Episode 19: A Song of the Heart

Esmeralda, Quasimodo & François, The Magical Adventures of Quasimodo, Episode 19, A Song of the Heart
Esmeralda, Quasimodo, François & the apparition

The episode starts out with Quasimodo lamenting that he is not a master Bell-ringer as he can’t master a piece for the King’s coronation anniversary. Meanwhile down in Frollo’s lair he learns from Clopin of all characters that there is a sorcerer in the hills that can make things appear. Coincidentally, Esmeralda and François are heading up to the same hills to get something for their grandmother and they invite Quasimodo since he is the main character.

After arriving in the hills they hear pretty music and see an apparition of a lovely lady. The music is played on a carillon, which I had to look up because I didn’t know what it was…. so kudos to the show for that one but this invention is about 170 years too early but what even is time? Doesn’t matter.

So the gang of pals meet the very nice old hermit named Guy. Frollo starts causing trouble so the gang disguise the Guy’s hut with grass and then Frollo uses wild pigs to find them. While that is going on we learn of Guy’s backstory, who the apparition was and Quasimodo’s connection to Guy.

Frollo eventually gets the drop on them and forces Guy to play the his music (which is in a cave.) Frollo’s plan is seeing how the philosopher stone was made by his old employer Vivianne de Bernassac a.k.a Quasimodo’s mother. However Frollo insteads sees his own unhappy childhood and peaces out leaving Quasimodo to empathize with Frollo.

In the end Quasimodo invites Guy to play the bells for the King’s coronation anniversary but Guy says that he will help Quasimodo to master the musical piece.

Most of this episode is Frollo causing mischief because he can’t wait for the gang of pals to learn. This episode is just adds to Quasimodo’s backstory. The inclusion of Clopin was weird. Maybe he will be in more episodes going forward but there are only seven episodes left or maybe it was just a name drop nothing more. Positive parts: Djali, there was a lot of Djali this episode as well as wild boars who were cute and scary and a tortoise who didn’t like François’ poetry so very relatable.

François & a Tortoise, The Magical Adventures of Quasimodo, Episode 19, A Song of the Heart
François & the Tortoise

Episode 20: The Music Master

Azarof, Frollo & Clopin The Magical Adventures of Quasimodo, Episode 20 The Music Master
Azarof sings to Frollo & Clopin

Yes, I spoke too soon about our old friend Clopin because he’s back! Clopin discovers he is in possession of “The Flute of Marrakesh” which gives the owner control over people. So Clopin sells it to Frollo after making Azarof sing “La Marseillaise” 310 years too early but again what is even time? It doesn’t matter.

So Frollo kicks his plan in to gear. His plan is get the King to abdicate and sign the throne other to him under the command of the flute. To do this he uses the power of the flute on François, the grandma to gain entry into into the reception for the King of Spain. which the Gang of Pals are all performing. Quasimodo and Esmeralda are doing a double trapeze act and François is doing something akin to poetry. Also part of the plan is Clopin, the Flute and “very convincing” bellydancing disguise.

However Esmeralda grows suspicious of François as he acts self-assured, not clumsy and turning down reciting his poetry to a pretty lady who did seem rather into him. A lot of the humor in this show is someone fall down.

They soon learn about the flute and Dennis finds the cure, which is playing the melody backwards. Naturally everything works out with Frollo’s plans being foiled again and the King of Spain loving the magic show.

This episode is very similar to the first episode mainly because it involved the action being at a party. It was a rather silly episode a little boring but silly. All in all very passable, circuitous but passable. I do like that these two episodes have a musical theme. It was fun. Not sure it was intentional but I appreciate it.

Is this Henry Mills?

Jared S. Gilmore as Henry & Lana Parrilla as Regina Once upon a Time Season 7 Episode 20 is this Henry Mills? picture image

Jared S. Gilmore as Henry & Lana Parrilla as Regina

In the end it didn’t matter who the other coven members were because they are trees or what Facilier’s plan was because Wish Dark One Rumple killed him. All your Fan theories sucked! They were all Plot-fodder.

Anyway on with the episode. Apparently everything is in a time paradox and the Hyperion Height stuff is running along with Henry’s senior year and Adult Henry talkes to his young self meaning that the curse needed to happen so Henry could a realm hopping or Lucy wouldn’t be born. Now timeline are even more meaningless then they were before because no one could figure it before and now definitely no can make sense of it so don’t try.

It should be noted that the Storybrooke people wouldn’t have known that they were missing anyway even with the time-travel plot since as far the Storybrooke people knew Regina, Henry and the others were in another Realm anyway. Or was there communication in the intervening years and they never spoke about it? Doesn’t really matter because the scene with the two Henrys was good. Just wish they explained why Henry got to keep his name and not had another pseudonym.       

Henry wakes up when after talking to Regina he calls himself in that time-paradox thing. So he wakes up and then he breaks the curse when he kisses Regina after she got knocked-out during a witch fight with Gothel.  So it WAS a reversal of the parent-child true love kiss as it’s the child kissing the parent. Good! That was a nice reversal, it did sort of happened on season 6 with Henry and Emma after the Gideon fight but that wasn’t a Dark Curse breaking.

Then Tilly/Alice very quickly turns Gothel into a tree ruining her menace. In the end it was all very simple and easy. Now they JUST have to deal with Wish-Rumple and not Facilier. But to be fair Once Upon a Time has done this type of  conclusion before, where the menace is built up and resolved very quickly or sometime not at all. Still want to know how Mulan and Aurora saved Philip’s soul from the wraith! But that is season 2 baggage.    

The acting was the highlight of this episode but the plot having so much build-up for little pay-off and with wish-Rumple no payoff, the episode felt very flat for what it was trying to accomplish.

Episode  19: Sympathy for De Vil

Victoria Smurfit as Cruella De Vil Once Upon a Time Season04 Episode 19 Sympathy for De Vil Review picture image

Victoria Smurfit as Cruella De Vil

So it was the dragon egg that helped Ursula and Cruella stay young? Great! Good thing we got a half-hearted explanation. It was Dragon Placenta, it does wonders for the skin!

Mostly I really enjoyed this episode. Cruella’s backstory was great twisted play on both the trapped princess in her tower type story and  101 Dalmatians. It’s also nice to see a character that doesn’t have any shades of grey, she just psychotic and much crazier than she Disney counterpart.  Also love that she hair is the result of the ink. But something is nagging me, how did she get to the Enchanted Forest? Remember when Realm hopping was hard?

Her “happy ending” is getting her killing ability back as the author, Isaac, took it way so she CAN’T take a life. Just a nitpicky question and honestly this the SAME Question I had for Return of Jafar, can she set-up someone’s death? Like had she tied Henry to a railroad track? I mean she wasn’t she driving during the mean girl test with Regina back in episode 15? So either she can arrange death or they were never in any danger on the railroad track. GAH, it’s confusing

I guess another slight nitpick I have is that Cruella’s story realm, as they are called, is the 20’s but 101 Dalmatians is set in the 60’s. That means 101 Dalmatians in the context of the show is set in the 20’s  because time doesn’t move. Or is the show implying  Cruella was was in her like in her  50s or 60s during the events of 101 Dalmatians, assuming she was 18 in 1920 making  her born in 1902 but it’s very clearly said in 101 Dalmatians that Cruella was Anita’s school friend making them roughly the same age. Easier to assume 101 Dalmatians was just set in 20’s than to do mental hoops. One other question does Cruella’s story realm have other stories set in the 20’s? Like The Great Gatsby? I mean Isaac was reading  that book in this episode so one can assume that that story is in the realm.   

In Storybrooke, Emma is still whining about her parents lying to her. Basically, Emma holds them to a higher standard, so them lying to her is a super big deal to her. Whereas  former villains, like Regina and Hook, Emma okay with because they were honest. So having remorse over something that Snow and David did with wrapped good intentions and knowing what they did was wrong  is less redeemable than two people who did bad things for the hell of it and out of revengence. Emma needs to grow up she met her parents at the age of 28 and kept them at arm’s length for a awhile, not sure how time passes in Storybrooke. Anyway Emma’s constant complaining about her parents is not a good character arc.

Speaking of Emma, she kills Cruella setting her on the path of darkness like Rumple wants. Though she was acting in defense of her child, so it’s leap to think that this puts her on a “dark” path. But speaking of the Dark one,  Rumple’s motivations for all the fate rewriting is that because of all his dark deeds his heart will be incapable of love. So his “evil” motivation does come from a place of love which is typical of his character but it seems a little too late for him to get back to being interesting.  All Rumple had to do was nothing back when he saw the sorcerer’s hat but he couldn’t resist power so he not sympathetic  because it was the second time his chose power over his family so now that his heart is becoming devoid of love isn’t enough.

I did like this episode, especially the past potion with Cruella. I do wonder how long she will stay dead?  Though Graham and Neal of still dead.

       

 

Episode 20: Lily  

Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan and Agnes Bruckner as Lily Once Upon a Time Season 4 Episode 20 Lily Review picture Image

Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan & Agnes Bruckner as Lily

So Emma is Anakin Skywalker and Rumple is the Emperor, he trying to get her to the dark side but gasp girl-pal Regina is a more successful Obi-Won. I do like Gal-pal Regina on their magical road time to save Robin and find Lily.

They do find Lily in Lowell Massachusetts. And hey, the show got the distance between Lowell and  Boston right.  So as you MIGHT have figured this episode is about Lily, Maleficent’s daughter and it’s a mixed bag. Emma is still whiney about her parents till she runs into Lily, who knowing everything about the Enchanted Forest people, wants revenge on the Charmings. Emma is about to kill Lily but Gal-pal Regina talks her out of it and Lily joins the road trip to NYC to save Robin.

The past section is about young Emma and Lily. Lily gets into trouble and gets Emma kicked out or new foster family’s house. After Emma pushes Lily away again, even though fate wants them to be together, the apprentice tells Lily everything. I have a minor major issue with is plot development. The apprentice could have sent her to Storybrooke and given her the entry scroll like Ingrid but instead he tells her the story and leaves her to fend for herself.  I did like the yoda line but I like Star Wars.    

It was mixed episode but the shock at the end was interesting, Zelena is pregnant. I do wonder how long Zelena could kept the Marian glamour going since the child would presumably looked nothing like Marian. She could be lying as Zelena does because she is a liar.