Once Upon a Time REACTION - S02E17 - Welcome to Storybrooke

Thank you once again for another fun reaction for Once Upon a Time! In all honesty... I have to admit this episode is probably my very least favorite episode of any episode throughout all seven seasons and it's not because it didn't have some really good things about it because it really did, but because I don't like Greg Mendell as a character at all. He's my least favorite character in all of Once Upon a Time, along with Tamara. So therefore, I have a hard time with feeling too bad for him. I feel bad for him from back when he was Owen because he was just a boy then, and because his story is tragic because he lost his father, who he has no idea what happened to him. It's very sad. I have just always felt that Greg was creepy and I can't connect to his character or feel bad with his present day storyline now that he's found his way back to Storybrooke. But with all that being said... I do love all of the parallels with Regina and Henry to what happened back in the first days of the dark curse. I loved seeing the early days of the curse as well. We have never seen the first days and it was interesting that two strangers aside from Emma and August were able to enter thanks to them having been camping in the woods within the borders of Storybrooke where the town was formed as Regina cast her curse. I also liked how in the end it shows Owen outside of the town line unable to see any signs of Storybrooke despite knowing it was there, while Regina watched on invisible to everyone because of the magic around Storybrooke making the town unknown to the outside world. Oh... and it's interesting that this is the first episode where we see only Storybrooke with no flashbacks to the Enchanted Forest. We still have two timelines, but only in Storybrooke. Very cool. :) And I loved seeing Graham appear again and loved his storyline. It was so interesting to see how Regina commanded him to arrest Kurt through his heart, which we never really got to see her control Graham back when Graham was still alive within the first seven episodes he was in. I loved how confused he was when he felt pain when Kurt knocked the lock box with his heart in it off the desk in trying to escape while Kurt kept trying to convince the sheriff that he was somehow being controlled. So interesting and I really felt badly for Graham. Kurt and Owen too of course. My favorite moment though was when Henry fought to convince Regina to spare Mary Margaret's life and to stop her plans to cast a love curse over him by killing his grandmother. And that Henry showed everyone that magic has the power to corrupt everyone, including the heroes too. Henry's moral compass is very strong and he is definitely the heart of the people living in Storybrooke. And everyone loves him. I liked how Regina revealed to Mary Margaret the darkness now in her heart during their moment together in the end. The darkness that was put there because of Mary Margaret's evil deed. It's very sad, but this is a big reveal that will continue to come up in future episodes. And it proves that heroes can become corrupted and become villains, just as villains can be redeemed and become heroes. And lastly... I did enjoy the scenes between Regina and Gold, while Gold protects Mary Margaret from Regina's wrath, even if he was doing it out of obligation. As for his line about the casualties of war... while Henry is his grandson and he is now related to the Charming family, Gold also still sees Henry as a threat to him upon the revelation of the prophecy revealed back in the episode, Manhattan. That Henry will be his undoing. So a part of him wishes to see Henry die as well in order to assure that he will live. Overall... a solid episode, but not really great. I still really liked it. It's just not one of my favorites. There isn't a single episode of Once Upon a Time that I do hate. What can I say? This show is fantastic, flaws and all!!! Thank you again!! Until the next episode...

Heidi Elizabeth Marcum