Once Upon a Time – The Final Battle: Part 1

By: Kelly Kearney

“Once Upon a Time” served up its massive two-hour season finale much like the series began, with a curse that only a savior can break.  The Final Battle was a redo of sorts, picking up after Henry (Jared Gilmore) survives the apple turnover, no thanks to Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and her True Love’s Kiss. In this new curse, the Savior is faithless and with the rest of his family stuck in the Enchanted Forest, Henry will stop at nothing to make Emma believe.

A New Curse

The story begins in the Enchanted Forest during a time of great upheaval, which could really be any time since when is that land ever experiencing calm and happy times? There we see a familiar looking man (Andrew J. West) running through the forest as if he’s being chased by some great evil. Rushing into a cottage, he barricades the door and wakes his young daughter (Alison Fernandez) who’s holding a storybook entitled Once Upon a Time. The girl promises to keep the book safe and share her stories regardless of who believes them. With the evil clamoring at the door he tells his daughter to go as he readies his sword for a fight.

Back in the Storybrooke, The Black Fairy (Jaime Murray) unleashes a dark curse on the town dampening Emma and Killian’s wedding celebration and the result is worse than any of them could’ve imagined. When the smoke clears, Henry wakes up on the roof of the building and he soon realizes nobody remembers their life pre-curse. Not only are their memories wiped, but Emma is locked up in the town’s mental hospital thanks to believing her son’s story about fairy tales and saviors. In this curse, after Henry ate the poisoned apple turnover he pulled through but not because of Emma and her true love’s kiss. Now she spends her days in therapy sessions trying to forget the stories that dominate her son’s psyche. Since Henry’s the truest believer, he will stop at nothing until Emma finds her truth and accepts her role as the Savior. Mother and son chat in the hospital and are interrupted by Fiona, dressed in her best mayoral suit and dropping a major bomb: not only did she assume Regina’s role as Mayor, she’s also Henry’s other Mother! The evil woman shuffles her son off to school, but not before she takes his storybook for “safe keeping” and orders Emma to take her medicine.

A Family Separated

If Regina (Lana Parrilla) isn’t a factor in this world it’s because the curse sent her along with Killian (Colin O’Donoghue) and the Charmings back to the Enchanted Forest where they can’t meddle in Fiona’s affairs.  Once the foursome realizes where they are, panic sets in. Killian is desperate to get back to the woman he just married and Regina feels the same about Henry.

Back at the mental hospital, Emma meets with Archie (Raphael Sbarge) and Fiona to discuss her progress. She assumes the mayor is there to warn her about keeping her distance from Henry, but really she’s there to bribe Emma. She will advise the hospital to release Emma if she leaves town and goes back to Boston. Of course, if Emma leaves for Boston that will do little to quell Henry’s belief in his storybook, which Fiona calls dangerous. She suggests that Emma burn his book to set an example for their son that these are nothing but pointless fairy tales that aren’t real. Emma worries this will crush Henry and Fiona says that’s the point, to crush his delusions. The Savior is not ready to hurt their son and Fiona promises she will stay locked up until she agrees.

Mirror, Mirror, On the Wall

Possibly to torture them more, Fiona made it so Regina and family can watch the goings on back home through her castle mirrors. They watch as Emma is tested by the evil woman and has no memory of them or the life that was stolen from her. Snow (Ginnifer Goodwin) realizes the final battle won’t be a fight between good and evil, it will be a battle for Emma’s faith. Thankfully, Zelena (Rebecca Mader) saunters in with the Mad Hatters hat and a plan to get back home. Apparently, Jefferson (Sebastian Stan) had many of these portal jumping top hats and this specific one Zelena used to escape from Oz. Unfortunately, the hat doesn’t transport them home but to room that acts as a doorway to all the realms. From Arendale to Agrabah, every door opens to a new world that’s in danger of disappearing and Oz seems to have been its first victim. Thanks to Emma and her belief problem, they are all doomed with a front row seat to their own demise. Regina realizes that’s the why Fiona wants Emma to destroy the book, without it the Savior’s belief will be extinguished and The Realm of Story will cease to exist.

Back in town, Fiona pays Gideon (Giles Matthey) and Rumple (Robert Carlyle) a visit and the two seem to have no recollection of their shared family heritage. The Mayor has a watch that needs fixing and while father and son haven’t been able to get the town clock up and running, they promise to get her watch working in no time. The scheming fairy hands Gideon a batch of freshly baked cookies and Rumple thanks her for mothering him now that his wife is gone. The mousy librarian left her family on her wedding anniversary and out of the goodness of her blackened and shriveled heart, Fiona is looking after “her boys.”

the darkness wreaks havoc on the realms

With every second that goes in which Emma doesn’t believe, the darkness eats away at the worlds beyond the doors. Inside the magic hat room, survivors trickle in from other realms and things are starting to get desperate. Killian thinks he might have a plan and never one to trust the pirate, Regina blows him off saying she’ll be the one to save Henry and Emma. The two go their separate ways while Emma is flexing her muscles in a hospital workout. There aren’t enough chin ups in the world to prepare Emma for what she’s facing and Henry isn’t about to let her forget. The boy breaks into her room welcoming Emma to his “Operation Cuckoo’s Nest” and the two escape from the hospital.

Back in the hat room, Killian decides to take off on his own in search for a magic bean and a way back to Emma. David (Josh Dallas) follows the former pirate to a beanstalk and the two climb in search of a way home. The climb is treacherous, but Killian refuses to lose the love he fought for just because some fairy is salty.

While her loved ones are fighting to find a way back to her, Henry is fighting his way into Emma’s mind. He drags her to the rooftop where she exchanged vows with Killian and it sparks a memory, but it’s not enough to convince her that any of it is true. Emma’s determined to leave town and nothing Henry can say will change that.

The flaxen-haired Savior isn’t the only person in town struggling with their fate as Gideon lost all of his when it comes to his mother Belle (Emilie de Ravin). When Rumple tries talking with his son, Gideon doesn’t want to talk about it and thinks Belle left them when he was a baby. He goes on to say Fiona has been more a mother to him than Belle ever was. Rumple doesn’t seem too sure and thinks this is out of character for his true love. He pushes Gideon to have faith in his mother’s love but Gideon has no interest in that and storms out of the pawn shop.

The Story Book goes up in flames

Over in the Enchanted Forest, Zelena and Regina left the magic hat room for the Queen’s castle in search for ingredients to a potion that could stall the darkness. From the looks of things, someone’s been stealing her magic supplies and Regina’s ready to lose it. On cue like some demented Goldilocks whose been eating Regina’s porridge, The Evil Queen sashays her way in to say she’s been squatting in the castle with Robin (Sean Maguire) while hiding from irate villagers who don’t buy her reformed act. Of course, they have bigger problems on their hands than angry villagers and the Queen offers her help with plucking a certain fairy’s wings.

Back in the cursed town, Fiona becomes aware that Henry is “awake” and on to her schemes. The evil woman confronts the boy trying to steal Emma’s car keys from Archie’s office and the two have it out. Fiona calls Henry “useful” right before she pushes him down a flight of stairs. Maybe this will finally convince Emma that Henry’s book is dangerous and she’ll destroy it? As Henry’s being rushed in an ambulance, Rumple stops Fiona to ask her to investigate Belle’s disappearance. This is not what she wants to hear and before she heads to the hospital she hands Rumple photos that prove Belle left him to travel the world. She leaves him with the thought that Belle could never accept him for who he truly was and he’s better off without her.

The World Begins to Collapse

Stealing magic beans is never easy and this time is no different thanks to an angry fire breathing dragon that chases David and Killian down the stalk. Things are getting out of hand and in Storybrooke. Henry awakens with a broken arm and a worried Emma. Fiona chirps in the Savior’s ear that the book is the problem and it’s hurting their son. Henry pleads with Emma to just hold the book and she will see her truth, only it doesn’t work and pushes Emma into making a terrible decision.

The episode ends in a ripple effect across the realms. As Emma tosses the storybook into the fire, the worlds beyond the doors start to collapse and darkness like an ominous cloud rolls in. David and Hook go tumbling off their beanstalk as it goes crashing to the ground making it seem like nothing can stop the darkness from swallowing them all whole.