that brings Snow back. And just when I think (hope) that this adorable couple may have bought themselves five minutes of happiness in FTL, evil King George's men ride up and throw Charming in a paddywagon (boo!! hiss!!!), leaving Snow to co-opt Charming's declaration that she will always find him. GOSH I LOVE THESE CRAZY KIDS! So while Snow may be without Charming in FTL, now that she's nice again the dwarves vow to help her get him back. But in Storybrooke, things are not going so well for the ill-fated pair. David's hypnosis session with Archie has unearthed memories of evil Snow vowing to kill "her," memories hazy enough that David "assumes" they occurred in the present, not in an alternate reality (guess I should cut him some slack on that score). Riddled with doubts he once again CRUSHES Mary Margaret's faith the fact that there is any hope for their future (STUPID BOY), leaving her just desperate enough to use the skeleton key she found conveniently hidden in her jail mattress to break out (question -- key planted there by Regina or Mr. Gold?).

Henry's research has somehow led to him discovering Regina's ring of skull keys, which provides the concrete proof Emma needs to realize that Regina is somehow, for some reason, setting Mary Margaret up. THIS IS PROGRESS! She's so ticked she goes to Mr. Gold for help (YAY), because desperate times call for desperate measures. I may be delusional but I rather think Mr. Gold likes Emma -- and knowing he's no where near as heartless as he'd have us believe, I'm hopeful for a lot of Mr. Gold-related awesomeness in the near future. :) A pretty solid episode, great for picture opportunities, no? :)

love

This never gets old.

Review: Love's Sacred Song by Mesu Andrews

Love's Sacred Song

By: Mesu Andrews

Publisher: Revell

ISBN: 978-0-8007-3408-4

About the book:

Wisdom came as God's gift, but sacred love was forged through passion's fire.

Standing in the shadow of his famous father, young King Solomon wavers between fear and bravado, longing for a love that is true and pure -- a love that can be his cornerstone.

A shepherdess in the northern city of Shunem, Arielah has known since she first laid eyes on Solomon that it was her destiny to become his bride. When her father secures a promise from Solomon to marry Arielah as a treaty bride to help unite the kingdom, it seems her dreams will come true.

But how can this simple shepherdess live as part of Solomon's harem? Can Solomon set aside his distractions to give himself completely to just one woman? Or will he let duty, deception, and the daily routine divide his heart?

Mesu Andrews expertly weaves the words of the Song of Solomon into this touching story of the power of love from a master storyteller.

Review:

When Arielah was a child she accompanied her father Jeheosephat, a respected judge of Shunem, to Jerusalem, where she spied the young prince Solomon. And ever since that day she's carried in her heart the certainty that they would one day wed. Years pass, and the great King David lies on his deathbed, comforted by the prize of Shunem, the beautiful Abishag (1 Kings 1& 2), who serves as his "belly-warmer," an intimate but platonic relationship. Abishag's lack of any official status in the royal household becomes a lightening rod, symbolizing the northern tribes' discontent with their favored southern brethren, the tribe of Judah's, rule and dominance in Israeli affairs. With the once-mighty warrior king near death, the time is ripe for conflict to erupt between those who favor a united Israel and David's chosen heir, Solomon, and those who would usurp God's anointed and seek to advance the pre-eminence of Judah. Into this politically volatile climate steps Solomon, a prince of privilege possessing the promised gift of godly wisdom with which to govern his people -- but with an equally competing temptation to succumb to the paralyzing fear of failure. When Arielah is offered as a treaty bride in an attempt to appease the simmering temper of the northern tribes, Solomon accepts, but is wholly unprepared for his unconventional bride and the surrender the love she offers him requires. While the cost of the pure love Arielah offers seems impossible to grasp, with the future of his kingdom and very character at stake, can Solomon afford to reject the hope of love's sacred song?

After Mesu Andrews brought Job's story to life in her debut, Love Amid the Ashes, I was left eagerly awaiting her next novel. I must confess that beyond a rather rudimentary knowledge of Solomon's reign and his famous wisdom, I don't think I've ever given the man his due (I've always been more of a David girl). :) And while the Song of Songs is among the most passionate of texts, I never really connected with it -- perhaps because that slim book always seemed to lack context, a place in the greater narrative of the Old Testament that would put faces to the passionate declarations in those short eight chapters of verse. But ever since I began reading Love's Sacred Song, I feel as though God has been whispering the intent of that book to my heart, birthing within me a love and understanding for this book within the context of my faith. Through Andrews' intricately plotted, brilliantly recreated, colorfully evocative portrait of ancient Israel, the purpose and passion of Solomon and his Shulammite bride spring to life on the page in such a way that -- if one is willing -- you cannot help but be changed and inspired by the journey.

Love's Sacred Song is epic in its scope, embodying everything I love about biblical fiction, making characters on the pages of scripture once again living, breathing people full of passion and life, leaving you cheering for their victories and heart-broken over their (all-too relatable) mistakes. Andrews restores Solomon's humanity, much needed as his legendary wisdom too often leaves him seemingly unrelatable. Here Andrews gives us Solomon early in his reign, a young man attempting to establish himself outside the shadow of his famous father, often paralyzed by the fear of failure and subsequently blinded by pride and the trappings of position. Arielah is a woman you'd like as your friend, a window into the world of a royal harem and its politics and heartbreak, incomprehensible by today's standards. Yet, such was the reality she faced -- and that makes the challenge and victory of the love illustrated in Solomon's sacred song all the more powerful.

More than a love story, though, Love's Sacred Song speaks to the heart's cry of the Father and the unfathomable depth of the love He longs to lavish on each one of His children -- if we but accept it. If the marriage relationship is a gift, an earthly expression of the relationship God desires with mankind -- then the Song of Songs is much more than a picture of God-ordained, sacred love between a man and a woman as outlined in the Song. Since the church is the bride of Christ, the Song of Songs and the love that inspired it point back to the giver of every good and perfect gift, the only one, ultimately, who is capable of offering a lasting love because He knows us best, as He is the one who fashioned us in our mothers' wombs (Ps 139:13). And because He so loved, because the sacred passion He harbored demanded no less, His Son was sent to earth to suffer unspeakably at the hands of His creation, in doing so offer the ultimate bride-price -- His precious blood, covering our failings and reconciling mankind with the creator.

Rich with atmosphere and historical detail, including fascinating glimpses into everything from wedding customs to court protocol and intrigue, Love's Sacred Song is sure to delight historical and biblical fiction lovers alike. With lead characters who send sparks flying from the page and a host of well-drawn supporting players, Mesu Andrews's second novel is a rich, meaty read that will not only entertain, but if you'll let it, challenge and grow your faith, inspiring a deeper appreciation for the texts from which Song draws its inspiration. An intricately plotted page-turner, I particularly appreciated how Andrews seamlessly wove the scriptures that head each chapter into her narrative -- by giving a face and voice to the scripture, the words and their potential impact take root in your soul in a powerful, fresh way. This is fiction at its best, a masterfully crafted work that challenges, inspires, and will break your heart with its beauty all the while encouraging your faith even as tears threaten to fall -- because at its heart this masterclass in biblical fiction points straight back to the Master Storyteller. This novel is an extraordinary gift, one I won't soon forget.

this pretty much says it all...

*sobs* ;-)

Once Upon a Time 1.15: "Red-Handed"

This episode of Once Upon a Time was simply awesome. I mean flippin' fantastic. The show managed to take what is probably my least favorite fairy tale of all time and turn it completely on its head -- and goodness knows I love a well-executed twist on a classic. :) Plus, it didn't hurt that after dancing around the subject for FOURTEEN episodes, we finally, FINALLY get Ruby's Fairy Tale Land backstory as Red, and welcome layers of character depth shade Ruby's Storybrooke self with much-needed layers of sympathy and interest.

The episode opens with Emma (Jennifer Morrison) questioning a quite frankly flabbergasted David (Josh Dallas) at the Sheriff's office about the missing Kathryn. David, this curse has done you no favors because your Storybrooke self is S-L-O-W on the uptake. *sigh* She's pretty sure he's not guilty, which I'm pretty sure is a fair assessment because David, bless his heart, just doesn't act like he's got it together enough to plot a murder. Over at Granny's Diner, Ruby (Meghan Ory) is getting all flirty with August (Eion Bailey) -- BACK OFF, he belongs to Emma! -- and is completely enamoured with his travel stories about Nepal and lemurs (REALLY?? lemurs???). Granny (Beverley Elliott) is having NONE of this, she wants her granddaughter to GROW UP and WORK WEEKENDS and start MINDING THE BOOKS. Ruby is having none of that and after making a crack likening Granny to Norman Bates (which I thought was hilarious) she quits and storms out.

In Fairy Tale Land, we're introduced to this rather adorable looking woodsy type named Peter (Jesse Hutch) who apparently has this thing for Red, but Granny (surprise, surprise) does not approve. While the show has given us glimpses into Red's FTL character before, this episode drives home the stark differences between Red and Ruby -- Red is all sweetness and light and spunk compared to what we've seen of Ruby, who has been moody and sullen ALL THE TIME (when she isn't acting slutty that is). Before Red can make any crazy promises to run away with Peter, Granny calls her to their cabin's front door, where she's attempting to dissuade bunch of gung-ho townsmen from hunting a killer wolf. Granny clearly takes this wolf threat seriously, sending Red to bed with an injunction to wear her cloak ("because red repels wolves"?? really??) and settles in to wach their heavily-barred front door with a crossbow. Granny is a badass.

The next morning apparently all is well because Granny is still alive & kicking and the cottage door hasn't been smashed in. Red goes out to check on the family chickens and discovers Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin) hiding in the hay from "something monstrous" out in the snow (so this is how they become friends). Red explains that it's just the big-as-a-horse wolf who is on the prowl (like wouldn't you be more concerned that wolves that large would BREED?? I digress...). On the way back to the cottage the pair stops to draw some water, and discovers a well full of blood (how did THAT happen?) and the mutilated bodes of last night's hunting party. This is pretty hardcore violence for this show, hmm?

Back in Storybrooke, Mary Margaret is in full-on "stand by her man" mode, but can't really offer Emma much in the way of meaningful assistance other than that they weren't together the night of Kathryn's disappearance. They come upon Ruby at the bus stop getting hit on by Dr. Whale (David Anders), who we haven't seen in a while -- and my first thought was "Whale is the wolf!" (I'm so gullible.) Mary Margaret offers to let Ruby crash with her & Emma for a few days while she figures things out (lucky for her, because otherwise I'm sure there would've been one heckuva bus crash as she tried to leave Storybrooke!).

Mary Margaret takes it upon herself to go hunting for Kathryn in the woods -- personally I think this would sorta make her look guilty, like she's trying to conceal evidence, but whatevs. She runs into David who now looks like he's been sleeping out there and the man is completely out of his head. Is it some sort of amnesia-related blackout?? Could Regina be drugging him?? Inquiring minds want to know!

So cut back to FTL for a little bit and Granny is attempting to convince the townspeople to let the wolf be, since back in the day another similar creature killed her father and seven brothers (that detail seems so random to me) in a bloodbath she witnessed as a child. Apparently this wolf couldn't kill her, though -- only nearly took her arm off, leaving her with gashing scars. Granny has a valid point, but Red doesn't care, she's just tired of the wolf being an excuse to keep her away from Peter. Snow, brilliant (*cough,cough*) Snow encourages this line of thinking, and then she's surprised when Red RUNS WITH IT and decides to track the wolf during the day while it is sleeping in his lair. Red has moxie and I love it. She proves surprisingly adept at tracking, and everything appears to be going their way until the tracks they're following transform from paw prints to half wolf, half boot -- and then all boot, tracks that lead STRAIGHT TO RED'S HOUSE. Of course this seems to point to Peter as the culprit, which is a bit of a buzzkill for young love, no? Snow agrees to masquerade as Red while Red attempts to stop her one true love from eating more townsmen -- though seriously they are not thinking this through, right? Because knowing what he is pre-transformation can't help him once the beast within takes over, right? I'm not feeling like werewolves are particularly sentient when it comes to human emotion but I'm open to being proven wrong. But Peter buys it and lets Red chain him to a tree and they VOW TO MAKE IT WORK. Oh those crazy kids...

At the Sheriff's office Henry (Jared Gilmore) is trying to help Ruby find a job, and does anyone besides me think it is funny how many courier positions are open in Storybrooke? I like Henry trying to help Ruby, for a young kid he seems so grounded by comparison. :) After answering a couple of non-emergency phone calls Ruby sort of falls into the position of department assistant, which at first turns out to be not much better than waitressing, when Emma asks her to go to Granny's Diner to pick up some lunch. However, showing a glimmer of the backbone we've seen in FTL, Ruby refuses to let her circumstances cow her. After Mary Margaret comes to the station whigging out about David acting all spacey in the woods, Henry tells mama Emma that Ruby is Little Red Riding Hood and that Emma should let her "do more."* Well Emma listens, and Ruby seems to have a sixth sense for navigating the woods because she finds David LYING IN A DITCH (I can't take David in a ditch, it's so WRONG!).

Later at the hospital Dr. Whale (seriously is he the only doctor in this town?) gives David the okay but drops the little bomb that he could be acting out during his blackout phases and NOT REMEMBER A THING. Regina (Lana Parrilla) then shows up and is all up in arms about Emma not reading David his rights (whatever!). Whale is SO IN LEAGUE with Regina it isn't even funny...the only question remains, what is his FTL identity? I want it to be a good one. Anyways, Emma remembers I HAVE AN ASSISTANT! and sends a reluctant Ruby to the toll bridge to to look for clues. Ruby follows her instincts and unearths a box containing -- wait for it -- a HUMAN HEART. As Emma tells her later, whatever she decides to do with her life she's more than capable (see, this episode is really all about Ruby SEEKING AFFIRMATION!).

Back in FTL, and Peter is chained to a tree screaming at an advancing wolf. Granny discovers Snow & Red's deception and attempts to fly to the rescue, along the way dropping the little bomb that RED IS THE WOLF!!! Apparently Red's mother was a wolf too, and Granny's managed to keep this knowledge from Red even though Red's been "turning" since she was thirteen years old (the red cloak is enchanted, preventing her from turning, which is why she's so insistent Red wear it ALL THE TIME). This raises all sorts of questions like, how did Red sneak out of the house the night the first hunting party was massacred without Granny knowing? Granny is apparently not the smartest watchwoman on the planet. Also, if Granny was turned by Red's grandfather (tell me if I'm remembering this incorrectly), does that mean werewolves aren't born, they're made like vampires? WHO KNEW? And then this becomes what may be Once's most tragic story yet, love done to death by a MAN-EATING WOLF. So now Red has to live with the knowledge that she's killer wolf, and she and Snow disappear into the night. It's all very dramatic, no? 

*I'm wondering if Henry's book includes the knowledge that Red is a wolf. Because I would hope that would at least give Henry pause when throwing around Ruby's fairy tale antecedents, know what I mean?

So after this little bomb the denouement in Storybrooke feels a bit hum-drum by comparison. Ruby decides she isn't cut out for sheriffing, and asks Granny for her job back. Turns out Granny's gruff demeanor masks a heart of gold, as she really just wants to train Ruby to take over the Diner, looking toward the day when she'll retire. Ruby and Granny make nice and ALL IS WELL, for now, anyway. Loved how this episode finally, finally gave me a reason to look past Ruby's previously (and mostly) annoying Storybrooke demeanor and to really care about her as an individual just in search of her own purpose and place in the world.

Cut to David and Mary Margaret -- now that Ruby found a friggin' HEART in the woods, Kathryn's disappearance is looking more and more like a murder investigation. Emma interrupts the guilt-ridden lovebirds hanging out at the animal shelter with the news that a fingerprint was found inside the box containing the heart, and SHOCK OF ALL SHOCKERS it belongs to the demure Mary Margaret! (I still don't think Kathryn is dead -- if in fact this is actually Kathryn's heart, I'm thinking it is part of Regina's heart stash -- possibly pointing to the threat that when she cast the curse she came into possession of everyone's hearts? Ick!) 

Now that we've touched on all of these wonderful, heart-warming personal growth issues for Ruby and appreciated the brilliance of the twist the writers applied to Red's traditional story, let's address the remaining critical question. Since Red RIPPED THE THROAT out of her love interest in FTL, it is safe to say we won't be seeing Peter again (*sobs*). Ruby needs a love interest -- I'd love to hear your ideas for likely candidates! :) 

The above is another gorgeous image I recently added to my Once Pinboard (click through for source). Don't you just love it? Very Snow White and Rose Red (well, almost Rose Red).

Once Upon a Time 1.14: "Dreamy"

This episode of Once Upon a Time revealed the backstory of the surprisingly lovelorn dwarf Grumpy (Lee Arenberg), hinted at when he first met Snow (Ginnifer Goodwin) in prison when she was caught trying to break up Charming's wedding. Every love story in this show is SO SAD! Anyways...the episode opens in Fairy Tale Land, with the Blue Fairy (Keegan Connor Tracy) taking a pink fairy (who actually HAS A NAME) to task for being a klutz with some precious fairy dust (apparently its magic "powers the world" -- if that is the case, I'm thinking they need to cut off the Evil Queen's supply...just sayin'!). The pink fairy is named Nova (Amy Acker), a sweet and flighty dreamer who longs to be an official fairy godmother. So this brings up an interesting question -- if Nova is low fairy in the hierarchy, so to speak, why does she have a name and blue fairy is just "Blue"? Silly. So we have Nova the dreamer -- and some of her lost fairy dust falls through the ether and lands on an EGG in the dwarf mines, and out hatches Grumpy. This is a whole other issue much more disturbing than naming characters after colors -- why do dwarves hatch, fully grown?? This sorta creeps me out...

In Storybrooke we learn that Leroy, the Grumpy that was, has done a superlative job alienating his FTL dwarf friends, sadness. When Mary Margaret arrives at the diner in a mostly futile attempt to drum up volunteers for the upcoming Miner's Day festival, she gets so desperate she attempts to recruit Leroy. And he pulls out the HARLOT card (yes, apparently the dissolution of David and Kathryn's marriage is STILL all her fault). While attempting to buck up Mary Margaret's flagging spirits, Emma (Jennifer Morrison) gets a call -- a call that turns out to be the news about Kathryn's wrecked car. She heads out to investigate and Sidney (Giancarlo Esposito) shows up and offers to be all helpful (and Emma BUYS IT *headdesk*) and use his "contact" at the phone company to pull Kathryn's phone records. OF COURSE that contact turns out to be Regina (Lana Parrilla). *sigh*

Meanwhile, Leroy is stomping about the Miner's Day preparations and gets glitter spilled on his head by a nun named Astrid who turns out to be Nova. It is, of course, love at first sight. Which brings up a whole slew of other questions -- like what kind of nuns do former fairies make? And why nuns? And does Leroy have any idea who weird it is to watch him make googly eyes AT A NUN?! Did I mention Astrid is a NUN??? Weird. Those issues aside, Leroy and Astrid immediately click because that's what happens when FTL true loves meet in Storybrooke. She affirms his dream to sail around the world, and suddenly he decides that volunteering to sell the nuns' candles at the festival is the best idea ever. Of course people are going to buy stuff from Leroy, he's going to intimidate them into it, right? *wink*

Back in FTL, Grumpy-who-will-be is christened Dreamy by his special dwarf pick axe and gets the low-down on dwarf living --  no love, no women, no kids, just concentrate on mining the magic diamonds that are ground in to fairy dust that power the planet. Best part of this sequence? Dreamy and his dwarf brethren marching off to work whistling a familiar working song. :) So Dreamy does the whole mining thing for a while until one day the woman of his dreams, Nova, shows up to pick up a batch of freshly-ground fairy dust, and Dreamy has to save her from wasting dust TWICE ("my hero!"). Dreamy finds her klutziness adorable, and she drops a not-so-subtle hint that they should go "watch fireflies together." *wink,wink,nudge,nudge* This goes completely over Dreamy's head, so he gets all moody over dinner at the pub, and surprise, surprise, Belle (Emilie de Raven) is there to give him some advice -- he's in love. Now, while I loved seeing Belle in her iconic blue and white costume, I am sorta annoyed that her second appearance in the show felt somewhat wasted. I want Belle & Rumple scenes, dangit!! Belle's advice about being in love does raise an interesting question, though -- is this scene pre- or post- getting kicked out of the castle by Rumple? Thoughts?

In Storybrooke Leroy is all gung-ho to sell the nuns' candles which is apparently their only source of income. Thanks to Astrid's flightiness (ordering twelve dozen tanks of helium instead of just twelve -- why the heck do nuns need helium anyway?), the nuns are on the verge of being evicted by their landlord Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle). Mirroring the friendship we've seen earlier in FTL, Leroy and Mary Margaret band together to SAVE THE NUNS! and try going door-to-door to sell candles, but that pesky harlot tag gets all the doors of Storybrooke slammed in their faces. But Leroy is all "never say die" and decides to sell Mr. Gold his boat for the rent money, only of course Mr. Gold is all "I can't stand nuns, let's kick 'em to the curb." (Big win here being Mr. Gold in a sharp suit, yay!) Leroy's at his wits' end when Astrid shows up with a pie to thank him for his help, and when the truth of the matter -- that not a single candle has been sold -- is revealed, it appears that Leroy and Astrid are farther than ever from reclaiming their happy ending (hello, we still have the NUN ISSUE).

Wrapping things up in FTL, Dreamy's decided to say to heck with a dwarf's life and sail the seven seas with Nova, until Bossy dwarf (Ken Kramer) plants doubts in his mind that dwarves are incapable of love, and then Blue shows up and drops the bomb that if Nova forsakes her calling she'll LOSE HER WINGS (I suppose that's better than disbelieving children making fairies drop dead, right?). Basically if you are part of either of these two groups, don't buck the system. *sadness* However, I've got to say it was a bit of a refreshing change to have a FTL romance hit the rocks thanks to someone other than the Evil Queen. After breaking the bad news to Nova, Dreamy returns to the mines with a new, harsher edge, breaking his first axe and getting rechristened with the name Grumpy by its replacement. GRUMPY NEEDS A HUG.

In Storybrooke Leroy and Mary Margaret are having a pity party until he has a moment of zen -- life shouldn't be about letting your failures or regrets define you, but instead about holding on to the good memories, and building from that. Leroy is all inspired to CARPE DIEM and takes a pick axe to a transformer, knocking out the power. I'm not gonna lie, I kinda cheered. I'm a total sucker for big moments like that. :) So now every one of those Storybrooke ingrates want to buy candles and in the blink of an eye Mary Margaret and Leroy sell out. THE NUNS ARE SAVED, because everyone decides to use candles instead of, you know, fixing the transformer. A grateful Astrid is all chummy and BFF-y with Leroy, and apparently CANDLES is the way back from the whole tramp stamp thing for Mary Margaret since Granny (Beverley Elliott) offers her OWN CANDLE so Mary Margaret can light hers (oh the symbolism!).

So all's well that ends well...almost. There's a suspicious phone call from David (Josh Dallas) to Kathryn the day of her disappearance (on the oh-so-conveniently provided phone records from Regina's lackey, Sidney), and Regina is all fake-worried-friend up in arms about Emma doing her job and not showing bias towards her roomie. Emma knows she must DO HER DUTY and goes to the festival to bring David in for questioning. The shock and horror of seeing Charming hauled off in the back of a police cruiser is BEYOND WORDS. Anyone not in Regina's camp has to know somebody's gonna get railroaded, right? *sigh*

On the whole I'm a little ambivalent about this episode. Grumpy and Nova were sweet but overall this ep felt more like filler than critical backstory. And the whole dwarves-hatching-from-eggs and fairies-turning-into-nuns thing kinda weirded me out. :P I did, however, like seeing Leroy and Mary Margaret take some tentative steps toward re-establishing their friendship in the Storybrooke world. Thoughts?

I need posters, asap...

I recently came across this lovely series of Once Upon a Time fan art which I (of course) added to my Once Pinterest Board -- but I had to share here as well. Click through for the source.

where I am running late, again...

So here's the thing...I was supposed to have my review of Love's Sacred Song by Mesu Andrews posted by today, but that isn't going to happen. I was sidelined for three days this week with (another) awful sinus infection, during which time no reading progress was made. *sigh*

However, now that I'm feeling (somewhat) more functional, I'm reading again (yay!), and people let me tell you, this book is fabulous. F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S. Full review coming soon. :) And my apologies to Revell and Mesu for running late (one day, I know I keep saying this but seriously ONE DAY I will meet all of my blogging and review related deadlines, I am resolved!!).