New Shows to Watch - Part 4: Once Upon A Time

And now, the new show this season that I recommend above all of the others I've written about for this feature, Once Upon A Time. To be perfectly honest, I originally had no intention of watching this program. In fact, when I first saw ads for it, I assumed that it was just some mini-series. I actually didn't even catch the first episode until a month or so into its run. One Sunday I just plowed through, like, 5 episodes and became an avid viewer. So what turned me around? Well, I read a pretty interesting article in Entertainment Weekly, and it made me realize that this is a pretty clever and interesting show that combines the two great mythologies: fairy tales and Lost. I'm going to continue my review after the page break, which contains spoilers up until the last new episode.

Continue reading "New Shows to Watch - Part 4: Once Upon A Time"....

Admittedly, my knowledge of fairy tales is pretty rudimentary. I know pretty much what Disney taught me about 25 years ago. But I actually think that works to my advantage. I know all of the characters and their basic story, but I'm not so completely invested that I get up in arms when the show decides to make its own interpretation of a certain tale. For example, according to Once Upon A Time (and, to my knowledge, not the actual fairy tales), Jiminy Cricket was once a human who took advantage of innocent people through various scams. And Cinderella didn't actually get her wish granted by her Fairy Godmother. Instead, Rumpelstiltskin hijacked the moment and made a deal with her. Hey, I actually appreciate that the show isn't restricting itself to the accepted interpretation of the stories. They're allowing themselves to mold the characters and the story to their liking.

And the characters are pretty damn easy to get into. My absolute favorite, at the moment, is Rumpelstiltskin. I LOVE how, in the fairy tales, he's this bonkers, daffy loon that bounces around and speaks with pep. Yet in the real world, he's so incredibly dry and understated. He walks with a limp, barely raises his voice, and dresses rather conservatively. And I love how they're being so vague about whether or not he remembers his past life, and knows about the curse. And if he does, what are his motives? He doesn't seem explicitly evil in the real world (although his actions with Cinderella were less than chivalrous). When the Sheriff was coming close to remembering his past, Rumpel didn't stop him. And when Prince Charming began remembering his fake memories, Rumpel almost seemed pained (although he did crack a slight smile). If any character from this show is Ben, it's Rumpelstiltskin. And the actor does a fabulous job with the dual role.

I've actually really enjoyed all of the characters. The Evil Queen/Mayor is easy to dislike. Snow White/Mary Margaret is easy to root for. The Sheriff is awesome (but more on him later). Prince Charming/David is surprisingly bad ass. Jiminy Cricket/Dr. Hopper is just kinda cool because I found it funny when Henry so nonchalantly told Emma, "That's Jiminy Cricket" in the first episode. Emma has the unenviable task of being the one character without a familiar backstory, but she does an admirable job as the center of the show.

Come to think of it, the overall story is just plain fun. It turns out these fairy tale characters are real, but there's a curse on them and they can't remember their past. They've been trapped in the real world for the past 28 years (obviously they haven't aged, so there has to be SOMETHING preventing them from maintaining actual memories. Besides, how else would they comprehend that Cinderella has been pregnant for nearly three decades?) And there are a lot of places they can take this mystery. For example, how did Henry become so knowledgeable? Who gave him the book? How did he become such a firm believer?

Plus, I enjoy the little hints the throw at you to fill you in on these people's fairy tale past. Little Red Riding Hood, fittingly named Ruby, has a decorative wolf hanging from her rear view mirror. Her Grandmother runs a bed & breakfast called "Granny's House." The Mirror on the Wall runs a tabloid newspaper called, you guessed it, The Mirror. Sleepy the dwarf falls asleep while on security duty. Hell, even Pongo (of 101 Dalmatians fame) showed up! It's just cool seeing a character and wondering, "Who is that supposed to be?"

Not to mention, the Lost-esque manner of storytelling -- using flashbacks to fill in the character's past or explain their motives -- works great with its own spin (instead of traditional flashbacks, we see their fairy tale lives).

One thing that does make me furious, though, is that they killed off the Sheriff. This guy was my absolute favorite (good guy) character! In my opinion, they could have stretched out the mystery of which fairy tale character he is for the entire season. It's not even something the show needed to hone in on....it could have just been a fun question for the viewers to ponder. He was also a surprisingly complex character. He clearly cared about Emma, yet was carrying on a scandalous affair with the evil mayor. But despite this sordid relationship, he still always seemed to do the right thing. There was a whoooooooooole lot of fuel left with the Sheriff, and I really think they screwed the pooch by revealing his identity and killing him off in the very same episode. Big mistake, in my opinion (then again, I'm biased because I thought he was cool).

Now, let me pose the question that I've asked for the past few series in this feature: Does Once Upon A Time lend itself to a long shelf life? Honestly, I think it fairs a better chance than some of the other shows. If Lost taught me anything, it's that a show built on mysteries and secrets can shift and evolve rather easily. I highly doubt any of the characters will remember their fairy tale past by the end of season one. If anything, I imagine that Emma will become a firm believer. Beyond that, maybe a character or two, but certainly not everyone. And once all of the characters do believe, the story can move forward towards reclaiming their former lives. But in order to truly succeed, I think the show needs to have an end date in mind -- like with Lost -- to avoid any unnecessary stalling.

But, yeah, highest recommendation.