Once Upon a Time: One Little Tear (7x09)

Okay... I don't know. I didn’t hate this episode, but I’m losing my patience a wee bit.

Cons:

Maybe I just wasn't paying enough attention, but does anybody find these stories a little convoluted? Let’s talk through some of the stuff going on here. We get the real Rapunzel story this time, and it turns out that Victoria Belfrey/Lady Tremaine is Rapunzel, and her husband remarried while she was trapped in the tower, and then she later poisoned Ella’s mother to make her run away so she could have her family back. There were a few times where I had trouble reconciling what we already knew about Ella’s back story with what we were learning here. And then on top of that you’ve got the subplot with Rogers and Weaver which still seems to be going nowhere, although we finally have official confirmation that Rumple is awake.

And then there’s Victoria’s evil plan in Hyperion Heights, which honestly still doesn’t track with what we’ve seen in the past... to wake Anastasia, she needs to take away the belief of a true believer, which would be Lucy. But when Drizella cursed them all, didn’t she take away Henry’s belief? How does that fit in? Belfrey’s method is to tell Lucy the truth about fairy tales, but then convince her that it doesn’t matter, because Henry and Jacinda will never be together. She even has footage of Jacinda and Nick kissing, which apparently totally breaks Lucy’s heart. This is weird. You would think Lucy would be WAY more jazzed about learning that she’s not delusional. And wouldn’t she think Jacinda and Nick are just another obstacle to overcome? Why would this one thing break her belief? And then of course her tear is used by Victoria to wake Anastasia up, as Lucy falls unconscious. It’s all just a little convoluted.

Pros:

This is one of those episodes where individual pieces work well, even if the framework itself is a little weak. For example, the opening scene where Rapunzel is getting captured by Gothel, was great, especially the reveal when she yells her daughters’ names and we realize who she is.

Also, as much as Rumple’s situation lately has been a bit convoluted and annoying, I really liked the moment where he and Rogers are finally honest with each other (sort of). It’s just so funny to think of the history that Runple has with another version of this guy, and yet all Rumple is really looking for is a way to reunite with Belle. He’s been acting fishy, but at this point he’s willing to put all his cards on the table.

Then there’s the moment when Victoria calls him “Rumplestiltskin” and Rumple shoots back and calls her “Rapunzel.” This moment reminded me of when Regina and Rumple had it out back in Season One.

I liked Anastasia and young Ella and even Drizella in all of the flashback scenes. This episode did a good job of communicating very quickly the dynamics between all of these people. Anastasia is kind to everyone, Ella really is an innocent in all of this, while Drizella feels resentful of the woman who has shown back up in her life and disrupted her peace. She can’t even remember her mother from before her disappearance. And when Lord Tremaine saves Ella and not Anastasia from drowning, it’s all the more tragic because of the strain between all of them.

I think that’s all I’ve got for this one. I was a little annoyed at some aspects of this episode, and I definitely missed Henry and Regina. But I didn’t hate it or anything.

7/10