Once Upon a Time: Is This Henry Mills? (7x20)

You know, I've never been super complimentary of Jared S. Gilmore's performance as Henry, but seeing him in this episode brought me a real sense of joy. It felt right that we'd get to see younger Henry again at this point.

Cons:

I'm not feeling the whole Facilier thing. It's not like I dislike the actor, but the wasted potential seems weird. There are only two more weeks to go before we're saying goodbye to this show forever, and it looks like Rumple is going to be the final villain. I don't have a problem with that, as it brings things full circle, but what bothers me just a bit is that I never understood what Facilier was up to. I never got a full grasp on his goals or his motivation. And all that romance with Regina? Is that just out the window now? Is Facilier really gone? Feels like a waste. Similarly, I'm not complaining about Gothel being taken out of the picture, but the fact of the matter is we only just saw her reasoning for being evil like a week ago, and now we're done with her. Villains like Victoria Belfry worked because we got buildup and we understood the pain and anger before we got to the ending moment. Here, these two villains are killed off before we get what they wanted or why.

Pros:

I actually really love the twist that Hyperion Heights is in the past. It alleviates a lot of the problems I was having about Storybrooke this season - like, were Emma and Hook and the Charmings et. al. really okay with not having heard from Henry or Regina all this time? But now we know that they're displaced in time, and it's a cool element that really makes this season fit in logically with the rest of the show.

Okay you know what's brilliant? Henry kissing Regina on the forehead is what breaks the curse. I was rooting for it to be an unexpected True Love's Kiss, and that's what we got. There was a lot of good buildup to it, too, as we see younger Henry and Regina back in Storybrooke as Henry struggles to decide what he wants to do after graduating high school. Regina is hesitant to let Henry go at first, but she learns to accept that her son has grown up. All of this stuff in the flashbacks helps to make the moment when Henry remembers, and rushes to Regina only to find her unconscious, all the more powerful. Plus, what a great full-circle moment from the breaking of the first curse, where Henry receives a kiss on the forehead from his other mother. Brilliant.

Also, can I just say, Henry remembering because of himself was exactly the twist I didn't know I needed. The whole episode I was feeling anxious, like - how he is he going to remember? Regina receives a magic potion from Rumple to give him, so he'll remember, regain his belief, and then be able to break the curse. But this doesn't work. Lucy and Regina showing him the book of stories and having him touch it also doesn't work. Regina telling Henry that she'll always be there for him no matter what? Doesn't work. Henry is too broken. He doesn't believe anymore, because he feels like he's failed his family. But then... Henry calls a number on the adoption form that Regina had showed him, and young Henry answers. The flashback and the main story are brought into connection for this one brief scene, and that's what snaps Henry's memories back. The Heart of the Truest Believer strikes again, and it works wonderfully.

Of course, everybody remembering who they really are was excellent. I particularly enjoyed Rumple and Hook's exchanges. There's this great moment early on where Rogers is freaking out and asking Rumple what's going on with this magic and stuff, and Rumple tells him the truth, that all magic is real. When Rogers asks who he is, back in the other realm, Rumple's response is: "All you need to know right now is... you're a survivor. Captain." And then when the curse breaks, Rumple gives him this little smile, and Hook is like... "Crocodile?" The fact that we got to a place where these two could be... um... friends? Is one of the weirdest and most wonderful surprises of this season.

Tilly is my #1 fave. Her reunion with Robin once the curse broke was just everything I wanted it to be. Robin calls her "tower girl," and they share a kiss, and awwww. Also, it turns out Alice was the one who could save them all along. As Regina realizes that she can't face down Gothel on her own, Alice shows up. She holds hands with Robin on one side, and a severely weakened Hook on the other. Hook, although still cursed to stay away from her, braves the pain to stand at her side and offer his love. And love wins the day. Of course. Tilly turns Gothel into a tree, and Hook is taken away by ambulance (giving me some serious flashbacks to other-Hook's death, so... that was rough).

There's a big part of me that wishes Henry could have remembered a lot sooner, and we could have had more time post-curse to spend with these characters. But even if the wait was perhaps a little long, I really, really liked the moment when it finally happened. All of the reunions were so sweet. Ella and Henry, and then Lucy running up, hugging her parents, then running into her grandma Regina's arms... Naveen and Tiana, Alice and Robin, Hook and Alice... all of it was just so satisfying. And the fact that it took young Henry to make it possible was just the sort of sweet surprise I didn't know I wanted or needed. I'm glad this show isn't going to drag itself on past this season, but I'm going to be a little weepy when it's all over!

9/10