tvdinner&amovie

Previously on Once Upon a Time: Lady of the Lake.

This week on Once Upon a Time, we are introduced to the delectable Captain Hook and filled in some of the gaps of Rumpelstiltskin’s backstory. In the Enchanted Forest, Rumpelstiltskin loses his wife and gains an enemy. In Storybrooke, Belle starts to doubt Mr. Gold’s willingness to give up his dark ways. When she goes missing, Mr. Gold and Charming must join forces to save her before it is too late.

In the pre-curse Enchanted Forest, we start with a pre-Dark One Rumpelstiltskin, who is too cowardly to rescue his wife Milah (played by Rachel Shelley of The L Word) via a duel with Captain Killian Jones (played by Colin O’Donoghue of The Tudors). Next, we catch up with a Rumpelstiltskin that has gained the powers of the Dark One but lost Baelfire. He is at a tavern attempting to trade with an unnamed man for a magic bean that grants the ability to cross realms when Jones walks in. Rumpelstiltskin makes a point of running into the Captain, who calls him a “crocodile” before realizing who he is and informing him of his wife’s death. Rumpelstiltskin challenges him to duel, defeats him easily, and is about to rip out his heart when Milah appears. She makes a deal – the magic bean in exchange for their lives. Only when Rumpelstiltskin arrives on the ship to collect, he flies into a rage at Milah’s abandonment of Baelfire, and rips out her heart, killing her. When Jones tries to retaliate, Rumpelstiltskin cuts off his hand (which was holding the bean) before disappearing – only to learn later that and he was tricked and the bean is still in the Captain’s possession. Later, Captain Jones replaces his lost hand with a hook, and makes a deal with the man from the tavern, William Smee: the magic bean for his life, and passage to a land where they never grow old. Captain Hook uses the bean to create a portal to Neverland.

In Storybrooke, Belle doubts Mr. Gold’s willingness to give up his dark side, especially when she catches him practicing magic in the basement. When she confronts him, his evasiveness is the final straw and she leaves the next morning. At Granny’s, Belle befriends Red, who suggests she try for a job at the library. Belle goes to peak in the library windows, only to be snatched by William (Smee). He brings Belle to her father, Moe Finch, who tries to convince her to leave Mr. Gold. When she refuses, he insists that she will forget him. A worried Mr. Gold goes to acting sheriff Charming for help finding Belle. Along the way, Mr. Gold asks for relationship advice and Charming suggests “honesty of the heart” is the way to go. They try Granny’s, and Red eventually agrees to use her newly returned sense of smell to lead them to the Game of Thorns (HA! Still funny) flower shop and Moe Finch. They learn Moe intends to send Belle across the Storybrooke barrier – thus making her forget everything – via the mines.

Mr. Gold uses magic to save her in the nick of time, but Belle wants nothing to do with him or her father, insisting she make her own way. The next day, she’s gifted the key to the library. Mr. Gold meets her inside, saying the caretaker’s apartment is hers if she wants it. He then reveals everything: that he’s always been a coward and magic is the only thing that makes him feel powerful; that he created the curse to reach this realm and Baelfire, and that he brought back magic because it’s his “crutch,” but now he can’t reach his son (…and tears for me again). Belle is moved, and invites him to lunch. Later, Mr. Gold asks William about the Captain, but he never appeared in Storybrooke.

In the Enchanted Forest, Captain Hook appears to have his eye on Haven. Cora appears with her dust from the wardrobe, suggesting they may be able to cross over. Hook is pleased with the news, since he has a “crocodile to skin.”

Next week, Regina tries to bring Daniel back to life…and Whale is involved in some way. Can’t wait!

Thoughts/Theories
• OH MY GOD, YOU GUYS! NEXT WEEK! IS WHALE’S IDENTITY REVEALED?
• So, I’m still a little unclear on this – when the curse was “broken,” was it Mr. Gold’s use of magic that caused the memory erasing barrier to appear? Or would that have happened either way? What do you all think?

Nicole N. decided to justify the countless hours she spends watching television by writing about it here. She is currently indulging her addiction to medical dramas by rewatching all of Grey’s Anatomy. Follow her on twitter @nicolemnelson and check our her tumblr.