Once Upon a Time Recap: “Queen of Hearts”

by Tracy Ladd:

Once Upon a Time Recap: “ Queen of Hearts”
Original Air Date (ABC): Sunday December 2, 2012
Season 2 Episode 10

After dealing with a few lack-luster episodes, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this latest episode.  I was really hoping for something great considering this one served as the “winter finale”….which I really hate the fact that the networks feel the need to have “winter finales”, but that’s a discussion for another time.  Anyway, since the show is on hiatus until January, they needed to do something…to advance the story and bring a little bit of closure to the front nine.

This week had pretty much all of it: action, adventure, betrayal, surprising magic and lots of Hook.  A banner episode if you ask me.  Hook’s grown on me quite a bit and even though he’s sort of a son-of-a-bitch, you can’t help but like and root for him.  He’s kind of like Sark on Alias.  I’m happy that they’ve kept him around.  I’ve also got the feeling that he’ll be part of the show for a while longer at least.

Fairytale Land (past)

Things start out in past FTL, with Hook breaking into the cell where Regina is holding Belle.  He tells her that he’s rescuing her because he heard she knows how to kill Rumpelstiltskin.  She tells him that Rumps isn’t evil and to let her talk to him, but Hook isn’t buying it.  She then tells him that she doesn’t know any way to kill him.  Plans thwarted, Hook knocks Belle out instead of helping her escape.  Just as he’s about to kill Belle with his hook, Regina enters, sporting a hairdo that’s worthy of an 80′s music video and a skin-tight bedazzled dress, and swipes his hook right off his arm.  How degrading that must be.  She tells him that Belle is a pawn and is not to be harmed.  Instead of dispatching Hook, she offers him a deal.

Over a cup of wine, Regina tells Hook about the impending curse and how there is one person she doesn’t want to follow her into the new world….her mother.  She tells Hook that in exchange for taking Cora’s heart, she’ll make sure he  can get his revenge on Rumps.  Like he has any choice but to agree.  Since Regina banished her mother, she uses Jefferson’s hat to open the portal to Wonderland…which is where mummy has taken up residence.  With an enchanted hook that will allow him to take only one heart (which is how he got Aurora’s last week) and a mission, Hook leaps into the portal.

Next we see is Hook being taken before the Queen of Hearts who is…you guessed it…Cora.  Nice little spin there.  Once Hook finds out she is Cora, he tries to take her heart, but alas…she’s too smart for that.  Instead of killing him then and there, she cuts a deal with him so he’ll take her back to FTL.  He’s wheeling and dealing all over the place.  He agrees and returns with her playing possum, and tells Regina he was successful.  Regina has a nice little memorial service for her saying all sorts of sweet, but sinister, things and leaves to cast the curse.  Once Regina is gone, Hook enters and helps Cora out of her tomb.  The two travel to the far reaches of the realm, where Cora casts a spell bubble that protects them from the curse cloud.  This would be why that region wasn’t affected and Mulan, Aurora etc. all survived.

Fairytale Land (present)

In present-day FTL, Emma, Mary Margaret, Mulan and Aurora search for the squid ink that is supposed to be in Rump’s old cell.  Mulan finds the empty bottle, and MM finds a piece of parchment with Emma’s name written on it over and over and over again.  It kind of freaks Emma out a bit and rightfully so.   Frustrated, Aurora throws the empty ink jar and the gates come down, locking them inside.  Cora and Hook are there, and Cora takes the compass from Emma and thanks Aurora for her help, saying they couldn’t have done it without her.  Shocked, they realize that Cora has Aurora’s heart.  What a crappy thing to find out right?  Hook dangles the petrified magical bean in front of Emma, but says he’s done with her.  Cora and Hook take their leave, leaving the women locked in the cell.

After Emma has a small pity party, Mary Margaret, ever the optimist, tells Emma that good always wins and has the bright idea that the ink they’re looking for is what was used to write Emma’s name.  Mary Margaret uses a trick she saw Cora use and the ink leaves the page, and travels through the gate, creating a hole so they can get out.  Mary Margaret and Emma are on a mission to get the compass back from Cora, but Aurora says to tie her up because she doesn’t want to betray them again.  Mulan does the deed and leaves with Mary Margaret and Emma to Lake Nostos to get the compass.

Cora and Hook arrive at the dried up lake and Cora does her business bringing water to the surface.  Hook pours the ash from the wardrobe into the water and a portal opens.  Just as they’re about to jump, Emma, Mary Margaret and Mulan show up and try to put the smack down on them.  Emma faces off against Hook when the bag containing Aurora’s heart almost goes into the portal.  Hook, being a man of quick reflexes, catches it and quips that he doesn’t like a woman to lose her heart unless it’s over him.  The two tussle a little more, but Emma gets the upper hand and knocks him out with the compass.  Mulan gets knocked out of the picture and Mary Margaret is about to get her heart ripped out by Cora…until Emma steps in the line of fire.  Cora’s hand goes into Emma’s chest, but Cora is unable to pull out her heart.  Cora tells her that love equals weakness, but Emma tells her no, it’s strength.  She also does that thing Emma does….where her facial expression goes from a look of scared apprehension, to determined fury.  Then, for lack of a better term, an energy wave shoots off of Emma, sending Cora to the wind.  Not sure what to make of it, Emma and Mary Margaret decide to discuss it at a later time and the two jump into the portal.

Later on, Cora and Hook stand beside the now defunct portal contemplating their next movie.  Hook holds up the petrified bean, but Cora questions on how it will work since it’s petrified.  Hook reminds her that the waters of the lake have regenerative properties.

Meanwhile, Mulan takes Aurora’s heart back to her and puts it back in her chest.  Aurora then tells her what Cora said about souls stolen by wraiths.  Knowing that there is a chance to get Phillip back, the women start their next mission.

Storybrooke

In Storybrooke, Regina still holds vigil over a sleeping David.  She tells Gold that there is no change and David needs true love’s kiss.  Always the pessimist, Gold tells Regina that they need to prepare for Cora’s arrival by destroying the portal.  Regina doesn’t want to in case it’s Emma and Mary Margaret who come through the portal first.  Gold asks her why that’s bad considering if they can’t get back, that only leaves her in Henry’s life.  She tells him that she’s trying to be a better person, a fact that he just blows off.  Gold throws Cora in Regina’s face and convinces Regina it’s the only way.

While Henry reads to David from the book, Regina tells him that she and Gold have to go prepare for Mary Margaret and Emma’s arrival.  Henry’s happy that she’s trying to be good, and you can see how lying to him is tearing her apart.  She goes with Gold to the mines and takes all the magic from the diamonds that Leroy and the gang found.  They then head to the well, and cast the spell so that nothing can come through.  Anything that tries will be killed.

Leroy, Ruby and the rest of the dwarves find that the magic has been drained from the mines and they rush to Gold’s shop for answers.  They tell Henry what happened and he knows just where to find Gold and Regina.  Henry and Ruby show up at the well and he’s hurt that Regina lied to him.  She tells him that they can’t let Cora through because she’ll take away everything that Regina loves and that includes, most importantly, him.  He tells her that good always defeats evil and that if she wants him to have faith in her, then she needs to have faith in him as well.  Not wanting to lose the precarious connection to Henry that she has, Regina lifts the curse on the well herself.

A few stressful moments pass, then we see hands grasp the top of the well.  Emma and Mary Margaret pull themselves out and Henry rushes to Emma’s side.  He tells her that Regina helped them and Emma thanks Regina, then tells her that Cora is a piece of work.

Mary Margaret rushes back to Gold’s shop and kisses David, who wakes up from his slumber.  Emma confronts Gold about how she’s been his pawn all along but Gold tells her that he didn’t create her, only took advantage of what she was: a product of true love.  She tells him about how Cora couldn’t take her heart and that something happened but she doesn’t know what it was.  He tells her it was magic, and that’s not his doing.

Henry takes a minute to hug and thank Regina, while everyone else is reunited.  Ruby suggests dinner at Granny’s and everyone agrees.  Emma calls to Henry, who leaves Regina to go with them.  Regina stands alone looking quite sad and Gold congratulates her for reuniting mother and son…and says that maybe someday they’ll extend her an invite too.  Ouch.

Emma and the gang leave Gold’s shop and walk down the street to Granny’s.  As the camera pans up above the town and over to the water, we see a ship on the horizon.  On the deck of the ship, stand Cora and Hook.  Looks like the bean worked after all.

So that’s it until January 6th.  I’m thinking that all hell is about to break loose in Storybrooke.  I’m glad that Emma and Mary Margaret are finally back though.  I have to give a serious slow-clap to Lana Parilla for her performance in this episode.  She was both evil and good, but also conniving and vulnerable as well.  There was a myriad of emotions with Regina this week and Lana Parilla absolutely crushed it.  Well done you!  Something tells me we’ll get more performances like this out of her because when it comes to dealing with Cora, she’s going to have to be that bitchy queen we all know and love, but also the Regina that’s trying to make amends.  Because lord knows…she’s going to need all the help she can get.

DarkMedia contributor Tracy Ladd has been writing about film since her days on the her high school newspaper. Even though she took a decade or two off to explore other things, she’s back to doing what she loves. She also bakes, can knit a pretty nifty scarf and makes lightsaber sounds with her knitting needles. Or chopsticks. Especially with the lightsaber chopsticks.

You can find her on Facebook, on Twitter @ReelGoddess, and on her website The Reel Goddess.