A New Beginning

How do you know when a show is incredible? When you find yourself sitting on the edge of your seat or realize your heart is beating so fast you think it might explode from your chest, because you are so involved in the story. That's where I found myself last night.

I wasn't so pleased toward the beginning of the episode, it all seemed a little too tight, too neatly wrapped up. But about forty minutes in, I realized I wasn't breathing and my heart was racing. Yes, it sucked me in, as it always does.

I wasn't too keen on infusing Mulan into the show, since Mulan isn't a fairy tale character, and lived in an entirely different realm, but I must accept the reality that the producers will invoke many liberties about what happens on the show. I didn't like the dwarfs hatching from eggs, but we have to accept what we cannot change.

The opening of the episode showed a man in a city, and I know many of us are wondering who he is, and how did he get out of Storybrooke? Some of us will surely speculate that he is Baelfire, and part of me wonders if he is, but part of me thinks that's too easy, especially since Baelfire was sent out of Storybrooke long before the curse was enacted, and would have no knowledge of a curse. And who would have contact with him and would have sent him a message? I was looking at his room, seeing what clues might be there, but I didn't see many. On the back wall were two signs/pictures, one looked (to me) like Red Riding Hood, and the other said "Hatter." Next to the window was a picture that looked like a heart with the arteries attached. Are any of these real clues or just red herrings? Maybe I was wrong, the picture isn't Red Riding Hood at all. Maybe it's the Red Queen? In the opening sequence, the "O" looked like a magnifying glass, and twice within the episode, we saw items that it could have been: Rumplestiltskin's magnifying glass, and when Regina looked through her peephole. But I wonder if it is a looking glass and that is the clue itself. Could he be someone from Wonderland?

When Emma, Snow and James were talking about how things are different now and Snow wanted to talk about their relationship, I have to say it was kind of hilarious when a "one night stand" was mentioned and James asked, "What?" and Snow just waves it off, "We were cursed" and continues as if nothing happened.

I have to say, when the Wraith appeared, my first thought was (tongue in cheek), "OMG it's a Dementor!" Yes, I know, wrong story, but it sure looked like one. Maybe it's a cousin. (Warner Bros. made the "Harry Potter" films, and is owned by ABC/Disney, so it's not so far-fetched in that light.) The "pendant" that brought the Wraith, and the mark it leaves, reminded me of the Dark Mark from "Harry Potter," as well. All joking aside, I knew it wasn't going to actually take Regina's soul. She's too big a part of the central storyline, and we need the Evil Queen in order to have a foe for the good people to fight against. I did wonder what it would do to her, though.

When Emma touched Regina and sent magic into the hat (through Regina) to make the hat work, did Emma inadvertently give magic back to Regina? It seemed so when the wall grabbed James. But a big question in my mind is why, when Emma mentioned Jefferson, Regina asked, "Who's Jefferson?" Did the curse alter her memory? Or did the Wraith take part of it? Or is there another explanation?

A lot happened in the last five minutes! My question here is, how does Mulan know what happened? How does she even know about Storybrooke? The more questions that get answered, the more questions we have. Definitely keeps us all coming back for more.

I still wonder who Dr. Whale is. He said to James, "You're not my prince," indicating he's not from their realm. So what realm is he from? In any case, we may find out in episode 2.5, "The Doctor." I've seen lots of speculation on his identity, and he's still a puzzle.

When will we see what happened to August? And will we see Graham at any time other than Fairy Tale Past? I really wish he would come back. I liked him.