Once Upon A Time 3x10 “The New Neverland” FULL REACTION

The New Neverland- Thank you for another reaction! I'm happy you enjoyed this episode, especially the present storyline when our heroes finally return to Storybrooke. I really love all of the reunions too. I really like this episode a lot like always, although I will admit that its backstory... while I really enjoy it overall in spite of its flaws, it is among one of the weakest storylines set within the past. However, the message behind the storylines that connect the backstory to its main present storyline is what's most important. David and Mary Margaret are trying to convince Emma that she has to see the happiness and to enjoy the good moments in between all the bad, just like Charming did for Snow in the past. Otherwise... the pain and misery will come to consume them. And I really love the overall message. It's a message we all should take away from this episode so we can learn from it too. Now... my favorite moment in this episode is the moment Emma releases Pan across the town line and sees Henry in Pan's body trying to convince her and the others that he's really Henry. It is quite brilliant to see Robbie Kay play Henry, and Jared Gilmore play Pan. I really love this scene quite a bit. Especially when Emma asks Henry to prove to her he really is her son by sharing with her the moment they first really connected... offering us a nod back to the Pilot episode when Henry shares with Emma why he understands her reasons for giving him up. Because she wanted to give him his best chance, just as Snow and Charming did for her too. So beautiful, and what a tender moment. I also really love the moment we see Hook watching Emma from the bar in Granny's diner, until Neal unfortunately interrupts him. But I really quite like this moment because Hook continues to show he is a man of honor, when he assures Neal that he would back off to give him a chance with Emma as her former lover and Henry's father. And he really is sincere about giving Neal, who he does care for because he still sees him as Baelfire and Milah's son like he had grown to care for all those years ago. However, I also love how Hook stays in character when he states that he also plans on sticking around for the long haul, since a part of him believes that there may be a chance Neal will leave her again when things become too difficult, or that Emma won't be able to get past the pain Neal caused her early on when they were together. When Neal allowed Emma to go to prison for the stolen watches, in spite of his reasons being to try to help steer her on the right path again. And Emma would have every right to feel as she does, and to reject him if she were to. Neal's betrayal hurt her very deeply. And he's a big reason why Emma struggles very deeply with trusting anyone not to hurt her. Something like that wouldn't be easy for anyone to get over. Also... I love how Hook smugly teases Neal as he states, "You're right... I am devilishly handsome." Absolutely brilliant and this is Hook all the way! :) And it's because of this moment that I dislike Neal a little bit more too. Because as soon as Hook reminds him that Emma might not be able to forgive him enough to take him back and to love him again, Neal walks over to Emma and attempts to ask her out. As if out of pettiness to make sure Hook doesn't ever get the chance to win her heart in spite of his promise to leave her alone until she makes her decision. Now... I love the moment between Hook and Tinker Bell as well, when he attempts to flirt with her and offers her a drink, until Tink immediately accuses him of doing so only so he can try to get Emma out of his mind. I am so happy that Tink sees right through him and calls him out on it. And yet I also love that she understands his reasons for trying to get her to distract him is because he really wants to be with Emma and knows that he can't be. And this is the only reason why Hook attempts to flirt with Tink. It's really sad quite honestly, but perfect for his character and I love it. As for Blue being killed by Pan's shadow... I was sad when this happens. So many fans of this show dislike Blue because they think she's shady. I see her as tough and she definitely makes mistakes like she did with Tinker Bell in this season's episode... Quite a Common Fairy, and to Nova in season one's episode... Dreamy. But I can understand why she feels she has to be so tough on them. I like Blue. So seeing her dying is sad for me, almost like how I felt when we believed Archie to be killed back in season two's episode... The Cricket Game. Not quite as much, because I absolutely love Archie, but Blue's death is sad. And it was shocking because I didn't see it coming at all. As for the scenes between Pan in Henry's body and Regina... I really feel bad for Regina because she wanted so badly to believe that Henry wanted to be with her so much. However, I am also quite annoyed by Regina's attitude towards Emma, when Emma tries multiple times to warn her that something is wrong with him. I understand that Regina is still struggling with becoming accepted by everyone and with coming to care about everyone. We even saw this in the beginning when all the heroes return home from Neverland at last and Mary Margaret gives Regina credit for all her help in getting them home, which I love. But at least Regina comes to her senses and comes to understand she was wrong after she was wakes up later on by Gold after being rendered unconscious by Pan down in her vault. Next... I love, love, love the father/daughter moment between Emma and David when he encourages her to try to enjoy the good moments between their fights against the villains, as is this episode major theme. And then this continues later on between Emma, David, and Mary Margaret as they continue to give her hope that she can have happy moments. It's so sad that Emma feels that being the Savior means she can't have the happy moments in life. And this brings me to the past storyline... I really enjoy the parallels between the stories with Emma struggling with finding the happy moments, and then seeing how Snow struggled with finding peace and happiness in between the Evil Queen's constant attacks. Like I said above, the overall backstory is a little weak. However, I still really enjoy this backstory as well. I continue to love all of the backstories we get for every character, including the main ones. While at times, the backstories do seem to be repetitive or tedious... I still really enjoy them. I love seeing all that happens to each of our characters within the past. I enjoy the overall storyline with Snow seeking to kill Medusa in hope of using her magic to turn Regina into stone. Unfortunately, her obsession with trying to defeat Regina nearly costs her David's life when he gets turned to stone saving her life. I love the brief moment between Snow and Regina when Regina taunts her through the reflection in the shield. But mostly, I love David's full support for his wife and his patience and understanding. And I love the moment David surprises Snow outside of Snow's parents' Summer Palace just after they arrive, after he reveals that he knew Snow was up to something. David knows her all too well. So funny. I love it! :) And lastly... I really love the moment when Belle guides Ariel to Prince Eric who is cutting fish in the harbor, and seeing them finally reunite again. It is such a beautiful and sweet moment. As are all the rest of the reunions shown too, like I mentioned above. Overall... I was so excited when I first watched this episode upon finding out Pan was preparing to cast a new dark curse. It's going to be crazy in the next episode as the heroes struggle to try to stop Pan's plans in wanting to create the New Neverland. Yikes! Thankfully, Emma senses there is something wrong with Henry right away. A really great episode. I love seeing the beginning where everyone is happily reunited in Storybrooke upon the heroes return from Neverland. Oh... and I also absolutely love when David comes to talk to Emma about giving Neal a chance, but then she asks her father if he's pushing her towards him in order to get her mind off of Hook. So funny. I especially love David's little tease towards Emma about her wondering if he has a thing for Hook. Adorable father/daughter moment. Thank you again! On to the next episode... Just you wait! The next two episodes are a few more of my favorite episodes within this season. :) Heidi

Heidi Elizabeth Marcum