The women in the Enchanted Forest meet with the men in Storybrooke through dreams to discuss how to be reunited. Cora and Hook team up to advance their plan of returning to Storybrooke. Here is a recap and review of “Into the Deep.”
Recap:
Hook climbs down the beanstalk and is welcomed by Cora, who asks for the compass he does not have and he pledges his allegiance to her. Back at her lair, Cora uses magical hearts to raise the dead.
When Aurora wakes, Mary Margaret suggests that Henry talk to Mr. Gold because he will know a way to help. Henry tells David and Regina that the women are alive. As Belle and Mr. Gold dine at Granny’s, Regina persuades him to help with the situation, citing that he now has someone to lose if Cora were to enter Storybrooke.
At a planned meeting time, Henry falls back asleep with Gold narrating to him about special ink in his old jail cell that is capable of capturing the Dark One. Aurora and Henry cannot hear one another well enough and she is awakened prior to learning the information. The women are attacked by Cora’s zombies, but Mary Margaret knocks several down, not before Aurora is taken. Cora believes that Mary Margaret and Emma will trade the compass for Aurora, but Aurora has less faith.
Since she has been there before, Mary Margaret volunteers to go into the netherworld and the women search for poppies to aid with her sleep. Because Henry was badly burned, David decides to take his place and Regina brews a sleeping potion for him. While asleep, David initially finds himself in a room full of mirrors, then uses Henry’s necklace to find the fiery room. In there, David tells Mary Margaret about the ink, and when he goes to kiss her so his sleeping curse will be broken, they cannot make physical contact.
Mary Margaret wakes up to learn that Mulan has run off with the compass. When Mary Margaret and Emma catch up with Mulan, Aurora appears. Cora learns that Hook released Aurora to benefit them. Cora can now control what Aurora says through a glowing heart and can hear what Aurora hears.
Review:
This episode provided some progress on the women returning to Storybrooke in an action-packed and enthralling hour. “Into the Deep” was just the episode that was needed at this point in the season and leads perfectly into what appears to be an intense midseason finale next week.
Although the two groups of characters are still separated, the fact that this episode focused exclusively on this struggle provides hope for a reunion sometime in the near future. However, the possibility of defeating Cora took a hit. With Cora having a spy in Aurora, Mary Margaret and Emma’s plans can be easily thwarted, which may or may not discount any progress that was made. Regardless, moving past the last several filler episodes was much appreciated and even if Cora winds up in Storybrooke, at least the others will be together and have a mission to keep the show’s focus.
This was one of the few episodes that did not include flashbacks, real world or tales of previous fairy tale events, and it was not obvious. It was barely noticeable amongst the drama of the dreams and the question of where Hook’s loyalty truly lies. The presence of zombies was an initial point of concern as a viewer, but the way they were presented more as pawns and not mindless savages made them fit into the story in a natural and believable way.
Mary Margaret showed off more of her fighting skills with a bow and arrow and was practically the savior in this episode. Despite Mulan’s warrior status, she was barely active and complained most of the time. Mulan seems to have lost some of her leadership ability and strength since she was first introduced. In contrast, Mary Margaret has been increasingly displaying talents and drive that prove she is more than the classic Snow White without completely losing Snow’s vulnerability.
The mother-daughter bonding scene between Mary Margaret and Emma did not seem to compliment the rest of the episode, yet it was one of the most wonderful scenes. To see Mary Margaret blame herself for Regina enacting the curse fits her character so well and is surprisingly a confession we have not seen earlier, although I suppose it is difficult to mope about cursing an entire land when you just lost your world again. It came as a slight surprise that Mary Margaret was not more upset about this, and rather mentioned it and shoved it aside like it was not a bother at all. But, this provides an example for Emma to follow in terms of blaming herself, and shows just how Mary Margaret cares for her as her friend and mother to reveal this personal information.
Finally Regina received decent screen time this season and was able to assist with a main storyline in this episode. Her interaction with Henry while she was creating the magic potion showcased that mother-son bond in a way that brought out the best in both Regina and Henry. Regina sounded sincere when she spoke about abandoning magic forever after this and Henry displayed his faith in the good of all people, even the Evil Queen.
When Henry was talking about wanting to become a hero himself instead of simply reading about them, it reminded viewers of his strength throughout season one and his desire to actively be involved in what happens. Hopefully, Henry will be able to reassume his pep-talk role and place as a motivating force because he captures the essence of the show extraordinarily well.
One thing that seems odd about this episode is that Mr. Gold should have known that David and Mary Margaret would not have been able to touch one another while in the netherworld. Since he knew much about the curse as seen in the last episode, this brings suspicion onto Gold and whether he is more interested in harming Regina than protecting Belle.
Was putting David back into a deep sleep really necessary? For being Prince Charming, he sure gets cut down a lot and troubles often befall him to weaken his character. Stories involving David have a tendency to up the stakes, and that can be seen here, but this story is nothing new considering he was in a coma for a portion of season one. I look forward to seeing how they make this one different and if Snow and Charming will ever find happiness together.